It’s weird to me that we choose what we want to do for the rest of our lives when we’re only 18 years old. College majors and career goals are big decisions. Some people just aren’t ready to make a decision about their future at that age, and it’s a shame that they end up in a field that just wasn’t meant for them.

I’m blessed that I made the decision to go to a community college for two years out of high school because it gave me the time to find where I fit best. For the past few years, I’ve been volunteering with kids and teens at my church and eventually I began working as a preschool teacher. During this time, I discovered my love and passion for teaching kids.

Along the way, I’ve met teachers that are absolutely amazing at what they do. Unfortunately, for every amazing teaching I’ve met, there is also one who clearly does not have a passion for teaching, so here is an open letter to every person who is choosing education as their major because they don’t know what else to do and they think it sounds easy.

First of all, it isn’t easy.

Teaching is hard work, and it is also a career that is vastly underpaid. Teachers wake up extremely early in the morning to get things ready for the day, and then they go to school and are surrounded by kids who often times don’t want to be there. Teachers love, support, and care for kids all day long. It doesn’t matter what age you teach, there are always kids that need love and care in your class, and there are always kids you worry about after school ends. You work all day long to make sure that these kids have every bit of knowledge you can give them to succeed, and a lot of times you get no appreciation for it, even when you put hours and hours into lesson planning.

You won’t make it through the tough days if you are not completely passionate about teaching.

This may sound like an exaggeration, but it’s not. If you are not completely passionate about and dedicated to seeing kids succeed, then you will not make it through the tough days.

I’m talking about the days where it starts out as an absolute disaster; and then one kid punches another kid, and suddenly the kid next to them is throwing up, and then another kid decides to have a tantrum.

I’m talking about the days where nothing goes the way you planned.

I’m talking about the days where you get a phone call from a parent screaming and throwing a tantrum worse than their child over something that isn’t in your control.

I’m talking about the days where you want to go home and cry because they’re that bad, but you get up the next day and you do it all again because you love your kids.

You won’t make it through those days if you aren’t committed, and kids need someone who is committed.

I know this article was mostly negative, but it needs to be said. Teaching is a hard job and you should only get yourself into it if you know that you can be consistent, available, and patient. It doesn’t mean you have to be perfect because no one is, it just means you have to be fully there.

Don’t choose this path if you don’t know what you want to do with your life. Choose something that pays more or is easier. No teacher does their job for the easiness or the pay. They do it out of love and joy.