Why Tutoring Might Save Your Sanity

Ever feel as though exercise books were sent directly from a malevolent figure from the depths of hell?

If you’ve nodded – then you’re not alone, friend.

And if you didn’t, you’re either not a teacher or are still riding that NQT wave. Enjoy that whilst you can!

Teaching isn’t just about ticking and flicking the pages of a teetering pile of books, or writing personalised targets at the end of each sub-unit test – knowing that they’ll never be read by another human.

Nope. Teaching is also parents’ evenings… safeguarding concerns… staffroom politics… chaperoning those grateful little darlings during trips… and my favourite – proving each and every year that you are still worth the modest salary that you have dragged yourself up to.

Ain’t nobody putting us back to M1, am I right!?

It’s Okay Not To Be Okay

It’s completely understandable then, in this once esteemed profession of ours, to take a good long hard look in the mirror and ask: “Is it really worth it?” or “Do I still love this?”

For many, the answer leans more to the “Hell no!” side, as opposed to the “Of course it does! Don’t ever question such a thing!” end of the spectrum.

And yet, whether this is you, a friend, or a colleague you know who is having dreams of shoving their letter of resignation into every staffroom pigeon-hole, it’s likely that the person in question will suffer for years before eventually deciding that enough is enough.

Sure, the pension isn’t too shabby – but by the age of 89, or whatever the retirement age is these days (thanks guys running the country for “the people”), it all just seems a little pointless.

Is It All Doom And Gloom?

It doesn’t have to be.

You probably got in to teaching to make a difference. Impact lives. Shape futures. Teaching is a vocation after all. So what if you could do that part of the job… the teaching, without all of the other stuff we’ve talked about?

And, what if I said that you could earn twice as much as a result?

I thought that might get your attention! Keep reading.

Tutor Time

In today’s day and age, it’s never been easier to pivot to the private sector within education. It’s well reported that there is a national shortage of teachers, and a near-crisis of trying to find good ones.

So, with students perhaps feeling the effects of disengaged staff, having more guineapig-like treatment of doing seventeen sets of mock exams, and having non-subject specialists taking their lessons… there is a pretty good market for becoming a full-time tutor.

If you’re looking to find out if it’s the right move for you, and whether or not you would enjoy it, get in touch with the team at TutorRight and learn just how easy it is to sign up and get your first students matched with you – without you having to advertise or market yourself!

Or maybe you have done an hour or two of tuition here or there – in which case, you may well know that it’s something that you want to pursue and you long to set up your own tuition business.

Well, if that’s the case, check out my series of articles on how to do just that, here.

The Benefits

It goes without saying that tutors typically see far fewer faces each week when delivering content.

This is largely in part because of the nature of one-to-one and small group requests that you’ll often be dealing with. And, boy, if you’ve got a poor memory like me, it’s great having to only remember a relative handful of names each academic year!

The strong relationships that you develop with the students and their families is genuinely lovely. It’s certainly something that I’ve always looked at as a perk. And, because of the bespoke nature of the sessions, you really get to know how that student learns best – which typically leads to improved results/grades.

As a result of being self-employed, you get to pick who you work with. Which, by the way, is worth it’s weight in goal. No more dealing with somebody who is refusing to engage due to poor behaviour or who is being rude and unpleasant towards you.

Oh, perhaps the best bit – your weekly planning and marking drops down to something that is easily manageable.

Surely that has won you over already!?

Don’t Jump Just Yet!

So, we’ve discussed the benefits of switching teaching for tutoring – and it all sounds rosy, right? Well… it kind of is. But (there’s always a bloody "but"…) there are obviously a handful of things that you need to consider – that might not be as palatable if you’re considering this particular career change.

So, hang fire typing up that dramatic “I quit!” email… and consider the following:

-          Do you have the drive to start up your own business? This involves picking yourself back up in the face of rejection or poor business decisions – and they will happen!

-          Are you confident with marketing your services? If you go it alone, you’ll be your own marketing team – unless you can afford to have somebody do that for you (shameless plug: WA5 Marketing can definitely help you out here...)

-          Have you factored in the need to budget? Tutoring is seasonal, make no mistake about it. Which means if you aren’t so hot on budgeting for those dry spells, well, you’re gonna come up short for at least a couple of months

-          Thought you’d work less hours? Think again, sunshine! When you’re starting your tutoring journey (and bear in mind, this applies to those that want to exceed what they were earning in their previous teaching career) you need to be ready to work. I worked seven days a week for the first two years when I started TutorRight. And was it worth it? Yep! But was it easy? Nope!

Need Help?

Whether you want to go it alone, sign up to an agency or simply find out some more information, feel free to drop me a message directly or in the comments section. It’s all about paying it forward folks – and although I definitely don’t know everything, I’ve certainly picked up one or two learnt lessons over the past decade of doing this.

Either way, I wish you every success in your future career – whether that’s still within the classroom or not – teaching is a special, special job, and we’re lucky to be able to help countless young people reach the next step in their academic journeys.

- Chris Walsh