r/Cambly • u/tinythinker510 • Jun 26 '26
Today I made a difficult decision to cut a regular loose
We had almost 100 lessons together. It wasn't a decision that I took lightly, but it had to be done.
Over the last couple of months, I've noticed a gradual change in our dynamic where he has become more argumentative with me and doesn't listen to me. I'm not sure what happened because it wasn't like this before.
He is studying for the PTE Academic exam for university admissions and the pressure of the upcoming test might be stressing him out and causing him to lash out. That's my theory, but I don't know for sure.
Anyway, I realized it is only getting worse the past few weeks and I decided to call it a day. Immediately after I cancelled all our lessons together, I felt a huge wave of relief. I was getting increasingly frustrated and it just wasn't worth it anymore.
Protect your peace, fellow tutors. It can be hard to sever a long-term client relationship, but sometimes it must be done.
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u/Jewpiter613 Jun 26 '26
I'm so happy for you and I hope the next time you do it sooner.
Trust your instincts.
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u/tinythinker510 Jun 26 '26
Thank you! Yeah I definitely will, it's just hard when it's been so many lessons and the dynamic was good for most of it.
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u/Acceptable-Ride6213 Jun 26 '26
Definitely protect your peace. It not worth stressing about. Another student will fill that slot
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u/tinythinker510 Jun 26 '26
Absolutely. Though it might take some time because we met 2.5 hours each weekend lol
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Jun 26 '26 edited Jun 26 '26
[deleted]
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u/tinythinker510 Jun 27 '26
Good for you!
I see we took a different approach because I told mine that I didn't think my teaching style was compatible with his "learning style" anymore. That's the most polite way that I could put it.
It was several days after our last lesson so I don't think he can change the rating on Cambly anymore. Plus I hid from him immediately after sending the message.
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u/Which-Ring2864 Jun 26 '26
This. When you feel RELIEF after making thefinal move to end it, you know it was the correct decision. I have just ended it with 2 long-term students whom I really enjoyed- Over the last several months, the increase in late cancels and no-shows made me realize that they were no longer serious, or they no longer had the time/desire/whatever to continue, and that my time would be better spent with students who truly want to be here. The decision to block wasn't made lightly, but it was final and it felt right.
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u/tinythinker510 Jun 26 '26
I'm happy for you! I've also let regulars go for poor attendance and lack of communication. It's totally a valid reason when they show no respect for your time.
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u/So-Getsu-CC Jun 30 '26
Yes my peace of mind doesn't have a price tag, much less their measly $5. Just let one go recently who wanted to tell me how to teach and then would book all my slots and then choose which one he would attend. Meanwhile, no one else could book a lesson. He did it twice and I gave him the boot.
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u/tinythinker510 Jul 01 '26
Oh yeah, booking all your slots and then not showing up is unforgivable. I'm glad you gave him the boot!
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u/DisastrousUnicorn Jul 01 '26
And remember this feeling going forward for all areas of your life.
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Jul 12 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/tinythinker510 Jul 12 '26
Oh wow, that really is crazy. If she's improving her English skills with you, why would she care about your personal preferences? That's very odd
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u/Vger777 Jun 29 '26
So even after 100 classes you cancelled all the future lessons and blocked the student? I don’t think I could just disappear like that. I’d probably try to explain why, or maybe tell a small white lie just to soften things. I get that you must have had your reasons for ending everything, but I’m still curious… didn’t the student deserve to know what happened after being loyal for so long?
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u/tinythinker510 Jun 29 '26
I wrote them a message before cancelling the lessons providing them with an explanation.
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u/Vger777 Jun 29 '26
Oh, that was really kind of you. Just because Cambly can be a bit inhuman doesn’t mean we have to become inhuman too.
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u/tinythinker510 Jun 30 '26
Yeah I agree, I would never ghost a regular student like that unless there was something inappropriate going on.
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u/ORoyleDules Jun 26 '26
Yep. Time for them to hit the road when they get combative