By Kimaya Singh
If you’re looking for a way to move beyond your sense of self while sharing your passion for yoga with others, you should consider becoming a yoga teacher. During yoga instructor training, you’ll learn a variety of important skills that will help you be the most effective teacher possible. One thing that’s absolutely crucial is to learn how to check your ego at the door. Without having the ability to do that, your skill as an instructor will be overshadowed by your personal needs.
It’s Not About You
Being in charge of a class can be a pretty heady feeling. It’s not unusual at all for otherwise laid-back people to suddenly feel like they have a captive audience. We’ve all had teachers in school who have over-shared or otherwise acted a little unprofessionally. That kind of thing has no place in the yoga studio. Your students trust you to teach them what they need to know; letting your ego get in the way is akin to robbing them of that.
Harnessing Your Ego
Yoga teacher training should devote at least some time to the concept of harnessing the ego. While it’s fine and even beneficial to impart your own personal wisdom when appropriate, you shouldn’t be getting on a soapbox when guiding your students through poses. Your training should teach you that your mood and actions set the tone for each class. If you come in and are clearly stressed or upset about something, your students will sense it, and it will negatively affect the entire class.
Getting in Touch with Your Feelings
One of the best ways to keep your ego from getting in the way is by being in touch with your feelings. As you learn the basics of yoga instruction, pay close attention to how you feel. Regardless of how you feel at any given moment, try to figure out why you feel that way. Pushing feelings away is a surefire way to have them erupt at the most inconvenient time.
Improve Your Life with Yoga Instruction
People decide to become yoga instructors for all kinds of reasons. For some, it’s all about sharing their passion for yoga; for others, it’s primarily about doing work that they actually enjoy. There are many fringe benefits, and one is learning to harness your ego in your everyday life. As you gain more experience, this will become easier to do and should provide many benefits over the long run.
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Yoga teacher training should devote at least some time to the concept of harnessing the ego. Your training should teach you that your mood and actions set the tone for each class. Thank you Kimaya Singh for writing this good article.