Confessions of self-employed English teachers

My fellow Fulbrighter and a wonderful English teacher Maria Merziapova, when she moved to Moscow was so appalled by the mess that is going on in language schools that she is thinking of going freelance. I’ve been self-employed for several years now, so Maria kept interrogating me about this career path. I decided to take it two steps further: to address her questions and fears in a public post and to invite my amazing colleague Sandra Slivinskaya to join me. Sandra and I wrote our answers completely independently to provide two perspectives.

Part 1. My questions.

1. How did you make the decision to leave a steady job and work on your own?

Irina
I didn't really make this decision. It was a series of small decisions. It always made more sense financially to have my own students rather than work for someone else. At one point I had a full schedule as a self-employed teacher and didn’t need a school.

Sandra
Well, first of all, after my graduation as a linguist-interpreter, I have never stopped teaching English. However, it was not my main source of income during 10 years, which happened to be management. After all these sleepless nights, intense negotiations and a heavy burden of responsibility I decided it was time to start something new, to develop in the sphere that has no limits in terms of time and place.

So, here I am. In the middle of nowhere. And that's probably the reason why I like it so much. ))) Nobody tells me when and where to go and how to do my job. I don't need to ask for permission to go on vacation. I just take my laptop and work from the hotel. Or not work)) I guess craving for freedom was the core reason to quit my previous life and to start the new one.

2. How many years experience did you have at the time?

Irina
Since it didn't happen overnight, it's hard to say. Over 10, I guess.

Sandra
My experience was quite modest because I had only a couple of students per week during 10 years to maintain the level of my English at the appropriate level while working as a manager at the main job.

3. What is the correlation between working on your own and financial stability? In my experience private tutoring is highly unstable. I've always been afraid if I lose a client that I won't have any others.

Irina
Little correlation. First, in good months you can earn so much more than what any school offers that it's enough to compensate for the "emptier" months. Second, since I work with adults, I work all year round. Even summer is not completely empty. Third, I think it's a bit of an illusion that language schools give you financial stability. They can lose clients just as easily as you can lose a private student.

Sandra
I think that people who find courage to run their own shows need to invest in self-development, such as time management, financial awareness, self-motivation, etc. because you're on your own now. You've got no one to watch your back, to set clear goals for you, to make up a marketing plan. There's nobody but you to save yourself when hard times come, or you've got a disagreement with a client. Just like in any other life situation, there are benefits and drawbacks here. On the one hand, you are totally independent, which sounds like a dream, while on the other, you need to be as mature as possible not to mess it up.

So, predictions, market analysis, basic understanding of consumers psychology, basic knowledge of online marketing, self-motivation-organization-goal setting and other self-things )) - and voila - you rock!

4. What are some safe ways to look for clients?

Irina
I'm not sure what you mean by safe. And I don’t look for clients. But here are some things that I think will help you get reliable, motivated, and assiduous students.

- Invest time and effort into being a good teacher.

Your existing students will be the source of your future students. They will recommend you to their friends. Not always immediately though - sometimes 6 months later, sometimes 6 years later. Make sure they have your contact info - your phone number or social media links.

- Invest time and effort into building relationships with your colleagues.

I get more requests from potential students than I can handle. If I can't teach someone, I always recommend a colleague. Naturally, I recommend someone I keep in touch with because I know their teaching style, CPD activities, and personality. I won't recommend a colleague I haven't heard from for 3 years just because I don't know what's going on in their life and thus cannot rely on this recommendation.

- Have a professional presence on social media.

Seriously, delete cats and flowers from your profile or start a new one. Post something related to English, ideally, your own materials. People will find you with the help of keywords and hashtags. Even if they find your profile through word of mouth, it will be easier for them to get to know and trust you.

These ways take time, but they usually bring great students.

Sandra

In my case, I've never had students who found me on the Internet or somewhere else. People recommend me, so I don't need any advertisement or promotion. As a result, when somebody recommends you, you feel absolutely safe.

5. Was it an easy process to deal with the taxes and the legal “individual entrepreneur” status?

Irina
It's not difficult, but it can be annoying. People in the tax office tend to be rude and unhelpful. Sometimes you can't find the info you need on the official website. Laws are totally unreadable.

Sandra
That was the hardest part to figure out how to fill all these terrible, mind-numbing papers, how much to pay and when and how to do that. Even the registration process on the site of the tax agency or filling the application forms, or opening my business account, choosing the proper bank for this vital procedure and many other questions were ploughing my brain in all the directions ))). Now it has come to norm more or less, but still bookkeeping work remains a nightmare for me, so I hired a professional who just reminds me from time to time that I have to pay for insurance or pension fund contribution; she also checks my payment documents and fills my declaration at the end of the year. God bless her )))

6. What happens if you take on a client and you see they're not doing the work you want them to do. Do you stop working because you won't be able to reach the goals or its something that has never happened?

Irina
It has happened, of course. Such clients don't really have goals they want to reach. Sometimes their goal is really to have a nice time and take a break from routine while doing something useful. That's actually a viable class type if both parties are aware of what's happening.

Me, I like hard work. So I always ask people about their goals. I don't normally work with people who don't have a clear goal because I consider it to be an indicator of not being ready to work hard. Sometimes people can’t articulate their goal because they are confused or at a crossroads (e.g. they might not know if they need to take an international exam or not), but they describe their context, needs, or passions and we come up with a goal together.

The goal doesn't guarantee any work getting done, of course. But more often than not goal-oriented students work hard. Plus, with such students you don't really have to explain the implications of not doing the work. They know.

Sandra
It's very important at the very beginning of your relationship with the client to set clear goals. People share with me their expectations, while my job is to look at their level realistically, preparing them for approximate results and time periods. I always have a list of answers which I send to the client afterwards to be sure we're on the same page. I explain that the only way to make their golden dreams come true, is to follow my instructions. They must say yes or no right there, at the start. And if I get a "yes", I am free to torture them with as much homework as I want. )))

In the following months, I hold my hand on the pulse to check whether we are able to accomplish the goals we had set before and inform the client about any course failures beforehand.

Part 2. My fears.

1. I won't have students cause online schools have already taken all the sane ones.

Irina
I'm not sure what you mean by sane, but if you mean motivated, reliable, goal-oriented, I'd say the opposite is true. Students today don't learn English just in case. They often know exactly what they need it for, so they understand that not every teacher can teach them the skills they need. For example, if a student needs to take IELTS, they won't prepare with a teacher who hasn't taken it. Or if a student needs to prepare for presenting at an international conference, they won't work with a teacher who has no other experience except teaching teenagers at a state school. Sane students look for the right teacher, not advertising, hype, or low prices. So if you have something valuable to offer, you will have your sane students.

Sandra
I don't have fears that online schools have already taken all the clients. It's absolutely impossible, as there are enough students all over the world!!! In my opinion, to say that there are a lot of students is like to say nothing! However, if you're looking for some particular type of persons, say, having good sense of humor or doing some charity work - then yes, it'll take time to find your own social or, to be precise, student-circle )))

2. I will get stood up in terms of money.

Irina
There is a chance that someone will take a class and not pay for it. In my experience, that chance is almost zero, but that's a chance you have to take to go freelance. As a precaution, I don't teach new students more than one unpaid class.

Sandra
You have to become financially well-educated, you need to learn how to save because you want to travel, you want to buy good stuff for yourself, you want to go to dentist regularly. Since all these turn to be expensive, you need to know how to manage your budget.

3. If I ask for pre payment nobody will sign on to my classes.

Irina
In my case, many people don't mind paying in advance. But put yourself in your new student’s shoes. They don't know you. Why would they pre-pay? It's risky for them too. You can start exploring this area by asking for one pre-paid class, payable 24 hours before class. Or work out some compromise so that both parties feel comfortable.

Sandra
I've got a question too ))) Why do you need a payment in advance?! I, for instance, deliberately never have prepaid classes because I trust my students and take money only at the end of the month. And even if I had problematic students ending our relationships, they always paid me fully and even more sometimes ))))

4. I will get sued if the desired result is not achieved on time.

Irina
It's human nature to blame someone for not getting what you want, but it's just emotions, never real action. We are not a litigious society. Also, suing is extremely expensive and time-consuming. Seriously though, to avoid being blamed, you always need to get a clear understanding of what result the students want and clarify what they need to do to achieve it. If they don't do what it takes, make it clear along the way.

Sandra
And here we go back to setting goals. If you set the goals, if you send a message and say "Confirm the goals we have discussed!", if you keep screenshots of a messenger chat where your warn a student about any course failures, it will be enough to go to the court and prove that the person hasn't done his\her part of work.

Irina

I want to conclude by saying that being self-employed is not a bed of roses. Yes, you do earn more, but you also work more and take on more responsibilities. Personally, I love it and think it's worth it.

Image credit: Photo by Tatiana Diakova on Unsplash