This week, Elana sits down with Lily Jones, a curriculum developer, education writer, and social media strategist. After seven “inspiring and exhausting” years as a first grade and kindergarten teacher, Lily took her passion for innovative education outside of the classroom and documented how she exactly did it. She now empowers thousands of educators to do the same on her website and her community of educators, EducatorForever.com.
In this talk, Lily reveals the many ways to be a teacher inside AND outside of the classroom by sharing tips on how to navigate being a full-time teacher and a “Teacherpreneur” (a teacher entrepreneur) and gives EdTech brands some helpful tips for appreciating teachers year-round.
How to Juggle a Passion for Education In and Outside of the Classroom
For any educators looking to monetize their skills and expand their impact outside of the classroom, Lily says, “I would encourage teachers to really think about what are they doing in their classrooms that they love doing. Often I think we get pulled away from those passions because of all the other things that are going on, whether it’s creating a teachers pay teachers’ resource online, or being a teacher consultant for your favorite EdTech brand, look into those different ways you could use something that you were passionate about while still in the classroom.”
Because of her early career experiences in education, Lily has a very pointed perspective on both the profession of teaching and the role of teachers within education. “Structurally, I believe the education system has so much that needs to change. But I also believe that teachers are the ones who should be empowered to change it.”
Lily made her transition out of the classroom based on need. It is an already demanding, exhausting profession, and when she was pregnant with her daughter, Lily didn’t know if she could continue to be as “full force” in the classroom.
That’s how Lily gained the opportunities to work with EdTech brands and create connections. “Just because you’re leaving the classroom, doesn’t mean you can’t make an impact,” Lily says. “You can go on and do all sorts of different things and create different career pathways or you can be in a classroom forever. It doesn’t have to be one size fits all.”
Lily also emphasized that she understands people who say teachers shouldn’t have to work these extra jobs. “I obviously would want to pay teachers so, so much more, but it’s also making teachers into martyrs. Being in this system and waiting for it to change when it’s at such a snail’s pace. How about we try to make changes from other directions, and then hopefully create a better system for both teachers and students.”
How EdTech Brands Can Appreciate Teachers
Education brands often find themselves in need of teachers in some way. They perhaps want feedback on their product, or would like them to blog. Lily points out that if brands aren’t willing to pay teachers for their time, it means they don’t value them as a brand. Being an educator and working with so many teachers, Lily has seen educators be tempted to help for free because helping is what teachers do best. “You got into teaching because you want to help, you want to serve and I think that’s so expected of educators all the time, whether it’s an extra pdf for their school or it’s a brand asking them for something or it’s just a coffee chat with a colleague. We’re not used to charging what we’re worth or even seeing our skills I think as something that is valuable in that way or transferrable.”
For educators looking to monetize their skills in EdTech, Lily says “it’s about realizing your value as an educator. I think that so often we think ‘oh, we’re just teachers.’ I was around teachers all the time. All my friends were teachers, my colleagues were teachers. We’re all teachers so we don’t realize that our skills really can be such a valuable asset to others — especially education brands.”
For brands looking to work with teachers, Lily reinforces that the key is to listen. “I think one thing that contributes to burnout is that teachers don’t feel listened to in general. My experience was we go to school to become teachers and we have all this education, we have all this hands-on practice and then here come people telling us ‘oh no, actually it should be done like this.’ We need to just listen to teachers and value their expertise like we would a doctor's or lawyer's expertise. Teachers are experts in their field.”
When brands participate in Teacher Appreciation Month, sometimes they take the easy promotional route and give away discounts that they normally would. Instead, Lily offers this advice: “Maybe give away a free trial for a month, no strings attached or give away some amazing resource to them. Give away something that really helps them or just honestly is a heartfelt show of your appreciation. That matters too and for teachers, it’s about feeling valued, not necessarily about just getting things.”
Especially around Teacher Appreciation Month time, “Teachers are burned out. It’s May. They’re tired,” says Lily. “They just want to feel valued. Please reward them. Help them take a load off of something they need. It doesn’t have to be the flashiest thing.”
Note: This interview was originally recorded on September 10, 2021, as part of the All Things Education and Marketing podcast hosted by Elana Leoni.
Take a look at the full transcript of Lily’s podcast episode.
Resources Mentioned in this Episode:
Educator Forever (Lily’s website, about being a teacher in and outside of the classroom)
Educator Forever Facebook Group (where you can collaborate with other educators seeking out additional education activities and passions)
How to Get Started as a Curriculum Developer (Lily’s Master Class)
3 Things Brands Should NEVER Do During Teacher Appreciation Week (a blog post by Lily)
Vicki Davis, Cool Cat Teacher (coined the term “teachtrepreneur” discussed in this episode)
Rejection Proof: How I Beat Fear and Became Invincible Through 100 Days of Rejection (what Lily’s reading right now that’s inspiring her)
Connect with Lily Jones: Twitter: @educatorlily | Instagram: @educatorforever | Facebook
Episode Skeleton (use this to jump to the parts you want to listen to):
2:30: Lily’s journey through education
7:36: Lily speaks about careers outside of education.
8:25: “Just because you’re leaving the classroom doesn’t mean you can’t make an impact.” (Lily)
13:38: Teachers are not used to charging what they are worth.
14:30: “It’s not about the money, it is about a precedent.” (Elana)
14:45: “It’s also about realizing your value as an educator.” (Lily)
14:57: The value of being a connected teacher.
17:08: What should brands do for teacher appreciation week?
17:20: “Teacher appreciation is not about teachers taking out their wallets and buying things.”
18:14: You can’t just group “the teacher audience” into a lump sum audience.
20:28: LISTEN to your teacher audience when they respond to you. Get to know them.
21:33: Brands should think about what they genuinely appreciate from teachers.
21:55: Teacher appreciation is all year long.
23:40: Teachers don’t feel listened to.
24:44: “Elevating the profession.”
26:45: Importance of the voice. Who are you and who are you talking to?
28:28: “Every day I come to social media, how can I make somebody’s day?” (Elana)
32:02: What reading is currently refueling Lily?
Elana Leoni, Host
Elana Leoni has dedicated the majority of her career to improving K-12 education. Prior to founding LCG, she spent eight years leading the marketing and community strategy for the George Lucas Educational Foundation where she grew Edutopia’s social media presence exponentially to reach over 20 million education change-makers every month.
Lily Jones, Guest
Lily Jones is a curriculum developer, education writer, and social media strategist. Holding an MA in Education from UC Berkeley, Lily spent seven inspiring and exhausting years as a kindergarten and first-grade teacher, working with an incredible teaching team to design engaging learning experiences. Lily has spent the past ten years working as a curriculum designer, instructional coach, and social media consultant. She also runs EducatorForever.com, where she empowers teachers to use their skills and passions beyond the classroom.
About All Things Marketing and Education
What if marketing was judged solely by the level of value it brings to its audience? Welcome to All Things Marketing and Education, a podcast that lives at the intersection of marketing and you guessed it, education. Each week, Elana Leoni, CEO of Leoni Consulting Group, highlights innovative social media marketing, community-building, and content marketing strategies that can significantly increase brand awareness, engagement, and revenue.
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