Today I am excited to chat about teacher side hustle jobs you might not have considered. We have been watching this amazing human do great things for the teaching community and it's been so refreshing and so nice just to see someone come in and really dominate the space on making a transition as a teacher into a whole new career. 

Daphne started her business in 2019 after leaving teaching. She realized that there were no resources to help with her own career transition. So she started working with a human resources expert and building a system that helps people understand what their other career options are outside of teaching.

By leveraging their educational experience into these ideas, came this community of people who were just evaluating new career options outside of teaching. It's not always a one-size-fits-all answer. Many teachers are just looking for information on how to earn additional income. Because they're not making enough but a career transition isn't the right move for them either. 

Or they might need support with figuring out mental health services. Daphne talks about being in a helping position and it's really just for all those teachers who are almost with a leg out of their career. They can come to a safe space where they can talk about the current issues they are facing. It seems like everywhere you turn education has a negative thought behind it.

The negativity surrounds how teachers are feeling and the support that they're not getting. So it's wonderful and refreshing to see that Daphne is offering support and giving them options. Sometimes we assume that it's just a one-size-fits-all decision.  But really teachers have to come to that decision themselves before they can be happy with it. And completely changing careers isn't for everyone, nor is it feasible for every individual depending on their circumstances.  

Ultimately there are so many teachers who need to change environments. Maybe changing to a different grade level or a different school district would help reignite their passions. They can try that first because leaving is not going to be the easy answer. So Daphne helps with all the different resources available to help teachers make really personal decisions. 

Daphne felt like she needed to transition out of the classroom around 2017. Teaching left her so stressed out all the time. She realized that something about the classroom environment just wasn't working. Then she landed a fifth-grade role in a completely different school district and thought the change in demographics and environment was really going to help her love teaching again.

It ended up being one of her most challenging years. The expectations from the parents were unrealistic in that school district and it was a really toxic work environment. It broke her mentally. She was going to the doctor for stress-related illnesses and just realized at the end of that year she had to try to find something else.

She felt like she had wasted all this energy getting her M.Ed and all the time spent on a teaching career. And she was contemplating walking away from it all. She really started evaluating how to stay in the environment that she loved. Educating people. But without being in a traditional classroom.  

She knew almost immediately in this new role that she was much happier. She was speaking at national conferences and doing professional development. Basically, her job was that of an educational consultant. She would go into schools and help support teachers. The districts did not pay for her time whatsoever. She was just helping teachers utilize something that they already had in their district and streamline their workflows.

She found a lot of passion and joy and was able to creatively think and work with adults. Help them learn new things and figure out different ways to communicate. After 4 years she went to work for another company doing instructional design. Building their learning courses and online curriculum. Some of the struggles related to public speaking still haunted her.  She had a lot of impostor syndrome from the way the parents and admin treated her in her teaching role. 

How Many Teachers Have Second Jobs?

A huge part of why teachers are looking to leave the profession is that they don't feel supported, financially or emotionally.  Helping teachers find that passion and joy while they are in the classroom will help them better the lives of the children in their care. We really love helping our teachers get their foot in the door with a side hustle before they make the decision to leave the profession altogether. 

Before you take a new career path, get your hands dirty and understand the role you are about to embark on. Things look different on paper many times, and you can assume that you know yourself. But once you really start to get into the new role of side hustle you may find yourself feeling passionate about something similar but not the same. So starting with a side hustle or getting a part-time job either freelancing or part-time contract work is a great way to get your feet wet. Gives you a little bit more flexibility, and additional options. One reason why teachers have become salty is that they feel backed into a corner. If you don't feel like you have any other option except for the thing that is right in front of you – you are going to resent it.

You want teachers who are in the classroom to realize they are choosing to be there because they love being there.  Ultimately that is going to make them the happiest. If they are interested in other career options they could start to evaluate what's a good fit for them. They could try something that shows them that they do have flexibility and they can find joy in other careers. So that they don't feel as stagnant in their full-time role as a teacher. 

Good Side Hustles for Teachers…

I remember being in that spot and asking myself as I was walking on the track. Thinking there's got to be another way to find my passion and find that spark again. Listening to a podcast and they asked me to find a few things that brought me joy and I couldn't name one. So if you are a teacher reading this and thinking you don't have any idea what your identity could be other than teaching. But that’s not bringing you joy – we want to help. 

There are a lot of opportunities when it comes to part-time teacher side hustles. 

• Curriculum Writing
• Editing
• Proofreading
• Copywriting
• Freelancing
• Tutoring
• Educational Consulting
• Online Coaching
• Course Design
• And more…

The question of the hour is how to go about finding one of these jobs if you’re looking for something outside of the classroom.  Some things you can learn to create on your own like TPT. Or if you’re looking to get hired as a freelancer put together a portfolio of your work first. Then start to look for the right type of audience.

The best way to find an audience is to start searching Facebook groups to see what people are struggling with. Part-time work and more traditional income streams of income can be found by looking at different job boards. The best way to get found online is to analyze all of the objectives and create a learning experience that's really impactful for your audience. When you look to get your feet wet before you decide if that's really what you want to do you could apply for a side job that has a project that lasts 3 to 6 months. 

That probably scares teachers too. As they're getting ready to make the decision of do they leave or do they stay. Or what can they do on the side is not knowing if something is going to stick. We're seeing a real big shift in companies wanting teachers even if they are not education-related job positions because teachers are just such great employees. 

The main thing that's really important for you to know when you are applying for different positions. Whether these are part-time side hustles or full-time positions, is that the company does see value in your role as a teacher. However it is your responsibility to market yourself as an instructional designer. Market yourself as a corporate trainer and show them how your skills translate into their specific job posting. With any career pivoter, they're going to be nervous that you haven't done your homework.  That you're not one hundred percent sure if this is the right fit for you. 

Especially with those full-time positions, they're nervous to bring someone on board and then three months later realize you never really thought about this role and it's not a good fit. So make sure that you've done your homework and that the interview process is going to be your opportunity to share with them how much homework you really truly did. And how much you understand how your skills translate into their positions. Again one size fill fits all is not the answer. Not every former teacher is going to be in love with instructional design. Not every former teacher is going to be in love with sales positions. Everyone has their unique strength and shine in different roles.

How Can Teachers Make Money on the Side?

It really depends on you and how you market yourself. So it’s time to learn to market your skills. A lot of times as teachers we feel like our skill sets are limited to what we learned in college. Or what we were meant to teach our students. So as a teacher looking to market themselves Daphne recommends getting on Linked-In and making your profile specific toward the roles that you're trying to apply for.

That's actually how recruiters and other people find you. Search Engine Optimization just like you would do for anything else. Then just say you were an educator. There are people who are looking for others who don't speak perfectly all of the time. But someone who is comfortable in front of an audience and can create engaging lessons. And then there are people who are looking for someone who is very strict and by the book. Someone who does not make any mistakes on stage. Or someone who's very specific and has knowledge about a very specific topic like the health care industry. You're not going to fit the mold of every open position out there.

But there are going to be positions that you 100% fit the mold. And when you do get the interview think about the job in front of you. And what has helped you stand out? Some roles are going to be more difficult for you to kind of wiggle yourself into the mold. And that doesn't mean that you're on the wrong path, but it might mean that it needs more skills.  You might need to take more online courses. Companies were traditionally looking for people who had college experience, but now they're really shifting the way that they view what's important. 

Teacher Side Hustle Jobs

Many companies now have something called an internal bonus. So when you get on Linkedin start with people you know. If you give a reference for someone who's a good candidate and they're a friend it's going to be harder for them to want to leave the company. All of those connections help you stand out to those people. And if you build an authentic connection with them eventually they may come back and say I heard of an opening here or there. And I can put in a good word for you. I had never even thought about using LinkedIn for that purpose. Networking is so important and it's a skill that teachers use within their building. 

When you come from something where you feel like you're really good going into something where you are brand new again is a really big challenge and it's not going to be an easy transition. You are going to apply for ten jobs and maybe only get called for one of those first ten jobs. It's easy to start feeling rejected and scared. 

During this process, it's important to find a community of other people who are going to continue to help you get past those roadblocks.  And help you see the perception that this is a challenge and every rejection is something that you can use to fuel you into pushing past the struggle. You need a community to help you realize that it's really hard. And maybe staying and teaching is the right move, right now. It might be easier to begin to streamline your work systems or start to put some boundaries on your classroom life. Learn from the twists and turns and use those life lessons to get unstuck in your current situation. 

I always tell our community you don't know what you don't know and sometimes you think the grass is greener on the other side. But then you get to the other side and you realize that it actually could have been greener on your side if you just watered it a little bit. 

More Teacher Side Hustle Jobs and Opportunities:

Successful Teacher Side Hustles Other Than TPT

Make Money Online as a Teacher

Teachers Making Extra Money Using Their Teaching Magic

This Teacher Turned a Side Hustle Into A Multi-Million Dollar Company

Or You can find Daphne on Instagram and continue the conversation.