Having a work-life balance means your time and focus between working and family or leisure activities are divided in a balanced way. Achieving a work-life balance can be challenging for independent tutors.
As tutors, we are dedicated to helping our students do well in their development and academics. This could mean sacrificing time off our rest days to hold extra lessons, work longer hours or helping our students whenever they have a question.
However, this is not good for our physical and mental well being in the long run. We might feel or fatigued. So, what can we do to improve our work-life balance? In this post, I will share some tips to achieve this as a tutor.
If you have a tutoring business with a flexible schedule, you might struggle to find the time to achieve work-life balance. The key is to create a schedule and stick to it.
Use a planner or a calender to track when you’re going to work, when you’re going to take a break, or when you’re going to exercise. Set aside a certain amount of time each day for your tutoring. It’s better if this is done at a fixed time every day. Having a daily routine is crucial!
When you have a set schedule, you’ll be surprised how much more you’re able to accomplish in the same amount of time.
Prep ahead and keep it simple
I’m sure you’ll agree that tutoring is less stressful when you make sure you’ve planned your lessons ahead.
Think about how much time you’ll need to prep for each lesson. Set aside at least half an hour before each session. This gives you time to go over the material you’ll teach and be ready.
Also, keep the lessons short, simple and sweet. Less is more.
I usually only plan about 20 minutes for a lesson. That’s enough to teach students the most important information. It leaves plenty of time for questions, and you can always extend the lesson if needed.
Set realistic expectations
If you’re a beginner in tutoring business, you can easily put in at least 50 to 60 hours of work per week. The more experience you gain, the more potential there will be to earn more money. On one hand it’s appealing to earn more, on the other you might end up working 70 hours per week! With such flexible timetables, tutors will find they have the scope to take on a wide range of commitments.
However, be careful to not overcommit yourself. If you are planning to spend every day of the week tutoring full-time, you may not have enough time to actually spend it with your family.
You can schedule your classes to fit around your other commitments, such as spending time with your family, pursuing a hobby or working on your blog.
Take advantage of technology
There are many ways to use technology to save time as a tutor. If you’re comfortable with a digital learning platform, you can still use it to save time. Some apps can also help your students understand the content of your lessons easier. You can use platforms such as Skype or Google Hangouts to conduct live lessons. There are plenty of apps that allow you to record your tutorials and send them to students.
When it comes to doing menial tasks, like planning lessons, grading papers or even filing, there are a number of apps and online tools available.
While it’s tempting to try and automate everything, there’s no way to completely eliminate the need for human interaction in a successful tutoring business. Your best bet is to use technology to help you do what you do best: guide your students to success.
If you’re going to be a successful tutor, you need to set a clear boundary between you and your . This may sound a bit harsh but you need to honest with yourself.
While you may love tutoring and consider it as a passion, you also need to realize that it’s a business. You’re an entrepreneur, and you need to set a boundary so that you can create a profitable business. Communicate the limits of your tutoring session and your available hours clearly. Don’t answer phone calls or text messages during your personal time.
Create time for yourself
We all have only 24 hours in a day. If you want to make the most of it, you need to set time aside to focus on yourself. Whether that means taking up a new hobby, reading a book, or spending time with your family.
In the end you’ll feel more inspired, energized and be ready to keep your daily routine. And you won’t have to stress about your work-life balance.
The key is to make time for yourself. Whether that’s on a weekend, in the evening, or even during your lunch break.
In the end, it’s all about priorities
We all know what it’s like to have a full-time job and a family. Life can get hectic. Sometimes it feels impossible to find time to spend with our families, let alone carve out time to pursue our passions. As a tutor with a flexible schedule, you have a choice of what to focus on. Work-life balance isn’t about having it all, but rather being able to focus on the things that you care about.
I hope these tips were helpful for you to start managing your time well and prioritising what’s important for you.
Originally published at https://www.trakist.com on March 31, 2023.
