My journey into online tutoring started off in 2012. By 2015 I was convinced online far better in quality than face to face (the reasons for this is another blog post altogether). So, I decided to go all online and cut out in person tutoring altogether. This was a real business gamble for me as I was disrupting my own already successful in person tutoring business. My intention was to cut out my commute in London and deliver better quality tutoring which I felt was possible online. Unknown to me at the time, I entered truly borderless tutoring. I used to get work word of mouth around London and the UK and now it became more like ‘word of mouse’ as clients recommended me online with no limits on geography. When a client had a sister in Canada whose daughter I ended up tutoring, I knew that I have entered a new limitless era of tutoring.
From other advertising I started getting enquires from all over the world and thanks to time differences it’s always 5pm in the world somewhere, the peak evening tutoring slot. As a result, I could tutor during daytimes in the UK. These daytime hours used to be wasted in the past as most of the tutoring takes place after school from 4pm onwards. In one year, I pretty much doubled my income. And with that I found ever new confidence in my own abilities as a tutor. I have now tutored students in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, India, UAE, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Switzerland, Spain, France, Germany, Kenya, Bermuda, St. Kitts, Canada, USA and of course in many different parts of the UK.
This bold move to all online did come at a small cost. When I decided to go all online in 2016, I lost a small fraction of my in-person clients. No matter what, some clients were not keen to try out online. That saddened me a bit as I lost a few tutees I really liked working with. But as planned the opening I made for new online clients paid off very well indeed. I started connecting with a new type of client altogether. My own story of growing up in different countries and going to a British school in Kenya resonated with my new clients and students. And through tutoring these students I connected to my own past life as an expat child. It was the perfect match.
What a wonderful time we are living in now. We truly stand at the most important crossroads that humanity has ever come across. The internet is connecting people directly by transcending the limits of space. And as an online tutor I have the unique opportunity to educate and empower students. It feels nothing short of a miracle when I connect with students daily in various parts of the world and find out about the weather there, the holidays, currency and all these other little things. Online tutoring has changed my life completely and I really hope to see other tutors take this direction.
Thank you for your help!