WEDNESDAY, 4 NOVEMBER 2015
How do I manage to make money as an English teacher? (Hint: It is not because I am good at making money.)
Another question: How have I made money in the past, and/or how do I earn money now?
1. By helping people with their English studies in classes arranged by other people
2. By producing EFL material that has been requested by someone, or by making available material that I have developed
3. By serving customers in a men’s gift shop and tobacconist
4. By delivering hot meals for restaurants
5. By recruiting subscribers for a provincial newspaper, and later for an environmental journal
6. By performing administrative tasks in an office
7. By proofreading text written by other people
8. By writing reviews about products
9. By providing to people space on a web server for their websites, and by providing other internet-related services
10. By writing and publishing books in print and electronic formats
What golden thread runs through all these activities? People needed something, or they wanted to get something done; I was in the right place at the right time, and it was within my ability to provide those products or services.
Interestingly enough, the list includes so-called cold calling – which literally means I had to knock on people’s doors to try and sell something to them. Most people shudder at the mere thought, and I myself hope that I would never be forced to do anything like it again, but – I did quite well when I did have to do it.
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