Last holidays, I completely switched off from anything work related. I got sucked into binging on the show the 100 (which is awesome!) & didn’t go anywhere near Twitter. I had entered full SLOTH MODE. Steve the teacher was someone who existed in another reality and was the furthest thing from my mind. Then an unknown number called my phone on the last Thursday night of holidays. Holidays were suddenly over. It was a big shock to hear a message from Cameron Hocking from DLTV. The guts of it was something like this: “We have you down to do a SPARK Talk but realised we forgot to tell you.” Intrigued but suddenly anxious, I called back wondering - What did I write down I’d like to do again? Cameron’s reply was “It’s titled, Why More Time Won’t Fix anything”, which is kind of ironic seeing as though Digicon is two weeks away.” I remember laughing with him about it. But in my head, my first instinct was to feel terribly sick. Not a chance I’m doing a Spark Talk. There’s no time to prepare. Hopefully I’m at a PD or have a meeting I can’t get out of. During her keynote at Digicon, Holly Ransom discussed how every person has a comfort zone. And that everything within the comfort zone is not what we should be doing if we wish to better ourselves. The decision to either do it or not do it fell heavily one way or the other within these categories. Upon reflection, it’s interesting how whenever I feel a sense of getting out of my comfort zone, my first instinct is to react with feelings of scurrying in the opposite direction. .So, despite my feelings of apprehension, my second thought was, What a hypocrite! You wanted to do a Spark Talk about Time! You actually can’t say no. You have to do it! Before Presenting with Andrell Education, I would have definitely taken the easy way out. But saying no would be staying in that bubble of the comfort zone and a huge opportunity missed. Not just for sharing my ideas but my own professional and personal development. However, the simple acknowledgement and mindset of giving this a crack left me with a serious problem. I was actually really afraid and unsure if I could work my thoughts into a 12 minute talk in time. Or, more likely, that it would form into something meaningful or worthy of others investing 12 minutes of their time into. As I was already presenting at Digicon, I was prepared for my session on the Thursday. Luckily. Because for those next two weeks I smashed out a presentation. (After buying TED TALK book) I pieced together the bones of a narrative about something I am REALLY passionate about. Then I practised and practised and practised. Before my son woke up, while he was eating breakfast & after work every single night for two weeks. I practised in front of a camera. Recorded the talk on my phone, timed it, and started listening to it on the way to work or while I was out for a run. One thing I remember clearly before my time as a Presenter for Andrell, is that you can’t practise enough. I can’t profess to subscribe to old mantra of practise makes perfect. Because it doesn’t make it perfect, but it makes a bloody huge difference. I reckon I practised to the point of being over the whole thing. When Friday arrived I felt really positive, if not mentally drained from thinking about it so much. I rolled into the first session of SPARK talks. Having never done one before, I was intrigued by the whole concept. 12 minute talks that could be about anything related to teaching. Would people be reading from notes? Or would it be more Ted style? Was I mixing with experienced campaigners or first timers? To my relief, it was a mixture of everything. There weren’t as many people there as I’d expected either. And it comforted me. See, you can do this. My confidence sunk like a sinking ship around midday when DLTV started handing out awards after the last keynote. When I heard Narissa Leung receive her award my stomach twisted. My hands shook as I took out the Digicon timetable, confirming the sudden anxiety climbing up my throat. Holy s#%^! The teacher who just won teacher of the year is doing a SPARK talk after me. What if like 50 people come in to listen to her & have to listen to me first? OMG! I hurried out, seriously considering fleeing. What if I just keep walking passed the lecture theatre and jump on the train? No one will miss me right? Reaching the lecture theatre, I held firm and entered, feeling suddenly as nervous as my first interview as a graduate teacher. John Pearce was up first. I liked the tone and enjoyed the content of his talk. But honestly, I can’t remember much of it. Despite how engaged I would have normally been, I was feeling so sick. There were some people I recognised from Twitter in the room, including Bec Spink. Again, the voice in my head. Man, she just smashed a whole room with a keynote yesterday and now she’s got to put up with you? When John finished, I got up, fumbling around with the microphone, hoping my ancient computer would work. In my head, I replayed the positive mindset mantra I’d often say in the early days of Presenting for Andrell. You’re going to smash this! You’re going to smash this! The only difference was this time I had no colleague up there with me. The lecture theatre suddenly felt massive as I placed my drink bottle on the table. Despite there being maybe 10-20 people in the room, it felt jam packed. I made sure my iPad with my dot pointed script was on hand just in case, grabbed my clicker, looked up, tried to smile and realised there were no more reasons to delay the inevitable. And began. It literally was over before I knew it. Everything flowed as I knew it would. Partly on the back of practising it so much. I made a conscious effort to fill the presentation with as little text as possible, using Gifs and images as checkpoints to navigate and clarify my thinking throughout the talk. The script kind of warped and adjusted as I went. As it always seems to when presenting. And I think it went okay. I felt like it resonated with some people and got some kind comments from some of the people nearby. I enjoyed being able to sit back, relax and be enthralled by Narissa Leung's talk, which particularly resonated with me. But the funny thing was, especially looking back at it now, I didn’t really mind if my Spark talk was totally crap and wasted everyone’s time. The sense of achievement, of actually completing something, particularly something I’d invested so much time into, was enormous. I was just pumped to have given it a go. And I strongly encourage you should give it a go too. Why you should apply to do a SPARK TALK. 1. Getting out of your comfort zone.
Write down everything you are comfortable with & start doing things outside it. I loved Holly Ransoms idea of her and her friend doing things out of their comfort zone. It was a huge takeaway for me. Doing a Spark Talk is a fantastic vehicle for getting out of your comfort zone. 2. The vibe of Spark Talks. I felt as if there was a very supportive atmosphere in the room. It was nice to chat with some people afterwards. I felt this sense of unity between us all. Like we are all in this together. That there was a mutual support of presenter and attendee. I wanted to hear something good from the presenters & wanted them to succeed. As a Presenter, I wanted to ensure it wasn’t a waste of someone's time. We were all there seeking something in a way I think that differs from other sessions throughout the two days. It was unique. 3. Because your ideas matter. I remember a teacher at a VCOP & Big Write PD saying, “This is probably a crap idea…” and after explaining it, everyone in the room thought it was the complete opposite. It was such a good idea we pinched it and published it on facebook that week. It perfectly illustrates that teachers have incredible ideas. That includes you. When people don’t speak up in staff meetings it is to the detriment of everyone in that room. Your ideas matter. Let them out!
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AboutThis blog has been created to share my thoughts on Teaching. It uses my experiences, thoughts and ideas about a whole range of things related to education. Archives
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