Being a Teacher

My first memory of him as a teacher is on a dining table. We were having fruits and he cut an apple and said, "Do you see that this full apple is now in 2 parts? How much is this part of a full apple? It is half or 1 by 2 and if I cut it further in half, it will become a quarter or one-fourth." I nodded and got it. We then played with rotis and piles of sticky rice. This was my dad. He was a teacher through and through. Never losing a teaching moment. Always playing by the rules he laid out. Seeing him in action was live learning. He didn't always have to give a lecture. He would just make his thinking visible. He would explain why he did what he did. And we learnt lessons of integrity, being the cause, and hard work by observing him.

I remember how my best teachers made me feel. There was Sister Zeta who sat me down and explained that she valued me as a student and didn't want me to go to Sainik School after Class 5. I remember feeling good about myself after talking to her and thinking that I want to stay at St. Joseph's School because they cared. There was Prem ma'am. She gave us an essay to write on national integration in Class 7th. Two days later, she asked me to come and read my essay in front of the whole class. And then she said, 'In my 20 years of teaching, I have never had someone write so well and with such clarity.' My chest swelled with pride and I felt good about myself.

There was Shireesh Joshi. At P&G in 2001, there was a retrenchment going on and he called me in a room. I was not sure whether I was in or out. He calmly told me, 'There was a conversation about you. People discussed and on balance, found that you deserved to stay. Congratulations. But Sumeet, I want you to be a person whose performance is so good that there is no discussion. There is no debate.' At that moment, I felt called upon to be a better version of myself. And I owe it to Shireesh for my desire to excel and never come up short.

I also remember why I hated some of my teachers. They made me feel small and bad about myself. There was this teacher in Class 3rd. I used to travel 40km from Gurdaspur to Pathankot by State Roadways bus and one day, I was late reaching school. She made me stand at the door of the class and said, "Why are you late?'. I told her that I was coming from Gurdaspur and the bus got stopped at the railway crossing. She said, "Are your parents mad that they send you from Gurdaspur all the way here? Aren't there good schools in Gurdaspur?" I can still feel myself bristling with anger, even 35 years after that incident.

I have had great teachers in my life. At school, in college, in B-school, and at work. 3 things have stood out about them:

1. They made me bigger in my eyes than I thought possible. I had no doubt in my heart that they cared. They lifted me during my weak and tough moments. They gave me confidence and courage. There was abundant love.
2. They expanded my realm of possibility. They did not let me be complacent. They raised the bar. They set high expectations. They made me see things that I was not seeing. They gave me feedback with a path to grow, not as a tool to diminish. There was abundant stretch for growth.
3. They lived a life that was teaching in motion. Their actions engendered trust. There was consistency in what they asked me to do and what they themselves did. And when they made a mistake, they didn't hide behind excuses. They were themselves, always learning. There was growth mindset, being the cause and integrity.

Today, I'm a teacher myself. My actions have an impact on the 3 lakh students who learn at LEAD Powered Schools, the 15000 teachers who teach there, our school partners, and my own team of 600+ LEADers.

On Teacher's Day, I commit to paying it forward as a tribute to my teachers. I commit to care, I commit to keep expectations high and I commit to live my life by the values I espouse. I commit to being a teacher in the best traditions that they have taught me.

HAPPY TEACHER'S DAY!