about teaching yoga classesBy Shadona Rani Das

Becoming a yoga instructor is more than just teaching yoga in a class. You must be an effective instructor who will provide up-to-date, correct, and safe yoga strategies to help your students learn safely. The best way you can be an effective yoga teacher is to first become a certified yoga instructor.

Learn a Specific Type of Yoga and Get Certified

Possibly the first thing that you need to do is to train for a particular type of yoga. Just like any kind of teaching practice, specialization is important. You can deliver high-quality teaching when you concentrate on one or two forms of yoga.

The certification process usually takes time; as an intern, you will be required to complete assignments. When possible, you should attend yoga classes and participate in classroom activities, as well as on the spot training under the guidance of a master teacher.

Learn from Senior Instructors

Aside from getting certified, you should still continue to learn new techniques, safety protocols, and strategies for running classes. Today, it is possible to have workshops and lectures from senior trainers or instructors online or by traveling. To gain more knowledge, you might attend classes in your area, watch videos, read books or e-Books about the subject that interests you the most.

Improve your Self-Confidence

One thing that a yoga teacher overcomes is the feeling of awkwardness in front of people. Yoga classes are run as a group activity, and you will absolutely develop self-confidence and poise over time. You can do this at first by teaching small yoga groups, until you are able to feel comfortable in larger groups. Practice is a great way to perfect any skill. Teaching groups, big or small, is a great way to jump start your self-confidence.

Group Size

When you have overcome your uneasiness in front of people, it is time to find out if you are, indeed, a capable and efficient teacher, by teaching larger groups. In teaching of any kind, you can fine tune your teaching methods to suit your students’ needs. For instance, if you have specialist training, a specialized yoga class could be a class for pregnant women, yoga for seniors, yoga for school age children or yoga for couples.

On the other hand, you might not have a specialist certification and you teach specific groups with a common goal. These types of students can be found in any martial arts school, dance academy, or in a sports league. By specifying exactly what group you are to teach, you can teach effectively and more directly.

Teaching Your Classes

You are now a certified teacher and you have proven yourself as an able and competent instructor. It is time to teach professionally, and the first thing that you must consider is if you would like to be a part of a company (studio, health club, or corporate center) or if you would like to personally look for clients. Joining in a company has a lot of benefits; you have a training area, a consistent number of students to teach and the possibility of employee benefits. Working on your own also has its benefits: you are your own boss so you have full control of your schedule, you get to teach in different venues and you get to keep your compensation. Some teachers work with private clients exclusively.

Weigh the benefits of the two employment options and do not be in a hurry to make a decision. You may want to consider working on your own for a few months and then working in a company later, just to test the waters. A professional yoga teacher minds his or her students above all and will be able to efficiently teach yoga, no matter where he or she may be.

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