All right, let's dive into the world of tutoring.
And we're not talking about your typical, you know,
after school homework helper.
We're going deep into what it takes
to build the successful tutoring business.
And like the potential to actually earn some serious cash.
Our guide for this deep dive is Chloe Tan.
She's a college student who's making $3,000 to $4,000 a month.
Tutoring high schoolers, can you believe that?
And she's spilling all the details in her YouTube video,
which is our main source today.
It's pretty amazing what Chloe's been able to do.
I mean, she built this whole business herself,
all while juggling college.
Really speaks to the entrepreneurial spirit
we're exploring today.
Exactly.
And she didn't start with some big marketing budget
or like a team of people helping her.
Chloe literally started by messaging group chats,
like in her existing networks, you know, clubs, classes,
even her siblings' friends.
Think about it, you probably have similar networks
you could tap into.
That's actually a brilliant strategy.
When you think about it,
starting with your immediate circle,
it's a great way to build that initial trust.
And get those first few clients,
referrals from people you know are so powerful.
For sure.
Way less intimidating than like cold calling strangers.
She just put herself out there with a simple message,
like, hey, anyone need help with English?
It's about confidence in communication,
not being a sales pro.
Absolutely.
But you know, Chloe also realizes
that direct networking isn't for everyone.
So she also suggests platforms like Fiverr,
it's a way to reach a much wider audience.
You can gain experience,
build a client base outside of your immediate circle.
And on Fiverr, you can even test out different pricing.
See what people are willing to pay.
Exactly.
Chloe also recommends building a professional website.
Yeah, it adds credibility.
It gives potential clients a place to learn about you
and your services.
Makes you look legit.
She even suggests using a platform called Zyro.
It's a, you know, affordable no-code platform.
You don't need to be a tech whiz to build a website.
Now, here's a myth that Chloe debunks right away.
You don't need to be a genius to be a successful tutor.
Right.
She's not claiming to have an IQ of 200 or anything.
It's actually refreshing.
She's upfront about the fact that, yeah,
strong subject knowledge is important,
but it's not the only thing.
You need to be able to teach that knowledge,
break it down and make it understandable for someone else.
It's true.
It's about translating complex concepts
into something digestible, you know,
tailoring your approach to each student's needs.
Chloe actually compares it to mentoring,
which I think highlights the importance of building trust
and rapport with your students.
Makes total sense.
If a student feels comfortable with you,
they're more likely to ask questions, participate,
ultimately learn more effectively.
Now, we got to talk about the elephant in the room here.
Chloe's making serious bank, like we said,
three to $4,000 a month.
And she's upfront about the fact that her location
plays a role in that.
She's in Shanghai.
Right.
And that's where things get really interesting
because it highlights how important it is
to understand your market.
Shanghai's education system is incredibly competitive.
Parents are willing to invest a lot in their kid's education,
so the demand for high quality tutors is through the roof.
Makes sense.
High demand, limited supply, prices go up.
Basic economics.
Exactly.
But Chloe also points out,
it's not just about being in the right place
at the right time.
She's really carved out a niche for herself
by specializing in specific high schools
and their curricula.
So she's not just tutoring English literature in general.
She's offering tailored guidance that
aligns with what those specific schools are looking for.
Exactly.
Think about it from a parent's perspective.
If you're spending money on a tutor,
you want someone who understands the system inside and out,
someone who can give your child that extra edge.
It's like she's giving students a cheat code
but in a totally legit way.
Exactly.
And this ties back to what we were talking about earlier
about specialization.
By focusing on a niche market.
Yeah.
And developing deep expertise.
Chloe's positioned herself as a premium provider.
Love it.
It's a good reminder that you don't have to be good
at everything.
Focusing your energy on a specific area
can really make you stand out.
And command higher rates no matter what field you're in.
Now Chloe's also honest about the fact
that she didn't start out making this much.
She's been doing this for a few years.
Building her reputation, refining her skills.
So it's not like she became a tutoring superstar overnight.
There's hard work and dedication behind her success.
Absolutely.
It takes time to build a thriving business,
whether it's tutoring or anything else.
Persistence, continuous learning,
and a commitment to delivering real value to your clients.
And a bit of luck never hurts.
Chloe admits that being in Shanghai at this particular time
has definitely helped her.
But she also made the most of that opportunity.
Put in the work and hustled to build her business.
She saw a need and she filled it.
Now I think it would be helpful to dig a little deeper
into Chloe's teaching methodology,
how she structures her lessons.
Yeah, let's get into the nitty gritty.
She actually lays out her typical lesson plan in the video,
which is super helpful for anyone who's ever
thought about tutoring.
Or even just improving their own teaching skills.
It's like a master class in lesson planning.
She always starts with a recap of the previous session.
Helps reinforce learning, keep everyone on track.
It seems so obvious, but I can't tell you how many times
I've sat in a class and felt completely lost.
Because I couldn't remember what we covered last time.
Chloe's recap strategy just eliminates that confusion.
It's simple, but effective.
Any teacher or mentor can use it.
And it only takes a few minutes.
Then she moves on to homework review.
This is where she provides personalized feedback.
Addresses any questions or challenges
the student might have had.
That one-on-one attention, that's
so often missing in traditional classrooms.
Right.
Chloe takes the time to engage with each student's work,
help them learn from their mistakes,
build their confidence.
Then comes the heart of the lesson, skill building.
This is where Chloe introduces new concepts, techniques,
strategies, often through interactive activities
and discussions.
She really emphasizes active learning.
Encourages students to participate, ask questions,
apply what they're learning.
It's not about passively absorbing information.
It's about engaging with it, making it your own.
And remember that example she shared.
About using anaphora to teach literary analysis.
Oh, yeah, that was a good one.
That's a perfect example of how she brings
complex concepts to life.
For sure.
It's not just about identifying a literary device.
It's about understanding its purpose, its effect,
how it fits into the bigger picture.
It's about learning how to think critically,
how to analyze information, how to articulate your thoughts.
Exactly.
Those are skills that apply to any subject, any field.
And those are the skills that employers are looking for.
Absolutely.
Now, before wrapping up, Chloe makes
her to confirm next steps, answer any lingering questions.
I like that.
It might seem like a small detail,
but it reinforces that sense of clarity and accountability.
Especially important in a freelance setting.
Exactly.
It shows that she respects her students' time
and is committed to their success.
So we've covered a lot of ground here.
We've talked about how Chloe built her client base,
her specialization strategy, and even got a glimpse
into her lesson structure.
But there's more to this story.
How did she go from tutoring a few friends
to building a business that brings in thousands
of dollars a month?
That's what we'll explore in the next part of our deep dive.
OK, so let's shift gears a bit and talk
about the financial side of things.
Because let's be real, that's a big part of what
makes Chloe's story so interesting.
Right.
We all want to know how she's making $3,000 to $4,000
a month from tutoring.
Exactly.
And Chloe's not shy about talking about money at all.
She breaks down her pricing strategy in the video,
how she's able to command those impressive rates.
And we already touched on the location thing.
Shanghai's education market is so competitive.
Parents are willing to spend a lot of money
to give your kids an edge.
It's true.
The demand for tutors is crazy high there.
So high demand, limited supply, prices go up.
Basic economics.
But Chloe also points out that it's not just about location.
She's really carved out a niche for herself
by specializing in those specific high schools
and their curriculum.
Right.
She's not just a general English tutor.
She's offering something much more targeted.
Exactly.
She calls it her competitive advantage.
It sounds a little corporate, but it makes sense.
She's not just tutoring English literature.
She's giving them the exact tools
they need to succeed in those specific schools.
Think about it from a parent's perspective.
If you're going to shell out money for a tutor,
you want someone who understands the system inside and out.
Someone who can give your kid that extra edge.
That's where Chloe's expertise really shines.
It's like she's given him a cheat code,
but in a totally legit way.
Precisely.
This also goes back to what we discussed earlier
about specialization.
You don't have to be a jack of all trades.
Focusing on a niche market.
Developing deep expertise.
That's how you position yourself as a premium provider.
It's a good lesson for any field, really.
You don't have to be good at everything.
Focusing your energy.
Lows you to stand out, command higher rates.
Now Chloe's also very upfront about the fact
that she didn't start out making this much.
It's taken her a few years to get to this point.
So it wasn't an overnight success story.
Not at all.
It's been a journey.
Building a business takes time.
Persistence, continuous learning.
It's about delivering real value to your clients.
Exactly.
And you know, a bit of luck's never hurts either.
Chloe admits that being in Shanghai at this time
has definitely helped.
Right.
But she also made the most of that opportunity.
To put it to work?
She saw a need and she filled it.
So I think now would be a good time
to dig a little deeper into Chloe's teaching methodology,
how she structures her lessons.
Yeah.
Let's break it down.
She actually shares her typical lesson plan in the video,
which is super helpful for anyone
who's thinking about tutoring.
It's like a master class in lesson planning.
Or even just for anyone who wants to improve their teaching
skills in general.
For sure.
So she always starts with a recap of the previous session,
just a few minutes to refresh everyone's memory.
Seems simple, but it's so important.
How many times have we been in a class
and felt totally lost?
Because we couldn't remember what was covered last time.
Right.
Chloe's recap just eliminates that confusion from the start.
And then she moves on to homework review.
This is where the personalized feedback comes in.
She takes the time to address any questions or challenges
students might have had.
It's all about that one-on-one attention,
which you just don't get in a big classroom.
Exactly.
She really engages with each student's work,
helps them learn from their mistakes, build confidence.
And then comes the really fun part, skill building.
This is where Chloe introduces new concepts, techniques,
often through these interactive activities and discussions.
She's a big believer in active learning,
encourages participation, questions, applying
what you're learning.
It's not just about sitting there and absorbing
information passively.
Right.
You got to engage with it.
And remember that example she gave about using
Anifora to teach literary analysis.
Yeah.
That was a great one.
It wasn't just about identifying the device.
It was about understanding why the author used it,
what effect it created, how it contributed
to the meaning of the text.
It was about developing those critical thinking skills.
Exactly.
Which are so important no matter what field you're in.
Absolutely.
And then to wrap things up, Chloe always confirms next steps,
answers any last minute questions.
I love that little detail.
It just shows that she respects her students' time.
And it helps avoid any confusion down the line.
Exactly.
So we've talked about Chloe's pricing strategies,
her detailed lesson structure, her focus on active learning.
It's really impressive.
But there's one more piece of the puzzle we need to explore.
How did she actually go from tutoring her brother's friends
to building this thriving business?
That's what we'll uncover in the final part of our deep dive.
OK, so we're back.
And we're ready to uncover the final piece of Chloe's success
story, her entrepreneurial journey.
We've talked about her teaching methods,
her pricing strategies.
But how did she actually get this whole tutoring
business off the ground?
Well, what I find really inspiring
is that she started small.
She didn't overthink it.
Remember, she just started by reaching out
to her existing networks, classmates, friends,
even her brother's friends.
You don't need some big, elaborate business
plan to get started.
Sometimes it's just about taking that first step.
It's about recognizing the resources you already have.
Yeah.
Right?
She just sent out a message in some group chats,
let people know she was available to tutor.
Exactly.
It wasn't a fancy marketing campaign or anything.
Just clear, direct communication.
And it also speaks to the power of confidence, right?
She believed in her abilities.
And she wasn't afraid to put herself out there.
That can be a big hurdle for a lot of people.
For sure.
But Chloe shows us that it doesn't
have to be this big, scary thing.
It's a good reminder for all of us.
Absolutely.
Sometimes we get stuck in the planning stage.
We overthink things.
We get paralyzed by fear.
Exactly.
Right.
Chloe's story encourages us to just take action.
Even if it's a small step.
Now, Chloe also acknowledges that direct networking
might not be for everyone.
Right.
Not everyone's comfortable with that.
So she also suggests platforms like Fiverr
as a way to showcase your skills to a wider audience.
You can gain experience working with different clients.
And you can get a feel for pricing, too.
See what people are willing to pay for your services.
Exactly.
Fiverr can be a great way to test the waters.
See if there's demand for what you offer,
without a huge amount of risk.
It's a low stakes way to get started.
And Chloe also recommends setting up a professional website,
even if you're just starting out.
It definitely adds legitimacy.
It gives potential clients a place
to go to learn about you and your services.
It's like your online storefront.
Exactly.
Now, what I really appreciate about Chloe
is she's also honest about the challenges.
She talks about developing thick skin.
Because rejection is part of the process.
Especially when you're building something new.
You're going to hear no more times than you'd like.
But it's about learning from those experiences,
picking yourself up, and keeping going.
Resilience is key.
Right.
It's about not letting setbacks derail your dreams.
Chloe's journey also highlights
the importance of adaptability.
You know, when the pandemic hit.
She had to transition her whole business online.
That's a great example of adapting to changing circumstances.
She embraced new technologies, new platforms.
We had to pivot.
Exactly.
And that flexibility is so crucial in today's world.
So as we wrap up this deep dive, what can we, the listeners,
take away from Chloe's story, even
if we're not all aspiring tutors?
I think there are some really universal truths here.
Yeah.
What are your big takeaways?
First, it's a reminder that we all have skills and knowledge.
That can be valuable to others, whether it's a language,
a craft, a technical skill.
We all have something to offer.
It's about recognizing our own expertise.
And seeing the potential to share it with the world.
Love it.
Second, Chloe's story is a testament to the power
of entrepreneurship.
You don't need a ton of money or a fancy degree to get started.
It's about identifying a need, creating a solution,
and taking action.
It's really empowering.
It is.
It shows that we can create our own opportunities.
We don't have to wait for permission.
Exactly.
And finally, Chloe's journey highlights
the importance of continuous learning, adaptability,
and resilience.
Those are essential qualities for success.
In any field, not just business.
Couldn't agree more.
So to wrap up this episode, let's
leave you with a thought-provoking question.
What skills or knowledge do you have
that could be valuable to others?
Could you turn your passion into a side hustle,
a mentorship opportunity, or even a full-time career?
Maybe it's time to take inspiration from Chloe
and explore those possibilities.
You might be surprised at what you discover
in the future.