12 Other Online Jobs For ESL Teachers – Side Hustle Ideas For English Speakers

Whether you are a native speaker of English (a citizen from the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, UK) or someone from a developing country like the Philippines — there are many opportunities for you to leverage your English speaking skill.

Your nationality or circumstances are not indicative of your ability to take a step foot toward yor goals. You can always try.

I know a lot of people who succeeded in life because of their constant perseverance and that to me is a powerful tool to succeed in life. Each one of us have a unique or different sets of skills and we can either use them to better ourselves or allow it to pull us down.

No matter what the drawbacks we face or how miserable life gets, we can always do something about it — we always have the option to turn it around. Having a clear sense of purpose in everything that we do can change the trajectory of our life. Your options are endless and it is up to you to try to push your limits. Get out from your comfort zone and start rolling up your sleeves. Everything you have been thinking of are already there — waiting to be experienced. Enjoy the ride of being upside down. Start hustling and begin applying coz you will never know unless you try.

Here are jobs you can apply for: (in no particular order)

1. Podcaster or Podcast Host

-A podcast (in general) is a digital audio file that is prepared and distributed by a podcaster/podcast host/broadcaster for people to download and listen to.

-These days, podcasting has a sweeping effect on the internet. It has been around for awhile and within the last two years, it went full mainstream. It seems that more and more people are getting into podcasting and just like YouTube and many other social networking sites, one can make a passive income through podcasting.

-When it comes to monetizing podcasts, I found that there are a couple of ways to earn money and it is mainly depending on the size of the audience. 

2. Content Creator/Vlogger/Youtuber

-Someone who creates any type of content in a form of videos can be referred as content creator or vlogger. One particular platform that is highly sought after is YouTube where everybody can post whatever. Though YouTube 

-The never-ending trend of videos are making people join the community of influencers. Millennials and younger generations in particular are hooked to social media and it is not slowing down, so it is no surprise that many people create videos with the hopes of earning money.

-Whether you make videos on TikTok or YouTube, you are off to a good start.

3. Captioner

-The aim of this job is to create a full audio experience for non-hearing viewers or for individuals who need a better understanding of the language spoken, and it enables businesses like content creators to get more value from their video content by attracting a wider audience.

-Add written versions of a dialogue for better viewer experience

-There are different types of captioners, some are trained or highly skilled typists and others can simply be a teacher who happened to fit the bill.

-As the demand for captioners skyrocketed due to the evolution of social media — many companies indiscriminately hire people who are even novice in captioning. They are trained for a short time and start doing the job in the comfort of their homes.

-Though they may be open for everyone who speak English, there are two categories of captioning to consider before applying: real-time and offline.

-Real-time captioning is probably the most difficult one since it requires you to transcribe live events. With this, you are certainly expected to be proficient in English and extraordinarily fast typer. It can be a lucrative career but can also be very stressful coz expectations are up to the ceiling.

-Offline captioning is the most preferred type of work for aspiring captioners since they are given ample time to add captions for recorded audio or video. Closed captioning is the most common one like the one you see on YouTube, tv shows, and movies. Though it seems easier than real-time captioning, it also requires concise and quality closed captions for any video.

Job Summary:

Write captions or capture spoken and sung words from an audio or live performances.

Responsible for typing out captions correctly and making sure that they sync to the appropriate place in the video.

Utilize computerized captioning software.

Ability to input accurate captions and synchronize them with dialogue/audio/video.

Make quick choices to decide which captions must be added, changed, or omitted.

4. Subtitler

-A person who writes or translates subtitles.

-From spoken words, music, sound effects converted to written version that have original meaning

-Bilinguals or multilinguals individuals are mainly the ones needed for this type of job.

-This is a sub-specialty of a captioning job since subtitling is a form of offline captioning.

Job Summary:

-Translate all the dialogue and sound effects of any digital content like movies, online courses, and tv shows into a written captions or texts that can be shown on the screen.

-Responsible for converting audio recordings to texts in one or more languages

-Rigorously understanding and proofreading the context of given material with the help of specialized translation tools and dictionaries.

-Ensuring translated texts convey real meaning and tone

5. Transcriptionists or Transcribers

-Most transcribers work as freelancers in many industries. They listen to recorded audio/video files or live proceedings to convert to written texts.

-From voice file to text file

-This type of job requires advanced skills in the language and typing to ensure high-quality standard of transcripts for clients.

-Though there are entry-level positions for beginner transcribers, the rate will have a significant difference compared to the ones who are skilled.

-A transcriber is often confused with captioner, subtitler, and translator — it is important to note that though they are closely related, they are not exactly the same.

6. Content Writer/Blogger

-Well, this is where I belong and it is absolutely something I wish I could have done sooner.

-Bloggers write articles in a form of blog posts. While not all blogs are eligible for monetization, it can be lucrative and a perfect source of passive income for those who are established bloggers. 

-For speakers of English, there is a plethora of ideas or topics to choose from, and whether you would like to share your expertise about a certain topic or simply tell a story or experience — you can put it on the internet for everyone to see. 

-There are websites that allow you to write a blog for free (cannot be monetized) and platforms that enable you to own a domain (can be monetized or make money and be in control of your own website).

7. Author

-Love reading? Then try writing something that interests you! Something that you are good at. You will never know the impact of your creation, your thoughts or insights to people unless you begin — right now.

-For people who can at least decently converse and comprehend in English — they are lucky. Why? Well coz English is the universal language. Sounds cliché but yeah, it is what connects us to the world. With this language, we are given the opportunity to educate, to say the least.

-Whether you have a talent in writing or simply interested about the idea of having a side hustle, then becoming an author might be something to consider.

-Leverage with the advanced technology that we have where you have the option to self-publish. All you have to do is to find some time to write a book or e-book (whatever that is that you have in mind). Like myself, I wrote my own e-book last year and it had so much fun doing it. The only thing I regret was probably not doing it sooner. I never thought I could make it, so it felt like a dream. I am beyond proud of myself. Though my e-book did not make me a millionaire in an instant, I acquired a wealth of ideas from that experience.

-What is awesome about writing a book especially an e-book is that, your earnings are passive. All the efforts you have exerted will eventually pay off a thousand folds.

8. Song-Writer

-Humans in general have hidden talents — of course that includes you. So even if you tell me that you have no skills in whatsoever, there is no way I would believe that.

-You might not thought of this but if you are good in English, then you have a future in song-writing.

-There are platforms where you can enhance your skills or discover your potential in this aspect. Start searching for it — you will never know unless you try.

9. Voice Actor

-Don’t worry coz having a deep voice like Liam Neeson isn’t a prerequisite in getting into the voice acting industry. There is variety of tasks to choose from where you can showcase your talent in voice-overs.

-You can do different kinds of voice over jobs at home: podcast, advertisement, video games, audiobooks, among other things. Find some ideas before you get started, go to websites like Upwork, Voices, or Fiverr. 

10. Proofreader

-This type of side hustle is flexible with less stress as long as you have the right skills and attitude.

-You do not need to hold a bachelors degree in English to qualify for this job, however, having a sound knowledge in grammar, spelling and punctuation are expected of you.

-To begin your journey to proofreading, you may take some English tests first to gauge your skills and have some ideas on what to do next. Research for information that are related to proofreading and watch videos on YouTube to get some tips from people who are already doing it. 

11. Resume Writer

-This is probably one of my favorite side hustles coz I enjoy preparing resumes for other people. When I design or edit someone’s CV, I feel powerful coz I know the person is rooting for me. The best part is when my customers thank me after getting the job.

-Anyone can be a resume writer. You speak English? You love designing? You know how to make a resume or CV for yourself? You know some editing apps? You have the time? Well, now is the best time to roll up your sleeves. You can start by offering it for free to friends or jobseekers, then ask them to refer your work or perhaps post what you made for them on social media. 

-Working as a freelance resume writer can be challenging for beginners that is why it is important to market your service to a larger audiences — that is when social media like Facebook comes into play. Facebook, Instagram, or YouTube are a great place to start for freelancers who aim to attract customers without the need of hiring someone to do it for you. 

12. Call Center Agent

-A typical call center agent’s job is to take inbound or outbound calls from customers. Most high-paying contact centers are the ones from the US like Amazon, eBay, JP Morgan, or any other companies that cater westerners. 

-For people who have excellent English speaking skills, finding a call center job is a piece of cake coz there are tons of available positions out there. In fact, many companies these days hire individuals who have little to no experience in customer service and even someone with a strong accent. 

-There are in-depth trainings for newbies before they take a real call from a customer. It may seem so daunting at first but after the training, you will be prepared to be on your own. Besides, there are team leaders in every team to assist you. 

-Nowadays, there are many call center job opportunities for people who wish to work from home. You may search for jobs in Upwork, Fiverr, Guru, and Freelancer, among others.

3 thoughts on “12 Other Online Jobs For ESL Teachers – Side Hustle Ideas For English Speakers”

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