How to Shift From the Classroom to CEO & Expert Edupreneur:
The Show Notes
Have you ever wanted to start a side-hustle using your teacher expertise? Maybe you have an idea for a resource that would simplify another teacher or parent’s life? Then perhaps it’s time to make the shift from the classroom to CEO and expert edupreneur!
In this episode, I’m chatting with Erica Terry, founder of Classroom to CEO. She helps educators start a side-hustle and create multiple streams of income. Whether you want to supplement or replace your income, Erica has some encouragement and inspiration for getting started as an edupreneur right now!
A Jill of All Trades
Erica has held so many roles in the world of education- basically everything from classroom teacher to chief academic officer. The downside? Most of these jobs demanded 60 hour work weeks. So when Erica’s daughter was born, she quickly realized something had to change in her lifestyle. In doing so, she took a serious and tad bit scary pay-cut.
Her first step into being an edupreneur was in educational consulting. It was so rewarding to help educators overcome challenges in very specific areas. Erica’s business was quickly able to replace her administrator job salary because she was able to increase her rates quickly with all her experience in education.
What is an Edupreneur, Anyway?
You might be thinking – is edupreneur really a thing? Did we just make that up? The answer is yes! It’s a really profitable thing! An edupreneur is anyone who creates products or services that transform educational practices, and not just the lessons teachers or parents teach. The best edupreneurs focus on solving one problem. Some teachers like to make simple resources like worksheets or pdfs that are profitable but don’t require a ton of time for them to create. Other edupreneurs create more complex resources like a course.
The best part of being an edupreneur is that there really are no rules! Like I always say, if you can dream it, we can do it!
What Might Be Holding You Back From Becoming an Edupreneur
Embrace the Power of One
The beauty of what Erica teaches is that starting a side-hustle is not tricky. You don’t have to have a lot of money upfront. You can get by in the beginning with the free versions of many online tools. Erica also encourages any teachers who want to start a side-hustle to just start with developing one product that solves one specific problem. Getting really good at one thing will give you the confidence and creativity to serve in even more ways.
Stop Waiting Until It’s Perfect
As educators, we are always tweaking, always improving the lessons and resources we create. While the ability to see room for improvement is such a gift, it can also hold us back from just getting started as an edupreneur.
The reality is that there are tons of people who are struggling in the exact area of expertise. They don’t need you to show up perfectly-they just need you to show up to solve their problems! As an edupreneur, you have to be super careful not to compare your step one to someone else’s step seven. Plus, you can’t improve it if you haven’t started!
Want to learn more from Erica about the work opportunities there are for you in training, which one to choose, and how to land them? Click here to learn from her at the Next Jobs for Teachers: Teacher Transition Summit!
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Resources Mentioned in the Show
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Connect with Erica
Erica Terry is an 18-year educator turned edupreneur and host of the Classroom to CEO and Hey Educators, Together We’ve Got This! podcasts. Through the Educators Empowering Educators community, she equips educators with actionable strategies to teach, lead, support, and side hustle successfully.
With her unique background as a former teacher, counselor, administrator, Chief Academic Officer, and educational consultant, she shares exactly how she was able to use lessons learned from each of those experiences to create a life that she loves waking up to on Monday mornings and provides you with the exact steps that you need to make it happen too!
While inspiring educators to create a life they love embodies her professional passion, her husband, Melvin, and daughter, Eva are the driving force and greatest blessings in her life.
