The Teacher Shift We Did NOT Expect... And What it Means Going Forward

When do you know it’s time to start your next chapter? Today, you’ll hear how Ali and JoDee knew it was the right time to make their own shift.

In this episode, Ali and JoDee sit down to share some big news about Teacher Shift! They share their experiences leading up to their big decision, why this specific shift needed to happen, and what they’ll be doing going forward. 

Ali and JoDee would like to give a special shout out to all of their listeners over the years. They couldn’t have made this podcast what it is without you all! 

Connect with Ali and JoDee:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/teachershift
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/teachershift
Teacher Shift LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/teacher-shift
Ali’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisimon/
JoDee’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jodeescissors/

Website
https://www.teachershiftpodcast.com/

Episode Transcriptions
https://www.teachershiftpodcast.com/blog

Transcript

Ali 0:06
Teachers are natural innovators, entertainers and problem solvers. They dream of growing old into the profession, teaching their kids kids, but sometimes career goals shift, and that makes opportunities outside of the classroom seem intangible, questioning, who am I, if I'm not a teacher? I'm your host, Ali Simon.

JoDee  0:29  
And I'm your co host, JoDee Scissors.

Ali  0:32  
And this is Teacher Shift. 

JoDee  0:43  
When do you know it's time to start your next chapter? Over the past few years, Allie and I have shared our journey through teacher shift, only to realize that life itself is a series of shifts. Today, we explore the signs that it's time to step away, embrace change and prioritize the opportunities life presents. 

Ali  1:05  
So we're glad to be back today with another episode, and we really want to recognize when it's time to move on and write the next chapter, or maybe make your next shift. So today I'm going to ask you, JoDee, how you and I came to the decision when we recognized the signs of a shift and how something was needed for us with Teacher Shift. 

JoDee  1:26  
Yeah, so I think my signs are pretty obvious ones, and I would say it's just that my schedule is becoming stacked and my priorities are shifting. And where in the past, my priorities had more dedicated time to say the podcast like, you know, I was all in. But as life throws new opportunities, work and personal, I started to realize that, like, I was really trying to, like, shove things in my schedule and release. It felt like, you know, a Tetris board, you know, where you're just trying to, like, make things fit. And, you know, I think I bring a lot of that upon myself, because I do feel like, excited about new things. You know, I feel that I want to try new things and explore other other opportunities. So I think that when you start playing that game of Tetris, you have to really step back and say, I need to do something about this.

Ali  2:32  
Right. And I think you know, as you're talking about that it often correlates to kind of how I felt, even when I was in the classroom, like so many competing priorities, and then you have your outside life, and when that starts to pick up, maybe you partner up, maybe you have children. And so that's part of what I think led to both of our teacher shifts. But now with the podcast, we started this during the pandemic, so I think, you know, admittedly, we probably had some more free time then than we do now. We couldn't go do all the things that we're able to do now and then. For our listeners, in case you don't know this, JoDee and I, by nature, are just both really busy bodies, like we, we. I was just thinking about this like 

JoDee  2:32  
our greatest strength and our greatest fault. 

Ali  2:43  
Yes, yes, we just we go, go, go, we schedule ourselves until there's no room left, and sometimes that really takes a toll on you, and also our lives have shifted so we have those competing life priorities. You know, we're in these tween years as parents, and in many ways, it gets easier, but the driving around gets worse.

JoDee  3:42  
I cannot tell you, like, how much I drive now. I never, like forecasted that as something because, you know, like, most of what we do is just like right here in our community, but you're right  the tween years, while I have seen this kind of evolution of my child and independence and autonomy and things like that. It's also like one of the most critical ages where a lot of people back off their parental involvement, and I make sure to stay present, but in a healthy way, where I'm not overbearing or helicopter parent, just making sure that they know that, that she knows that in these, like, really tough years, we've got her back, whether it's friendships or changes, like internal changes, all those kind of things. Like, I'm not backing away now, like I want her to know that I'm here for her.

Ali  4:40  
And that's also part of why we shifted away from being in the classroom, was because we wanted to be more present with our families. And so I feel very fortunate that I have that same opportunity that you do, to like to be present, to to do the carpooling, to take them different activities, but there's only so many hours in the day, and. And you know now we're going to take some time to focus on what's next for teacher shift, and so we want to let you know that this is going to be our last episode for now, as we work on other projects. So we're doing our best to embrace this change, but we will admit that it wasn't easy. We had a lot of back and forth about this. It actually took several months to even come to this conclusion, and then we felt rushed. We didn't want to have to wrap up so quickly. So we're at episode 103 instead of 100.

JoDee  5:33  
Yeah, I think the one thing that I was challenged with on, you know, do we sunset this for now? Do we slow down? Like, what, what's our plan here? I think the one thing that really challenged me was the fact that, like, we still have people reaching out to us wanting to tell their stories, because we could not capture all the stories in our lifetime. There are so many stories from former teachers, current teachers, people that support teachers, and it's it's those stories that I love to sit in and hear. Like I know I'm gonna see you because we're friends and we live close by now. But it's those stories that I wish, or that I hope, that if we can't capture them, someone else can, or that someone doesn't hold back when someone needs that type of support, that they're open about their shifts. But we have lots of awesome stories to re listen to and connect with, and stories that really helped me kind of make this decision.

Ali  6:31  
Yes, yes. And I think too, we talk a lot about being willing to make a shift outside of the classroom, or, you know, making a shift into something different. Maybe you're going to start slow by building like a side hustle, you know, then you have to take that step, and you do have to leave. And so we want to follow our own advice that we slowed things down. We went to bi weekly episodes in 2024 and that was us slowing down, making a change, and then acknowledging that, okay, we need a little bit more of a shift right now for the season of our lives and to focus on other projects, but it was a very, you know, a tough decision that we thought about a lot, and that's what it really comes down to. When you're making a big shift or you're making a big decision, you should spend time really considering it and, and trying to, as we've talked about before, make changes, first to, you know, to somehow see if it can last longer or maybe it will be a little bit different.

JoDee  7:28  
I feel like I should be a little bit more explicit about just for clarity. Like, since we started, like, what has happened in those years to bring me to this point? So, like you said, like, we started during the pandemic, and at that time, like, when my daughter started going back to school, like, parents weren't even allowed in the building yet. So, like, parental involvement was very limited. It was all kind of like virtual, a bit, in the sense of how to support but now in terms of, like, wanting to be involved. It means that, like, I can be on site at my daughter's school, helping the librarian or the music teacher or the the teachers plan a party or go on a field trip. Like there are more opportunities for me to be there, rather than just kind of, like sitting back and waiting for, you know, some of the protocols to be lifted in order to, like, engage more. And on top of that, my business has grown. So when the pandemic hit, I had just started my LLC, and now it's to the point where I have, like, higher demands. I have more clientele. And I'm still on this journey of figuring out how to sustain a business, but also like sustain a lifestyle that I chose, that I desire for myself, to be a working professional, and also like a mom and a friend and take time for myself and things like that. So I would say, like, since we started, the biggest thing is just like, the world has really opened up. And what that means is more sports, more in person meetings, more opportunities to go and be in schools and things like that. So it took a while to get back to that point of norm that we used to know, and now we're here and making an adjustment, which is what we learned from our shift, and what all of our guests have taught us to do. And now we're simply here, making those decisions for ourself, using the strategies that everyone has shared with us.

Ali  9:42  
Yeah, I really love the way that you outlined that. And I think what I heard that maybe, you know, our listeners heard too, is that when you're starting your own business, when you're an entrepreneur, you don't really know what things are going to be like, and so you're constantly adjusting things, right? Like, you know, having some business to having so much business that you have to say no to clients sometimes. So I think that that, in itself, is a really good lesson for anybody who's looking to do something like that on their own. Whereas my situation is a little bit different. I enjoy working for an employer. I don't want to go out on my own, and I admire JoDee for what she does, but I transitioned to a new job in April of this year, and then we moved from New Orleans to DC, two three months after we I started a new job. Planned a big virtual convening for my new job, which was crazy, and I just kind of had been in survival mode, to be honest with you, through probably the end of the summer, like I was just surviving. And love having the podcast, and it's such a great experience to be able to do that, but it was hard to always make those commitments, and I felt like, you know, I thought I would have more time. So same thing that JoDee said, like getting settled, being in a new place, meeting people, but then, yeah, life resumes. And I will say, if you don't live in the DMV area, it's a little different type of busy here. We're very scheduled. We have a lot of activities. We like it. We thrive in that environment, our family. But yeah, there's just so many opportunities that you you get to a point where you you have to say no to things you actually want to do because not enough time to do everything.

JoDee  11:24  
Oh my gosh, you're you're like, you're so on point. So the other day, one of my daughter's friends asked me, Hey, are you volunteering for the musical? And then they said, Are you volunteering for something else? I don't remember and I said, No, well, I'm volunteering for the musical, but not that thing, because I have over volunteered, and the parent was standing right there and goes, Yes, you have, you need to calm down. And I was like, Okay, I'm gonna calm down. I'm not gonna, I'm not gonna volunteer for everything, even if it's just like, taking tickets or, you know, like handling like or like setting up things, I'm just like, I have to say no, and it's like a very conscious effort to do that.

Ali  12:11  
It's hard. I also said I wasn't going to take on any big volunteer opportunities our first year here. I made it to December. Probably because just like you, my mind is like, Okay, teacher shift is slowing down. Yeah? So now..

JoDee  12:26  
Yeah, I feel like this is a confessional.

Ali  12:29  
This is like a confessional, but yes, we just want to share with you that I think what, what I'm sharing and what JoDee is sharing is that we try to pursue our passions, right, things that we really care about, things that fill our cups, like the podcast, like volunteering at our school or in our community, because those are things that we enjoy. And so just like we did with the podcast, we encourage you to pursue your passions. Maybe there's something that you love doing, but also know that sometimes things don't last forever, and that stepping away from one thing can lead to a new opportunity somewhere else. So...

JoDee  13:06  
Also, like, I think most of our passions don't have expiration dates. Like the other day, I was talking to my daughter about... we were in New York City, and I came up with, like, two book concepts, because, you know, I like to write and have a collection of writings. And she was talking about her schedule, feeling over scheduled because she has basketball and musical and all this kind of things. And she was talking about something else that she wanted, you know? I was like, well, maybe when you're your schedule cell is down, we can add that in. And she was like, oh, you know, but what if this? And what if that? And I was like, listen, like, what you want does not have an expiration date in the same way that I have this, this book idea eating away at my brain right now, and I know that it's going to have to wait about two months. I jotted it down. I know what the main theme is going to be, but, like, I can't do it right now. And I know that all of those ideas and those little passions, they don't have expiration dates. Maybe, if I'm like, 100 wanting to skydive, I don't know, maybe that has an expiration date. But most of these things don't have expiration dates.

Ali  14:20  
I agree. And I think, you know, my mind, I'm like, trying to remember all these famous people who came to their success later on in life, and I really can't think of a single one right now, so maybe we'll have to go back and add those in. But I agree with you. Like dreams don't have expiration dates. Things that you want to do don't have expiration dates. I know we want to do everything now, but the reality is that we can't. I'll say, on the flip side, we talk about don't wait to do everything. It was like this, like happy medium, this balance that you're looking for between following your passion and your dreams.

JoDee  14:55  
I mean, if you feel something with great conviction that you need to go do. like go do that, you know? Like, if you are in distress in a role and you're pushing back a dream, like you have to be able to evaluate, like, where are you right now? Is it that your schedule is too much, or is it that you have the Sunday scaries and you cannot stomach going into work or going, you know, and whatever activity that you're doing, like, it's really an evaluation of where you're feeling in that moment to decide, is this something I pursue right now, or is it something that can wait?

Ali  15:33  
Yeah, that's great, JoDee. I love how you sum that up. So, you know, I think as you're listening to this episode, you're probably wondering, well, what's, what's going to happen with Teacher Shift, and so we do want to tell you a little bit about how we are going to stay connected with you all. We will continue to engage on social media. We will be highlighting previous episodes. We will be able to share like top five episodes from 2024, top episodes, you know, from different time periods with you.

JoDee  16:02  
And we still want to hear from you like, please still continue to share your stories in our DMs and on LinkedIn, we get you know, messages and things about shifts that people have made.

Ali  16:14  
And we want to be connectors for you. So connect with us on LinkedIn, reach out to us as we're sharing past episodes, comment on them and let us know. And of course, I don't think we've ever really said it during the episode. I know it's at the after credits is review us on Apple podcasts and all the platforms. And if you haven't done that yet, leave a comment there for us. That's another way to stay engaged. But I think that we do want to let you know that we have some bigger dreams for teacher shift, and we're hoping to work on something new and that when it's ready, we'll share it with you. So yeah, we're just excited for giving ourselves this time to have a different shift and a break. As you heard Jody say, we are now physically closer. We live in the same areas. 

JoDee  17:01  
Yes, this shift is opening up another opportunity for us to think about teacher shift in a different way, and that's really what we need, in conjunction with the other things going on in our life.

Ali  17:14  
Yeah, yeah. It's it's going to be great. So we are looking forward to that, but we really want to also acknowledge how we got here. And you know, we've told this story before, but Teacher Shift, or TGTR Podcast, which obviously known as The Great Teacher Resignation really started on a park bench during COVID. We talked about this idea, about starting a podcast, pitched it, and I cannot thank JoDee enough for partnering with me to make this vision a reality. It really would not exist without JoDee's amazing teacher brain and all of her skills. She is the anything tech related for Teacher Shift. It's JoDee. Almost all the posts. It's Jodi. So she is just really fabulous, and I am just so lucky to have her as a thought partner in this process. And you know, we also talk about our family, so I definitely have to give a special shout out to my husband, Ben, and our kids who supported me in this for almost this three year endeavor. I remember my daughter at her last school telling her teachers about my podcast, and then they should listen to it, and I had to tell them, like, I'm not trying to tell you, like to leave. It's like, so funny, but you know, it's exciting when your kids are proud of what you're doing. And like, last summer, my son took a podcasting elective at sleepaway camp, and I don't think he necessarily would have done that without us doing the podcast. So those are special shout outs.

JoDee  18:42  
Well, now chat GPT writes everybody's podcasts for them. So we were pre chat GPT.

Ali  18:49  
We were, we were, and there are other podcasts that talk about this, but we did not find a podcast like this that existed when we were transitioning. That wasn't this style of podcast. And so we're really grateful to our listeners for embracing this podcast. We would not be doing this work without you, without the great feedback that you give us, without the engagement. And I think our favorite thing, I mean, we talk about it, is having listeners on the show when they reach out to us and we're able to bring them on as guest. You really remind us why this work is so important, and why we should always value educators, both in the classroom and with their transferable skills outside of the classroom.

JoDee  19:34  
I think I mean just so much credit to all the guests that put themselves out there, even like off mic, share their stories with other teachers, and kind of build that community of support for those that are looking for a transition. I know that non teachers have reached out and said I really needed to hear that, you know. So though we were talking about this very niche profession, all of these guests coming on here and just being open, and all of the offline conversations that we've had. Some of the most wonderful conversations we've had with people have been offline just when you get going. So big shout out to all of them and those that kind of maintaining relationships with us that we see on LinkedIn, or we see it at conferences, or that we maybe have collaborated with on other things. I think that just goes to show the strength of a teacher's ability to form bonds and have relationships. That we can meet somebody on a podcast, hit it off, and all of a sudden we're friends, you know? 

Ali  20:40  
Yeah, or meet somebody at a conference and say you have a podcast and they're like, Oh, that's so, like, so interesting. Like, let's connect. And yeah, and thank you to our listeners who were there from the beginning. Like, we, you know, we made a shift in the teacher shift, and we are so appreciative that you came with us.

JoDee  20:58  
I just want to shout out to my family as well, who have been big supporters and are always supporters of my dreams and ideas, even if they don't take off as some of my projects haven't, but always there to support. And I think that that's one of the most wonderful things about my family, is there are no dreams too big, and if you don't try, then you fail. So I think that's pretty much my dad's motto. So...

Ali  21:30  
You're not going to succeed every single time. That's why you have to keep trying. You have to persevere. And I think that that's really one of the things that we hear these stories, that it's not easy to do something new in life. And so that's a lot of the one of the continual themes, actually, through our episodes, I would say, is that it was hard. I didn't get the first job. I didn't get the 25th job, or, you know, I failed an exam that I that I needed to take the first time, or the first however, many times, but I kept going back and that perseverance, like that grit, that's what makes people successful.

JoDee  22:08  
Definitely. And then lastly, I want to thank Ali. I could not think of like a better partner in all of this. Ali keeps us on track. She is so full of amazing ideas. She's one of the funniest people that I know, so the conversations are always fun, and I think she has the voice of a star. So I know that I've mentioned that before, but I love Ali's voice. I love the way that she presents information, and I love the way that she synthesizes what our guests are saying, what I'm saying. I think she has a really, a really nice talent for that. As as someone that often chooses talent for projects, you are my talent choice 100% of the time. And thanks for believing in me, for being a partner in this with you and and all that's coming next.

Ali  23:01  
Thanks, JoDee. And I will say I was going to do it offline, but I feel like our listeners deserve to hear this too, that JoDee, you've grown so much in doing the podcast. Like you, you nail our lead ins. That wasn't always your thing, but you also have the podcast voice that you might not have thought that you had and I love listening to our episodes, usually when I'm walking my dog, and it's just so fun to listen to it again, even after we record it, and just to hear what an awesome job our producer Emily has done. We definitely want to shout out to make Teacher Shift sound the way that it does, because sometimes we are, we are repeating things. It's not always perfect, but I think between both of our enthusiasm and willingness to learn and then also having her, we're really proud of the work we've done.

JoDee  23:51  
we've done. You can tell that Emily, like, really knows us. She likes at the beginning, when we were like, you know, recording episodes and things, we would have some feedback. And then eventually she was like, No, I got this. So Emily, you've been really amazing. We love your work. We definitely recommend her to anyone. 

Ali  24:09  
Yeah, so I think you know, to kind of close us out, I would say that we really, we really appreciate our listeners, and we want to encourage you to focus on your passions, to also acknowledge when it's time to take shifts, and your idea might also be a podcast. So, you know, let's, let's maybe give them a few tips about, if they're going to start a podcast, what woulthey need to do? What would be the tip putting you on the spot here? 

JoDee  24:35  
Oh, okay, okay, okay. Well, one, you need to have a solid topic. You need to be confident on the mic. You need a really good editor, and you need to be yourself. You need to be natural. People don't want to hear scripted stuff. Just make those deeper connections. Have guests. It's always fun to banter back and forth with people. Just make it like normal and engaging. Like don't stretch for a certain number of minutes or anything.

Ali  25:03  
 Yeah, I think you really nailed it. I think being organized, trying to get a variety of guests is really helpful if you want to have guests on the show. I definitely think having an editor is unless you just love that, and that's your hobby and you want to do that too, that's great. But the other thing that we learned, and I wish we'd learned it in the beginning, is making sure that whatever you call your podcast, people are able to recognize exactly what the podcast is going to be about by your title. So, you know, maybe not always having, like, the most catchy title is the best idea, maybe really having what the heart of your podcast is going to be about and make it recognizable. That's the biggest thing. I would say.

JoDee  25:44  
That's true. We learned. We learned the hard way on that while we thought we had a really, you know, we were TGTR with the great teacher resignation, because it was such a trending buzzword. I mean, it was everywhere. It did not translate to podcasting, especially when it was time to talk about, I mean, essentially, like a support group for making shifts. And I think we we landed on the right choice, but it took us a long time. We also got things going quick. We were like, Let's start a podcast. All right, it's

Ali  26:17  
what our idea to like be taken or something. I mean, what a teacher. 

JoDee  26:21  
We're like idea, okay, let's do it. 

Ali  26:23  
Do it. Let's do it. And so I think that also give yourself grace when you were starting something new. You're not going to be perfect. Oh

JoDee  26:31  
yeah. I mean, if we had a blooper reel, come on. If Emily did a blooper reel, it would be hours long.

Ali  26:39  
And don't be afraid to learn something new. JoDee had to coach me on how to make reels and how to do things on social media. But you can learn it not that difficult. And so that's the other thing. Like, just be willing to learn, put yourself out there and have fun with it. Like, if you're not having fun, then it's not worth it. And we've had so much fun. It's just like something that I've looked forward to whenever we have our interviews, meeting new people, telling people about the podcast, like it's a really fun thing to share. So thank you for giving us the chance to share with you, and we hope to keep in touch with you all through social media. So check us out.

JoDee  27:19  
Stay in touch. Thanks for listening wverybody.

Ali  27:31  
Are you interested in suggesting a topic for Teacher shift, being a guest or recommending a guest? Please see the episodes page on our website to make a submissioionion, and if you'd like to write for us, see our blog page. If you liked teacher shift, give us a five star rating and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, Apple podcasts, Spotify and Amazon music. Today's episode was written and recorded by me, Ali Simon and my co host, JoDee Scissors,.s. Executive produced by Teacher Shift. Produced and edited by Emily Porter. Original music: Emoji by Tubebackr.