"YOU TEACH BEST WHAT YOU MOST NEED TO LEARN"
Pic.: Anand Ashokan
“You teach best what you most
need to learn.”
- Richard Bach
Today, I was reflecting on the three important things,
which I have been doing for years… the things, which have given me my identity
or recognition, whatever you wish to call it…
I teach college students Accountancy and
related subjects. That gives me great joy and my daily bread and butter. I
train young-ones and little-ones in public speaking and conduct self
development programmes. I write (blog) daily and publish inspirational books
quite regularly. The last two activities have made me immensely happy in life, given
me respect and love, though not money...
But, when I reflect on all these activities
of mine, what surprises me the most is the reason why I had started doing them
– and I still keep doing them – with such passion, persistence and dedication.
The reason was: I was ‘bad’ in those areas – I was a poor academically… My classmates
and teachers will vouch for it; I was terrified to open my mouth in public,
leave alone give speeches before an audience… again, my classmates, friends and
teachers will vouch for it; I came through a vernacular medium school (Kannada) and desperately struggled to speak
in English… ask my friends, relatives and teachers, they will vouch for it.
So, when you have been a weak student, a
chronic case of inferiority complex and when you have not been able to speak a sentence
in English… above all, when you have constantly kept doubting your abilities,
comparing yourself with others, putting yourself down and suffered… Yes, when
this has been your own reality, your own story, what gives you the desire,
determination, wisdom – and, importantly, the authority – to teach others to excel
academically, become good communicators and fine human beings… and, do all this
- teaching, training and writing – in English?
Yes, from where does my own motivation to
teach, train and write come?
I doubt I would have ever become a committed
teacher if I was academically brilliant while I was a student. Similarly, I
doubt I would have ever thought of helping and empowering young and little ones,
with such passion and commitment – and, above all, without regard for
remuneration – if I had not suffered from that killing complex of inferiority…
if I wasn't haunted by the ghosts of self-doubt, fear and anxiety. Yes, I would
never have scribbled those notes in my personal diaries, later learnt to share them
through my daily blog-posts… if all was well in my life, including the good
privilege of going through a nice English-medium school…
Because I had to go through my own handicap,
my own disabilities, and because I wanted badly to overcome them… I think I
started doing what I have been doing for years and years now… My motivation came from my own burning desire
to learn…
As the old saying goes, “Teaching is twice
learning.” To me, it has been much more than ‘twice’… A hundred-times, indeed!
Yes, Richard Bach was right: “You teach best
what you most need to learn.”
GERALD D’CUNHA
Comments