English Trainer, Mostly Happy with a few Caveats
Pros
This job has given me more freedom than any other job. I have never had it easy in office environments. This one is sustainable. It is so interesting and wonderful to have feelers out in the world, to be able to know what's going on in a different place at that moment. Teaching people English is a very rewarding experience. I've learned so much. The training was long but I am a patient person. I have put a lot into this job, and not received a lot in return.
Cons
This job has given me more freedom than any other job has ever given me. But, living in New York, you need $700 a week minimum, not $700 a month. I have come to the conclusion that this works in the US as an extra job. If you are in the Philippines, Romania, Poland or other countries where $13 per hour is considered a good income, then you won't have a problem financially for exchanging your time for this low pay. No raise in sight, ever. Now let's talk about the system used for booking. The portal we use, it's great for someone living in the year 2000, when this company was founded. It seems it hasn't been updated since that year. Trainers should have the ability to cancel lessons any time, the same way students are (within reason), and from what I hear from students, they are pressured to complete their lessons in a short time frame, so perhaps this is why some of them write nasty emails when you by chance are not available. The system of this company is made to not favor the trainer. If you are booked for a lesson, you are locked in. Either way, be prepared to be on the losing end of this equation. In Pay and in Treatment. Never say you are available and God forbid have something come up, like a job that pays you 3x as much, but you still OWE GoFluent. My personal worst moment: sobbing on the street at a bus stop in Europe because I just missed my bus to get to my hostel to teach a lesson, for fear of my standing going down as a result of this system. Also, said hostel not having good internet. As this is a remote job, there should be an understanding that things can change, that all is not lost if one thing goes wrong with a lesson. You are not notified about lesson observations sometimes at the moment the lesson observation is going to start. I don't mind about this, but perhaps it would be good to look into why this is.
