The First Week In My New Job.
It's been a baptism of fire. But I loved it.
Last week, I began teaching English as a foreign language. The whole week has been a blur and a steep learning curve. But boy, has it been fun.
I’m naturally chatty and nosey, and talking to people from all walks of life has been nothing short of brilliant. Getting paid for it is even better. For now, I chose to teach only conversational English until I am better at all the other things and have a few more qualifications.
But I did something daft.
I forgot to set my availability on the calendar, and my rates are far too low. I’ve been working 14-hour days, fitting in students around my “dog stuff” while still running my household and doing all the Mummy things. (Plus, I’m sneakily brushing up on my grammar, as we barely touched on it at school, which ended in 1996!)
I’m super busy but earning less than a couple of dollars for each session. Until the students buy more sessions at a more expensive rate at my (now) set hours, I’m left doggy paddling in the ocean, just trying to survive.
Lesson learned.
Set boundaries and better rates BEFORE opening up to bookings.
On-the-job training
On the plus side, I feel like I have had the best on-the-job training ever, as my students have all helped me as much as I have helped them. We have been getting to grips with the technology together, finding solutions to bad internet connections, and sharing many resources and ideas.
I was pleasantly surprised to learn that many people didn’t expect me to be perfect in the first lesson, and when they learned I was new, they were all willing to help!
In between times, my dog training clients have all started popping up again. I think this is going to be a busy year for me!
How has your week been?
Today’s Sub Stats:
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Warm ‘n’ Fuzzies
Freya xx