Maryann Reid is an award winning author, speaker and commentator from New York. She has been teaching for the past 12 years.
Prior to her becoming a teacher, St Martin Press published her first book and this led to her receiving numerous requests to conduct writing workshops. She completed her MFA and later embarked on a career that incorporates writing, teaching and publishing.
Since then, she has published 6 books and taught in the United States and the United Arab Emirates.
Her latest novel, This Life, a fictional tale that follows the life experiences of a heroine and focuses on empowerment, was published in 2014.
Today, Maryann is focusing on publishing other authors, providing personal coaching, writing a memoir and personal essays.
How has being an educator helped you in your personal and professional life?
Being a teacher has helped me to be a better listener. Teachers are in a position of authority. at times, this can lead to a feeling of always wanting to be in control. Additionally, this is sometimes fuelled by a fear of ‘not being heard’. By being a better listener, teachers are opting for a less combative and more subtle way to control what happens in the classroom. This is important to personal relationships as well because it leads to you being a better friend and person in general.
Secondly, teaching teaches patience. Our students are great at teaching us patience. At times, we want things to go really quickly. However, some things happen at a different pace, which means that we have to pace ourselves. When we accept that things won’t always go according to how we want it, it helps us to be better prepared both professionally and in our personal lives.
Your Teach UAE Magazine articles provide educators with many useful and smart ideas to stay healthy, happy and focused … why are these things crucial to teachers?
Balance is very important, especially because teachers have a very demanding job. For teachers who are teaching in the UAE or another foreign country, there are a lot of changes and adjustments that they have to make. However, good health and remaining focused are necessary to having the right balance. altogether, good health and focus allow us to address parts of ourselves that we sometimes forget to deal with. Each day, teachers give a bit of themselves away. It is important that we remember that our jobs do not define us and that we cultivate our inner resources. Jobs will change. Everything in life is temporary. When we appreciate this, we are not as attached to outcomes.
Do you have any words of support for educators who may be considering a change in career?
Follow your dreams. Find the energy to do the things that you like to do and start working on them now. This may mean that you might have to wake up a bit earlier or change some of your weekend routines. Teachers do spend a lot of time teaching and planning. However, we also have at least ten hours to ourselves each day that we can organise and take time from to work on our goals. If you start planting your seeds now, you may reap the fruits of your work in a few months or years. Also, once you start working on your goals now, an opportunity may present itself and you will be ready because you already started the process.
For additional information on Maryann, please access any of the following links:
www.booksandbuzz.com (business website)
www.maryannreidinc.com (personal website)
maryann@booksandbuzz.com (business email)
By Carolyn Lee
Maryann Reid, bestselling author and personal coach, shows teachers how to practice extreme self-care and launch their goals. She can be reached at www.maryannreidinc.com.
