How “Maybe Someday” Became “Today” in my TEFL Journey...Two Questions that Changed Everything! 1. What Would Life Look Like If I Tried? and......

Two Questions that Changed Everything!

1.      What Would Life Look Like If I Tried?

2.      From "What If" to "What's Next".

Was it Ballsy over Brainy - Audacity and not talent?

How "Maybe Someday" Became "Today" in my TEFL Journey

You know that moment when you're sitting in your office, staring at spreadsheets, and wondering if this is really all there is?

That was me at 53, surrounded by the trappings of corporate life but feeling like I was watching life pass by through a window.

"Maybe someday," I'd tell myself, scrolling through websites of folks teaching in Thailand, Vietnam, and China.

"Maybe someday" became my comfort blanket – soft, warm, and ultimately suffocating.

Was it Ballsy over Brainy?

Let's get real here – walking away from a stable corporate career in South Africa at 53 wasn't exactly the smartest decision to make.

My sons were grown, building their own lives, and there I was, contemplating throwing two decades of corporate experience out the window to teach English in Thailand.

"Have you lost your mind?" a colleague asked. Maybe I had. Or maybe I'd finally found it.

Two Questions That Changed Everything

1. What Would Life Look Like If I Tried?

This question hit me one evening as I sat in my apartment in Cape Town, watching some useless thing on TV.

Not "what if I fail?" but "what if I tried?"

The shift in perspective was subtle but seismic.

I started sketching out what my life could look like:

• The shift in perspective was subtle but seismic.

The picture I painted wasn't perfect – it had smudges of uncertainty and rough edges of fear. But it felt alive in a way my current life didn't.

2. Something Has to End for Something New to Begin

This was the harder truth to swallow.

Endings aren't just about packing up your desk and saying goodbye.

They're about letting go of who you think you are to become who you might be.

I remember the day I submitted my resignation.

My hands weren't shaking – they were steady.

It wasn't courage; it was clarity.

Sometimes the scariest decisions are the ones that feel most right.

The Reality Check

Let me burst a bubble here – this wasn't some eat-pray-love moment where everything magically fell into place.

My first few weeks in Chiang Mai were a comedy of errors:

• I got lost trying to find my school (multiple times)
• Ordered what I thought was mild curry and nearly breathed fire
• Called a student "she" when they were clearly a "he"

But here's the thing about making mistakes in a new life – they're YOUR mistakes.

Each one feels like a step forward, even when you're stumbling.

The Unexpected Plot Twist

Want to know what nobody tells you about taking a leap?

It's not the landing that changes you – it's the fall itself.

During those first months of teaching, I wasn't just learning how to explain English grammar; I was unlearning decades of playing it safe.

The corporate skills I thought I'd have to abandon?

Turns out managing a classroom of energetic Thai students isn't so different from handling a boardroom.

Who knew?

From "What If" to "What's Next"

Today, I'm writing this from Beijing, where I've gone from volunteer teacher to university principal.

The journey wasn't linear – it twisted and turned like the streets of Chiang Mai's old city.

But each step, even the wobbly ones, led somewhere interesting.

Did it take audacity?

Yes.

Talent?

That grew along the way.

What it really took was getting tired enough of "maybe someday" to make it "today."

What's Your "Maybe Someday"?

You might be sitting where I was, starring in your own version of "maybe someday."

Perhaps you're younger, maybe older.

The age doesn't matter – the itch for change does.

Here's what I learned: that safe harbor you're clinging to? It's actually just another starting point in disguise.

Your "maybe someday" is waiting to become your "today." The only question is: are you ready to let it?

P.S. Remember that colleague who thought I'd lost my mind?

She just got her TEFL certification.

Sometimes courage is contagious.

Want to learn more about starting your TEFL journey? Drop a comment below or connect with me. Let's turn your "maybe someday" into a plan.