It is important to know and understand that tuition businesses are part-time businesses. In a way it’s a good thing as you can focus on other opportunities and ventures too, but ultimately it is a part-time business. 

Just ask my brother, and he’ll tell you how bored he used to get as he only worked weekends running his tuition business, and was playing golf for the other 5 days. How bad can life get, right? Some of us would kill to be in his situation (it’s a figure of speech, not literally!) But I can understand the boredom on his part. 

Many times, during phone calls, he’d say things like: “Bro I’m really bored. Find me something else to do.” Eventually his wish did come true. He started another business, but this was more full-time. I know he’s been tirelessly working on it. How he wishes he had that time back; what an irony.   

So what do I mean by a part-time business? A part-time business is something that you’ll be running over the weekend, or for a few hours during weekdays, but certainly not on a full-time basis. You can’t be teaching kids during day time as they’ll be at school. It’s only afterwards that you can run some sessions during weekdays. But then there are ‘after school’ clubs to compete with, and not to mention tired and exhausted kids. Who wants to study more after a long day at school, eh? If anything, kids rather do a different activity than going back to studying again.    

Being a part-time business that it is, unfortunately the sole nature invites (in most cases) a non-serious and casual attitude from teachers and tutors. 

Although a tuition business is a part-time business (in terms of operational hours), it’s not a bad place to be in as it can present you with an opportunity to make more money than your 9 to 5. I would highly suggest that you take time out and explore this avenue, and you never know it might help you with another income stream. 

Hopefully, now you understand why tutors and teachers mostly attract a casual and non-serious attitude. I’m not saying everyone will have a relaxed and casual attitude, but it is important to understand that this will not be anyone’s full-time job or a long-term career option, which at times results in a non-serious attitude towards teaching. People will always look to move onto bigger and better things in life. But as long as they are teaching at your centre, it is your job to utilise their expertise as best as possible.

Truth be told, tutors and teachers come from various different backgrounds. Most of our tutors are themselves students at universities, actual school teachers, or have other full-time careers. They all are looking to make some money on the side, and for that reason it is important to understand each individual’s motives and circumstances. 

For instance, for a university student to lose their tutoring job will be more impactful than say a full-time teacher who already has a job at a school for 5 days a week. Alternatively, university students do not have pressures of paying bills due to easy access to student loans or simply because they’re still living with parents, who pay their household bills. Tutoring is simply a way to cover some of their ‘life’ expenditures i.e. going out with friends, holidays, transportation etc. So for them to lose their job won’t be the end of the world. They still have a roof over their head and have running water (hopefully!), or else they might need a plumber. Their priority lies with their full-time education, as this will be a stepping stone for bigger and better things. 

So the question is, how do we deal with such a non-serious and casual attitude from tutors and teachers?

I will simply say, it’s not easy. But like many challenges, it too has a solution that has worked for me. These need to be looked at 4 different levels. 

1. Tutor/Teacher: Have open and honest conversations with your tutors and teachers. It’s a polite way of explaining to them where the gaps are and how they can be addressed. Normally, if the casual and non-serious attitude is not impacting the quality of outputs and delivery is as per expectation, then there is no need to highlight such issues at all. I won’t take this matter any further. ‘Who cares?’ Ultimately, if they are teaching well, the kids are happy, and there is progress, then all is good. Tutors and teachers won’t be pushing themselves an extra mile to deliver more in the given time anyways. Obviously there are exceptions, but in general terms, tutors are getting paid for the hours they work and not the academic results kids are expected to produce.  
2. Management and their responsibility: Management should regularly monitor the casual and non-serious attitude from tutors and teachers, and report back to you as the business owner. This could be as simple as monitoring lateness, not marking homework or not sending student feedback. I’ve had tutors who put together good quality student feedback for each student every lesson. By the time they’ve finished teaching, they send me feedback ready for me to forward to the parents. But there are also those who send student feedback by the end of the week, and others who don’t even bother. A mix bag really. The commitment towards such goals and targets will give a very good indication as to where you can place these tutors on what I call the ‘spectrum of attitude’. Knowing which side of the scale they lie on is a good indication of their commitment. Knowing their commitment, you can understand how important they are to the business/ and vice versa, and what needs to be done to mitigate that risk on your side.   
3. You as the business owner: Just accept it. Learn to come to terms with reality, and don’t try and push your luck. Understand that tutors and teachers won’t be pushing themselves as they might for their full-time jobs/roles simply due to the part-time nature of the tuition business. In my opinion, this is not a controllable variable. So best to stay relaxed and positive, to stay focused on things that matter and essentially deliver results.
4. Be ready to replace your tutor: If you see that nothing is working, and the casual attitude is not improving and you feel that it starts to impact your business, then it’s time to replace them. But don’t do that until you have a good replacement, otherwise it’s only going to cause disruption to the classes. 

Conclusion

Having a casual, laid back and non-serious attitude from tutors is a ‘normal’ part of running your tuition business. Don’t expect miracles from the tutors and teachers themselves. If they push themselves to give the best quality, then great. It’ll be one less thing to worry about. Consider it as a bonus. 

But it’s your job to get the best out of them. Afterall, it’s your business, not theirs. You need to be alert, and push your management to action the deliverables i.e. whether homework has been marked and feedback given etc, and have open and honest conversations with the tutors. 

If after that there is no progress, then look to provide support to understand how you can help them bring a more positive and driven attitude. It could be salary, it could be that they want to teach a different subject or age group. Unless you speak to them, you will never find out. 

But sometimes, it is what it is. You can’t change anyone’s personality. You just have to accept and live with it. But ultimately know this, it all comes down to your business. If you feel that the class could be doing better, then look to replace them eventually. Better to have a positive and driven person, with whom students can connect, than someone who is least bothered.