become a yoga teacherBy Gopi Rao

Having finished a challenging 200-hour yoga course, you need to brace yourself for the demanding schedule of a yoga instructor. Without proper planning and preparation, the life of a teacher can easily slump into the rut of monotony. With proper planning, marketing knowledge, and streamlined time management, your life as a yoga instructor will be much better than the average person. Teaching yoga classes requires you as an instructor to be adequately prepared and to stay way ahead of your colleagues. Many new yoga instructors struggle with being nervous. It is very normal to be nervous when teaching your first yoga class, but this will pass as you continue to teach.

One of the expectations of being an instructor is that you should be an avid public speaker. The career does not necessarily require you to take to the podium and articulate about some mantra, ideology or rhetoric, but public speaking traits are a major aspect of any teaching career. This attribute is particularly important when you are teaching in studios and corporate yoga sessions. If you are to rise above ranks and get to the level of teaching corporate yoga you need to equip yourself with good language skills and the essentials of effective communication.

When dealing with corporate students, you are dealing with highly intellectual individuals who have high value expectations on what they want to achieve from their sessions. As an instructor you are expected to be confident, eloquent and articulate.

One of the major features of a yoga teaching career is planning. You know already that once you have perfectly planned out whatever you seek to do, you have half of the work cut out. This is true for teaching any subject. Yoga is an intricate practice and requires you as an instructor to be fully prepared, knowledgeable, and systematic in your approach. Before you go into your classes you will be expected to spend a great deal of you time planning your routines and everything that goes with a comprehensive session. You can start off with simple plans until you get a good grip and master the art of assembling more complex learning routines.

The following is an outline of some of the basic aspects that should make up your lesson plan.

Theme

Focus

Playlist

Flow

Teaching Point

Optional Yoga Related Story

Anatomical Focus

Core Message

Your planning may vary with the niche focus of your thrust. If you are conducting private yoga lessons for example your planning will not necessarily resemble that of an instructor dealing with a typical class.

If you are teaching private yoga lessons you need to narrow down your planning to suit the specific needs of your student. What goes with that might also be placing special focus on props that you need for your routines. In many cases you may find yourself in need of props and utilities such as straps, blocks, bolsters, pillows, chairs, or blankets. This can be avoided if you take time to thoughtfully plan ahead.

Once you have a solid grip of what it takes to be an effective and successful instructor you need to keep in mind that lack of continuing education could be a downfall in this industry, if you decide to sit on your laurels. Continuing education courses about teaching new and safe material will not only position you strategically for lucrative opportunities in the industry, but advancing your knowledge will make you more adaptive, versatile, and successful as a seasoned yoga instructor. The direction to take on continuing education depends on your current level of qualification and the needs of your students. You may consider upgrading your 200-hour yoga certification to the 350 or 500 hour training, for example. Once you can balance working successfully and advancing your knowledge, the sky is the limit.

© Copyright 2014 – Aura Wellness Center – Publications Division

News Signup

News Signup

See our testimonials to find out what our graduates have to say about our selection of distance learning yoga teacher certification programs.

If you are teaching a yoga class, a yoga school manager, blogger, e-zine, or website publisher, and are in need of quality content, please feel free to use my blog entries (articles). Please be sure to reprint each article, as is. Namaste!

Related Posts:

Yoga Instructor Training: Yogic Philosophy

How to Become a Yoga Instructor – Inner Vision

Yoga Instructor Training: Pranayama

Three People Most Unlikely to Become a Yoga Teacher

Hatha Yoga Teachers: What is the Best Yoga Instructor Certification for You?

Becoming a Yoga Teacher: Preparing Emotionally

https://www.aurawellnesscenter.com/2012/02/15/yoga-health-and-menopause/

Share This Article