The Classroom Exit Strategies Podcast

With increasing learning deficits observed in students since 2020 and increasing demand for personalized education, teachers have become a vital resource for students seeking extra academic support.  In fact, tutoring has become a relevant source of income for many teachers. But that begs the question, How much do teachers charge for tutoring? Well that's a great question, but to figure out w...

If you have a TpT shop or have considered starting one, you’ve probably heard talk about some of the issues that have arisen on the TpT platform regarding search issues, security concerns, and the acquisition of TpT by the IXL platform. And each of those can be super-terrifying, which is why many teachers are running scared.  They are fearful… their income is going to tank, and all of their work w...

Making a career change can be a scary prospect! The reality is most of us choose a career path and plan to stay the course until we retire.  But if you’re feeling more and more convinced that you need to pursue other options, then this podcast is for you. Today we are going to explore the best career changes for teachers who want out of the traditional classroom and are actively seeking other alte...

There are as many different types of teachers in the world as there are grains of sand on the beach. We are all unique individuals with specialized skill sets, which is why we are the most enticing candidates for any position. But have you ever considered the idea that the type of teacher you are might actually be providing you with clues as to what job you should pursue outside of the classroom?...

The best way to be able to leave the classroom is to be more efficient while in the classroom. This will allow you to spend more time focused on your exit strategy and/or your side hustle. In order to do that, we need to determine how you can accomplish everything you need to in less time so you are able to leave as soon as your contracted hours are complete. And of course, this means we need to n...

Whether you want to be hired for your first teaching job or simply find a different teaching position outside of your current school, in a different district, or another grade level, it's essential that you understand the common weaknesses of teachers. I know this sounds ridiculous, but as you seek employment even as an experienced teacher, you be required to be interviewed . And with that in...

We spend a lot of time discussing how to make money outside of the classroom , how to start a website , how to find jobs in other fields , how to set goals for yourself , and the list goes on. But today I want to talk about something I've never talked about before...teacher leave.  Understanding what types of leave you can take (and when you can take those times of leave) could actually be th...

Let's face it, we all have things we want to accomplish in our lives. But it seems like we get so distracted from the big things because of all the little fires we have to put out each day. We have great intentions, but rarely do those intentions actually come to fruition because we're so busy just doing the day to day stuff. Then we look back a few years down the road wondering why we n...

As classroom teachers, we're constantly learning and setting goals for ourselves . Unfortunately, just setting a few superficial goals isn't enough to take us from where we currently are to the level of effective teachers we might want to be. Goal setting requires you to dig deep into what you hope to accomplish, why you want to achieve it, and how you plan to make it happen. Maybe you&a...

Goals and objectives are words we hear frequently as teachers.   But do you actually know the difference between the two? Without blinking an eye, most of us would yes.  However, if we were asked to explain the specific distinguishing factors, we might be a bit stumped. Now, you might be thinking, "Does it really matter?"  And the answer is yes!! So in this podcast episode, I want to......

If you're a teacher, you know that the income generated from a teaching salary is typically far below that of other professionals with college degrees.  Because of this income discrepancy, many of us want to know how to make money in education.  Well, going back to school and getting a Master’s degree, or another advanced degree is one option, but the increase in your salary is usually minima...

Teacher shortages are showing up in school districts everywhere with many school systems finding themselves in the unenviable position of having to hire individuals without teaching degrees just to fill vacancies. But what has caused this record number of teachers to leave?  Was the great resignation of the 2021-2022 school year just a fluke?  And are teachers going to continue leaving in the midd...

By now, every teacher on the planet is familiar with the Teachers Pay Teachers online marketplace. With millions of great free resources from amazing TpT sellers, there are just so many original educational resources for teachers to use in their own classrooms.  But you might be thinking, "Ok, but what about teachers who want to earn an income by selling TpT products?" Well, I am so glad...

It’s no secret that over the last several months and years teachers have been leaving teaching in droves.  But what exactly are these teachers doing now that they are no longer in the classroom?   Well, some have left to pursue careers in different fields , but many have embarked on an entirely new journey as entrepreneurs .   Now you might think that’s great for them but you don’t see that as an...

Today we're going to be jumping down into the rabbit hole of WordPress with the ten best free WordPress plugins for a teacher blog.  However, don’t let the title of this particular episode scare you or potentially cause you to quit listening because it is going to be immensely helpful...even if you are just in the consideration stage of creating a website or blog . As I’ve said many times, th...

Before I share why quitting teaching was the best thing I ever did as well as the ten things I’ve learned after quitting teaching twice, I want to share my heart. This podcast episode is not intended to knock teaching or anyone who chooses to continue teaching.  I absolutely loved teaching; in fact, (spoiler alert) I am working with kids this school year.  Working with children, guiding them to su...

Once you decide it's time to leave the classroom, your obvious next step is creating an amazing resume. But did you know that there are some resume myths you need to avoid in order to get the interview (and position) to which you are applying? You may think this sounds crazy, but it has probably been a few years (or maybe even MANY years) since you've designed a resume. And I want to spa...

If you're interested in starting a blog, you will find so much information on the Internet.  Everyone claims to be an expert in helping others find success blogging .  However, you should be mindful of who you listen to because you want their results to be your desired outcome. If you know blogging is something you would like to pursue, starting a website is going to be a vital piece of the p...

I’m going to be completely honest...knowing how to start a successful website with no prior knowledge of the “techy” lingo is tough.  I found that out the hard way when I decided to start my blog back in 2016.   I literally just woke up one day with this hair-brained idea that I would start a blog.  I figured it wouldn’t be that hard; I would just write some pretty words, maybe mention some intere...

Starting a TPT shop is an amazing endeavor!  But for it to be sustainable, you to know how to grow your TPT business. The truth is, it can be an exercise in futility if you find yourself constantly stuck answering the same questions through email and the feedback section of your TPT store.  So what’s a TPT seller to do? Well, why not increase your TPT sales and grow your TPT business with a teache...

Finding a career that you love is the goal of every teacher thinking about transitioning out of the classroom, but how do you know which one is right? In today's episode, Jenny Melrose shares her experience including what led her to leave the classroom and how she became a successful online entrepreneur...twice!  She also gives insight into why pivoting was so important for her business and h...

As you are contemplating leaving the classroom, I know you’ve considered a multitude of alternative jobs for teachers.  Maybe you’ve thought about… opening a TpT shop , but then you worry either it isn’t going to be a viable long-term option or the investment of time now is going to take way too long to pay off in the form of a full-time income. starting an online teaching or tutoring business, bu...

After leaving the classroom , one of the most common questions every teacher has to answer is why I quit teaching. And the truth is, there are an infinite number of reasons that teachers might leave. But as my friend Joey Udovich shares in today's episode, the final decision can be truly heart-wrenching. Her decision had nothing to do with hating teaching and absolutely everything to do with...

For the past two episodes we have been digging into two of the most common fields of interest for teachers who are looking to leave the classroom, but want to stay in the field of education.  We started with educational consulting , and then we looked at instructional design .   Today we’re going to spend some time discussing the last option in this vein and that is curriculum design. Curriculum d...

In the last episode, we spent some time learning about educational consulting and whether or not that career might be something of interest to you.  But in this episode we’re going to look at another ideal job for teachers who are considering leaving the classroom.  If you've ever wondered about instructional design and if that might be a good option for you, be sure to keep listening because...