My parents will never be proud of me and I've reached the point where I've learned not to care. Apparently being an art teacher isn't me living up to my potential. Unpopular opinion but I think it's okay to not want to be a boss and choose peace, fulfillment and stability over the crazy hustle culture. Are you proud of where you are?

Who pays your bills? As long as you love doing it and pay your bills don't sweat it.

Teaching art might not impress everyone, but if you love it and you love the peace and purpose it brings, then you're succesful. It's worth more than titles. I’m proud of where I am because I know the joy I bring into my classroom, and that’s real impact.

Good. You shouldn't care. Being proud of yourself is more than enough, as much as you'd wish and expect them to echo the sentiment. I'm proud of myself and happy with where I'm at.

Congratulations on having the confidence and strength to be yourself, follow your dreams, and forge your own path. That is not easy to do and it takes a certain degree of maturity to recognize that not everyone will understand your choices, and they don’t have to! I know it hurts when your family isn’t supportive, but stay true to you. Teaching art is a career you can be proud of. Hopefully over time your family will
Come around. In the meantime, surround yourself with people who appreciate you!

Be proud of what you do. I’m sure for a number of your students your class time with them is the safe harbor that they need…the subject that keeps them going, looking forward to school when other subjects and teachers may have the opposite effect. As a dad (and a veteran science teacher) with a daughter who has school anxiety I saw how FACS classes kept her motivated to keep moving on. Your subject, I am certain, serves a similar purpose for some of your kids.

Don’t feel bad. I landed a job teaching high school French fresh out of college, and my mom asked me when I was going to get a real job (meaning when are you going to come back home and work here). Never!!!

Faced the same thing going into social work. I decided in 8th grade after career day that social work was what I wanted. Throughout high school, I continued to plan accordingly. My father gave me such a hard time throughout my high school years that I gave in and decided to go out of state and get away. I went to NY for for design and stayed awhile. I eventually found my way back to Mich and started at U of M in the School of social work without telling my parents. Once I was settled in, and only after classes started did I let them know. I paid for my schooling so, as I saw it my parents didn’t really ‘need’ to know.

Too many ppl who chose a major to please their parents end up eerily unhappy, resentful, or both.

Congratulations for going your own way and being loyal to yourself.

Had this discussion with a student this week. “Mom can’t live your life. You have to live your live. What do YOU want to do?” I think we all hit that mark at some point where we finally focus on our own dreams. My family owned a business. As I looked back as my high school stuff, my early plans were joining the business until my junior year when I got bitten by the teaching bug. But even then I listed “education or business” for my future college plans, trying to placate my father. It was the summer after graduation that I went all in for education. And my father several times expressed his pride in me during my freshman year before he suddenly died of cancer. And yet when the news breaks about local family businesses closing their doors because nobody in the family wants to keep it going, the younger generation is made out as the villains. No, we have to live our own lives.

I am a 15 year art teacher. Yes I am proud, I worked, and continue to work my butt off to get here and do what I do. You should be damn proud! Your class is much much different from the academics and you have an entirly different set of challenges to overcome everyday. BE proud of what you have achieved to get where you are and be proud of what the kids produce under your teaching.

You are working as a teacher, not to earn a paycheck, despite it's necessity in life. The purpose in doing what you do is to share your passion and love of art. You may not be able to change the view in your parents mind, but when you change the way hundreds, even thousands of students see things, you will have far outdone a couple closed minds. When later in life you see the students you are molding now being able to do things they could not have without you, you will know that your passion is blossoming, even exploding, and from that you will see that you change the world.

My father cussed me for two hours on the phone when he found out I switched to art as a major instead of education. Said I was irresponsible and inconsiderate of my fiancé as I would never make any money.
I later went through an alternate certification program and am in my 34th year teaching art. I realized years ago that my father will never be proud of me. He will tell you that he believes women and men are equal, but it's not what he really believes. If I come up with a solution to a problem, he will hem and haw and say why it won't work. If my brother offers the same solution, he will say "Hey, that may work! I'll give it a try."
I am the only sibling with a degree, I am successfully raising my two kids (since they were 3 and are now 17 and applying to colleges. They are great kids with good friends and good grades. I am 56 years old and during my divorce and counseling I realized that I don't need my fathers approval. Deep down, I still want it, but realize it will never happen because of many things.
Both of my kids are respectful to him, but see through him. One is even more outspoken than I and her sister and has often told him exactly why she doesn't approve or agree with something he says. She is awesome. Brave and bold. I still love him, but don't always like him.
Long winded to say: I had to get to a certain age before I quit caring what others thought. It is easier and easier as time goes on and you do more things that make YOU happy. Some people only approve of things that they think are what they would do or choose.

All I can say is I don’t have peace teaching art it’s more like I have to constantly remind kids and colleagues it’s a subject not a recess mess ugh I regret my choice some days lols

Your teaching job has peace, fulfillment, and stability? That's nice that you are having a good time. Teaching math in my district has little peace and fulfillment since every day is like Groundhog Day with the topics. Every day having to explain that 5^2 doesn't mean 5 x 2. Then repeat ad nauseum--insert any of 1000s of topics that are never learned. I am ultimately glad that I am a teacher and that I am doing something good for humanity. I feel proud of fighting for what's right and what's needed for public schools. I will love my retirement, but it is sad that everything has to be fought for.

BTW….how old are you? Are you supporting yourself? Are you happy with your job and feel like you are using your talents to make a difference? At some point, you need to give up on the idea that you need to make your parents proud. Success comes from within not from the judgement of others around you. Start with yourself and see what happens…

Ask them how much income would you need to make as an Art Teacher for them to be proud of you? It seems like they are focused on a certain number, or they want you to be a captain of industry? Either way, they seem very biased in their priorities for you.