If you’re a private tutor trying to grow your business, you’ve probably heard a lot of advice, some helpful, some half-baked.

“Just focus on getting fully booked.”

“Keep your rates competitive until you’ve go more experience.”

“Say yes to everything - it’s all part of building a reputation.”

“Once your diary’s full, then you can think about growing.”

And for a while, I followed that advice too.

I said yes to every opportunity. I filled my calendar, worked evenings and weekends, gave extra time where I could and built a business that on the surface looked like it was thriving.

But eventually, I started to realise something that no one had warned me about.

Being fully booked doesn’t mean you’re building a business that’s built to last.

When “Fully Booked” Becomes a Trap

In the tutoring world, fully booked is often treated as the finish line - the ultimate marker of success.

But for many tutors, being fully booked actually becomes a ceiling. You’ve filled every available hour and now you’re stuck. There’s no space to raise your rates, rethink your offer, or make any kind of long-term plan. You’re exhausted. You’re at capacity. And you still might not be earning enough to match the value you bring.

That’s the moment where so many brilliant tutors start to feel quietly stuck, wondering how they’ve followed all the advice and still ended up in a business that doesn’t really work for them.

It’s not that anything’s gone wrong. It’s that most tutoring businesses are built on a model that was never designed to scale.

What Tutors Think They Need…

When tutors start to feel that stretch, their first instinct is often to look for more: more lessons, more platforms, more referrals, more visibility.

There’s a sense that if you just keep going, something will shift.

And sometimes it does, but often, it doesn’t.

Because what most tutors think they need is a new marketing strategy, a better time management system, or a slicker Instagram presence.

What they actually need is a more intentional business model.

One that doesn’t rely on being available all the time.
One that recognises the depth of your expertise and prices it accordingly.
One that allows you to work with clients who genuinely value what you offer.
One that’s designed to grow with you, not trap you in a cycle of overwork.

The Shift That Changed Everything for Me

There wasn’t a dramatic moment where everything fell apart. No crisis, no burnout, no “I’m done” moment.

But there was a moment where I realised I couldn’t keep building a business that relied on me being constantly available. I couldn’t keep overdelivering and undercharging and expecting things to change on their own.

So I started again, not from scratch, but from strategy.

I raised my prices. I refined what I offered and who I worked with. I stopped feeling guilty about working fewer hours. And I stopped chasing more and started building something that felt aligned, sustainable and genuinely fulfilling.

That decision didn’t just change my income. It changed how I saw myself as a business owner.

What I Learnt from Google HQ (Yes, Really)

Earlier this week I had the chance to visit Google HQ. Not to deliver a keynote (although one day, maybe), but tagging along on a client and friend’s tour.

It was, predictably, very cool. Barista coffee on tap. The best sourdough pizza I’ve ever had. Beautiful spaces. Seamless tech.

But the thing that really stayed with me?

The way everything was designed with intention.

Nothing was cobbled together. Nothing was reactive. Every detail, from the lighting to the way people moved through the building, had been thought through.

And I couldn’t help but draw a parallel with the work so many tutors are doing.

Most of us build reactively. We say yes to what comes. We adjust as we go. We take pride in being adaptable (which is a brilliant quality) but one that often keeps us stuck in the day-to-day.

What if we stepped back and started building our businesses with that same level of purpose and intentionality?

Not trying to mimic a billion-dollar tech company, but asking the same question: what would this look like if it were designed to work long-term, sustainably and with care?

Final Thoughts

Growing a tutoring business isn’t just about attracting more students or working more hours.

It’s about making strategic decisions that allow you to grow without losing yourself in the process.

It’s about learning to charge what your time and expertise are truly worth.
It’s about letting go of the “always available” model and setting up something that gives you breathing room.
It’s about designing a business that feels good to run and gives you the freedom to live outside of it, too.

If you’re sitting in the “fully booked but still stuck” stage, know this: you’re not doing anything wrong.

You’ve just outgrown the model that got you here.

And there’s a smarter, more spacious, more scalable version of your business waiting when you’re ready to build it.