There is a quiet kind of turning point that does not announce itself when it happens.
At the time, it looks like loss. Or limitation. Or simply survival.
Only later do you realize it was redirection.
My own online teaching journey began not with confidence, but with necessity.
The accident that quietly changed everything
In early 2016, I lost my car.
It was a Toyota Corolla, fully paid off for just two months. After years of financial discipline, that car represented independence. It meant freedom of movement, freedom from debt, and the ability to continue building my tutoring work across Pretoria.
Then one afternoon, while sitting in stationary traffic, a driver behind me—distracted on his phone in a Nissan Infiniti SUV—looked up too late and crashed into the back of my car.
The damage was severe enough that the vehicle was declared a write-off.
The insurance payout was about R30,000, roughly $2,500 USD at the time.
That money did not replace the car. It became our living expenses.
My tutoring income was modest and unpredictable, and there was no realistic way to purchase a similar vehicle with what insurance provided. From that point onward, I began using my parents-in-law’s 1981 Mercedes-Benz, which I still use today.
It is a vehicle I am deeply grateful for. But it was never mine, and its fuel consumption in Pretoria traffic made face-to-face tutoring economically unsustainable. Much of what I earned disappeared into petrol.
That season was marked by financial uncertainty, loss of independence, and the quiet weight of responsibility as a husband trying to provide stability.
Looking back, it was also the season that forced me toward something new.
Returning to study: rebuilding foundations in 2017
I had completed my first TEFL certificate in 2004, and it had served me well during my international teaching years. But by 2017, the industry had evolved.
When I applied for overseas teaching positions again, a recruiter told me plainly: my Level 3, 100-hour TEFL certificate no longer met current standards.
It was difficult news, but it clarified what needed to be done.
With limited income, I enrolled in a Level 5, 168-hour TEFL Diploma course. My mother-in-law graciously helped cover the upfront payment when the course was on special, and I repaid her later with tutoring income.
During that diploma course, I encountered something that would change the direction of my professional life:
Online teaching.
For the first time, I saw that it was possible to teach students globally while working from home in South Africa. No commuting. No fuel costs. No geographical limitation.
Just connection, preparation, and consistency.
I completed the diploma in January 2018.
Within weeks, I began applying.
EF First: the humble beginning of online teaching
In February 2018, I was accepted by EF First.
The pay was modest—approximately:
- R90 per 45-minute lesson
- R40 per 25-minute lesson
By international standards, this was very low. Yet, remarkably, I was earning more than I had been through face-to-face tutoring—without driving across Pretoria.
My mother-in-law helped me secure a Telkom LTE router package, which became the technological foundation of my new career.
I taught as many hours as I could get—typically 4 to 5 hours per day—gradually building experience, confidence, and professional rhythm.
Online teaching was no longer theoretical. It was working.
Hujiang: the first signs of financial stability
With experience behind me, I applied to a Chinese platform called Hujiang, which offered $7.50 USD per 30-minute lesson.
My workload increased significantly. I was teaching 5 to 6 hours per day, five to six days per week.
For the first time, we experienced real financial improvement.
We were able to begin buying basic necessities independently—things my parents-in-law had generously helped provide for years.
These may seem like small victories. But they represented restored dignity and forward motion.
Online teaching was becoming not just income—but sustainability.
Iraq: a temporary interruption, not a detour
In 2018, an opportunity arose to work on the PetroChina Oilfield project in Iraq, which I wrote about in an earlier blog post.
This interrupted my online teaching journey for approximately six months in total.
Yet even that season clarified something important.
Online teaching was not simply a temporary income stream. It was a viable long-term profession—one that aligned with both my abilities and our circumstances.
When I returned, I pursued it more deliberately.
Skyeng: the foundation of the last seven years
In April 2019, I joined Skyeng, where I have remained ever since.
Initially, I taught only four classes per day, while completing additional academic commitments. But once I opened my schedule fully, my workload increased to between 25 and 40 teaching hours per week.
Over the past seven years, I have:
- Taught over 7,000 online lessons
- Worked with more than 170 students
- Helped adult professionals improve their English for real-world communication
My students have included engineers, analysts, managers, consultants, IT professionals, and executives from international companies.
Online teaching has been both a profession and a continuous education. Through my students, I have learned about industries, cultures, and perspectives from around the world.
It has been, in every sense, a breadwinner.
Working globally while navigating local realities in South Africa
While online teaching removed the limitations of geography, it did not remove the realities of infrastructure and security challenges in South Africa.
Working online from Pretoria has required constant adaptation to conditions beyond my control:
- Loadshedding and power cuts, sometimes multiple times per day
- Declining infrastructure, affecting electricity and water supply
- Internet instability, particularly during peak network congestion
- Water outages, which disrupt normal daily routines
- And broader safety concerns—Pretoria and surrounding areas consistently rank among high-crime regions globally
Online teaching depends entirely on reliability. If power fails, the classroom disappears instantly.
To maintain professional continuity, I gradually invested in essential backup systems:
- UPS units to protect my computer and internet connection
- Portable power stations to sustain lessons during outages
- Backup generators for extended power cuts
- Rechargeable lighting systems to maintain visibility
- Even walkie-talkies, to maintain communication on the property during infrastructure failures
These were not luxury purchases. They were necessary tools for professional survival in an environment where infrastructure could not always be relied upon.
Teaching online from South Africa requires not just skill—but resilience and preparation.
Building a life locally while working globally
Throughout this journey, our physical life has remained rooted in Pretoria.
We live in a separate flat on my parents-in-law’s property—a practical arrangement that has allowed us to remain financially stable and debt-free.
Right after COVID, in 2022, I was able to build my own Nutec garden office, approximately 10 square meters, entirely from savings at a cost of about $3,000 USD.
That small office became my professional base—a quiet space where thousands of lessons have taken place.
My teaching schedule is primarily in the evenings, aligned with my students’ time zones. I work most evenings except Sundays. This rhythm has naturally limited our social life—but evening outings carry their own risks in South Africa, and working from home provides both safety and stability.
Online teaching can also be isolating. There are no colleagues nearby, no shared office space, and no physical separation between work and home. Over time, this can blur boundaries and lead to periods of fatigue or burnout.
Yet it has also provided something invaluable: continuity.
Outside of work, life has been lived simply and locally:
- Walks in the Pretoria Botanical Gardens
- Meals at Afro Boer Restaurant, Sooper Eats, and Wimpy
- Weekend visits to the Pretoria Boeremark
- Occasional outings to The Grove Mall
- Several restful stays at Klein Kariba Resort
We did not travel far, partly because of an old car. But stability itself became a kind of provision.
Online teaching made it possible to build a life without constant relocation.
Henry English Hub: building something of my own
In February 2025, I began developing my own platform: Henry English Hub.
This began with a simple website, followed by my first teacher resource eBook, Teaching Without Borders.
From there, the project expanded into a structured ecosystem:
- Additional eBooks for online teachers
- The English Journey course trilogy:
- Upper-Intermediate Ascent (B2–C1)
- Intermediate Foundations (B1–B2)
- Summit of the Cultured Professional (C1–C2)
- And now, a dedicated Business English course in development
These resources are built from lived experience—not theory, but practice.
They exist to help:
- Adult learners achieve professional-level English fluency
- Future teachers build sustainable online teaching careers
Through my website, I now offer 1-to-1 online lessons, alongside structured courses and teacher resources.
It is the natural extension of everything the past seven years have taught me.
What this journey has meant
Online teaching has done more than provide income.
It has provided stability when other paths closed.
It has allowed me to remain present locally while working globally.
It has required resilience, discipline, and adaptation to conditions beyond my control.
Most importantly, it has shown me that provision often comes quietly—through persistence, preparation, and faithfulness in small daily work.
I continue teaching today—not out of obligation, but out of gratitude and purpose.
The journey continues.
Soli Deo Gloria
