When I have a client who has been successful, I like to share that success. So, today I am excited to share the success of Brittany Rotskoff.
When I first met Brittany during the summer of 2021, she was a young stay-at-home mom who had quit her teaching job because of COVID. She was worried about going back to in-person instruction because she had a baby at home, and she did not want to risk her health or the health of her child.
A National Board Certified Teacher, Brittany was always clear that her career change should be part-time to start because she didn't want to leave her baby too much of the time. She was also very clear that she wanted to work in a museum or library. But she wasn't sure how to make that happen.
She took the Jumpstart Your Job Search Course that I offer, and with the help she gained from that program on how to best position herself for a new job search, and with the help of her sister who helped her with introductions, she has landed a new job as a Part-Time Visitor Experience Associate at the Kemper Art Museum which is associated with Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri.
The job is exactly what she was looking for. You can hear her talk about it and her job hunting experience in this episode of Teachers in Transition.
If you would like to learn more about Kitty's Jumpstart Your Job Search Program, check out this link on her website https://teachersintransition.com/jumpstart-your-job-search-2-0-program. If you would like to learn if the program is right for you, make an appointment with Kitty for a complimentary Discovery Session at https://teachersintransition.com/calendar.
For more information or with suggestions for other topics, email Kitty at kittyboitnott@gmail.com.
When I have a client who has been successful, I like to share that success. So, today I am excited to share the success of Brittany Rotskoff.
When I first met Brittany during the summer of 2021, she was a young stay-at-home mom who had quit her teaching job because of COVID. She was worried about going back to in-person instruction because she had a baby at home, and she did not want to risk her health or the health of her child.
A National Board Certified Teacher, Brittany was always clear that her career change should be part-time to start because she didn't want to leave her baby too much of the time. She was also very clear that she wanted to work in a museum or library. But she wasn't sure how to make that happen.
She took the Jumpstart Your Job Search Course that I offer, and with the help she gained from that program on how to best position herself for a new job search, and with the help of her sister who helped her with introductions, she has landed a new job as a Part-Time Visitor Experience Associate at the Kemper Art Museum which is associated with Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri.
The job is exactly what she was looking for. You can hear her talk about it and her job hunting experience in this episode of Teachers in Transition.
If you would like to learn more about Kitty's Jumpstart Your Job Search Program, check out this link on her website https://teachersintransition.com/jumpstart-your-job-search-2-0-program. If you would like to learn if the program is right for you, make an appointment with Kitty for a complimentary Discovery Session at https://teachersintransition.com/calendar.
For more information or with suggestions for other topics, email Kitty at kittyboitnott@gmail.com.
Are you a teacher who's feeling stressed out and overwhelmed. Do you worry that you're feeling symptoms of burnout or are you sure you've already gotten there? Have you started to dream of doing some other kind of job or perhaps pursuing a whole different career, but you don't know what else you're even qualified to do. You don't know how to start a job search. You just feel stuck. If that sounds like you, I promise you're not alone. My name is kitty boy. Not I'm a career transition and job search coach. And I specialize in helping burnout out teachers just like you deal, not only with the stress and overwhelm of your day to a job, but to consider what other careers might be out there waiting for you. Join me for teachers in transition. In some episodes, I'll be speaking to stress management techniques and how you can manage your stress on a day to day basis. In other episodes, I'll be talking about career trend. What tools do you need to be successful in a job search when you're moving from one career into a totally different track. These are questions that you need answers to and I can help you find those answers. My name is kitty boy. Not welcome to teachers in transition.
Speaker 2:Good morning. This is kitty boy of teachers in transition, the podcast and the YouTube channel. And today I have the honor of interviewing one of my former clients. Brittany Rosoff is with us. Did I pronounce that correctly, Brittany? Yeah, you did.<laugh> I, I just looked it up. Brittany. We've been working together since June of 2021. So just about six months. That's that is fantastic. Now that we've turned the first of the new year and we are into 2022 and you are on the cusp of starting a brand new job. And I'm going to be asking you to tell us a little bit more about that. But as far as your job, new job title, you will be the visitor experience associate at ke art museum. And I believe this is in St. Louisie Missouri, right? That's right. Yep. Awesome. So the reason I asked, uh, for Brittany to do this interview with me today and Brittany, just FYI, I may be using it as part of my podcast series, as well as the YouTube channel mm-hmm<affirmative> and as a case study, but I sent Brit some questions in advance to get her thoughts about what her experience of working with me has been in these last six months. Now that she's about to start her new job. And one of the questions that I wanted you to be, uh, ready to answer, if you could, is what particular challenge did you feel that you were dealing with when you decided to work with me last summer when you signed on with the jumpstart, your job search program?
Speaker 3:Yeah, so, um, when the pandemic hit, um, that was really a time of a watershed moment because I wasn't really happy with my job. Um, I was a teacher of middle school history world history for about 13 years. And, um, I did the virtual thing and I was fine being a virtual teacher, but, um, my district decided to go in person and also as a brand new young mother, I wasn't really interested in being exposed. So I decided to do virtual for a time, as long as they would allow it, then I used personal leave and then finally I said, okay, I have to walk away. And, um, I just did some soul searching because I thought I wanna earn money. But even though my husband said, I don't have to work. I thought, no, I, I need to, I need that stimulation. And so, um, what I did was I looked around for a job in education first. Uh, it seemed like an obvious thing to go to a different school, but with 13 years in and a national board certified teacher at that made me extremely expensive. It didn't help that, you know, I had a master's degree in plus 30 years of graduate work as well. So I was extremely expensive, so no, no luck there. So I started looking out side of education and the more I did, the more I, uh, cut more and more, um, no up to a certain point, like yes, up to a point. And then no, I always hit that. No. And I was like, okay, it's been at the 13 years since I've been doing this, uh, job search thing. So surely, um, what I know to be true might be OB, I need someone who can train me, uh, to do this. Who's been in education, who knows what my resume's gonna look like and help me to jump from education out of education, into something else. And also maybe work with me a bit on what that's something else could be. So yeah. Then I came and found you through the internet<laugh>
Speaker 2:And what was the, or, or maybe there wasn't any one, but if you could select, uh, an answer to a question, an inspiration, a spark that you got from the work that we did together, or from the group work, what would, what was the main thing that resonated for you as we were doing our work together?
Speaker 3:Um, you're right. There were a lot of things. Um, one thing was deciding, oh, I really do wanna get into museum work. I would like to get into an academic setting outside of the classroom. So library, museum, uh, art museum history, those are things I did at actually extracurricularly and then saying to myself, oh, I, I could maybe transition into a job that would get me in there permanently sign me up. So that was a big thing. Um, also seeing others in the group calls saying, yeah, we did it, we got in here, we got in there. I was like, okay, this is possible. This is doable. And yeah, so that was really inspiring for me. It
Speaker 2:Does make a difference when you can see that other people are being successful. That means if they could do it, you can too, right? Yes
Speaker 3:<laugh>.
Speaker 2:So I had mentioned your new job a little bit, uh, your, the, the title and the introduction, but tell us a little bit more about the job itself and why it's the perfect job for you.
Speaker 3:Sure. So I work or I'm going to be starting work at the ke art museum and that's, uh, run through Washington university in St. Louis. And, um, the reason it's perfect for me is because it does allow me to work in a museum, um, rather than being just a volunteer docent. This actually gives me a paid position. Uh, it allows me to work with tours, uh, that go through a lot of the tours that go through are classes from the university that, uh, have been told to go there specific for different pieces or different exhibits that are constantly rotating in. And in addition to that, I'll be greeting people who come in, uh, and that includes people out the street because the museum's open to one for free, which is kind of nice. And, um, also helping of course, with their gift shop as well. So that is some skills I had before education when I was working at Barnes and noble<laugh>. So I get to utilize some of those skills again and, um, I can do it all part-time, which was something that was a major concern for me as again, a young mother. Um, yeah, my child's not yet in preschool, but they will be. And, um, until that I needed the flexibility in my schedule to work some out of the home, but also stay in the home, uh, not only for my child, but also for my other virtual job that I'm still doing also part-time so best of all worlds. Okay. Very
Speaker 2:Good. So what were some other benefits that you experienced from working with, with me either through the group coaching or the individual coaching, anything in particular that you can point to that helped you in your transition?
Speaker 3:Yeah. So when I was working out what it is I wanted to be, um, and what I wanted to transition to, I was getting a bit of stress, uh, from the family, not from my spouse. Who's been very, very supportive of me, but, um, more from outside, like other relatives who were saying, why, why are you leaving education? You've worked a long time to get this. I had my masters plus 30, uh, national board certified. I meant to be a teacher. And, uh, you helped work me, uh, work me through that and to also see that, no, I, I do have my best interests at heart and yes, um, I'm actually doing the right thing and this is truly something I'm really excited about. And my proof was, uh, when I was being interviewed for this position, I was so excited and so thrilled and ecstatic, and that actually showed with my relatives when I called and said, okay, I had my interview today. It was great. And, uh, talked about my new boss and how awesome it was to meet her. And they said, we have not seen you this excited about an interview since we don't remember when. And I said, exactly, so this is the right transition for me, the right thing for me.
Speaker 2:And at the end of the day, they love you. They want what's best for you, but it's not unusual for families, especially families. Who've never been teachers or who have taught, but it's been a while since they retired and last talked to appreciate just how much the teaching profession has changed over the last 10 to 15 years. And it has changed dramatically. Very much. Pandemic has just made it that much worse. Oh
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Yes. Yeah. It's, it's not the same job and people who don't understand why you would want to leave, just don't understand the nature of the work that you are looking to to get away from, and that you feel like there's something else you could be doing and should be doing with your life. So my final question, and I'll just sworn everybody, the, the, um, scraper truck is coming through my neighborhood and my dogs may go off at any second now. Uh, so my apologies, but if you were talking to a fellow teacher who was feeling similarly stressed about their job, wondering what else there might be out there for them to do, would you be willing to recommend working with me to those friends and, uh, members of your family who might decide that they're ready for a career change?
Speaker 3:I would absolutely. Um, because I've been exactly where a lot of them are like on Facebook people while often post things like, yes, it's worth it. Yes. You know, we're going back from winter break, but you know, it's, it's all worth it in the end. And I feel like saying it is to a point there, there comes a point when there is a cost to teaching that is not worth paying of it. Um, for me, it was my sanity. It, it was my joy. It was gone. My passion just gone and I knew it was time to walk away. And I'm so thrilled. I did. And I'm glad that there was, uh, someone like you out there for me to say, okay, you've made the hardest. Like that was the hardest part right there to decide this, that I thought was, is gonna be my lifetime career. It's turned out not to be that. And that there is something else I can do out there with my skillset, with my passion, with my creativity and, um, with all of the drive that I've got still left to give, I've got so many more years left that I can work and have fun and still teach in a way a museum is a great way to go. And, uh, I'm really, really thrilled about that. And I'm really excited to keep doing what I love doing, uh, still with education in a way, and still that passion and that drive, it's just outside the classroom. And sometimes you need that. You need that in order to, um, really enjoy what it is you do again, and that's to re
Speaker 2:Price myself. Yeah. So I am ecstatic for you. And I was thrilled when I got the email about the job that you had found. I know that you were interested in the museum, right from the get go and wanted, wanted an opportunity to work there and wanna thank your sister for giving you the introduction and to you for using your network, because that's, that's part of what it takes to get the change that you want. I also wanna point out that I know you didn't leave teaching easily or impulsively given that you had made the, uh, effort to become national board certified. Nobody that I know who goes through that process thinks that teaching isn't the career for them.
Speaker 3:No, um, not at all. The thing
Speaker 2:That is good to know is that in this new position, you will continue to teach. Yes. You'll just teaching outside of the traditional classroom to different students. And that's, that's what I realized a few years ago about what I do. I'm still teaching every day. I'm just teaching a different curriculum to a different group of students. Exactly teachings in our blood. I'll be national board certified through next year. It's in our blood. We can't help it. We just, we, we are teachers to our core, but teaching in the traditional classroom, isn't the only place where we need good teachers. So wow. And
Speaker 3:Isolation,
Speaker 2:I am just over the moon for you and excited, and I want you to stay in touch and let me know how it goes.
Speaker 3:Okay.
Speaker 2:Absolutely. And thank you for offering to do this interview today. I really do appreciate
Speaker 3:It. My pleasure.
Speaker 2:Okay. Take care.
Speaker 1:So there you have it, an episode of teachers in, I hope you enjoyed the information and I hope you'll plan to come back, please subscribe to teachers in transition so that you can be alerted of future episodes. And let me know if you have any questions or topics that you would like me to specifically cover in a future episode, I'm more than happy to help with individual questions as well. So email me at kitty boy, not boy.coaching.com. If you are interested in finding a new career or just enjoying your life more, this is the place to start. I'm kitty boy not. And this is teachers in transition.