What we hope private students will do for us
Private students - frustratingly, wonderfully, annoyingly nice. They give you a chance to customise lessons, help you earn some extra cash, fill in the gaps in your schedule, cancel without much warning, fail to do homework, do all of their homework and more, challenge you in new ways, annoy you by not learning what they should, bring their bad moods into the lessons, bring their great moods into the lessons, argue with you over price and times, pay you well and let you be flexible when you need to cancel etc.
NB: For this post I'll define a private student as one who you teach individually or in a small group as a direct client (no school or agency involvement) and who often pays for the lessons in cash.
I think that every ESL teacher who has private students will share some of the sentiments above. Private students are an interesting mix as they can be a great boon for your income and a real nightmare for your time management and income stability.
Here are my tips for making a good impression, getting new clients, making them happy and keeping them with you.
- Advertise. How can people ask for you as a teacher if they don't know that you are available for lessons? You can advertise any way you like but generally word of mouth, online adverts and social networks are very good. I have several clients from word of mouth or friends of friends on facebook but most of mine come from free websites where I have an advert uploaded. It works!
- Go and meet them. It sounds annoying but you have to sell yourself in person. At first you are a teacher who they don't know any more than another teacher. Get to know them, make them realise how fun and interesting the lessons will be for you and if they want a free lesson ,write it off as a good demo. I have to do it, schools and companies do it. It's just part of teaching.
- References. Who have you worked for? Which companies or well known clients can you use as references for when people ask about your experience? This is quite a key factor in ensuring you can ask for a good price. I have a list of major clients I've worked with (including Lenovo, SAP, Dell and Slovnaft, a huge petrochemical company) that I can use if people ask.
- Compromise. I frequently accept the first lesson or two at a less preferable time or location just to get the ball rolling. I will work hard to meet the client as close as possible to their home or work so that the English lesson doesn't feel like a big chore for them. Once we have a good relationship students afford me a lot more flexibility and we work together to make it easy and convenient for both of us
- The first lesson. Make it a good one. You have a chance to really impress them, make them happy with your methods and ideas, build a long term relationship and, if you charge at the higher end (as I do) you must justify this cost to them. To do this:
- Bring a fun, interactive and engaging lesson. Generally I'd go for more conversational as people often ask for this type of lesson.
- Create a lesson that works really well for interaction. A lot of teachers my students have described will come to the lesson with a textbook and just go through it with the students. If you have something more (cards, games, activities, conversation fun) they will appreciate it and it's easier to make it feel customised.
- Make sure you check their language level. Mark down what they need to work on so you have material and can mentally create a 'syllabus'. Show them a few selected mistakes and help them with corrections to establish yourself as a teacher.
- Highlight what they are good at, probably before the point above. Most students have fairly low language esteem, or they portray it this way. Perhaps it's true or perhaps it's polite modesty but get them to realise just how good they already are. Now, with your help (see above), they can get better.
- BE IN A GOOD MOOD. You know how students being down can make your lesson that much harder and more challenging? You can do that to your students. Bring them a happy, enthusiastic and interesting teacher who makes them feel good during and after their lesson. It's hard sometimes faking your mood if you're having a tough week but do it and the rewards will be tangible and appreciated.
- Let the lesson run over a bit. Unless you are really time constrained, make sure you give them a little extra time. Enjoy a few more games or activities so that they feel good. Then you can add the hint of acting where you "realise" you've run over and didn't notice because you were having such a good time.
Once you've gotten the ball rolling with people and had a good few first lessons, I find it then tends to run much more smoothly and easily. If it helps you, I suggest you pin down two or three good, general lessons that you like and know you can teach clearly and comfortably. I have a standard two starting lessons and then I take the next lessons in the direction each particular student needs.
If you read this far without getting bored and giving up, here's a cute puppy picture to reward you.
Any questions, please just drop a line in the comments section :-)
Pete
