If you are planning to start your own business you will face challenges that could keep you awake at night. They might be fears or simple worries, but they are worth confronting before going solo.
Will I have enough students?
The biggest challenge is securing your first clients. When you work for someone else, students are assigned to you. In business, you have to find your own.
To start, you will have to step outside your comfort zone and network with businesspeople. This means lots of walking and delivering pitches that explain not what a good teacher you are but how you will solve their problems.
Secondly, your clients (i.e. the HR department of a company) will not be the same as your students, which complicates matters. How to get those clients? There’s lots of literature on this but I would keep it simple: design a decent website; advertise on social media; print business cards to hand out; paste posters near offices; visit business shows; mail flyers to companies within travel distance and call business association in your area. As for this, look for underserved niches. Everyone knows your city’s chamber of commerce but what about the sausage manufacturers’ guild?
How I did it: All of the above worked for me but the last one stood out. Reaching to business associations was very successful. I contacted about eighty, and three led to contracts: a technology park, a mould-makers’ union and a food producing cluster.
What’s the right name?
You will need a brand. You’re no longer “the teacher.” You are a business, and your brand should appear everywhere, from printed exercises to website.
My advice? Use your name. Or a variation that’s easily pronounced and whose URL is not already taken. If you’re Jane Smith that has probably disappeared, but if you add teacher or corporate trainer it might still be available.
Why your name instead of “best teacher in the world” or something similar? Because it (1) is yours (2) can’t be stolen (3) shows you’re committed; and (4) you need not search the world over till you find something that shares the qualities of 1 to 3. Your name already has them.
How I did it: I got it wrong. Instead of using Andrew Miles, which is easy to write and pronounce, I went with “English for Business”. The brand is now well established so there’s no way I will change it, but it is long and hard to spell. Therefore, when I later started a publishing site I resorted to andymiles.com. It’s too early to say whether it’s been successful, but at least the name represents me!
What’s the right price?
The secret is a balance between fair pay and not pricing yourself out of the market; the obvious route is to research what others are charging and set similar rates. A simpler method is to calculate your current (salaried) hourly fee and multiply it by 1.5. Your employers are probably charging more to cover costs plus taxes so your prices would be within the right bracket for starters. You can always up them later.
How I did it: I worked for an academy before founding my business so I already knew what rates were like. As I was beginning, I charged about two thirds of what they (a well-known school) did. I gradually increased my fees about two years later. Now we are the established academy so beginners with lower overheads but less experience underprice us!
Will I be able to set up a proper school?
There are three aspects: teaching, managing and legal. I presume you can already teach, so we should forget that one. Management can be left for later, once your business has grown.
Now, setting up a legal structure, understanding tax requirements, and negotiating contracts—that’s hard! Take the plunge if you think you’ll be able to float. Otherwise, hire outside help and add the cost to your overheads.
How I did it: Teaching I could handle, so not much time invested in that; management I learnt by reading books and making mistakes; the legal stuff was covered by a paid advisor.
Can I make it as a businessperson?
Even with years of experience, you may question whether your skills are “corporate enough” or if you belong in a boardroom with all those clever seniors around you. It’s a bit like lecturing at a university for the first time—you have the knowledge, but the environment feels overwhelming, and you worry you’ll be found out as an outsider.
There are two solutions: First, acknowledge your expertise and the value you bring. Whatever those clever seniors think, you know more about your subject than they do.
Secondly, stand in your client’s shoes and remember that companies are only looking for a partner to help them achieve their goals. Rephrase what you say and turn it into information they’ll find useful. Don’t report “This student’s listening comprehension is pre-intermediate” but change it to “This employee wouldn’t be able to understand foreign customers during a business meeting”. Managers will start to appreciate your feedback and will learn to trust your unbiased opinions.
How I solved it: I never thought I was a businessperson; I knew I was a teacher running a teaching business so I never felt belittled when dealing with managers. They had their job. I had mine. And when they screamed, squabbled and tried to intimidate me I imagined them in their underwear as they sat on their cushioned chairs. It did the trick!
Will I be able to work alone?
Teaching at schools is often a collaborative profession with a built-in support system. Being the boss, even if you are your only employee is lonely. It can be challenging to navigate decisions without a team to lean on.
How to solve this? Join online communities or local networking groups for entrepreneurs. Find a mastermind group or a business coach who can offer advice. Read about other businesspeople. Matsushita, Lessons from the 20th Century’s Most Remarkable Entrepreneur by John P. Kotter would be a reasonable book where to start.
How I did it: I had help. Three friends and I created a support group that met one Sunday a month. Each of us took turns to expose our problems and the others offered solutions, or at least listened attentively. I ascribe the early success of my businesses to what I learnt from our small support group.
Will I survive income ups and downs?
The math seems simple. You earn 100; you spend 80 and you turn a profit of 20. However, what happens when students pay you three months late; when you are forced to stop all of August because everyone’s on holiday or when your best client gets bought by an investor who ditches language lessons?
If you work for someone else you get paid promptly, there’s holiday money and redundancy. If you work for yourself the only way is to start the business with a cushion or generate a cushion as you teach; alternatively, you can keep your current job part time, so if disasters hit your basics will be covered.
The way I did it: When I started our school in Spain my wife and I had two kids. Money wasn’t abundant. However, I needed a stash for rainy days, bridge the three or so months it took companies to pay and cash for advertising. I made a deal with her: she would look after our kids on Saturdays and I would work then. My Monday to Friday income would be my salary. Saturday would be spent solely in consolidating the business. I taught every Saturday for five full years, until I had enough working capital to both advertise and keep the school running through dry spells.
Will AI make all my efforts useless?
Of course, I asked AI about this one! After recycling its convoluted answer into something readable here we have its reply: “AI will handle repetitive tasks. This will free up human instructors to focus on higher-level skills such as cultural understanding, negotiation, and nuanced communication.” Overly formal English and obvious statements—typical AI staple!
We don’t know what the future will bring but many in-company teachers’ jobs are safe for at least one generation. The reason is that people enjoy being with people—and if they have to be bossed around, they’d rather have a person do it. Also, only humans can do face-to-face lessons. In other words, no need to worry about ChatGPT dressing in your blazer and catching the bus to that client you have beyond the valley.
Yes, I know getting off your armchair and opening your house door to look for onsite clients is a strenuous effort, but you’ll be rewarded with sunshine plus a profusion of students who prefer to see their teacher live than on a screen. And, believe me, there are still many of those!
How I’m doing it: We are concentrating on areas where AI won’t challenge our school. Computers can’t assemble groups so we are bringing people from different companies together. Computers don’t really understand culture so we’re adding behavioural insights to our lessons. Computers have a hard time with business etiquette, so we are including that in our classes. Computers can’t tell if anyone has a headache so we remind managers that adapting lessons to students’ rhythms is only within the reach of human teachers. Empathy is always an advantage. Read Andrew’s books on business English here: www.andymiles.com