It never fails that each time I present at conference or workshop, there are a few people that walk up to me and ask how can they do what I do. These wonderful educators come to me because they are not sure how to get started. These beautiful souls see themselves coaching and teaching other teachers, providing professional development, and supporting other teachers and administrators. Well, the most important fact that I share is that they must learn how to take rejection first. It has taken me over 7 years, 250 job filled notices, 35 rejected proposals, 5 years of doctoral studies, social media certification, coaching endorsement certification, and many many hours of professional/personal development. But on a lighter note one of the greatest things about becoming an educational consultant is that you can begin while teaching. (Just do not do anything personal during work hours)
Only pursue an area in which you are a passionate expert and that you will do for free.
Do you love helping teachers create lessons and integrate technology into their instruction?Are you passionate about sharing best practices in a particular subject area?Does the idea of coaching other people how to reach students with diverse disabilities make your heart smile?
Understand “education” is a really vague area, so pinpoint your area(s) of expertise.What do people come to ask you about the most? My focus is brain based teaching and technology integration.You can’t be “anti-social” you have to be active on social media. Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Youtube, Pinterest, etc. Join at least one of these social media channels. You don’t have to contribute right away. Start out by following other experts and thought leaders in your field of interest.Make sure you read blogs and sign up for newsletters too.
Find relevant educational hashtags to follow so you can see posts from a broad network.
Start where you are and then seek local, state, and national opportunities
Check out Meetup and Eventbrite to find opportunities that are relevant to your interests. You can even participate and apply to district and state requests. You will be able to learn new things and also add to your professional/personal learning network of names and your knowledge of leadership. It is important to become actively involved in improving education at a broader level.
Don’t stop there. Consider joining your school improvement committees, district task forces, curriculum revision groups, review, and adoption committees, assessment forums and discussions, and standardized testing panels. You will never know who you may meet. Opportunities are all around you and you never know who may offer you money in exchange for your expertise.
Finish reading the rest of the tips on www.techtechteach.com
Make sure you follow great people on twitter too... start by following me! @CourtneyLTeague