Making Money by Sharing Your Skills
Teaching, coaching, tutoring, so many names for the ways you share your skill with others. One thing they all have in common is it’s a great way to make some extra money or even turn it into your full time business.
I turned to tutoring during the Great Recession when more freelance assignments were far and few between, and more work was getting outsourced. I enjoyed it so much that I actually started to drop some of my freelance writing gigs and switched more to teaching others how to write. I began teaching classes through some of the chapters of the Romance Writers of America. About four years ago, I also uploaded classes to a platform called Skillshare. Three years ago, I began offering one on one coaching and mentoring with aspiring authors.
I have to say I love interacting with my students and (hopefully), passing along my experiences and knowledge to future authors and writers.
Do you have a skill or even skills you can share with others? Think about what you love to do and what others think you’re great at. Next thing to do is figure out who and how you’d like to teach. We’re be going into more detail on future Teaching Tuesdays, but for now let’s run through the types of ways to teach and their pros and cons-
Teaching at a Physical Setting
I taught cooking classes at my local coop many years ago. The plus side is you get to actually interact with the students and gauge immediately how they’re reacting to your content and you as a teacher. The school will do promotion for you. The downside is, you have to drive someplace and if you’re on the shy side, sometimes it can be stressful standing in front of a bunch of strangers.
Tutoring Online
I’ve been tutoring for an online writing school for close to 12 years and the biggest plus is I can critique my students assignments any time of the day, any day. I can do it before I start my main work for the day or after. I also get to pick the classes I do and do not want to tutor and the school markets the classes. Downside, not sure if there is any but depending on who you tutor for, the pay might not be that great.
Teaching For An Organization
There are lots of companies and organizations that offer classes for their members and if you have the skills to match the topic or subject area, the skies the limit. Plus is, once again this is something you can do from home or anywhere, even the coffee shop and the organization helps with promotion. Downside is, if you have a specialized skill finding the right match could be tough. Also, like tutoring, pay varies.
Teaching on a Platform
Platforms are popping up every day. Plus side is, the skies the limit because of the sheer number of online platforms. You get to create your own curriculum and not have to follow someone else’s lesson plan. It’s very much passive income…more about this coming up. Biggest plus, is these platforms promote like crazy and often offer coupons, discounts to would be students. Downside, pay can be really low especially when you start out and depending on the platform, they might want exclusive rights to your class.
Teaching on your Own Site
This is something I’m gradually switching over to. You create the lessons, upload them and sell them yourself. Plus, is you’re in total control so if a platform goes out of business or changes the rules you don’t have to worry about your classes (and income), suddenly going bye bye. Downside, having to do your own promotion to drive the student to your site and then making sure they buy the class. Having to set up a store and handling the money side of things.
Coaching
If you prefer one on one interaction with students then coaching in your chosen skill set is a great way to make money and yes, that’s the plus for this one. And some coaches can make six figures. Downside, once again, you’re in charge of the promotion and converting the buyer into a client and in charge of payment.
Any of the above sound like a good fit for you?
This week, think about your skills and which of the ways to teach you prefer. Don’t worry if you pick all of them because it can work. In the coming months, we’ll be focusing on each one. We’ll look at how you can make money and at the same time take joy in knowing you’ve shared a skill with a person who might one day earn their living using it.
Talk again soon, and remember to live the life you love.
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