I got fired from VIPKid...and it changed everything

Elizabeth McMann Author

I was fired from VIPKid after years of burnout and penalties for being sick—only to discover a better, freer way to teach and earn income by sharing..

Hi Parent 💛

I got fired from VIPKid — and looking back, it was one of the best things that ever happened to me.

At the time, it didn’t feel that way.

I was making $22 an hour, teaching 7 days a week from 5–10 AM. I never took a day off — not while moving, not while traveling, not even while caring for my three kids while pregnant with my fourth. I was exhausted in every sense of the word.

I taught sick more times than I can count.
Kids live on screen.
Electric teapot beside me.
Throat-numbing spray just to get through class.

Eventually, I got so sick I couldn’t speak. Then a huge storm knocked out our power. After a series of unavoidable absences, VIPKid fired me.

Here’s the part that still blows my mind:
When you miss a class, you don’t get paid — and you’re fined $10 per class.

One missed morning = $100 owed.

So there I was… sick as a dog, unpaid, and actually owing money.

I remember one morning teaching through extreme morning sickness, only to run to the bathroom and throw up the moment my last class ended.

When I got the termination email, I was devastated.

But God had a better plan.

No more unbearable early hours.
No more strict cancellation penalties.
No more working myself into the ground for capped pay.

I started teaching live classes on Outschool, and eventually launched my own Christian nonprofit education platform. For the first time, I could teach what I wanted, work when I wanted, and build something that didn’t punish me for being human.

That’s also when I learned the power of listing classes on multiple platforms — including places like Classful.

Classful lets teachers upload classes and resources for free, reach new families, and earn income without rigid schedules, penalties, or gatekeeping.

If you’re tired of:
• Early mornings
• Punitive cancellation policies
• Income ceilings
• Burnout disguised as “flexibility”

There is another way.

👉 You can start by sharing your classes on Classful.com — free to upload, easy to use, and built for educators who want freedom, not fines.

Getting fired felt like the end.

It was actually the beginning.

Are you struggling with knowing where to begin?

💛 Step 1: Sign up for my free self-paced training. This will teach you how to create classes & worksheets.

💛 Step 2: Join my 30-Day Challenge with real community and accountability. Learn where to list classes, how to get free advertising, create marketing campaigns & watch your sales boom.

💛 Step 3: Continue the journey with my Creators Club. Optional: access to community & all our creator resources.

Categories: : hiring, Homeschoool, job, mom, work from home