- Mario Musa, 25, became a certified tennis instructor because he grew up loving the sport.
- He makes up to $800 a month reviewing tennis products and made $800 a week teaching summer camps.
- He says it's an easy summer job that, for him, doesn't require an instructor certification.
This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Mario Musa, a 25-year-old certified tennis instructor who spent the summer working as a tennis camp counselor. It has been edited for length and clarity.
When I was 9 years old, I discovered just how much I loved playing tennis. Growing up in Albania, tennis wasn't such a popular sport, but during school we'd play on these old street courts. That's when I began to love learning how to play the game.
I never thought I could make money off of my passion for tennis. I just looked at it as a timeless hobby. Then, last year, I decided to get my US Professional Tennis Association certification and launch my own website so I could begin teaching private lessons to kids throughout the year. I also started making between $400 and $800 a month by reviewing tennis products and gear and earning affiliate commission when readers made a purchase.
But the real money-making opportunity happened this past summer
My nephew was telling me how excited he was to go to a camp called "Summer Camp Adventure" in New York's Adirondack Park, and when I started to research it more, I noticed it was in a beautiful location and looked luxurious.
The camp's website mentioned it was looking for a summer tennis counselor, and the job came with a lot of perks. Not only was the pay really good at $800 a week, but all additional expenses were taken care of, like three free meals a day, laundry service, and on-site accommodations. Plus, the job only requires staff to work and live at the camp Monday through Friday, so I knew I'd have weekends off to go back home to my apartment in Queens, New York.
The application process wasn't tough since the main requirement was to have prior experience coaching or working with groups of children. I had that from my own private tennis-coaching offerings. After I submitted the application, I was contacted for an interview, which involved sharing my experience with tennis and working with children. I was hired on the spot and started in June.
My responsibilities were easy
The job came with two primary responsibilities: The first was facilitating tennis lessons to a group of campers, ages 7 to 15, each day. The second part was to ensure their safety by sleeping in the same cabin with them at night.
Since the camp had so many activities, from horseback riding to extreme sports, the number of people who would come to the daily tennis program was usually quite small. Some days, nobody would show up, and then I'd have the day off. Other days, a group of anywhere between four to 12 of campers would arrive, and I'd spend two hours running a program for them and one to two hours cleaning the court after.
After that, the rest of the day was mine. I'd spend my free time working on the computer, running my tennis website and business, going for hikes, and enjoying the amazing scenery of Adirondack Park.
Since the majority of kids weren't interested in learning tennis at an advanced level, the lessons I gave were simple. I'd help them with their form and facilitated games.
The toughest part was having to be a cabin counselor for a group of campers
Every week, a new group of anywhere between four and 12 campers would arrive in my cabin. While I did have my own room, it was still located next to where the group slept. A big part of the job was to supervise the campers, making sure they got up and ready in the morning and went to sleep at a decent hour at night.
What made this so challenging was that sometimes the kids would be mean to each other, and I'd have to step in and break up any verbal arguments. They would also play pranks.
For example, one of the kids in my cabin put a fake snake on the floor. The first time this happened, it scared me. After I realized what these kids were capable of, I became more aware of their pranks and was on the lookout for what they would do next. A popular recurring prank involved kids throwing water balloons out the window to hit passerby.
Anyone could do this job — even if you're not a tennis professional
To be honest, you don't need to be a tennis professional to do this job. You don't even need to be a certified instructor. The camp will train you and help you with programming. But you do need a certain kind of personality, because without that, the job could become really hard and not worth the money.
To be successful in this role, you need energy, a positive attitude, and a true love and empathy for working with children, since you're around them day and night.
If you're a tennis instructor already, the job comes with more benefits that can help you throughout the year
Without this job, I would've had to work extremely hard to find enough clients to make $800 a week on my own. But with this side hustle, you're working two to four hours a day, receiving extra benefits for free, and making really good money for a summer job. I already have some of my campers signed up to do private lessons with me this year.
Now that the summer is over, I'm planning on using most of the money I made to reinvest in my own tennis business to help get more clients and build my reputation. I want to open my own summer camp one day, but for now, I plan to continue working this lucrative summer job.