Have you every considered teaching in your free time, or probably more accurately, scheduling time to teach after your primary job? There are many benefits that can be gained from teaching public and private classes, webinars, tutorials and other class formats that help others learn some of what you know.
Why Teach?
Aside from the obvious benefit of possibly being able to make some extra money from teaching on nights and weekends, there are a lot of ways teaching can benefit you and others. Here are a few:
- Experience – While teaching gives you an opportunity to help others, planning lessons and walking through detailed instructions also helps you get more experience. You may learn new and better ways to do things, discover a new solution to a common problem, and learn unexpected tips from your students.
- Networking – Teaching helps you meet new people who may be potential clients, collaborative colleagues, qualified subcontractors or an ongoing referral network.
- Giving Back – A new level of satisfaction in yourself and your abilities can be gained from taking the time to help others. And let’s face it, donating your time, with or without pay, just feels good.
What to Teach?
Initially, you may consider teaching the skills, software and techniques that you utilize every day in your work. This tends to be the subject matter you know best and are best-suited to teach others.
One danger of teaching the same stuff you do everyday is that you will tire of it and potentially get burned out. No matter how much you love what you do, too much of anything isn’t good. But in moderation, this can be a great way to get started with teaching.
Another way to get involved in teaching is by focusing on a hobby or other off-hours pastime that you are passionate about, or even something you used to do well but haven’t found the time for in a while. The key is to pick something you are passionate about and are knowledgeable enough to teach to others.
Where to Find Opportunities?
You can find teaching opportunities through friends and relatives who also teach, local community colleges, or even through a professional network. Think beyond formal classroom settings; teaching opportunities can be online webinars, one-time in-person classes, or even free teleconferences.
Not able to find any opportunities that suit you? Create your own! You can use an online meeting tool for your training session, and promote it through your website, clients, business contacts and through social media. You can also create on online tutorial series, or even a teaching blog. If you like the face-to-face element of teaching, consider contacting a local school, church or restaurant to see if they will donate the space for you to hold in-person training.
The possibilities really are endless, and the benefits are, too.
Do you teach? What format do you use, and what do you teach?
Image credit: Sigurd Decroos
Alyssa GregoryAlyssa Gregory is a digital and content marketer, small business consultant, and the founder of the Small Business Bonfire — a social, educational and collaborative community for entrepreneurs.
