In this episode, educators-turned-entrepreneurs Kristin and Hillary sit down with Lauren Bell, who shares her journey from the classroom to launching and running her own online tutoring business. Lauren delves into her extensive experience in special education and her pivotal shift towards helping students with dyslexia through Orton-Gillingham programs. 

Lauren also offers practical insights on building a tutoring business from scratch, emphasizing the importance of adaptability, continuous learning, and leveraging relationships with other professionals to find clients.

Key Takeaways:

• Starting an online tutoring business allowed Lauren Bell to leverage her specialty in Orton-Gillingham programs, addressing a critical need for dyslexia and language-based disability education outside the traditional school environment.
• Teachers possess a wealth of transferable skills, including multitasking, creativity, and data-driven decision-making, that can lead to entrepreneurial success.
• Online business operations and marketing can be intimidating but are learnable and essential skills for growing a tutoring business.
• Establishing a virtual tutoring company has advantages in convenience, flexibility, and access to online resources, while maintaining the need for engaging and effective teaching techniques.
• Adaptation and strategic planning are crucial for business continuity and growth, especially when anticipating personal changes, such as Lauren Bell's experience adjusting her role in her business due to her pregnancy.

Resources:

• Instagram: @hammond_bell
• Facebook: Hammond Bell Educational Services
• Website: www.hammondbell.com

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