There are days in which I wake up on auto-pilot and simply breeze by doing what "I am suppose to be doing" or "what I planned on accomplishing" that day. Yet the underlying question for it all was recently asked, "What keeps you going? Like, what really keeps you going?"
As I pondered this question, I realized that the underlying cause for what really keeps me going is dependent on what I am doing, who I am doing it for, and why I am doing so. Which then led me to the following realizations:
1. My profession is not one that I do for myself. As much as I enjoy teaching, the reasons I do so are not to fulfill my goal and dream. Instead, the reason I teach is simply to allow students to pave their own path for a future that they themselves are proud of.
2. Earning my Bachelor of Science was not a walk in the park and was very well worth every stressful moment. But why even go through the trouble of earning a degree that required investing before seeing the actual fruits of benefits? For my family. To ensure that I can be a strong pillar, that in any shaking moment I can still be standing with a degree that allows for a much more comfortable lifestyle.
3. Beginning the process of earning my Masters degree was not a "winged" choice. After much deliberation and comparison of degrees, I decided that in order for me to fully be able to deliver a much more adequate intellectual structure for my students, I would have to keep studying myself. So once again, I made a decision based on the possible benefits of my career and those it impacts.
"OK, so far everything is being done for a reasonable cause, but what keeps me going? What keeps me from tossing the expo marker down the stairs?"
From family to friends and teachers, all have deposited faith, love, and have taught me to spread my wings. To them, I owe more than I will ever be able to repay in a lifetime. Because of their solid attempt to ensure my success, happiness, and overall triumph -- I can now do the very same.
So all in all, what keeps me going is the gratitude that I hold for those who helped me pave my path of success.
What keeps me from falling apart during stressful situations?
The glimmer in a student's eyes.
The never-ending joy that students rambunctiously enter my classroom with.
If ever you are asked what keeps you going, what really keeps you going, think for a few minutes and I can assure you that you will realize that sometimes what we do is not done for ourselves, and instead our happiness is sometimes found in that of others.
All in all, make sure that whatever keeps you going is also the source of your happiness.
P.S. If you ever have writer's block, this may be a great topic to begin brainstorming with.
