conference

The school where I work is a rather poor one. It belongs to the state and kids don’t have to pay to attend it, so the obvious result is that we don’t have much money for improvements. I happen to have an opportunity to get a free interactive whiteboard for the school, something that would look good in school’s resume and that would hopefully make us seem more professional. It’s an expensive thing and the school would never be able to afford such a thing.

The only requirement of it is that the headmaster goes to a conference on Friday. The conference is held by the manufacturer of the whiteboard and includes some informative lectures and workshops, but most of all an opportunity to get important contacts with the people from this kind of business who would be able to donate the board for the school. And what the boss does? She sends me there in her place, which is a totally stupid thing to do. I am a nobody, just a regular teacher who has no damn idea about business contacts, I know nobody from this level and none of them knows me, I won’t be able to recognize anyone important there or start a meaningful and even mildly appropriate conversation with them.

I am not saying I am a cretin, I just never did anything like that, I have no idea what to talk about and how and with whom. No experience during such a meeting = guaranteed failure. I am pretty sure that my presence there is going to ruin the school’s chances to get the thing. And, naturally, the blame will be put on me. All because the head is too darn lazy to get her ass on the bus and go to the other end of the city for five hours.

Next time I will just keep my mouth shut when such a chance appears, I swear.