Describe a typical day at work.
A typical day for me begins with checking our ticket portal to see if we have any questions from current or future students. Our goal is to respond to all communication within 48 hours and so this is often how I spend my mornings depending on how busy it is!
After that I'll jump into some marketing tasks with the goal of increasing the visibility of our program; I oversee all efforts to create content on our blog, work with other promotional partners, and ensure any questions or concerns are addressed on third-party sites.
Finally, I'll check in on any course or website development tasks. We are always looking for ways to improve both our course, as well as student experience. While I don't have much technical experience, I do like to stay on top of what we're trying to achieve and how it's progressing!
What is your favorite part of your job?
The favorite part of my job is interacting with students. We always make a point of welcoming new students to the course as well as reaching out when they receive their certificates. These interactions are incredibly rewarding because the students are always excited about what comes next in their TEFL journey and I get invaluable input on what they liked or what we can improve upon when it comes to TEFL Hero.
How do you use your education and international background in your current role?
My experience as an ESL teacher is part of what led me to create TEFL Hero. I would not be here without my time in South Korea and China, and I rely on those periods of my life when it comes to supporting our students and courses.
I'm also incredibly fortunate to still be living abroad and interacting with the TEFL community regularly. Some of my best friends are teachers and being able to bounce ideas off of them as well as ask for their advice has been a big asset for us.
What challenges do you often face and how do you overcome them?
Self-doubt is my biggest challenge and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous when we first launched our 120-hour course. We're firm believers in taking a personal approach to our company and are very hands-on when it comes to supporting our students. For me, this was a bit nerve-wracking to put yourself out there and I still worry that students won't like or benefit from the course.
What are some current projects you are working on?
We're currently working on creating, building, and launching more courses as well as making updates to our current 120-hour course. Fortunately, this is very much a labor of love and while time-consuming, it's super exciting to think what TEFL Hero could become in the next few years.
What advice would you tell your pre-travel self?
I'm a big fan of the phrase "jump and a net will appear" so my advice would be in line with that—pursue what you're interested in and the rest will follow. My desire to travel led me to my first teaching job and I never looked back. Here I am 12 years later and most of my life can be traced back to that decision that I wavered over for weeks. In the end, it all worked out!
What makes TEFL Hero special?
We are 100% founded, supported, and managed by current or former ESL teachers. Our courses are created with input from us on what has worked in our classrooms and careers and we pride ourselves on sharing our knowledge with students who are interested in doing something similar!
What makes your organization easy to market to potential participants?
Our unlimited and hands-on student support has been incredibly popular and is something that is a huge advantage when it comes to online courses. The fact that a student can submit a question via email or chat and get a response back from a real teacher within 24 hours is a big plus when trying to work your way through the course.
What is your organization's mission and how do you continue to work toward it?
Our current mission is to support up-and-coming teachers with affordable courses that over-deliver on the material. We're currently working on some new courses as well as an updated iteration of our 120-hour course. All of them will be affordable and available online so students can work at their own pace while getting any support they might need.
What do you hope participants take away from your programs?
One thing we hope to dispel with our programs is that teaching English is intimidating. Our courses provide the foundation to succeed in an online or in-person classroom and upon completion, we hope teachers are more confident in their abilities than before.
One thing we hope to dispel with our programs is that teaching English is intimidating.
How do you help support participants?
We offer a robust support system for students; they are able to submit questions via chat, online ticket, or email and our goal is to respond to anything within 48 hours. When it comes to course material, we will usually answer questions with screenshots or examples and have even used online video to answer questions in a bit more depth!
Why is it important for people to travel abroad and experience new cultures?
Perspective is an incredibly valuable trait if you're looking to be a good human and leave this world a better place than you found it. Traveling and interacting with new cultures provides a perspective you wouldn't be able to get otherwise and is a great first step when it comes to gaining a greater appreciation of the world in which we live.
What advice do you have for individuals thinking about going abroad?
Do it! At worst you can always come home, and at best it positively changes the course of your life forever. I can count the number of people I've met who didn't enjoy traveling abroad on one hand, while the number of people who love it and continue to engage in it is overwhelming, in the best way.
What does meaningful travel mean to you?
For me, meaningful travel means traveling a bit off the beaten path and trusting yourself—getting value from travel doesn't always come from following in another's footsteps, and the most meaningful trips I've had took me in unexpected directions.
Even small things like taking the bus if the train is full can open up experiences you never would have had otherwise, and I personally get the most meaning from travel when it's unscripted. In short, stay flexible, keep your schedule open, be open to new experiences, and trust in your judgment.
