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LinkedIn isn't just a job board anymore. In this episode, Vanessa Jackson explains why LinkedIn has become the world's largest professional Rolodex and what teachers need to do differently in 2026 to be found by recruiters and hiring managers.

In the Perspective Pivot, Vanessa answers the question no one was a asking: What does a Sharpie marker have to do with healing, stress, and teacher burnout? More than you might think. Learn why your nervous system may still be reacting to old experiences and how new experiences can help create new patterns.

In the Teacher Hack, Vanessa revisits a listener-favorite teacher hack: Dawn dish soap. From laundry stains to mystery messes, this magical blue liquid has earned a permanent place under her sink. Plus, discover professional stain-removal resources and hear the story of a Labrador retriever who developed a very unconventional carpet-cleaning strategy.

And in the Career Transition & Job Search segment, Vanessa discusses one of the biggest changes in today's job market: LinkedIn is no longer just a place to apply for jobs. It has become the world's largest professional Rolodex. Learn how recruiters use LinkedIn in 2026, why translation matters for teachers changing careers, and how to make your experience understandable to employers outside education.

In This Episode

• What a Sharpie marker can teach us about healing and stress
• Why teachers often remain in "survival mode"
• The difference between prediction and reality in managing anxiety
• How accountability can help create lasting change
• Why Dawn dish soap remains a teacher favorite
• Professional stain-removal resources worth bookmarking
• The surprising evolution of LinkedIn
• Why LinkedIn is the world's largest professional Rolodex
• How recruiters search for candidates in 2026
• Why teachers don't have a skills problem—they have a translation problem
• LinkedIn engagement strategies that actually matter
• How to make your profile easier for employers to understand
  
  

Resources Mentioned
Teacher in Transition Podcast Episode 19: LinkedIn and So Much More
https://www.buzzsprout.com/277608/episodes/14703125

LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com

American Cleaning Institute Stain Removal Guide:
https://www.cleaninginstitute.org

The Spruce Stain Removal Guide:
https://www.thespruce.com

Keywords

Teacher Career Change, Teacher Burnout, Career Transition for Teachers, Teacher Resume Help, LinkedIn for Teachers, Teacher Career Coach, Teacher Transferable Skills, Teacher Job Search, Teacher Networking, Teacher Career Coaching, Resume Writing, LinkedIn Profile Optimization, Teacher Career Change Podcast, Education to Corporate, Career Transition Strategy, Professional Networking

Support the Podcast

If you enjoy this independent podcast, please consider:

• sharing the episode with a teacher friend
• leaving a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify
• supporting the show financially starting at just $3/month Support Teachers in Transition
  
  

Connect with Vanessa Jackson

• 💌 Email: Vanessa@teachersintransition.com
• 📱 Call or Text: 512-640-9099
• 📅 Book a Free Discovery Call: teachersintransition.com/calendar
• 🧭 LinkedIn:
• 🔗 Bluesky: @beyondteaching.bsky.social
• 📸 Instagram & Threads: @teachers.in.transition
• 👍 Facebook: Teachers in Transition
• 🐦 X (Twitter): @EduExitStrategy

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The transcript to this podcast is found on the episode’s homepage at Buzzsprout

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This week on Teachers in Transition, Vanessa Jackson explores the exhaustion that comes from navigating modern educational systems — from locked doors and “performative safety” to Teacher Incentive Allotment frustrations, burnout, networking, and why so many teachers feel emotionally depleted by May.

What begins as a bizarre experience trying to enter a secured school campus turns into a broader conversation about hypervigilance, bureaucratic friction, teacher burnout, career transition, and the hidden emotional cost of constant monitoring and compliance.

Vanessa also discusses the Texas Teacher Incentive Allotment (TIA), the growing frustration surrounding how those funds are distributed, and why highly accomplished educators often underestimate the sophistication of their own transferable skills.

And yes… this week’s Teacher Hack is simple, rebellious, and probably necessary:

Go take a nap.

In This Episode

• Locked school doors and “performative safety”
• Why teachers are exhausted in May
• Hypervigilance and nervous system fatigue
• “Move forward, take fire”
• Texas Teacher Incentive Allotment (TIA) frustrations
• Why teachers underestimate their professional value
• Networking as the “inside key” to career transition
• Why relationships matter more than online applications alone
• Rest as resistance to burnout
  
  

Mentioned in This Episode

A Night at the Opera

The Marx Brothers comedy routine referenced in the episode:
“Two Hard-Boiled Eggs” scene from A Night at the Opera

“Move Forward, Take Fire”
Taken from the book Dear Madam President: An Open Letter to the Women Who Will Run the World by Jennifer Palmieri

Teacher Incentive Allotment (Texas)

Official Texas Education Agency information:
Texas Teacher Incentive Allotment (TIA) Information

View the letter sent to a teacher about their TIA here

O*NET Online

Career research and transferable skills exploration:
O*NET Online

Career Transition Reminder

Teachers already possess highly transferable skills:

• communication
• leadership
• crisis management
• organization
• relationship building
• project coordination
• training and development
• adaptability
• strategic thinking
  
  

Sometimes the problem isn’t your ability.

Sometimes the problem is simply that nobody has shown you where the side entrance is yet.

Support the Podcast

If you enjoy this scrappy little indie podcast, please consider:

• sharing the episode with a teacher friend
• leaving a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify
• supporting the show financially starting at just $3/month Support Teachers in Transition
  
  

Connect with Vanessa Jackson

• 💌 Email: Vanessa@teachersintransition.com
• 📱 Call or Text: 512-640-9099
• 📅 Book a Free Discovery Call: teachersintransition.com/calendar
• 🧭 LinkedIn:
• 🔗 Bluesky: @beyondteaching.bsky.social
• 📸 Instagram & Threads: @teachers.in.transition
• 👍 Facebook: Teachers in Transition
• 🐦 X (Twitter): @EduExitStrategy

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The transcript to this podcast is found on the episode’s homepage at Buzzsprout

Support the show

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What do traffic jams, poker strategy, and applicant tracking systems have in common? More than you’d think.

In this episode, Vanessa unpacks decision-making under uncertainty—why the “fastest” route isn’t always the best one, and how both life and job searches can punish us for not being able to predict the future. We talk GPS stress, Annie Duke’s poker-based decision framework, nervous system regulation (Maslow before Bloom, always), and a real-world job search story that proves something important:

Humans still hire humans—even when algorithms try to pretend otherwise.

In This Episode, We Cover

• Why GPS (and life) makes “best guesses,” not promises
• How teachers get stuck outcome-shaming themselves (“If it went badly, I must be wrong…”)
• What poker psychology teaches us about uncertainty and decision quality
• A Teacher Hack for protecting your nervous system: take the scenic route
• The truth about Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) and why resumes vanish
• A behind-the-scenes story of navigating hiring systems by reintroducing human connection
• How to spot culture red flags before you accept the job
• Why “optimized” doesn’t always mean “healthy”
  
  

Links Mentioned

• Jack Palance “one-armed push-ups” clip (referenced in episode): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGxL5AFzzMY
• Teachers in Transition podcast homepage: https://teachersintransition.buzzsprout.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61565671792885
• Website: https://TeachersinTransition.com
  

Optional: Support the Podcast 💙

Teachers in Transition is independently produced. If the show has helped you feel less alone or gain clarity, you now have the option to support the podcast for as little as $3/month. Support is completely optional and helps cover production costs so this resource can remain accessible. Whether you support financially, share with others, or simply keep listening, I’m grateful you’re here.

Support the podcast here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/277608/support

Keywords

teacher burnout, leaving teaching, career transition, teacher skills, decision making, nervous system regulation, stress management, applicant tracking system, ATS, job search strategy, networking for introverts, teacher identity, life after teaching, educator mental health, transferable skills

Connect with Vanessa Jackson

• 💌 Email: Vanessa@teachersintransition.com
• 📱 Call or Text: 512-640-9099
• 📅 Book a Free Discovery Call: teachersintransition.com/calendar
• 🧭 LinkedIn:
• 🔗 Bluesky: @beyondteaching.bsky.social
• 📸 Instagram & Threads: @teachers.in.transition
• 👍 Facebook: Teachers in Transition
• 🐦 X (Twitter): @EduExitStrategy

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The transcript to this podcast is found on the episode’s homepage at Buzzsprout

Support the show