How would you pay your bills by teaching Yoga for a living? Everyone needs a certain amount of income to live on and Yoga teachers are no different. Yoga jobs may not instantly “fall into your lap.” So what can you do to make a painless transition into becoming a Yoga teacher full time?

The keyword is full time because this is a very big step. Most of us got into teaching Yoga gradually, on a part time basis, and gradually built up a student base. This is the safest way to approach teaching Yoga. You get to perfect your teaching skills, while you are an independent contractor working at health clubs, corporate fitness centers, senior centers, ashrams, or Yoga studios.

Some Yoga teachers have home businesses. You may decide to open a small studio in your barn, loft, back yard, garage, den, or a separate building on your property. This is not for everyone and does have a few drawbacks.

Some Yoga teachers may not want to give their students the “run of the house.” Also, some female teachers may feel uncomfortable with male students in their homes. Think about this scenario: When you have a home business, it is hard to separate business time from personal time.

Let’s say you decided to take Memorial Day off. Memorial Day is always celebrated on a Monday. You tell all of your students class is canceled, but one on them drives up for a Yoga class on Monday evening, at the usual time.

You have family visiting and explain that there is no Yoga class tonight. Now, you feel uncomfortable because your forgetful Yoga student does not remember it is a holiday, until you tell him or her. Do you think this could never happen? Think again, and you would be surprised how many times you may be “on call.”

Home businesses have the advantage of no commute, low overhead, and convenience for the Yoga teacher. However, the drawbacks of being expected to teach anytime can make a home based Yoga studio inconvenient. If you decide to go this route, make sure you draw the line when it comes to your personal time.

Back to getting part time work as a Yoga teacher: Many Yoga teachers gradually build their student base to a point where there is a decision to bring in a partner, limited partner, junior partner, hire an employee, jump into teaching full time, or stop at a few Yoga teaching assignments per week.

You see – The final decision is up to you, and only you know, whether you want to keep teaching Yoga on the side or expand into teaching Yoga full time.

© Copyright 2006 – Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

Tags: Career, Careers, Change, Fit, Fitness, goal, Health, Healthy, Teach, Teacher, Yoga, Yogi

Do you enjoy practicing Yoga? Does teaching Yoga seem like your ultimate dream job? Does the thought of becoming a Yoga teacher feel like a “calling from within?” How would you pay your bills teaching Yoga? If your life mission is becoming a Yoga teacher; let’s look at a few practical solutions to your obstacles.

If you feel like a “fish in water” during a Yoga class you are not alone. However, when teaching Yoga becomes your own long-held aspiration, your spirit will not be fulfilled in the “daily grind.” You begin to feel frustrated in commuter traffic, and during office hours, when your dream job of teaching Yoga seems out of reach. So what do you do next – if you really want to become a Yoga teacher?

Apparently, you are focused on your goal, so you are far ahead of the majority of people who do not have a clue about what they really want. Here is a formula, and sequence of events, for you to consider: Focus, action, plan, envision, pace yourself, and goal realization.

Focus: It seems like you already are focused on becoming a Yoga teacher, but you should do some research on what teaching Yoga is really like. The types of Yoga teacher training courses will vary, according to style, hours required, on-site training, or correspondence course. Also, the preparation for a 90-minute Yoga class is something the average Yoga student is unaware of.

Action: Most of the world’s population never gets to this point. Most people fall into a “rut” and never take any action to move forward. This requires even more research about what you plan to do, how you plan to teach Yoga, and who you plan to teach Yoga to.

Plan: Write your goals down and only share them with people you can trust. Look at your goal of becoming a Yoga teacher as often as possible. Write down the exact chain of events required for you to become a Yoga teacher.

Envision: Visualization is important in reaching any goal. When you practice meditation, you should see, feel, hear, and possibly smell, what your new career of teaching Yoga will be like.

Pace Yourself: There is a saying, “Rome was not built in a day.” If you try to get to your goal of teaching Yoga too quickly, you will “burn out” along the way. Life is a journey, not a race; “stop and smell the flowers” along the way.

Goal Realization: Once you become a Yoga teacher, do not “rest on your laurels.” Continuing education will be an important and valuable part of your life. A Yoga teacher is a student of healthy living for life.

© Copyright 2006 – Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

Tags: Career, Careers, Change, Fit, Fitness, goal, Health, Healthy, Teach, Teacher, Yoga, Yogi