Is Tutoring Right for You?
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The reasons why you want to become a tutor might be noble and just. However, just because you want to be a tutor does not necessarily mean you should be a tutor. Here are a few things for you to consider about the tutoring lifestyle and profession before you take the leap.

First, do you like working with people? I mean really like working with people. As a tutor you are going to run across the entire gambit of human personality types, and you are going to need to be able to interact with them all in a positive way. Not every client is going to be that “perfect” student, and not every student is going to necessarily learn well from your primary place of teaching comfort. Successful tutors love the challenge that each new person provides them, looks forward to finding that key to unlocking understanding in that student’s mind, and also genuinely likes getting to know lots of new and different people.

Are you okay working by yourself? Can you handle the solitude? When you “go to the office” as a tutor you might just be working from your own home office, perhaps a library, or maybe a coffee shop. Where ever you tutoring, you are most likely going to be there by yourself. You will have your students, but in between appointments it will be just you. If you are someone who needs the office banter, the water cooler chat, or company picnics, then tutoring might not be for you.

Can you be self motivated? The other part of being your own boss is the fact that the only one that is setting goals, holding you accountable, or guiding you into the future is…YOU. If getting yourself out of bed every day is a struggle, if you find yourself doom scrolling on your phone for hours, if you can’t force yourself to break away from the social media without someone telling you, then you may have a difficult time holding yourself accountable and making sure you accomplish everything you need to be successful. When it is raining out and you need to go hand out flyers to potential clients, or show up with a cheery disposition in the middle of gale force winds to make sure your students are ready for their test the next day, it is only YOU who can do the personal motivating. No one else is going to hold you accountable.

How are your nerves? This is really a question most small businesses owners have to answer. In this industry, especially when you are first getting started, it is hard to know where that next meal (client) is going to come from. Even after 25-years as a professional tutor, every semester begins with me not knowing how many clients I will get that semester. I know my traditional monthly averages (through consistent data tracking), but nothing is guaranteed from one semester to the next. The longer you have been in business the more more word of mouth generated business you can expect to receive, and the more carry over business you can count on. Even with all of that I would be lying to you if I told you I felt complete secure at the start of every semester.

Finally, how are your budgeting skills? If you don’t have them, you will want to get them if you are going to be successful. Achieving good budgeting skills can come in several forms. You could hire an accountant to help you with your budgeting and taxes. You could hire…a tutor (you knew it was coming) to help you understand how to create, manage, and stick to a budget. However, you choose to do it, just make sure you do it. Tutoring can be a very cyclical job. You can have times of extreme highs and times of extreme lows. You want to make sure that you don’t waste the income from the high times so that you are hurting when the low times come.