The Reasons Why I Switch My Career from Working in Education Sectors to Working in Creative and Media Sectors

The Salary of Graphic Designer is Higher than The Salary of English Teacher 

 If I work as a graphic designer in a virtual office, I can earn a salary above the regional minimum wage, ranging from five million to fifteen million rupiah. Furthermore, I can pay for my housing expenses and save for the future. Meanwhile, if I work as an English teacher at a school, I earn below the regional minimum wage, ranging from two hundred thousands to nine hundred thousands rupiah. However, my salary is not enough to pay for my housing expenses and save for the future. If I needed more money, I would have to find a side job besides teaching English at school. I had to work virtually as a graphic designer from home to increase my income and pay for my household expenses. Because my economic needs were increasing and my salary wasn't enough to pay my living expenses, I had to start a business besides teaching English at school at that time. 

There wasn't Training for Teachers at My Workplace for Two Years

I thought there would be training at school that would motivate me to teach students, but evidently, my leader didn't hold any training for all teachers. In 2023 and 2024, I taught English well, although my leader only checked my teaching skills. In 2025, my teaching had to be accompanied by my leader at school. So my leader took over my duties as computer and English teachers at that time. I was demotivated while teaching and educating students at school at that time. As a result, my mood fluctuated while teaching students at school at that time. My leader advised me to learn teaching skills again independently at home, and my leader did not hold training for me and my colleagues at that time. My leader prioritized completing all her own jobs rather than holding training for me and my colleagues until now. So I was lazy to improve my teaching skills at that time. My teaching ability stagnated and stuck from 2024 to 2025 at that time. So I was considered not very professional when teaching students at school at that time. Because my leader did not want to hold training for me and my colleagues for years, finally, my leader did not like my teaching performance and my leader often advised me to learn teaching again in another room, manners and ethics when working professionally in another company and compared with my parents' habits at home and I was asked to learn from my parents' habits at that time.
The advice from my leader that has demotivated me to improve my teaching skills and motivated me to look for other skills besides teaching at school at that time. The advice from my leader to learn again from my parents' habits at home has broke my heart and I preferred designing images using design applications and learning graphic design rather than improving my teaching skills at home since November 2025 until now. How killer my leader was at that time! My teaching ability had become stagnant and stuck at school and my mood easily changed from my energetic and cheerful mood to my sensitive and emotional mood when teaching students from 2024 to 2025. So I felt stagnant when working at school and I felt sensitive when my leader criticized me and compared me with my parents’ habits at that time.

Designing the Photos using Design Application is More Interesting than Managing the Administration 

I liked to complete teacher administration quickly from 2023 to 2024 at school. But because my leader asked me to work at school once a week, finally, I was demotivated to complete teacher administration at that time. In fact, I was under pressure when completing teacher administration once a week from 2024 to 2025. I burned out when I assessed students' exam answers and recapped students' grades at that school at that time. In addition, I only completed the teaching report until November 2025 because my administrative staff did not give me additional paper at that time. The most chaotic moment was when my principal took over my duties as an English and computer teacher. My leader also took over my duties to recapitulate the students' grades that time. My leader then asked me to return my teaching report journal to my leader and the administrative staff at the time. I was very disappointed and demotivated to become an English teacher from 2023 to 2025. My leader was sensitive to me and we had to evaluate the working performance for one semester at that time. Managing teaching reports and recapping the student grades is more challenging than designing images using design applications because I have been demotivated to be a teacher, then I have started to like designing images using design applications at my home and I have had a passion for graphic design skills that are higher than my teaching skills since November 2025 until now. 

The Graphic Designer's Career Path is Broader than The Teacher's Career Path 

As an English teacher, the English teacher's career path is based on the leadership skills. The English teacher's career path has started from the junior teacher position. The junior teacher's duties are teaching the students are provided by the textbooks and completing the administration. However, the junior teacher is not permitted to hold the homeroom teacher position. If their performance is good, the junior teacher is promoted to senior teachers, and the senior teacher has the additional task of being the homeroom teacher for all students at the school. The senior teacher will be responsible for resolving parent and student issues during the several years they serve as homeroom teacher. The homeroom teacher will also be responsible for reporting all class activities to the leader. After that, senior teachers can be promoted to vice principal and principal to enhance their professional skills while working at the school. Senior teachers can also assist the principal in school duties and organize various programs. However, the salaries are higher for senior teachers, homeroom teachers and vice principals compared to those for junior teachers at the school. While graphic designer career paths vary, I started as a junior graphic designer, where I had to create creative and compelling designs to promote to clients daily. If I performed well, I would be promoted to senior graphic designer. I will manage clients and create complex designs as a senior graphic designer. However, I will earn a higher salary after becoming a senior graphic designer. I will be promoted to creative director. I will manage the company's studio, lead meetings for art project preparation, and mentor professional senior and junior graphic designers. I will review their designs and guide them to work as junior and senior graphic designers. In fact, I can earn a higher salary and build more connections.

Learning Graphic Design Skills is More Motivated than Improving Teaching Skills 

Because there weren't any trainings for teachers at a primary school for years, I decided to explore other skills besides teaching skills. I learned to design the images for social media and website, I learned to use the design applications professionally and properly. In fact, I was very comfortable to learn professional communication, public relations, digital advertising and graphic design at home independently using Internet and e-books. Because I was more interested in learning graphic design, so I thought learning graphic design was more interesting more than improving my teaching skills at home independently. Then I became more demotivated and lazy to improve my teaching skills at home independently, in fact I was ready to leave my career in the education sector because there wasn't clear career path, the salary as a teacher at school had not changed at all and the teacher management system still needed to be improved. 

There are many expectations that I want to give to my previous workplace. First, the school management system must be improved for the progress of a better management system than before. Second, the procedures for the work of teachers and staff must be improved and regulated well and clearly. Third, a training program for all teachers must be realized so that all teachers are more enthusiastic about teaching students and teachers are more creative in managing their students’ classes well. For the comfort and safety of all teachers, a technical meeting program for all teachers must be realized not only at school but technical meetings can be held in simple hotels or restaurants to encourage teachers and staff to work more effectively and efficiently.

For my future, I hope I can consistently study professional communication, public relations, digital advertising, and graphic design until I’m sixty years old later. I hope I can find a more professional job in a virtual company than my previous jobs. Furthermore, I hope I can improve my skills more advanced than before.