Why I 'Interviewed' Teachers During My Senior Year of High School

I accidentally did something back then—“interviewing” teachers. (Maybe it was the word “interview” that sometimes led to rejection, though people willing to share found it quite interesting.) At the time, I suddenly realized that the major I chose after the college entrance exam would affect the next four years or even longer, and the resources I had were right in front of me (it wasn’t until college that I discovered resources are actually on the internet/in books). So I went to talk with teachers of various subjects, including music and psychology, familiar and unfamiliar, those who knew me and those who didn’t—I interviewed them all. Including reasons for their choices, their personal journeys, some lucky moments, some who loved research but entered the high school education system for livelihood—as we talked, they would ask about my choices, my views. I felt that despite being confused, I had this stubborn drive. One memory that stands out was when I interviewed my former math class teacher, she told me, “Now doesn’t seem like the time to worry about these things, why not focus on the college entrance exam.” I replied, “But isn’t keeping my passion alive the more important thing right now?” Though later I discovered that passion seems to be chosen—the passion you initially have might extinguish or redirect.

Anyway, it was quite interesting, but you need to muster the courage to face rejection, which is why I do more reading now—that’s a form of being lazy too 🤣

(Added 2025-11-26)