How TEFL Kept a Canadian Couple Travelling Full-Time
Guest post by Dariece from Goats On The Road
I’ll never forget the day. The day when complete panic came over me as I realized that my life as a traveller might have to come to an end.
I was on a beach in the Philippines after having travelled around parts of Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and Asia. My savings were running low. I’d probably have to return to Canada and start working at a 9-5 office job again.
Nick and I had been on the road for 14 months by this point and had planned to spend 18 months travelling around the world.
After a bit of a meltdown on the beach, I brushed myself off and Nick assured me that we’d figure something out. Going back to our lives in Canada simply wasn’t an option. We needed to be on the road.
About a month later, we left the Philippines and were backpacking around China. Over a beer one evening in the historical town of Tunxi, we were reminiscing about the time we volunteered teaching English to children in a rural village in Myanmar.
That week-long experience was one of the best of our lives.
As we chatted some more, we started to think about the travellers we had come across over the year. In particular, one who mentioned that there was a huge demand for English teachers in China.
It was as if a lightbulb went off that evening.
We were already in China, so surely that would help with getting hired.
The following day we saw a posting on our hostel bulletin board: “English Teacher Wanted”. We called the number and sent off our details by email. They got back almost right away — the school wanted to hire us!
We couldn’t believe it.
However, what they were offering wasn’t exactly what we were looking for, so we declined. But, it gave us the motivation we needed to pursue a job teaching in China.
On Saturday, we sent off numerous resumes to different schools around China and by Monday, our email inbox was full of offers.
We ended up finding a school that was perfect for us in the city of Yangzhou, and we would start our new jobs and lives in China in just one month.
Signing a contract and knowing what we were going to be doing for the next year (and how we were going to earn an income) was a huge relief.
After finishing up our travels in China, followed by a quick trip home to Canada to visit with friends and family, we moved to Yangzhou to spend a year teaching English.
Living and working in China is a time in our lives that we’ll never forget. Being fully immersed in Chinese culture, making new friends (both local and foreign), and teaching our cute little students each day was incredible.
I mostly taught kindergarteners, which required a lot of energy, but their smiling faces and seeing the progress they made with speaking English made it all worthwhile.
Nick mostly taught students around age 10, so he was able to have conversations with them and interact a bit more than me — which both Nick and his students appreciated.
During that year in China, Nick and I decided we wanted to start a travel blog. We had read an article that said you could make a few thousand dollars from blogging. We couldn’t believe it. We could write about what we love, take photos, share our message with the world, and get paid!
We were sold on the idea and got our website Goats On The Road up and running.
We worked as teachers 20 hours per week, and in our free time learned all that we could about running a website — we were complete newbies and knew nothing about coding, WordPress, or anything related to the online world.
All that we knew was we wanted to share our travel knowledge, stories, and photography with anyone who was interested.
We created content, networked with others in our niche, and marketed ourselves online.
Since we started our website in 2012, it’s grown to be one of the top travel and lifestyle blogs online. Never in our wildest dreams did we think this would happen.
More than that, however, it has allowed us to continue living this nomadic, freedom-filled lifestyle. We’re able to work from anywhere that has a solid wifi signal and comfortable accommodation.
We’ve enjoyed temporary homes in Malta, Argentina, Barbados, Mexico, and Guatemala. And recently we actually decided to create a bit of a home base for ourselves on the Caribbean island of Grenada. We spend a couple of months there, then a couple of months on the road.
These days, on top of blogging about our travels and sharing interesting destinations with our readers, we now teach others how to earn money online, and abroad.
That year of teaching in China was so rewarding. On Goats On The Road we promote this career to many of our followers who are looking for a change in lifestyle.
Becoming an English teacher online or abroad is one of the top ways to make money remotely while helping change the lives of your students.
When we taught in China, we were able to get our TEFL and training through the school when we arrived. These days, things are more strict and you will almost always need to have a teaching certification (you can take an online TEFL course) in order to get hired — for a brick and mortar classroom, or a virtual one.
Plus, having a TEFL will increase your hiring potential, make your profile and resume stand out, and help you better understand the workings of a classroom.
It’s surreal to think back to that fateful day 8 years ago on the beach in the Philippines.
We went from being budget backpackers who almost ran out of money and didn’t know what to do with our lives, to English teachers abroad, and now, full-time bloggers living and travelling around the world.
Nick and I believe that when we’re doing what we’re meant to be, everything will work out. And so far, it has.
I’m so grateful for the opportunities, experiences, and confidence that teaching in China gave me. And if it wasn’t for the change in career to being full-time travel bloggers, we’d happily be English teachers.
If you’re considering getting your certification and teaching abroad or online, go for it. It may end up being one of the best experiences of your life.