That decision set off a whirlwind of events including late nights researching new schools and vacancies, checking job search websites multiple times per day, and if we’re being honest here, a borderline unhealthy fixation on figuring out what was going to come next for us. It’s hard not to dive into fully since it is literally a complete change of everything. One way or another we were going to end up in a new country, in a new school, probably in new roles, surrounded by new language, new experiences, and new everything else.
We used a job search engine that many international schools world-wide sign up for. We posted all of our resumes, letters of recommendation, and nice little headshots of us. (Very handsome and beautiful I might add) Schools posted snapshots about their vacancies, benefits packages, philosophies, and the entirety of their information. In a weird way, the whole process is kind of like some sort of online dating process.
We were told early on, that while we had to make our decision early on (Sept. 1), every school is on their own timeline. Some schools don’t ask their teachers to announce their intentions until January, while others like to post vacancies, and make their hiring decisions in September and October. This makes it a little tough, because unlike at the stressful job fair, we were forced into a position of “pursue this vacancy hard” or wait for whatever unknown may or may not come open behind the proverbial “door number two.” To counter this challenge, Shannon and I made the decision to only apply to schools and situations that we would say yes to. That way we would always be prepared to move towards a final choice while also preserving some of our flexibility.
The only downside of this approach is it led us to really think hard about every single positional posting that fit both Shannon and I. If a school in Prague made a post, we thought long and hard about whether to apply or not. Would the school match our philosophical views on education? Would the positions be an adequate challenge for us? Would they be too similar to what we were doing? Would they be too different? What is the weather like in Prague? What is the benefits package? We asked ourselves all of these questions. Inevitably, this process allowed us to weed out some options that weren’t right for us. But it also led us to strong potential connections. Every time we chose to apply somewhere, we envisioned that it would become our lives. We were no longer sending out feelers for jobs. We were applying for a lifestyle we had conjured in our heads. The jobs were a huge part, but it was applying for the complete picture of a life we had cultivated through the question process. We didn’t apply to a specific international school in Prague, we were applying to life in Prague.
Let me just say, the whole idea of preaching patience when your life is in the balance is easier said than done. Logically, both Shannon and I realized that the process was likely going to take a few months. Yet, every time a colleague had an interview or went through the same process, it ramped up my anxiety. If a friend accepted a job, I was torn between true unbridled happiness for them, and a slight twinge of jealousy that their process was over. I had a series competing thoughts in my mind. Logic and emotion battled it out.
We went through the process and interviewed with schools here and there. We applied to some and didn’t receive much interest back. We were approached by others that weren’t good fits for us. We even made it pretty far with one school and we thought we had our solution, but it didn’t work out. After a few months of this, we resolved to book flights to the job fair in Boston if we didn’t have anything with traction within a week. Then, low and behold, traction.
During that week, Shannon and I were approached by three schools offering very different things. One school would have provided Shannon with the opportunity to begin her career in school administration as an Assistant Principal. Another, a chance to do meaningful work building something strong, with the added bonus of life in Europe. And the third, was a better match with our educational philosophies, with a school where Shannon knew people, and with a school that fostered the most growth opportunity for us. It was a crazy week. All the week before Christmas break on top of it!
We began our interview process on Wednesday of that week. Oh that’s a nice added surprise bonus. I forgot to mention. Interview times are weird. You are interviewing with schools around the world so if they are 9 hours ahead of you, interview times are scheduled for afternoon their time and insanely early of you. It’s hard to have your A game before the sun comes up. I had one at 6:00am our time on that first Wednesday. Shannon had hers at 8:00. By Thursday, she had her second interview with the first school. On Friday, we had a joint interview with the second school followed by a second interview with the first school. Then the third school came in for an interview with Shannon. Essentially, from Wednesday through Friday, we had 6 interviews. Shannon had three in one day! On the Friday before Christmas break! It was madness. In fact, I believe due to the late nights spent researching schools, intense concentration during the interviews, lack of sleep for early wake-ups, and some stress, Shannon got a cold. In the middle of an interview. There was a sniffly nose. Maybe even a snot bubble that popped mid-interview. I cannot confirm nor deny that. The point being, we were run through the ringer that week.
On Friday afternoon, we left for the airport to visit our friends and family in the US for Christmas. We were confident that we would have offers from all of the schools, and we were badly in need of some downtime.
Promptly after arriving in NJ, Shannon heard from the third school, looking for an opportunity to interview on Saturday. She had her interview and was fairly confident in an offer for that as well. Sunday morning, we again interviewed with the second school as a couple and received an offer and a 24 hour window to accept it. I interviewed with the first school and then they offered. We were down to our final three schools and under a time crunch. Man, after four months of hot and cold doing research and waiting for things to happen, it was refreshing and overwhelming to have everything happen at once.
Shannon and I had some long conversations, asked our family and friends for advice, and really prioritized what we want out of life in the next two to three years. We ultimately made a decision, so our process is over.
Wait...that's the wrong one. This is the right one.
After a lot of consideration, we decided to go to school two. We will be moving to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. It’s a little scary to say and everyone we’ve told has needed a few minutes to process and a few questions answered, but it’s the right choice for us. We will be moving in August and walking into a situation that is going to fulfill us professionally, push us, and afford us the greatest opportunities to grow. We will be going to a school where Shannon already has friends in place in an open and friendly community. It will also give us the best chance to succeed in our personal and family life with regards to our individual and collective goals.
The next few months are going to be spent focusing on squeezing the very most out of our experiences in Quito and South America as a whole. Sprinkled in here and there we will have a whole new process and new hurdles to jump with regards to medical exams, visa paperwork, selling our Quito stuff, and shipping what we can take with us. We’re very comfortable with the decision, amazed at the process, and thankful that it yielded us a truly wonderful experience to move on to our next adventure.
Stay tuned for whatever comes next…
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