TEFL / TESOL Blog
So, you have started living your dream of teaching in your favourite destination or you are close to embarking on teaching English abroad. Travelling and teaching in your favourite destination gives you not just the opportunity to make a positive impact on non-native English-speaking students but also gives you the luxury of exploring your chosen destination's cultures, nature, food, and local attractions.
There’s one of the vital aspects every TEFL teacher should be aware of managing their finances and budget effectively, which most of the TEFL teachers struggle with.
However, there’s no need to worry, we got you covered.
In this blog post, we will be sharing some of the most helpful and effective strategies to manage finances and budgeting while teaching your favourite destination.
So, without any further delay, let’s get started.
1. Research About Cost of Living
Before you embark on your teaching journey in any of your preferred destinations, it’s better to make some time to do some thorough research about the cost of living. Every country has its own unique economic landscape, which affects every essential aspect of daily life such as accommodation prices, transportation fares, groceries price, and entertainment.
By having a basic idea about the cost of living in your preferred destination you will be better equipped to create a budgeting system for yourself to live without stress while you’re teaching in any of your chosen destinations.
2. Create Your Structured Budget
Living and teaching in your favourite destination can burn a hole in your pocket if you are not careful about your finances. Developing a structured budget plan will help you to create a roadmap that you can follow to avoid any overspending.
You can start by outlining your source of income in which you must include every source of income that you have other than your TEFL teaching salary like- Earning from tuition classes online, etc. Then consider breaking down your monthly expenses into two categories- Daily expenses spending and spending on entertainment activities.
By creating a structural budget will help you to allocate funding for day-to-day essentials and other entertainment activities and mitigate the chances of overspending.
Countries Where You can Make the most money as a TEFL Teacher
3. Plan Your Emergency Fund
In general, life is uncertain. While you are teaching and living in a foreign land you be prepared for any uncertain situations by accumulating emergency funds. Whether you might have a sudden medical issue, or sudden expense which might crop up related to travelling, accommodations, or buying any essential tools then in those time emergency funding can prove to be a boon for you. It is suggested to save 10-15% of your salary and allocate it to your emergency fund.
4. Manage Your Debt Wisely
If you have previous existing debts like study loans or credit card balances then you should manage those debts as a priority. Your first priority is always to allocate a required portion of funds to repay those debts on a monthly basis and also make sure you meet your monthly expenses. This will make your life stress-free and help you to plan better to explore nearby cities.
5. Adapt Local Lifestyle
One of the best ways to manage your finances is to start living like a local in your preferred destination and embrace their local culture. You can consider using public transportation or shopping at the local market, which will not just help you save but also allows you to bond and immerse in the local community level.
6. Track Your Spending Habits
While making savings goals is important, tracking your spending habits is also equally important. You can use smartphones, and notebooks to note down every expense even smaller ones. While logging down every expense, it’s best to review it regularly to know whether you are overspending or not.
7. Consider Exploring Multiple Sources of Income
Other than the primary source of income, which is teaching English as a foreign language, there are various earning opportunities that you can explore. You can consider offering- Online teaching, private tutoring, and freelance writing. This will help you to create a financial cushion and help you polish your skills.
Early Planning of Budgeting Can Make Your Experience Seamless
Teaching as a TEFL teacher in your preferred destination can be a rewarding experience in all aspects. However, if you become a spend-thrift in a foreign land then it could become a huge problem and it could hamper your teaching and living experience. Moreover, you can learn how to plan your budgeting effectively to manage your finances and live a stress-free life by following the above-mentioned easy-to-follow strategies.
Additionally, if you want to learn more effective ways to save your money and teach and explore your preferred destination stress-free then consider pursuing courses like the Internationally Accredited TEFL/TESOL Course in Kolkata, where you will get guidance from the top-expert trainer who will also help you to become the best TEFL teacher in education industry.
We believe education should be accessible for everyone. That’s why we don’t charge for our blogs. Find the right course that will help you in your career with us, contact us at - 1800–212–6400. You can mail us at act@asiancollegeofteachers.com
