10 mistakes that will guarantee failure at teaching English in Japan
The Bulletin (Issue 36)
Nobody can guarantee success in teaching (or in anything in life). But while I can’t guarantee you success, if you make these 10 mistakes, I can guarantee you failure, or at least a life that feels less than successful. What’s the point of that? Well, do the opposite to these mistakes and you will, by definition, guarantee success.1
10 practices that will guarantee failure:
Only ever teach for schools and companies. I started out my teaching career working for Berlitz, a giant eikaiwa chain, and it had its plus points, it was an entry level job that paid enough for me in my 20s and got my wet-behind-the-ears face in front of real, live students. But I hit the glass ceiling pretty quickly and I’m glad I got out before my second year dragged into a third.
Thinking that working for a company is safer than working for yourself. Nope, think again.
Failing to ever start your own business. Is it because you are scared you don’t have the skills, or don’t even know what skills you need? The best way to learn something new is in the practice of doing it, not thinking about it. You don’t know what you don’t know until you try to do something and hit a snag. Then you’ll know what you need to work on.
Seeking approval before you do something. Most people are risk averse, even friends and family who have your best interests at heart. If you must seek approval, seek it after you’ve made the leap into the unknown. But if you are anything like me, you’ll find the approval of others is not worth worrying about. If they love you, they won’t mind what you do. If they don’t love you, well, who cares what they think about you anyway?
Teach what you hate, just because you think work is supposed to be unpleasant, or it’s what the students, parents or schools want. I’m thinking here of things like grammar homework, business English for meetings, but it could be any aspect of English teaching that you really detest. Teach what you dislike teaching, do it everyday, all the time, and even if you get better at it you’ll be spending much of your day, and potentially much of your life, hating what you do.
Just assume all Japanese parents want lots of homework for their kids. And that all Japanese enjoy the grammar approach to learning English. In fact, assume everything. Don’t try things out, don’t see what works and what doesn’t work for you and the students.
Criticise every student’s mistakes in public, only praise in private. I’ve had students request that I correct their every mistake. They were wrong.
Use the stick more than the carrot. Don’t allow replacement lessons for free. Force your students to sign up for a year of study with no possible refund even if they quit. This will force them, your most unmotivated students, to stay in your classes. Is that what you want?
Nickel and dime your students. Charge entry fees, annual fees and facility fees. Raise your regular fees 10 percent every year just because you can. You may think you are guaranteeing increased income, but in fact you are incentivizing your students to quit sooner rather than later.
Use discounting! You know the sort — sign up for a year, get a month off! Bring a friend and get 25% off per month! The problem here is, as marketer Seth Godin would point out, what if you succeed? What if all your students are penny-pinching, lower-fee-paying customers. Are they the kind of people you want to attract? Is that how you want to run your business, forever cutting costs and seeking efficiencies in a race to the bottom? The worst thing that could happen is you might actually win that race.
I’ve seen schools big and small implement versions of these 10 mistakes and been successful, in their terms at least, but here’s the thing. You’re not playing the chain school’s game. You are teaching your neighbours. You are teaching your kids’ classmates. You live and work in the same community. You are building a business, that if you do it right, will pay for your mortgage, your childrens’ education, your life. Don’t cut corners. Reciprocate kindness and you’ll find that what goes around, comes around.
So much for failure.
But what does success for the self-employed teacher look like? On Friday, I’ll talk more about that and how, after a 16-year journey, we own our school building. I’ll give you a tour if you like.
See you on Friday,
Patrick
This may not be logically sound, but whatever. I’m a self-employed English teacher, not a bloody Vulcan.