Interview: Fluency MC & Kris Amerikos

Kris Amerikos: You've been able to transition from being just a teacher at one point to really becoming this entrepreneur within the ESL industry. ESL is huge and it's really great to have examples like that. So, if it's cool, we'll just jump right in.

Fluency MC: Perfect

Kris Amerikos: We'll start out with the typical interview questions and just try to get that out of the way as much as possible at the beginning...

Fluency MC: OK

Kris Amerikos: ...then just dive into your journey as an entrepreneur.

Fluency MC: Sounds good!

Kris Amerikos: At Teaching-Revolution.com we help teachers become entrepreneurs and it's really great that we have examples, like you, of how you can successfully transition from being a teacher to being an entrepreneur using modern technology and modern teaching methods. And, I guess the first question is where are you from originally and just give us some background about you.

Fluency MC: Sure! Let's see ... I was born in Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. I basically grew up through primary school and then grew up through middle school and high school in St. Louis, Missouri, in the midwest. But my parents were born in New York. Most of my family was on the East coast. I went to college in New York, graduate school in New York, and then lived in the New York City area for 23 years, until we decided to move to Paris, France 5 years ago, going on 6 years.

Kris Amerikos: Wow! Do you speak French too?

Fluency MC: I speak French, yeah.

Kris Amerikos: Awesome.

Fluency MC: Yeah, so, in fact, my wife and I met in New York and she's originally from Paris. So, we visited over the years and thought about living here, but we really made the decision 5 years ago to see how it went and we are definitely going to stay here at least for the foreseeable future.

Kris Amerikos: So, Paris is a good place to live.

Fluency MC: It is! It is! Yeah, I like it a lot. It's also good for our kids who are bilingual to have a more balanced ... you know, English is everywhere, but in the States it was harder for them to get the French side ... 

Kris Amerikos: Right

Fluency MC: ... of their culture ... you know, in Europe, they're definitely getting a more balanced, international experience.

Kris Amerikos: That makes sense. So, you know, I wanted to ask you a question like what is your favorite place, but then I decided to change it up. So, my questions is where would you want to spend your last day on Earth?

Fluency MC: Ooo! My last day on Earth! Not who I'd want to spend it with, this is really about ... 

Kris Amerikos: Where. Just the place. Yeah, because, you know, States, Paris, I'm sure you've been in a lot of places when you've been teaching. And, yeah, so tell us a little bit about that too. Where have you been?

Fluency MC: Well, I like that question. I've never had that question. I'll just say it and come back to it if you want, Martha's Vineyard because I spent the summers there in Massachusetts. But yeah, I've been to a lot of countries. The number of countries that I've been to for my work is 21 countries.

Kris Amerikos: Wow

Fluency MC: Because the main thing I do ... I do a few things, but the main thing I do is I travel to middle schools and high schools and I do workshops and shows with kids and also teacher training with teachers. And then, I do a lot of stuff online also, but increasingly what I do online is to support what I do when I go out and do things in person, less about monetizing online things I'm doing.

Kris Amerikos: Great! So, it's really like this hybrid kind of business, half online and half offline.

Fluency MC: It is! And I finally found the balance and discovered that online, like really making it online ... I'm sure people you know, teachers you work with, inspire, and coach find this to be true to ... It really takes a lot of work, time, and dedication to get something online to really flow and get income.

I have colleagues who have been wonderfully successful at it, but they're not also going out to schools and things that ... you know, they're really focused more on that. So, the hybrid thing works, but not because I'm doing equally well, in terms of income in both places. It works because I'm promoting what I do out there online, as opposed to trying to have two different main sources of income as a teacher. I think that's pretty hard to do.

Kris Amerikos: Yeah

Fluency MC: Most of the teachers I know who have been really successful on YouTube, you know people like Jennifer ESL or Gabby Wallace, they focus more on the online work they do and less about going out and training outside.

Kris Amerikos: 1-on-1 or in person, right?

Fluency MC: Yeah.

Kris Amerikos: And it's really a different kind of beast, right? The completely online business and the offline business, they are really different things, but, still, finding clients happens online almost exclusively now, right?

Fluency MC: Absolutely! So, I mean, I would say the last time I checked it was something like between 80 and 90 percent of the work I do in schools, the training I do, comes through social media, that work that I'm doing, you know, messaging through Facebook, Instagram, or my website, so ...

Kris Amerikos: Yeah. And that's huge for you because you have a huge following.

Fluency MC: Thanks! Yeah, it's just ... What really drew me in to using the Internet as a way to reach people was that idea of "reaching", not so much, you know, high-tech ways of doing things. It was more like all of a sudden a kid in the desert in Tunisia could learn English from me through posts and through videos. Just having that opportunity to help people who are less privileged, as it were, geographically or financially could have access to different types of teachers. And for me to be able to have students all over the world is so rewarding.

Kris Amerikos: Yeah. Especially when someone ... I'm not sure how old you are, but I'm 33 and ... 

Fluency MC: OK. I just turned 49 two days ago.

Kris Amerikos: OK. So, like, for me, I kind of grew up in the beginning of the Internet. So, you were growing up just before the Internet. So, for us, I feel like because the Internet wasn't always there in our lives it seems so cool that you can do that, right?

Fluency MC: Whereas, people my kids' age, they take it for granted. That's something that they might think is interesting to hear me talk about, but it's not that experience, you know, that big transition, that contrast, and all of the opportunities that it opened up.

Kris Amerikos: So, what did you do before you became a teacher?

Fluency MC: Well, I started teaching 21 years ago. I've been teaching quite a while. But before that I was in a doctoral program in Psychology and Education. I was interested the things I continue to be interested in, but at that point I thought I was interested in the academic side of things, research, university teaching, and that sort of thing. That really wasn't for me. I really need to be out in the world working with people directly.

And I was also a DJ. I love music and I was kind of dabbling in the music business, as well. But then, the idea of just doing business ... I didn't like that either. So, that's why, you know, when I started to teach I tried other things. And the one thing that I missed was being involved in music. So, bringing that into what I do was really important for me because it was a way to have both.

Kris Amerikos: That's great! And now you've been able to kind of bring together all of that experience.

Fluency MC: Yeah, yeah! Along the way, I've made lots of great mistakes that, you know, have helped me figure out ... they were hard at the time, but, you know ... I've been following you too and you have very inspirational messages to people on Instagram that a lot of things really resonate with me from my experience. Making mistakes and trying to do things again and again. And that is actually part of my approach using practice, repetition, making mistakes, you know, but having fun. Staying dedicated as a language learner - that's huge in what I do and what you talk about.

Kris Amerikos: Definitely! So, probably a lot of people have asked you about your irregular verbs rap song. So, let's talk about that right now, here, near the beginning, before we get too deep into this so people with short attention spans get what they came for. But, also, can you kind of provide some background into that transition, like, when you decided to take the leap from teacher to entrepreneur. Did that happen on purpose?

Fluency MC: No. What happened was I wrote that song first. And I want to say that when people see that video ... that video has between 70 and 80 million views now.

Kris Amerikos: That's ridiculous!

Fluency MC: Not on my network, but people reposting it who are better than me at getting reach on that video. But yeah, that was actually the first song that I wrote and I wrote it not for us to do in the classroom. And that surprises a lot of people because when they see the video they're thinking my classroom activities are all like the rapping teacher. But it's actually the opposite. It's sort of a flipped classroom idea. I put the song on a CD and then I wrote some other songs, four or five songs, and the students listened at home. This was before YouTube.

And they came to class, "Oh, I know how to pronounce that now because I listened enough times. I remember that word!" And that was the whole point. In the classroom I was doing communicative language activities. The whole problem why I decided to make these songs is you can't succeed at a communicative activity, if you don't have the language in your head. You're looking at the book, looking at the board. It's not fun. It's too difficult. So, the idea is music getting all that functional language, that target language, in students' heads, so that it was there and they could succeed better in the activity.

So, then what happened, just getting to your question, it was a few years before YouTube, maybe two years. And then my students said, "Oh, you gotta put up the song that we all love!" You know, do it in the classroom. So, the students wrote the verbs on the board, somebody recorded the video, we put it up. And, yeah, it was a pretty quick response, positive response, and that got the entrepreneurial thing going in me. I've definitely had that in me my whole life. There are different examples of that along the way in the music business. So it really appealed to me, you know, the whole idea of social networks and ... So, yeah, that's basically how it started. It was with that song and that first video.

Kris Amerikos: That's great! That's awesome. So, what infrastructure did you already have set up when you first started getting all of this traffic and of this attention from that video.

Fluency MC: Very little! Partly because I didn't really know what I was doing and partly because it was still the early days of YouTube and Facebook. So, it was more ... What happened was ... Almost immediately what happened was, what I still continue to do today. So, because of that video, because people saw it, they started saying, "Oh, could you come visit our school?" The American embassy in Rabat, in Morocco, brought me over there. It was the first place I went and that was because enough people were watching the video and they thought, you know, it would be cool to have this guy come over and train us - the teachers.

Kris Amerikos: Absolutely. So, is that like the first moment when you started thinking about your teaching activities as a business?

Fluency MC: Yes! Absolutely! I also ... Almost as soon as I wrote that song I made a CD for the students and they said, "Oh, my friend might want it." So, I made the little lyrics book that went with it.

Kris Amerikos: Oh! That's awesome!

Fluency MC: So, I made it really jazzed up by that. I definitely had the entrepreneurial thing ready to bring into teaching, but as far as infrastructure, I was doing it very much like, you know, you sell a record out of the back of your car, you know, or something on the street. I didn't have ... I had a very basic website. I wasn't trying to sell things through the site for years. And, even today, I'm still waiting for the right moment where I'm working with the right people to actually get that going, you know?

And, like I've said, it's because, for me to really do that and also do all the work I'm doing in schools is pretty tough. And I've made a few mistakes along the way working with people and it didn't work out. They were saying they could help me monetize my stuff and get it out. But, fortunately, I've got enough work outside. And it just ... I think when the moment's right ... I have an online course, for example, that people really like, but I don't put in the time to really market it and things like that. But, I'm hoping to do more of that in the future.

Kris Amerikos: It's going to happen soon. Right? We'll have another talk in a year and ...

Fluency MC: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Maybe yeah. You know, what I mentioned before, I think this is really really important for your followers, you know, I mentioned before the people I know who have become very successful teacher entrepreneurs, teacherpreneurs, whatever, who are dedicated to, you know, they love the online experience and connecting with students that way, and broadening their networks.

And I like that too. But what I lack that they have in most cases is I'm not as interested in the marketing side. I don't have a passion for it. I recognize the importance of it. My God! It's more that, I think if you're a teacher, an entrepreneur, and you really get into looking at insights on YouTube and looking at analytics and thinking about the marketing, if that's not just something that you know you should do, but it's something that actually you get excited about, that's amazing. That combination, a really good teacher and a good marketing brain, like, that together ...

And, yeah, that side of it I don't really have so much. But you can then work with somebody else who does have that. So, I've seen partners ... and that's sort of what I've been trying to do. Yeah, I hope in a year, come back and that's going on.

Kris Amerikos: Yeah! Awesome! Well, we'll have to talk about this about the marketing stuff, but ...

Fluency MC: OK! Haha cool!

Kris Amerikos: So, my next question is how much did your business really grow from the popularity of this one viral video?

Fluency MC: I put some other songs out too and it didn't do as well, but they still do well. How much did it grow in terms of ... ?

Kris Amerikos: I mean, like, how much ... what were the effects of, like, if someone else were to strive to make a viral video in order to promote themselves and their teaching business, then what can they expect to see from this?

Fluency MC: A lot of teachers and students, in my case, both ,on a daily basis, sending me messages, email, "Oh, you've helped me so much. This is so unique!" Really really helping me build my confidence and meeting people. Definitely more than the income, like, financial income from it, again, I'll keep returning to the same thing, I feel like I haven't exploited it enough. So, I think I'm very long on admiration from my peers and from students.

And, you know, along the way people have said, and I really believe it now, that in case like mine the most important thing is probably just building my name, my recognition, trust, a brand, basically. You know the whole philosophy about a brand above all else.

Kris Amerikos: I think you're doing a good job of that so far!

Fluency MC: Thank you! Thank you! Well, that's just as simple and as complicated as "being true to yourself". I mean, it's simple in the fact that, I think, we all want to be true to ourselves, we all have the capacity to be true to ourselves, but it's hard not to get caught up and distracted by what you think you should be doing or people tell you ... so, it's also pretty complicated. But it is, I think, about being true to yourself.

Kris Amerikos: I think that's a really good insight and yeah ... So, OK, my next question then is what do you wish you would have done differently before going "viral"?

Fluency MC: Mmm! I wish that I, especially with YouTube, that I'd really put more ... again, this goes back to like, I'm not as interested in this side, but putting more thought into how to promote myself, how the algorithms work, how, you know, so while I'm busy developing personal relationships with people through technology and the media, I wasn't, and I continue still not to really study, like what you're saying, the infrastructure, the real just, you know ...

For any business, obviously, you can't ignore those things. But, again, I feel like by doing it the way I did, I was able to accomplish so much more as a teacher entrepreneur going out into schools ...

Kris Amerikos: Yeah! And really getting your hands into the teaching!

Fluency MC: Right! And, whereas, I could have sold more of my books or screening my music and things like that. The fact that I wasn't out there pushing that to people meant it was more like, you know, I didn't have to sell. And, it was also, I'm walking a fine line, and I know that teachers know this. They're also walking that fine line.

That's why I have so much admiration for the teachers who really have the genius on the teaching side and the marketing side because nobody wants to feel, in education, like somebody's just trying to make money off of them, pushing them to buy something. I think it's really tough. And schools, especially in Europe, they're a little wary of that, you know? Is this guy coming in just to get more views on his videos, sell his stuff, you know?

Kris Amerikos: Really!?

Fluency MC: The fact that I wasn't doing that actually helped me get in to more schools ...

Kris Amerikos: Really? There's this kind of stereotype or ... ? 

Fluency MC: There is! There absolutely is! You know, it's funny because I feel like, being from the U.S., it's really two extremes. I think the U.S. is too much sometimes. I don't like the idea of Coca-Cola ads in the bathroom at a high school. France could not be more different, and Spain, and Italy, and Greece. In my experience, they're sort of scared of the private enterprise thing. But that's also too extreme. It means people, a lot of times it's very difficult to get accepted if you're not "establishment", if you're not, you know, in the academy, if you're not part of the ministry.

Kris Amerikos: Status quo.

Fluency MC: Yeah, so I think it's too extreme in both cases.

Kris Amerikos: Yeah, absolutely. OK. I just have a couple more questions. I promise we'll wrap it up soon.

Fluency MC: Oh, I'm in no hurry man. I love talking to you. It's great.

Kris Amerikos: OK! Cool! Well, then, my next question is have you ever used or do you ever used paid advertising?

Fluency MC: That's a great example of where I have not done enough ... So, the quick answer is essentially no. I've experimented just a little bit to see what it was like, but I never ... because what I learned was that it can be very effective. It can be amazing. But you really have to study. It's not like you just pay the money and then all of a sudden ... You know, it's like anything else - it takes work!

Kris Amerikos: Right. Another investment!

Fluency MC: Yeah! If you want your YouTube channel to really take off, it's not just about the content. It's about what you're doing every day. That you wake up and YouTube's a job. You schedule yourself and it's not just something casual at all. So, you know, I was afraid that if I did paid advertising without really knowing what I was doing, because I didn't, that I might suffer from a loss of organic reach. Because if I wasn't going to do paid advertising ... because I learned this from watching some colleagues ... If I wasn't going to really know what I was doing with paid advertising, if I just did it and stopped, it might be harder to focus and to figure out what was happening, algorithmically with my stuff out there.

So, yeah! So, I partnered up with somebody. We've since had a falling out. I'm talking about working with someone else now who was excited to be the digital marketing guy for me and to use paid Facebook ads and then get into Instagram. And he's a great guy and had a lot of good ideas, but, in the end, it just didn't work out. So, you know, I am envious of the teachers who have both, you know, who can do both. And I think it's a rare thing.

And I want to tell teachers out there that you shouldn't have to have both. I mean, it would be great if you are. But if you're a very very talented teacher, and you don't have time or it's difficult to do the entrepreneurial thing, you know, consider working with other people. The whole idea that you have to do everything by yourself, I think we're learning that that's ... 

Kris Amerikos: Yeah ... It kills people.

Fluency MC: In the early days ... and that's what it was. That's what we had to do. Now, there are more people interested in working with teachers and helping them ... So, that's going to be better for me next year. I can't tell you ... this is still confidential, but, I can tell you, I'm going to be on television on a major program.

Kris Amerikos: That's awesome!

Fluency MC: Next year. Yeah! So, that's huge for me. So, like, the fact that I got on, like millions of viewers kind of thing ... and that's coming soon in the Fall. I'm not allowed to say which show it is, but the point is that that's the kind of thing, like, if I can do that and people say, "Oh, you know, we could maybe merchandise this guy's stuff." You know, that's sort of what I'm waiting for. So, if you're a teacher that has a lot of talent, but you don't have the interest or passion for the business side of it.

If you're inspired to take an online class about marketing and it gets you going ... But if that doesn't happen, don't let that discourage you from being a teacher entrepreneur because I do think that, more and more, there are going to be other people who can do those things. If people like what you do enough and you've got a brand for what you do, people will come and pay attention and offer to work with you.

Kris Amerikos: So, either learn it or delegate it, right?

Fluency MC: Yeah! Yeah! But, obviously, it's hard to delegate if there's not enough excitement around what you do. But the good news is, then just keep generating more and more interest and excitement in your brand and how you're reaching people and people will take notice.

Kris Amerikos: Absolutely. How often do language schools or language centers just hit you up and be like, "Hey Jason! We want you to come work for us!", "Hey Jason! Move move to this country and teach in our school!" Does that happen to you a lot?

Fluency MC: I mean ... you have no idea. At this point, I have 13,000 followers LinkedIn. Not followers, 13,000 connections. So, yeah LinkedIn especially all the time. All the time. I don't get solicited by phone so much, yeah, but Facebook and LinkedIn, especially to Asian countries. I get a lot of offers, but I think that I probably get less offers in certain ways than in the past because people know that what I do is what I do. I'm not about to drop everything and just go teach in one place, you know?

Kris Amerikos: Right.

Fluency MC: So, the more they know who I am, I think, the less ... so, there's people who don't really know me.

Kris Amerikos: Right. Well, once you've reached the level that you've reached, then there's different issues that come up, right? At this stage, you're like already an industry leader and people can identify you. Your name already is listed with other names at the top of the ESL industry. I mean, maybe not in some spheres or some subspheres of the ESL industry, but your name means something in the industry and ... so, this is a different level than other teachers who are just coming into it are playing at, right?

Fluency MC: Yeah! And I was at the level of those teachers coming in for a long time. It's taken a long time. For me, what's really important - I love how you mentioned those spheres - is that like, without mentioning names, some of those teacher-entrepreneurs that have done really well in ESL are not accepted by people in the PhD programs, the academies, the journals. And sometimes unfairly, and sometimes not so unfairly, perhaps justly, because there are some people who are, you know, longer on the marketing and shorter on the second language acquisition knowledge. And some of the stuff they put out there is ...

Kris Amerikos: Right. Right.

Fluency MC: So, but I also feel often from the academy side, so the old school way of doing ESL and EFL and ELT, also can be really unfair, dismissing people as hacks, saying they don't know what they're doing. Why? Because they didn't do this particular master's program or they didn't work this way with these people. That turns me off also. That's why I left the doctoral program I was in, basically. I couldn't stand that sort of elitist thinking about education.

So, I think it's another example, like so many things in life, you don't want the extremes. I'm trying to be in that middle ground like with Innovative Teachers of English, this group that I'm the head admin of. I'm trying to keep it friendly for both, you know? You'll see people post there that are strictly in the academic side and you see people posting there that are more just experimenting with stuff. And sometimes you see arguments and you see those things come out. And that's good, I think, to have a place where the old school is meeting the new school as far as how we're getting English language teaching out there. I think it's a really important thing.

But, personally, I want to be able to go to a TESOL or a TEFL conference and know people and feel good, but then also leave that world and be comfortable outside of it. I definitely don't like the idea of having to adhere to certain educational approach.

Kris Amerikos: Yeah! You've been revolutionary by doing it a different way, going about it a different way, and ... you presented this iconic description of the "rapping teacher" at the beginning of our talk today. And, I can't remember other examples of the "rapping teacher". This is a very new kind of representation of a teacher and you've been able to do it successfully by having this ... not only the rap songs directly about grammar and vocabulary, but also by having the positive rap style.

Fluency MC: That's interesting that you say that! Thank you! I think I would just also throw in there part of that positive rapping style I think too is that, you know, rap English or rap Spanish or rap Korean is not standard. It's not meant to be. It's special for hip hop culture. So, it's not usually the best place to learn functional language for the supermarket or your job interview.

So, that was also an opportunity I saw right way was that you've got, on the one hand, these corny songs in the books that middle school and high school and adults are never going to want to repeat and sing. On the other side you've got pop music that can be difficult to understand or be filled with dialects and things that are not what they really need to remember to become more proficient in their language program.

So, I thought, you know, if I can make songs that people like and think are funny or cool, but they're also filled with this stuff that they need. So, I'm shooting a video tomorrow. It's my first video shoot with a big crew, 12 people. Back to doing things not just by yourself anymore, which is my theme now.

Kris Amerikos: That's exciting! I can't wait to see it!

Fluency MC: Yeah! It's called "Right Chemistry". It's a song I put out a long time ago, but I've actually changed it with the guy who did the music for it. The music's great. And we reworked and we made it ... So, it's not a language teaching song, per say, the way it was before. And that's another goal of mine that I feel now I'm close to reaching, which is ... I thought of an analogy that might be good for it, I'll just tell you quickly, which is, for example, there are series on Netflix that are more popular for language learning, let's say English, just to make it simple, you know, that people watch for English. Like people watch "Friends" to learn English. People watch ... whatever.

And there are certain series that are better than others. But it's not because they sat down and wrote them that way. There wasn't like a meeting and they were like,  "We need to make sure this is good for learning English as a second language!" So, that's what I want to do now. Like this song "Right Chemistry" - it's a pop song, a rap song. It's a song song for the first time. It doesn't have a gimmick about it. When you hear it, you wouldn't think that's a song to learn English, however the level of the English and the way I wrote it ... it's going to be much much easier to learn English with that song than it would be from another song. So, that's what I'm trying to do now.

Kris Amerikos: That's awesome! That's great! So, who else, do you think, in the ESL industry is "on your level"? Like, who do you admire? Who do you respect? I know you didn't want to say names before, but ...

Fluency MC: Oh, I can say names now! I'm happy to!

Kris Amerikos: OK! Yeah! And we like to focus on the positive, so, you know, who do you admire? Who do you respect?

Fluency MC: OK. Well, one of those people, the person who I admire most with the skills, the technique, and the marketing is Jack Ask You, a friend of mine. So, he's one of them. Definitely Simple English Videos, Vicki Hollet. I've been friends with her for a long time. I think what she does is amazing. Rachel from Rachel English, Rachel Smith. She and I go back a ways too. Jennifer from Jennifer ESL I still admire. Let's see ... there really are a lot of people.

Kris Amerikos: What if we focus more on the just teaching side or the "academic" kind of area, you know?

Fluency MC: Mmm if we're talking about academics, Scott Thornbury is a huge mentor. All of the lexical guys. Everything I do is really based on the lexical approach. Still, Steven Krashen, who's not a friend, but he's a contact and you know who he is. He's still a major mentor to me.

But I have to say as far as ideas that I get and people that inspire me, it's become much more of a ... in Innovative Teachers of English somebody posts something that is just - wow that's such a different way to do it. And that happens so much now. And it could just be a teacher in Ecuador or a teacher in Russia, you know what I mean? That on a daily basis - that's where I'm getting things. Whereas, in the past it was more - who's the major book out?

I just didn't think that and I might actually be missing out on some things because I'm not really looking in those directions. I'm really getting these bite-sized things just all day long. I like that, you know, all the quickly circulating ideas and then the conversation threads and the links people put in, you know. That's definitely where I'm at.

Kris Amerikos: Awesome! OK, so, this is the last question that I have for you: What would you say to teachers who thinking about starting their own independent teaching business, but are hesitant to take the first steps?

Fluency MC: I'd say that definitely if you're passionate about teaching, you have a niche, you have a place that you really have talent for and you've noticed that people like what you do then ... just really developing that, trying to get out there and build the business side, if you can. But to, like I said, not give up if you don't yet have those entrepreneurial skills. You don't yet have that.

You know, focus on your teaching skills. At the same time, learn from people like yourself. Learn from taking an online class. It doesn't have to be immediate. In fact, if you try too soon, too quickly, to try to sort of set up shop, it's probably not going to work. But that's OK because, you know, you've got this passion for teaching that you need to hone and you need to do ... And even like in my case, even if you don't really get that selling side developed, you can still find success if enough people like what you do and you're benefitting enough students and teachers out there.

If you don't have that, then you're probably not interested in the idea in the first place. And that's interesting too because, I think, teachers in the more establishment side of things can become teachers and they're terrible. They have no passion. They're just trying to get a job and this can be deadly. I mean, I think this is a wonderful thing now. I think why would you ever try to do this unless you love teaching. So, this is a good thing for people, you know, for you and them. So, keep developing that side of who you are and along the way I think you can learn the skills to make it happen online.

Kris Amerikos: Awesome! Your message is always so positive! Every answer is so positive. Everything you're doing is so positive. And it's so great to have you as an example of what people can do with teaching. So, thank you so much ...

Fluency MC: Well, of course, it would be great if people would go check out my material, but also tell your viewers, if they have any questions ... you know I really enjoy ... you know, one thing about not having a classroom to manage and no faculty meetings and none of those things is I have the time to respond ...

Kris Amerikos: Yeah! So, for everyone watching, you can find all of the links to Fluency MC's current pages in the description under this video. Wherever it's posted, you'll find it there. Otherwise, you can come and see it posted on Teaching-Revolution.com

So, that's it for the interview. Thanks so much again for taking the time to do this!

Fluency MC: It was a great pleasure! Thanks for reaching out and giving me this opportunity to connect with your followers and listeners and everyone out there. Thanks so much!

Kris Amerikos: Thank you! Yeah, we'll talk again soon, Jason! Take care!

Fluency MC: I hope so! OK! Bye bye!

 

Links to Fluency MC:
youtube.com/collolearn
instagram.com/fluency_mc
facebook.com/fluencymc
fluencymc.com