In Grade 3, my math teacher kept me after class to drill a concept I hadn’t fully grasped.

If memory serves, it had something to do with multiplication.

He wasn’t exactly the nicest teacher at the school, so I wasn’t looking forward to staying after class. I was scared, to be honest.

But I thought he might be able to help me with my mathematical quandary.

Wishful thinking.

After school, much to my horror, he kept explaining the same thing in the same way, expecting insanity to land.

It didn’t work. ️ What a shocker.

I wasn’t about to have a numerical breakthrough with that approach.

And I only became more upset as he kept trying, mostly with myself.

Growing frustrated with me, he started jabbing his pen into my head while explaining the same thing the same way he already had a dozen times. I was shocked.

That event stuck with me. It’s impacted me in ways that have only grown clearer in recent years.

You may think someone as capable as I should never get frustrated with learning anything new…

But when I was first learning Photoshop, most days ended with me wanting to throw my laptop across the room.

As with the math incident, I was certain that I was missing completely logical connections my brain should have been making.

A situation like this even arose at work last year, where I was trying to understand a task.

I got angry and frustrated and kept asking questions in the chats and at meetings.

I thought my job might be at risk if I kept this up, but…

My outbursts somehow made me more visible to leadership.

People started noticing my work. They saw how diligent and productive I was.

And this led to multiple promotions.

It’s weird to think. I’m having a meltdown and feeling awful about myself on the inside, but others were seeing the situation from an entirely different perspective. Maybe they were seeing my diligence or proactivity.

I’ve learned a few things from these experiences:

• The education system is desperately in need of reform. It isn’t just “imperfect.” It’s a place where kids go to have their individuality and creativity beaten out of them, by design. This is why I support those who are bringing a meaningful change to education.
• Bad examples exist so you can learn from them. How will you know what good leadership looks like if you haven’t seen bad leadership at play? I’ve had more bad examples to reference through my life than I can count.
• Your trauma can be your triumph. “Pushing through it” is easier said than done, but you won’t know what’s on the other side unless or until you do. You might not always get a promotion, but there could be something good waiting for you on the other side.

What childhood experiences impacted you most, positively or negatively?