From Tough Decisions to Freelance Freedom Artwork

The Adventures After Teaching Podcast

Sharing inspirational stories from teachers who have chosen to walk away from classroom to successfully transition to a new career. Advice, tips and ideas for exhausted teachers who know there's a difference between "giving up" and "having had enough". Join me to explore all things teacher burnout, career and business coaching and get plenty of ideas for your very own adventure after teaching.

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The Adventures After Teaching Podcast

From Tough Decisions to Freelance Freedom

June 24, 2025 • Joanne Howard • Season 5 • Episode 17

“It’s okay to prioritise yourself sometimes.”

Passionate about supporting emotional wellbeing in both children and adults, Katie was an experienced Headteacher who cared deeply about her students and staff. After realising that she was “giving too much of myself to my school and not enough of myself to my family”, she began to re-evaluate her career direction.

Now working freelance as an Associate Education Consultant with For The Child, alongside training to be a seasonal yoga teacher and exploring other exciting pursuits, Katie values the time that she took at the start of her career change journey to understand exactly what she wanted. With more time freedom and flexibility, she now enjoys voluntary roles, swimming with her children, riding horses again … and has even signed up to the London Marathon!

In this episode, we also chat about:

Experiencing fear at the start of the journey
Taking time to make a decision
Using tools and resources to explore next steps
Applying for the right roles
Putting yourself last as a teacher
Having an impact in a new way
Allowing space for ‘not knowing’
Building relationships and collaborating with others
Skills that translate from school to business
Liberation in not living by school terms

Links:

For The Child website

Katie's LinkedIn

If you're looking for step-by-step support to find and secure a new job or start your own business, check out the Adventures After Teaching Academy which will help successfully you leave the classroom!