This is an update to an article originally published on July 30, 2015. It has been refreshed and revised to for your reading pleasure.
Right now, I am in the midst of planning my fall and winter workshops and retreats.
In addition to offering the signature Elemental Yin Yang yoga classes that have helped me build a strong community of students, I also have the opportunity to coach current and soon-to-be teachers during teacher training and business bootcamps.
There is so much to cover when it comes to the world of teaching and the yoga industry, but one topic that I always circle back to is knowing your value and self-worth as an instructor.
As a teacher, it is easy to feel at times that you are the luckiest person on earth to be able to do this work. You may love it so much that you want to teach for free or offer everyone you know a huge discount on your (probably) already reasonably priced classes.
While I have written extensively on this topic, I want to share a few ways you can add value to your classes without selling yourself short in the self-worth or financial department.
The following is an excerpt from my book The A-Z of Being a Successful Yoga Teacher
V is for Value
When you hear the word “value” what do you think of?
The discount super store? Bargain basement prices?
Or do you think of value as getting something more than you originally expected?
As a yoga teacher, value is an important theme that effects far more than what you charge versus what you offer. Some facets of value also dictate how worthy you feel as an instructor.
Today I want you to grab a sheet of paper and write down your thoughts on the following:
1) Do you feel valued by the clients, students and studios you work with?
2) Do you value yourself appropriately?
3) Does teaching yoga the way that you do provide value to the people you work with?
4) What could you do to offer even more to the people you work with and increase your value?
How to Provide Value
Be Professional. You could be the world's most knowledgeable teacher, but if you are a hot mess when it comes to arriving to your classes on time or if you interact irresponsibly with students, you will quickly become more trouble than you are worth. Unprofessional teachers work against their own value, so tidy up any unkempt behaviour as quickly and cleanly as possible.
Be Consistent. While this is also an aspect of being professional, success depends on offering serious value consistently as a yoga teacher. A consistent tone, energy level and class level all give your students somewhere to plant their feet while they work to expand in their practice. Being the solid, trustworthy lodestone in a yoga class allows yours students the freedom to explore the jungle of their body and inner experience knowing their guide is right beside them.
On a practical level, staying consistent with what you promised to offer in the class is important. Imagine if you went to the dentist and he or she checked your vision instead, you would not walk away feeling like you got what you signed up for. Yet you may have been to yoga classes where the teacher announces “Hi everyone, let’s do something different today”.
To be clear, learning new things is never bad, and certainly there are times when the situation may allow a bit of leeway such as a private class. However, it is important to remember that the sessions you lead do not exist to entertain you. If you are “switching it up” because you feel bored, consider that you may have temporarily lost sight of what you have agreed to deliver.
Your classes need to evolve as you continue to learn and grow, but if you are scheduled to teach a weekly Restorative class and lead a Power Flow instead, you aren't giving your students what they asked and paid for.
Be Unique. The fun part of adding value to the service of teaching yoga is that you can decide what that looks like. Continuing education in your field of interest as an instructor is an amazing way to deliver a unique and therefore valuable experience to your students.
My interest in Chinese Medicine led me to become an Acupuncturist and infuse the philosophy of that medicine to devise a special brand of Yin Yang Yoga that I now train other yoga instructors to teach. One of my good friends dove deeply into anatomy and functional movement and became the local expert in their hometown. If you truly embrace this last principle you will unlock one to the keys to success:
Remember: You can never be in competition with another teacher or studio if you are sharing your unique take on yoga and the wisdom you have learned.
Even if you teach the exact same style as the instructor down the street, you are both delivering your flavor and expression of that practice so don't be afraid to put yourself out there and add the value that is uniquely yours.
How do you add value to your classes? Share with us in the comments below.
Photo credit: sunshinecity