When to Lean In and Let Go - The Art of Leadership, Teaching, and Raising Resilient Kids | National Teacher of the Year, Missy Testerman

Michael Gervais (0:00)

Welcome back or welcome to the Finding Mastery Podcast, where we dive into the minds of the world's greatest thinkers and doers. I am your host, Dr. Michael Gervais, by trade and training, a high-performance psychologist. And today, I am thrilled to welcome an extraordinary guest. Missy Testerman, the 2024 National Teacher of the Year, was dedicated over 30 years to transforming the lives of elementary school students in rural Tennessee. Missy has a unique gift for transforming challenges into opportunities, both for her students and herself. This conversation is packed with insights that go far beyond the classroom. We delve into leadership and ethics and gratitude and so much more. Missy embodies what it means to lead with purpose, passion and precision. So as you're listening, you'll quickly discover what a Teacher of the Year can teach us about raising our children, influencing and understanding others, and creating an ideal environment for learning. So with that, let's jump right into this conversation with the inspiring Missy Testerman.

Missy, this is, what a treat to be able to sit with the Teacher of the Year for the United States of America. Like, what an honor and what a treat to be able to have this conversation with you.

Missy Testerman (1:28)

Well, thank you, Michael. I'm thrilled to be here, to be here in your beautiful studio, be taking part of this conversation with you.

Michael Gervais (1:34)

Did you ever think, as a kid, that you would be honored in this way?

Missy Testerman (1:40)

I didn't even think it as an adult. I can honestly say that being the National Teacher of the Year was never on my radar at any time. My school did not even participate in the Tennessee Teacher of the Year program, so there was really no pathway for it. Honestly, I wasn't even aware there was a National Teacher of the Year program until I became the Tennessee Teacher of the Year.

Michael Gervais (2:03)

Oh, well, actually, that's interesting, because that's actually very similar to me, is that my family didn't come, I don't come from an academic family. They didn't go to college. And so, I was making it up as I went.

And, you know, they're helping me in their best ways. And so, I got done with my master's degree program, and the dean of the school said, Mike, everyone has submitted their letters of recommendation to me for PhD programs. Like, did something happen that you didn't give me, you know, like, did something happen here? Because we were really close. Sure. And I said, what do you mean PhD?

Missy Testerman (2:41)

Was I supposed to?

Michael Gervais (2:43)

And she's like, oh my god, are you kidding me? Like, yeah. And she says, get your applications. So she was right. Like she thought that I was on it. And so the idea, I bring that up because I didn't know either. I was like one, just like the one step in front of me taking that one and the next step taking that one. And is that how you've done your career?

Missy Testerman (3:03)

It is. It's actually how I did my college career. I was also first generation, first one in my family to go to college, to complete college. And so a lot of times when you're that first person, it's like walking through the woods the first time and you're having to push Bramble out of the way and step over barriers to make it. And at times you think it's just going to be easier if I just go back. But what you don't understand at the time is that you walking down that path is going to clear it a little bit for the person behind you. And then the person behind them has a little bit easier time. So and we still have students facing those things that we're talking about. You didn't know you were supposed to apply to a program. I didn't know, you know, I didn't even know how to apply to college until a high school guidance counselor helped me.

Michael Gervais (3:50)

Same. Yeah. And you didn't know how to apply to become the national teacher of the year.

Missy Testerman (3:53)

No, we didn't even know it was a thing. There was a whole world out here that I was totally, you know, new on.

Michael Gervais (4:00)

So I think people might be interested in first and foremost why have this conversation with you.

Our community are decision-makers in fast-moving large organizations. They are, you know, heads of fill in the blank, heads of whatever that they're doing, family, business, philanthropy. And so why have a conversation with the teacher? And it's really simple to me is that I see the best coaches in the world as being great teachers. I see. And this was an idea from John Wood, UCLA, one of the greatest basketball coaches in college history. And he saw himself as people call him coach, but he thought he was a teacher, thought of himself that way. And so whatever it is that you're leading, there's teaching involved.