Today we’d like to introduce you to Kathryn Allen.
Hi Kathryn, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today.
Hi, I’m Kathryn Allen, the owner of Apex Writing Tutor and Apex Test Prep Tutor, a personalized tutoring and editing service for high school students, college students, and professionals. I started my business in March this year after working a 30-year teaching career to follow my passion for helping people achieve their academic and professional goals. I am a third-generation teacher. The women in my family have been teaching in some form since 1926. Although I loved my students, I decided to leave my full-time state job and start my own business so I could spend more of my time following my passion. Teaching is my passion, but administrative paperwork is my nemesis.
Can you talk to us about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Becoming a business owner has been a huge learning curve, but it has also been very invigorating. Teachers are often learning junkies. We teach because we also love to learn, and that’s how I’ve approached my business ownership journey. There are so many things to figure out that this process sometimes rivals my Ph.D. dissertation.
This process has also been a humbling experience. With all my years of teaching experience, I know my way around a classroom. Now, I am asking basic questions and trying and failing at lots of tasks until I can master them.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Teaching is facilitating learning and assisting my clients in improving their skills and the writing they produce. Like most teachers, I enjoy helping and problem-solving. My focus is on meeting the students and professionals I work with where they are and taking them to where they want to go. Each of the people I work with receives an individualized assessment and proposal.
For students, this means that I use my years of teaching experience to create customized lesson plans for each one. This translates into providing targeted feedback that preserves their voice while enhancing the final written product for editing clients. It is a luxury to work with students on a one-to-one basis and concentrate on that student’s individual needs. I get to know my students and am honored when they recommend me to friends and neighbors.
Do you have any advice for those just starting?
Leaving a long-time career can be a scary move but also rewarding. I’ve learned you are never too old to follow your dreams and create the work-life you want. The approach that has worked for me is to be open to every opportunity. Some of them work out, and others do not, but all of them can teach you something about yourself and your new business. It’s cliché but true. Failure is usually a better teacher than success, saying that it’s also important to celebrate every success you have. This is your business, so you get to enjoy all the things that go right.
Pricing:
- 30-minute writing assessment = $30
- 60-minute writing assessment = $60
- 30-minute test prep assessment – $30
- 60-minute test prep assessment – $60
- College Essay Draft Feedback and Editing – $30 for 30 minutes
Contact Info:
- Website: https://apexwritingtutor.com/ and https://apextestpreptutor.com/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/apextestpreptutor and https://www.facebook.com/apexwritingtutor
