Skip to main content

A good teacher teaches, A great teacher inspires


“A great teacher can inspire hope, ignite the imagination, and instill a love of learning.” – Brad Henry

We all have a teacher or professor that stands out in our mind because of their influence they had on us.  In high school it was Mr. Morgan.  He was able to make math tolerable for someone who wasn’t interested in the subject.  In college, it was my professor, Carol Osborne.  Her class confirmed that marketing was the right career path for me with her Promotions class.  So, when I was invited to be a guest lecturer for that same professor that molded my professional aspirations, enthusiastic is an understatement. 

Let me precursor this next statement by saying that I LOVE what I do.  Not only that, but I am passionate about the brand that I work for.  However, I’ve always had an internal struggle around my impact on society.  How does influencing people’s decision to buy pizza help make the world a better place?  Now – again, I am passionate about the brand I work for and know that with how much they give back, Domino’s IS making the world better…. But what is MY role in all of that?  I’ve always had this personal conflict with every company I’ve worked for, not because of the companies, but because of my day to day responsibilities at them.  Especially when I’m consistently inspired by the people I surround myself with.  Educators, non-profit fundraiser managers, nurses, counselors, coaches, you name it.  I look at the talents that God blessed them with and how they are using them to better their communities and I can’t help but feel a little envious. 

It is almost like there was a little hole in my soul and an internal voice constantly telling me to do more good in the world.  Of course, I listened to that voice and started filling it in my personal life.  By volunteering at non-profits, joining the Junior League of Tampa Bay, and making annual charitable donations, I’ve felt like I’ve been able to fulfill that desire to do more good.  But what if I could get paid to do good too?  That question still floated around my brain.  That was until today.

Today I felt like I was able to give back in a meaningful way.  For years, I have been learning the industry and developing skills that have helped me in my career.  I couldn’t really see beyond how what I know could benefit anyone outside of Domino’s.  It’s kind of like all the random songs that I can name the title and artist to.  Unless I go on the gameshow Shazam, is all that knowledge any good?  Stepping in front of a classroom full of kids who aspire to be in marketing when they grow up and being able to share wisdom that they found useful showed me the answer is yes, there is a benefit to all these marketing facts.  Seeing a room full of engaged millennials listening to what I had to say vs. scrolling through social media on their phone gave me all the warm fuzzies I have been craving from my job.  This is how I can get paid to do good. 

I have such vivid memories of what it was like sitting in that chair trying to soak up as much knowledge as possible so that I could go out and land that dream job.  I looked out at a sea of similar faces and got pumped up by the idea of being a mentor to someone who is in the same position I was over a decade ago.  If past life Casey could have a one-on-one with future Casey, how could that conversation go?  (Beyond just suggesting better outfit choices)  This is my chance to find out.

While today I was able to cross an item off my bucket list by teaching a class, I am just beginning a new stage in my personal development.  God did bless me in a big way with the talents I had been given, I just wasn’t using it the way He intended yet.  Today was a very cool experience to share with the marketing students about the turnaround of the Domino’s brand, and one I will not forget.  However, the future of being able to be a coach for the next generation of marketing professionals and possibly leaving a mark on them, the way that Carol and Mr. Morgan did on me…well… enthusiastic is an understatement. 

Leave in the comments below the name of the teacher that inspires you!

Labels:
Location: 4202 E Fowler Ave, Tampa, FL 33620, USA

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Digital Detox

  Our digital life and our real life have become more blurred than ever.  If you have watched the Social Dilemma, there is good chance you have thought about your interactions with social media.  Our world of 24 hour news cycles along with social platform’s curated content based on sophisticated algorithms can heighten anxiety, paranoia, stress and anger among other feelings.  At the same time, it is a great way to stay connected with family and friends.  Being so connected in the digital world can result in a disconnection from the real world.  If you were honest with yourself, how many hours have you spent wasted mindlessly scrolling?  I know for me; it was a lot.  It was becoming an addiction that I didn’t know I had.  The pandemic heightened it.  The amount that I pick up my phone to look to see if I had an unread email or missed text message is almost as alarming as the FOMO I was developing if I didn’t see the latest posts from the...
Post a Comment
Read more

The List (40 before 40)

In case you haven't noticed, I'm a list kind of person.  I keep hand written lists all over my office of things to accomplish for that day, week, month, even year.  We have project lists and grocery lists - so it is only fitting that I would have bucket lists.  I'm using lists plural because I have many everywhere in my house and on my computer.  When it comes to bucket lists, I had the one of the 30 things I want to do before I turned 30 along with a running one of the things I want to do before I die.  That one is forever evolving.  From that list, I narrowed down 40 things I think I could accomplish before my 40th birthday.  However, there is a catch for anyone who is reading this right now.  Many of these items were probably inspired by you.  Or you might see something on this list that you also have on yours.  My ask to all of you is that we do this TOGETHER.  Let me know which of these things YOU want to accomplish ...
Post a Comment
Read more

How do you measure a year?

Please excuse me for a moment before I write this as I breakout into song.  For your reading enjoyment, I would imagine the cast of Rent singing this, rather than me.  I will not be on America’s Got Talent anytime soon. Five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes Five hundred twenty-five thousand moments so dear Five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes How do you measure, measure a year? In daylights, in sunsets In midnights, in cups of coffee In inches, in miles In laughter, in strife In five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes How do you measure a year in the life As 2019 ends and 2020 begins, I thought about the goals I set in the last year for my 40 before 40 challenge and the one that I am most proud of, was my reading challenge.   Everyone is guilty at times of putting themselves last.   We wait until the end of the day to relax.   We feed others before we feed ourselves.   (Talking to all th...
Post a Comment
Read more