18 Years Stuck in One Job Group, How a Spell Finally Made Me Chief Principal of a Top School

For more than 10 years, I walked into the same staffroom with the same job title. I started my teaching career full of hope, armed with dreams of becoming a school head one day.

But as the years went by, I remained stuck in Job Group L, watching my colleagues, some younger and less experienced, climb the ladder of promotion with ease.

Every time promotions were announced, my name was missing. I worked hard, delivered excellent results, even took on extra responsibilities, but nothing changed. It was as though an unseen force had tied me to one position.

It wasn’t just about the money. It was the humiliation of watching my juniors become senior principals while I was still addressed as “Madam” in the same classroom. My own family began to question me.

My father once said bitterly, “What’s the point of education if you are still in the same place after 15 years?” Those words pierced me. At staff gatherings, I overheard colleagues whisper that perhaps I wasn’t “destined” for leadership.

I almost gave up, convinced that maybe this was my fate. But deep inside, I still longed to prove myself, to show that I had what it took to lead. To continue reading, click here.