Instagram is often viewed as a place to post beautiful yoga photos, but its real strength lies elsewhere.
Used well, it becomes a place to start conversations, build trust and create genuine relationships with the people who may one day become your students.
This workshop with guest expert Lillie Hussain, explores how yoga teachers can use Instagram more intentionally to grow their communities.
Stop Thinking About Followers. Start Building Community.
One of the biggest mindset shifts is to stop seeing Instagram as a collection of followers and instead see it as a community.
Every story, comment and message becomes an opportunity to connect with real people. The aim is not simply to gain more followers but to build meaningful relationships with those already paying attention.
Instagram Stories Are Where Conversations Begin
While many teachers focus on creating feed posts, using Instagram Stories can be a great place to start conversations.
Simple interactive features such as polls, quizzes and question boxes invite people to participate rather than simply scroll past.
For example, instead of posting that you have a beginner yoga class, ask:
Are you thinking about starting yoga?
Would you like to improve your mobility?
What questions do you have about yoga?
These small interactions identify people who are already interested in what you teach.
Use Direct Messages to Build Relationships
Once someone has responded to a Story, the conversation can naturally move into direct messages.
Rather than immediately trying to sell, start by asking questions, learning about their challenges and understanding what they need. When your classes genuinely solve that problem, sharing your offer feels helpful rather than pushy.
People are far more likely to join a class when they feel personally invited rather than simply marketed to.
Encourage Interaction
Instagram rewards engagement, and so do your relationships.
Quizzes, polls and question stickers make your audience part of the conversation. They also help position you as a knowledgeable teacher while giving you valuable insight into what your community wants to learn next.
For more support and FREE resources, join our Facebook community, The Yoga Teacher Collaborative. Connect with other yoga teachers, share your experiences, and gain valuable insights on how to make your classes more inclusive and accessible.
When you approach Instagram as though you were speaking to someone over a cup of tea rather than broadcasting to strangers, your marketing becomes warmer, more authentic and far more effective.
Social media does not have to feel overwhelming. Used thoughtfully, it becomes an extension of the same relationships you build every time someone walks into your yoga class.
Whether we are guiding a class, writing a newsletter, posting on social media or speaking about our work, we are continually inviting people to connect with us. For many yoga teachers, that visibility also awakens an old fear of being judged, rejected or not being enough.
In this conversation, Laura Green is joined by author and coach Nicola Humber to explore how we can let go of these patterns and step into a more authentic, unbound version of ourselves.
Why So Many Yoga Teachers Hold Themselves Back
Many people come to yoga teaching because they genuinely want to serve others. Yet that desire to help can sometimes become people pleasing.
This can be described as the “inner good girl”, the part of us that seeks approval, avoids conflict and believes our worth comes from pleasing everyone else. These patterns can quietly shape the way we run our businesses.
They often appear as:
Perfectionism and fear of making mistakes.
Difficulty charging sustainable prices.
Saying yes when we really want to say no.
Working excessive hours to feel productive.
Holding back our authentic voice through fear of judgement.
Authenticity Builds Stronger Connections
One of the biggest shifts comes from recognising that students do not need perfection.
They connect with honesty.
Rather than hiding mistakes or trying to present a flawless image, allowing yourself to be human often creates deeper trust. Vulnerability, handled with integrity, helps students relate to the person behind the teacher.
The Courage to Be Visible
Showing up authentically means accepting that not everyone will like everything you do.
Whether you are sharing your ideas online, increasing your prices or creating something new, there will always be differing opinions.
The goal is not universal approval. The goal is to build a business that reflects who you truly are rather than who you think you should be.
Meeting Your Unbound Self
Nicola introduces the idea of connecting with your unbound self:
The fullest, freest expression of who you are.
Through meditation and self reflection, we can begin reconnecting with the parts of ourselves that have been hidden through fear, criticism or the need to fit in. Rather than pushing these parts away, we learn to welcome them with curiosity and compassion.
For more support and FREE resources, join our Facebook community, The Yoga Teacher Collaborative. Connect with other yoga teachers, share your experiences, and gain valuable insights on how to make your classes more inclusive and accessible.
Building a sustainable yoga business is not only about marketing, pricing or strategy.
It is also about having the courage to be seen.
As you become more comfortable expressing your authentic voice, setting healthy boundaries and trusting your own way of teaching, your business becomes a more genuine reflection of who you are. That authenticity is often what allows your students to connect most deeply with both you and your teaching.
The yama and niyama are often the first philosophical teachings yoga teachers encounter, yet they can also feel some of the most difficult to teach.
How do we honour the depth of these ancient teachings without oversimplifying them? And how do we introduce yoga philosophy in a way that feels relevant and accessible for modern students?
In this workshop, Laura Green is joined by yoga philosophy teacher Katharine Pincham to explore how the yama and niyama can become living practices, rather than simply ideas to memorise.
What Are the Yama and Niyama?
The yama and niyama form the first two limbs of Patañjali’s Aṣṭāṅga Yoga.
The yama are ethical principles that guide how we relate to others, while the niyama invite us to cultivate qualities within ourselves. Together, they provide a practical framework for living yoga beyond the mat.
Rather than seeing them as rigid rules, we might want to view them as reflections of our deeper nature. As our understanding of yoga matures, these qualities begin to arise more naturally through practice.
Teaching Philosophy Through Everyday Practice
Yoga philosophy does not need to become a ten minute lecture at the start of every class.
Instead, the yama and niyama can be woven naturally into teaching through language, reflection and the choices we make as teachers.
For example:
Ahiṁsā can shape how we cue movement, encourage self compassion and communicate with students.
Satya invites honesty in both our teaching and our relationship with ourselves.
Asteya encourages generosity and giving credit to the teachers who have inspired us.
Aparigraha reminds us to let go of possessiveness around students, ideas and success.
These principles are not abstract concepts. They become visible through how we teach, communicate and hold space.
Ask Questions Rather Than Give Answers
One of the simplest ways to introduce philosophy is through thoughtful questions.
Rather than telling students what they should believe, invite them to reflect.
You might ask:
How do you speak to yourself when practice feels difficult?
What happens when you let go of judging the outcome?
Where might you be holding on more tightly than necessary?
Questions create space for students to explore the teachings in their own lives without feeling that philosophy is being imposed upon them.
Honour the Original Context
Some teachings, such as brahmacarya, are often simplified for modern audiences.
Don’t erase the original meaning, but explain the historical context. Traditionally, brahmacarya referred to celibacy within a particular renunciate tradition. Understanding that context allows us to appreciate the teaching while also exploring how its essence may apply today through the wise conservation of energy, attention and intention.
Honouring the roots of yoga creates depth without sacrificing accessibility.
Live the Teachings Before You Teach Them
Perhaps the most valuable insight is that philosophy is best taught through embodiment.
Rather than trying to master every concept before speaking about it, spend time practising it yourself. Reflect on where a teaching feels challenging, how it changes your own life, and what you continue to learn.
Students connect most deeply with authenticity, not perfection.
For more support and FREE resources, join our Facebook community, The Yoga Teacher Collaborative. Connect with other yoga teachers, share your experiences, and gain valuable insights on how to make your classes more inclusive and accessible.
The yama and niyama are not simply ethical checklists.
They are invitations to observe ourselves with greater honesty, compassion and awareness. As yoga teachers, we do not need to have every answer. Sometimes the most powerful teaching begins with a thoughtful question, a lived example, and a willingness to keep learning alongside our students.
Hanuman is one of the most beloved figures in yoga mythology.
Known as the monkey god, Hanuman appears throughout the Rāmāyaṇa as a symbol of strength, courage, devotion, and service. Yet beneath the epic stories and heroic adventures lie timeless teachings that remain deeply relevant for modern life and business.
Stories endure because they carry truths that transcend time. Each time we hear a story, we discover a new layer of meaning, a different lesson, or a fresh reflection on our own lives.
Remembering Your Gifts
One of Hanuman’s lesser-known stories tells of a young Hanuman who was bound by wise yogis after causing mischief with his extraordinary powers. He forgot his gifts and strengths until the day he discovered his dharma, his deeper purpose. Only then did those powers return.
This teaching feels remarkably human.
Many of us begin life with confidence, creativity, imagination, and courage. Yet over time, criticism, disappointment, or self-doubt can cause us to forget our own gifts. Hanuman reminds us that our talents are not lost. They are often simply waiting to be reclaimed through purpose and meaningful action.
The Courage to Love What You Love
Hanuman is perhaps best known for his unwavering devotion to Rāma.
His love is wholehearted, fearless, and visible. One story tells of Hanuman covering himself entirely in orange vermilion powder after learning it was used to protect those you love. If a little offered protection to Rāma, Hanuman reasoned, then covering himself in it would offer even more.
The story is playful, but the lesson is profound.
How often do we hide the things we genuinely love?
As yoga teachers, we may love mantra, meditation, philosophy, storytelling, or devotional practices, yet hesitate to share them because we worry how others will respond. Hanuman teaches us to be courageous in our devotion and unapologetic about what matters to us. When we teach from genuine passion, people feel it.
Action Needs Wisdom
Hanuman is also famous for taking decisive action.
When Lakṣmaṇa was gravely injured in battle, Hanuman was sent to retrieve sacred healing herbs from a distant mountain. Unable to identify the exact herbs, he uprooted the entire mountain and carried it back. The herbs saved the day, but damage was also caused in the process.
This story highlights an important teaching.
Strength and action are valuable, but they are not enough on their own.
In Non Dual Śaiva Tantra, manifestation arises through three forces: Icchā Śakti (desire), Jñāna Śakti (wisdom), and Kriyā Śakti (action). Hanuman’s mistake was moving too quickly from desire to action without pausing for wisdom.
In business, this lesson is particularly relevant. Before launching a new offering, setting a price, or making a significant decision, there is value in pausing, gathering information, and allowing discernment to guide action.
Sometimes carrying the whole mountain is unnecessary when a few carefully chosen herbs would do.
Hanuman’s Teachings for Modern Life
Hanuman’s stories remind us to:
Reclaim the gifts we have forgotten.
Let purpose guide our actions.
Be fearless in what we love.
Serve something greater than ourselves.
Balance enthusiasm and action with wisdom and discernment.
These teachings are as relevant in business as they are in yoga practice.
Whether we are teaching classes, leading retreats, growing a business, or simply navigating life, Hanuman offers a powerful reminder that courage is most effective when rooted in devotion, and action is most powerful when guided by wisdom.
For more support and FREE resources, join our Facebook community, The Yoga Teacher Collaborative. Connect with other yoga teachers, share your experiences, and gain valuable insights on how to make your classes more inclusive and accessible.
More specifically, the financial burden that can arise when teaching yoga becomes your sole source of income.
For many teachers, yoga begins as a passion. It is meaningful work. It allows us to support our communities, share practices we love, and create genuine impact. Yet when yoga becomes responsible for paying the mortgage, feeding a family, or funding the life we have built, the conversation changes.
The Reality Behind a Sustainable Yoga Business
Today, there are more examples than ever of yoga teachers creating successful, full-time businesses. This is encouraging because it shows what is possible.
However, it is important to remember that we often see the outcome without seeing the years of work that created it. Many established teachers have spent years building their reputation, developing skills, expanding their offerings, and growing their communities before reaching a sustainable income.
Success is possible, but it rarely happens overnight.
Is Your Income Goal Realistic?
One of the most important questions to ask is:
What do you actually need to earn?
Many yoga teachers come into the profession after careers with higher salaries and different financial expectations. The lifestyle, mortgage, family commitments, and responsibilities that income supported do not automatically disappear when you retrain as a yoga teacher.
This is not about lowering your ambitions.
It is about honestly assessing whether your current stage of teaching can realistically support the income level you require right now.
Sometimes the answer is yes.
Sometimes the answer is not yet.
Yoga Teaching Is Still a Career
A common misconception is that because yoga is meaningful work, it should immediately provide a full-time income.
Like any profession, yoga teaching has stages of development. New teachers are building experience, confidence, classes, and community. Over time, opportunities often expand into workshops, retreats, teacher trainings, mentoring, and other offerings that increase earning potential.
The income grows alongside experience, responsibility, skills, and the value you are able to offer.
There Is No Shame in Supplementing Your Income
One of the most empowering decisions a yoga teacher can make is recognising when additional income is needed.
A part-time job or supplementary income stream is not a sign of failure. In many cases, it can remove the financial pressure from your teaching and allow your business to grow more sustainably.
When every class has to pay the bills, it can be difficult to make calm, strategic decisions.
Sometimes stability creates more freedom, not less.
Are You Running a Business or Hoping for One?
If yoga is your sole income, your finances deserve serious attention.
That means understanding your numbers, forecasting income, planning for seasonal fluctuations, and knowing exactly what your classes, workshops, retreats, and events need to generate across the year.
Many yoga teachers rely on hope.
Sustainable businesses rely on planning.
The more responsibility you take for your finances, the more empowered you become to make informed decisions when class numbers fluctuate or an offering does not sell as expected.
Balancing Soul Work and Financial Stability
Teaching yoga is deeply meaningful work.
But meaningful work still exists within practical realities. Age, life stage, energy levels, financial responsibilities, and personal capacity all influence what is possible and sustainable.
The goal is not simply to earn more.
The goal is to create a business that supports both your livelihood and your wellbeing.
Because a stable income does not diminish the soul work of teaching yoga.
Often, it is what allows that soul work to continue for years to come.
For more support and FREE resources, join our Facebook community, The Yoga Teacher Collaborative. Connect with other yoga teachers, share your experiences, and gain valuable insights on how to make your classes more inclusive and accessible.
Not every workshop lands the way you hoped it would.
For many yoga teachers, this can feel deeply personal. It is easy to spiral into thoughts like: “Maybe I’m failing.” “Maybe nobody wants this anymore.” “Maybe I’m not good enough.”
But slow sales are not automatically a reflection of your worth, your teaching, or the quality of your work. Often, they are an invitation to pause, analyse and respond strategically rather than emotionally.
Slow sales happen to every business
Every business has offers that do not perform as expected.
Even experienced teachers, established brands and major companies have launches that flop. The difference is rarely perfection. It is resilience.
Successful businesses are usually built slowly through trust, consistency, refinement and meaningful connection over time.
Stop taking it personally
One of the most important things to remember when something is not selling is this:
Your bookings are not your self-worth.
When yoga teachers attach personal validation to numbers, it becomes very difficult to think clearly. Emotional spirals often lead to reactive decisions rather than grounded strategy.
The first step is to detach your identity from the outcome and move into analysis mode.
Look at what is actually within your control
External factors do matter. The economy, school holidays, timing, competing events and seasonal spending habits can all affect bookings.
But blaming everything on external factors stops teachers from examining what they can improve.
Some of the most important areas to review include:
The name of the event
Clear names usually outperform overly abstract or clever titles.
People need to immediately understand what the event is and why it matters to them. Sometimes changing only the title can completely shift bookings.
The imagery
Images create emotional connection far faster than text.
Generic stock photography or overly polished AI imagery often lacks warmth and humanity. Real photographs that capture atmosphere, feeling and connection tend to build far more trust.
The marketing language
Many teachers simply describe what happens at an event.
But effective marketing communicates how someone will feel.
Students are rarely buying “a yoga workshop.” They are buying rest, connection, inspiration, clarity, healing, challenge or transformation.
Make booking easy
Complicated booking systems quietly lose people.
If the process feels confusing, lengthy or unclear, potential students often drop away before completing the booking. Clear webpages, simple information and smooth systems matter more than many teachers realise.
Review pricing properly
Pricing needs to be analysed practically, not emotionally.
One of the biggest mistakes yoga teachers make is building events that only work financially if every space sells. A sustainable business model should still be viable before full capacity.
When planning retreats or workshops, it is important to understand:
your actual costs
your break-even point
what capacity creates a fair wage
whether unnecessary luxury expenses are inflating the ticket price
Sometimes a simpler venue and leaner setup creates a more accessible and profitable event.
Originality matters
In many areas, yoga communities are saturated with similar offerings.
Sound baths, cacao ceremonies, moon circles and yin events are now everywhere. That does not make them bad, but it does mean teachers need to ask:
“Why this?” “Why me?” “What makes this genuinely distinctive?”
The most compelling offerings are usually deeply aligned with the teacher creating them rather than copied from trends.
Give your offers enough lead time
Different students book differently.
Some people need months of notice to organise finances, childcare or annual leave. Others only decide at the last minute. Good marketing allows space for both.
Launching too late often removes the possibility for early planners to attend at all.
Avoid the echo chamber
One subtle trap for yoga teachers is seeking reassurance only from other struggling teachers.
When everyone in a conversation is saying: “Things just aren’t selling right now.”
…it can become an echo chamber that prevents honest analysis.
While external conditions may influence bookings, businesses still need clear reflection, refinement and adaptability.
Create from genuine enthusiasm
One of the strongest point is this:
Passion sells.
Many teachers create offers because students asked for them or because something is currently popular. But when an event is not deeply aligned with the teacher’s genuine excitement, that lack of energy often filters into the marketing.
The most magnetic offers usually come from authentic enthusiasm, curiosity and devotion to the subject itself.
Should you cancel the event?
Sometimes cancelling is the right decision.
If an event will create a significant financial loss, cancelling may simply be responsible business practice. But if an event is breaking even, there may still be value in running it through:
relationship building
testimonials
photography
teaching experience
community growth
creative development
Not every successful event is measured purely through immediate profit.
For more support and FREE resources, join our Facebook community, The Yoga Teacher Collaborative. Connect with other yoga teachers, share your experiences, and gain valuable insights on how to make your classes more inclusive and accessible.
Not selling out immediately does not mean your work is failing.
Often, it means the business is asking for refinement, patience, clearer communication, stronger positioning or more time.
Businesses that endure are rarely built through panic or perfection. They are built through resilience, trust, creativity and the willingness to keep learning.
Lick your wounds. Analyse honestly. Adjust clearly. Then keep going.
Many yoga teachers train because they love teaching yoga.
They imagine classes, students, sequencing, connection, community and meaningful work. What often comes as a shock is how much of running a yoga business is not teaching at all.
For many full-time yoga teachers, teaching may only be around 30% of the workload. The rest is administration, emails, bookings, marketing, content creation, tech, customer service, event planning, retreat logistics and all the unseen work that keeps the business moving. That hidden workload is often where burnout begins. In this workshop with VA Mae Skelding, we explore the hidden workload behind running a yoga business.
The business behind the teaching
A yoga teacher is rarely just a yoga teacher.
Behind the scenes, they are often also the administrator, marketer, customer service assistant, content creator, tech support, event coordinator and inbox manager.
There are emails to answer, booking systems to update, timetables to maintain, newsletters to send, retreats to organise, social media posts to create and students to support across multiple platforms.
Email, WhatsApp, Instagram messages, Facebook messages, comments, texts and voicemails can all become separate streams of communication. Even when each message is small, the combined mental load becomes heavy.
Why yoga teachers struggle to ask for help
Many yoga teachers feel they should be able to manage everything alone, especially if the business still feels small.
There can be guilt around paying for support, embarrassment about needing help, or fear that no one else will understand the business properly.
But needing support does not mean the business is failing. It often means the business has grown beyond what one nervous system can comfortably hold.
Just because you can do everything does not mean you should.
What a Virtual Assistant can help with
A VA can support many of the tasks that drain time and headspace, including inbox management, social media scheduling, newsletters, website updates, retreat admin, booking lists, forms, launch planning, research, customer communication and systems.
Some tasks can be fully handed over. Others work better as collaboration.
Social media, for example, often works best when the teacher provides the ideas, voice and core message, while the VA turns that into graphics, captions, emails or scheduled posts.
This keeps the content authentic while removing the time-consuming admin around it.
Support does not have to start big
Getting help does not mean hiring someone for 25 hours a week.
Support can begin with just a few hours a week or a small monthly retainer. Even two and a half hours of focused VA time can clear tasks that might take a yoga teacher much longer when fitted between teaching, messages, laundry, family life and general brain spaghetti.
A helpful starting point is to notice what drains you most.
What do you avoid? What do you resent doing? What takes up too much mental bandwidth? What keeps falling through the cracks?
That is often where support should begin.
Support can create more income, not just more cost
A VA is not only an expense. Good support can help ideas move from your head into the world.
When you are not constantly treading water with admin, you have more space to develop retreats, courses, workshops, collaborations and long-term plans. You can spend more time in your actual strengths: teaching, creating, holding space and building community.
Support can also improve the student experience. Messages are answered faster. Booking systems are clearer. Launches are more organised. Students feel held before they even arrive on the mat.
Choosing the right person
The right support person needs both skill and alignment.
For yoga teachers, it can be especially helpful to work with someone who understands wellness, heart-led business and the rhythm of a small creative company. A generalist VA can often be useful because a yoga business rarely needs only one thing. The work may shift from newsletters one week to retreat logistics the next, then website edits, forms, inbox support or launch planning.
The key is to find someone who is capable, clear, trustworthy and ideally better or faster than you at the tasks you are handing over.
Find out more about Mae’s work on Instagram @soul.syncva
For more support and FREE resources, join our Facebook community, The Yoga Teacher Collaborative. Connect with other yoga teachers, share your experiences, and gain valuable insights on how to make your classes more inclusive and accessible.
The hidden workload of running a yoga business is real.
It is not just the teaching. It is the inbox, the admin, the launch, the booking system, the customer care, the website, the reminders, the follow-ups, the tech and the constant mental tabs left open.
Getting support is not a luxury for people with huge businesses. It can be the difference between barely coping and building something sustainable.
A well-supported yoga business gives the teacher more space to teach. That is the whole point.
Growing a yoga business is one thing. Sustaining it is another.
At the beginning, there is energy, urgency and momentum. You are telling everyone about your classes, putting up posters, flyering, emailing, networking, launching new ideas and learning as you go.
But once your business is established, a different question appears: how do you keep it going without burning out, becoming bored, or quietly letting everything decline?
Growth and sustainability are not separate
Many yoga teachers imagine growth belongs to the early stage of business. You grow your classes, build your email list, add workshops, perhaps launch retreats or trainings.
Then, once things are working, it is easy to stop doing the very things that created the growth.
You stop telling new people about your classes. You stop flyering. You stop posting in local groups. You stop following up with students. You stop creating new offerings. Then, months later, class numbers begin to dip.
This is not failure. It is the natural cycle of business.
Students leave for ordinary human reasons. They move house. They change jobs. They have babies. They get puppies. Their schedule changes. They get injured, go on holiday, or simply fall out of rhythm.
To sustain a yoga business, you need to keep welcoming new people in.
Business has seasons
A yoga business moves through cycles, just as nature does.
There is the beginning, the spark, the birth of an idea. There is the sustaining phase, where something is held, maintained and nourished. And there is the ending, where something has served its purpose and needs to be released.
In yogic language, this can be understood through the trimūrti: Brahmā as creation, Viṣṇu as preservation, and Śiva as dissolution.
Your business needs all three.
If everything is always new, you exhaust yourself. If everything is only maintenance, the business becomes stale. If nothing is ever allowed to end, resentment builds.
Sustainability comes from honouring the whole cycle.
Keep bringing in something new
To sustain your yoga business, it helps to have at least one new offering each year.
This does not mean constantly reinventing everything. Rinsing and repeating what works is wise. It protects your energy and gives your students consistency.
But your business also needs fresh growth.
That might be a new workshop, course, retreat, collaboration, pop-up class, theme, venue, or community event. Something that brings energy back into your teaching. Something that stretches you slightly. Something that reminds you that you are still growing.
Newness keeps your business alive.
Keep marketing, even when classes are full
The work that grows your business is often the same work that sustains it.
Flyers, posters, newsletters, local Facebook groups, networking, conversations, guest sessions, community visibility, free resources and thoughtful follow-up emails all matter.
When your classes are full, you may not need to market with the same intensity. But you still need to keep the flow moving.
A few new students every few months can be the difference between a stable class and a slow decline.
Sustainability is not passive. It is active maintenance.
Let things end before resentment begins
One of the hardest parts of sustaining a yoga business is knowing when to stop.
You may outgrow a class, a workshop format, a venue, a niche, or a version of yourself as a teacher. That is not disloyal. It is part of growth.
If an offering no longer serves you, drains you, or quietly makes you resentful, it may be time to let it go.
Where possible, pass it on to another teacher. Invite students into your other offerings. Give the class a graceful ending.
A clean ending creates space for the next beginning.
Review your business every year
The questions you asked at the start of your business need to be asked again.
What do you want your business to feel like now? What do you need to earn? What do you most want to teach? What schedule actually supports your life? What have you outgrown? What feels alive?
You are not the same teacher you were a year ago. Your business should not be trapped serving an old version of you.
For more support and FREE resources, join our Facebook community, The Yoga Teacher Collaborative. Connect with other yoga teachers, share your experiences, and gain valuable insights on how to make your classes more inclusive and accessible.
In this workshop with guest expert Helen Cooper, we explore a part of teaching many yoga teachers are only just beginning to understand: trauma, and what it means to teach in a trauma informed way.
For many teachers, trauma informed yoga can sound like something reserved for specialist settings. It may bring to mind work with veterans, people recovering from severe abuse, or those in clinical therapeutic environments. Yet this workshop points to something much wider. Trauma is not rare, and trauma informed teaching has relevance far beyond specialist classes. It matters in ordinary weekly drop in classes, community spaces, and open level teaching where we may know very little about what each student is carrying.
What is trauma
Trauma is the result of being exposed to a deeply distressing or disturbing event. That may be a single major event, or something that builds over time through repeated exposure, prolonged difficulty, or chronic stress.
The causes can be very wide ranging. It may be an accident, injury, bereavement, illness, abuse, rape, war, or civil unrest. It may also be something more cumulative, where the body and mind have gradually been overwhelmed. In simple terms, trauma can create such a strong shock in the system that the usual communication between brain and body becomes disrupted.
The symptoms are equally varied. They can include anxiety, depression, fatigue, nightmares, flashbacks, agitation, and a general sense of disconnection or overwhelm.
One of the most important reminders is that trauma does not look the same in every person. Different people respond differently, and we cannot assume we know what someone’s experience is just by looking at them.
Why trauma informed teaching matters in general classes
If you are teaching an open class in a church hall, village hall, studio, or gym, it is highly likely that at least one student in the room has experienced trauma. In truth, probably more than one.
That means trauma informed yoga is not just for specialist work. It is part of teaching responsibly in everyday settings. We are often blind to what students are carrying when they arrive on the mat, so it makes sense to teach in ways that reduce unnecessary activation and increase a sense of safety, agency, and choice.
This is not about becoming a therapist. It is about becoming more sensitive to the nervous system, to the language we use, and to the way our class environment may affect people.
What trauma informed yoga looks like
Trauma informed yoga tends to be gentle, spacious, and choice based. Rather than imposing a shape or demanding a certain experience, it invites the student into a more personal relationship with their practice.
Language matters here. Invitations are more supportive than commands. Rather than telling someone exactly what to do, trauma informed teaching leans towards phrasing such as perhaps you would like to, you might explore, or notice how it feels if. This helps restore a sense of agency, which is especially important for anyone whose choices or boundaries may have been compromised in the past.
The practice itself may be very simple. It can include small movements, clear options, basic awareness of sensation, and slow exploration rather than intensity. The aim is not performance. It is helping someone reconnect to their body safely.
Creating more safety in class
Safety is not only about what we teach. It is also about the room, the timing, and the atmosphere.
An important part is the beginning of class. The few minutes before the formal practice starts can feel chaotic. People chatting, mats shuffling, bags moving, late arrivals, general noise. For some students, that can already feel dysregulating. Creating a calmer transition into class matters more than we may realise.
Physical space matters too. If mats are packed tightly together, that may feel uncomfortable for some students. A clear route to the door can matter. Being able to see the exit can matter. Not assuming that an enclosed cocoon like atmosphere feels safe for everyone also matters.
Touch and physical assists need particular care. Permission should not be treated as something given once and then assumed forever. A student who was comfortable with touch last month may not be comfortable with it today. Consent needs to remain active and current.
Śavāsana and vulnerability
Śavāsana can be deeply restful, but it can also feel highly vulnerable. Being still, lying down, closing the eyes, and softening into the floor is not neutral for every student.
A trauma informed approach does not mean removing Śavāsana. It means teaching it with options and sensitivity. That might include offering bent knees, alternative resting positions, or permission to remain more alert if needed. It also means noticing if someone seems agitated or unsettled and resisting the urge to interfere too quickly. Sometimes leaving space is the kindest response.
Trauma informed yoga is not therapy
This is a crucial distinction. Trauma informed yoga can be therapeutic, but it is not therapy.
Teachers do not need to analyse, fix, or draw out someone’s story. Students do not need to disclose trauma in order to benefit from a safer class environment. In fact, pressure to disclose would work against the very safety we are trying to create.
For teachers offering one to one work, boundaries become especially important. Compassion does not require constant emotional availability. It is possible to be warm, responsive, and caring while still being clear that the yoga session is the appropriate space for the work you offer.
Why this matters for yoga teachers
Most of us want our classes to feel welcoming, inclusive, and supportive. Trauma informed teaching helps us do that more skilfully.
It invites us to think more carefully about language, consent, pacing, spaciousness, and the nervous system. It reminds us not to assume that what feels safe to us will feel safe to everyone. It asks us to teach with more humility and more care.
That does not make our teaching smaller. It makes it wiser.
If yoga is about connection, then trauma informed yoga asks an essential question: how do we create the conditions in which connection can happen safely.
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Yoga philosophy is not something separate from teaching yoga. It is the ground beneath it.
This workshop with guest expert Katharine Pincham explores the Bhagavad Gītā, ancient yoga texts, and how yoga teachers can bring philosophy into classes in a way that feels meaningful, accessible, and rooted in lived experience.
Why the Bhagavad Gītā matters for yoga teachers
The Bhagavad Gītā is one of the most beloved texts in yoga philosophy because it speaks to people living active lives. It is not written only for renunciates, monks, or those who have left the world behind.
It meets us in the middle of life.
This matters deeply for yoga teachers. Most of us are not teaching from caves, monasteries, or remote āśrams. We are teaching in village halls, studios, online spaces, community centres, gyms, and retreat venues. We are navigating money, relationships, uncertainty, responsibility, fatigue, purpose, and service.
The Bhagavad Gītā offers guidance for that exact place.
At its heart, the text asks: how do we act wisely in a world we cannot control?
Dharma: doing the work that is yours to do
One of the clearest teachings from the Bhagavad Gītā is dharma.
Dharma can be understood as your duty, purpose, or right role in the fabric of life. For yoga teachers, this does not have to mean doing something grand or dramatic. It may mean turning up for your students. Holding steady. Creating a space where people can breathe, soften, move, and remember themselves.
In difficult times, this matters.
When the world feels heavy, it can be tempting to question whether teaching yoga is enough. Yet the Gītā reminds us that our work is not to fix the whole world in one sweeping gesture. Our work is to do the next right thing with clarity, steadiness, and devotion.
For a yoga teacher, that may mean teaching the class. Sending the email. Holding the retreat. Offering the practice. Continuing to serve.
Karma yoga: action without attachment
Karma yoga is often misunderstood as simply volunteering or doing unpaid work. In the Bhagavad Gītā, it is much deeper than that.
Karma yoga is an attitude to action.
It asks us to act wholeheartedly, but without clinging to the result. As yoga teachers, this is painfully relevant. You can plan your class, promote your workshop, prepare carefully, and teach with sincerity. But you cannot fully control how many people book, how people respond, or what happens next.
The work is yours.
The outcome is not entirely yours.
This teaching can bring real steadiness to the business of teaching yoga. It helps us keep showing up without becoming consumed by numbers, comparison, fear, or disappointment.
Teaching philosophy without overwhelming students
Bringing yoga philosophy into class does not mean turning your 60-minute class into a lecture.
It starts with living the teaching yourself.
Do not rush to teach a text you have only just read. Let the philosophy steep in you first. Read it. Reflect on it. Practise with it. Notice where it speaks to your own life.
Then bring it into class in small, natural ways.
For example, when teaching a challenging posture, you might introduce karma yoga by reminding students to give their best effort without judging the result. This makes the philosophy practical, embodied, and immediately relevant.
Philosophy lands best when it helps students understand their own experience.
Make ancient teachings accessible without diluting them
Yoga teachers often face a delicate balance. We want to make philosophy accessible, but we do not want to flatten, sterilise, or disconnect it from its roots.
One way to honour both is to give context.
Ancient yoga texts were written in specific cultural, spiritual, and historical settings. Some teachings were originally intended for renunciates or particular communities. Rather than pretending that context does not exist, we can name it clearly, then explore how the teaching may apply to modern life.
This approach respects the tradition while making it useful for students today.
Accessibility should not mean removing depth. It should mean building a bridge.
Philosophy is not performance
There can be pressure on yoga teachers to sound wise, spiritual, or impressive.
The real work is simpler.
Let philosophy change how you teach, how you act, how you meet your students, and how you move through uncertainty. Then your words do not need to be elaborate. They will carry weight because they come from practice.
The Bhagavad Gītā is not asking us to perform wisdom. It is asking us to live it.
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The Bhagavad Gītā offers yoga teachers a way to stay steady in the middle of life. It teaches us to act with courage, serve with sincerity, and loosen our grip on outcomes.
For teachers wanting to bring more depth into their classes, yoga philosophy does not need to be complicated. Begin with one teaching. Live with it. Practise with it. Let it become part of your language slowly.
The teachings do not belong on a dusty shelf.
They belong in the breath, the body, the choices, and the quiet courage of showing up.
In this workshop with guest expert Lauren Gray, we explore a part of sequencing many yoga teachers overlook: mudrās.
When inspiration feels low, mudrās can become a simple but powerful way to generate fresh class themes, shape the felt experience of an āsana, and bring more subtlety into your teaching. Rather than seeing mudrās as something separate from movement, meditation, or prāṇāyāma, this workshop invites us to use them as a creative thread running through the whole class.
What is a mudrā?
At its simplest, a mudrā is a hand gesture.
But in yoga, it is more than hand placement. A mudrā can be a way of directing attention, shaping energy, and deepening communication between body and mind. Just as we feel different qualities in āsana, such as grounding, spaciousness, steadiness, or uplift, we can also feel those qualities through the hands.
That is what makes mudrās so useful in sequencing. They are not just an add on at the end of class. They can become the seed of the whole practice.
Why use mudrās in yoga class sequencing?
Many teachers hit moments where sequencing feels stale. Mudrās offer another doorway into inspiration.
A mudrā can give you a clear energetic theme for class. It can help you decide the emotional tone of the practice. It can shape how a pose is experienced, not just what pose is taught. It can also bring more coherence between your opening, your āsana sequence, your prāṇāyāma, your meditation, and your Śavāsana.
Instead of asking, “What pose should I teach this week?”, you can ask, “What quality does this mudrā evoke, and how could I build a class around that?”
The five elements in the fingers
One of the reasons mudrās are so rich for sequencing is that each finger is associated with one of the mahābhūtas, the great elements.
The thumb relates to fire. The index finger relates to air. The middle finger relates to space. The ring finger relates to earth. The little finger relates to water.
Once you know this, your hands stop feeling random. They become a subtle map. A mudrā can then highlight a particular elemental quality, and that gives you immediate class inspiration.
If you are working with earth, you may sequence for steadiness, rooting, and containment. If you are working with air, you might explore lightness, lift, and fluid transitions. If you are working with space, you may bring attention to pauses, breath, and the felt sense of openness in the body.
Let the mudrā lead the sequence
A really useful approach is to practise the mudrā first yourself and ask what it actually feels like in your body.
Does it create steadiness, softness, alertness, containment, or expansion? Does it make you aware of your heart space, your back body, your breath, or the spaces between the limbs? Once you know that, you can let the sequence grow from the experience rather than from theory alone.
For example, Haḳinī mudrā, with all fingertips touching, might evoke spaciousness, clarity, and a sense of expansion between the fingers. One teacher may sequence from that into poses that emphasise lightness and breath. Another may feel strength through the back body and build a class around that. The same mudrā can lead to different classes because the felt experience is part of the teaching.
That is what makes sequencing with mudrās both intelligent and creative.
Mudrās in āsana, not only meditation
Mudrās are often taught in isolation, but they can be woven into movement very effectively.
You can introduce the mudrā in seated practice, let students experience it clearly, and then revisit it in selected āsanas. A mudrā might appear in Vīrabhadrāsana, Vṛkṣāsana, Goddess Pose, or a seated fold. It may then return again in meditation or Śavāsana, giving the whole class a sense of continuity.
The key is clarity. Teach the mudrā first. Let students feel it when they are stable and not overloaded with instruction. Then layer it into the sequence in a way that supports rather than confuses.
Mudrās, mythology, and meaning
Mudrās can also open the door to story.
If a mudrā connects with a deity, a symbol, or an image, that can become another layer in the class theme. Garuḍa mudrā might inspire a sequence around wingspan, perspective, and strength. Gaṇeśa mudrā might evoke obstacles, courage, and determination. A mudrā associated with the heart could support a class on giving and receiving.
This does not mean you need to present yourself as an expert in mythology. It is enough to be honest that you are learning, exploring, and sharing what is inspiring you. Often, teaching becomes one of the best ways to deepen your own understanding.
A practical way to begin
If you want to start sequencing with mudrās, keep it simple.
Choose one mudrā. Sit with it. Notice what it does in your body, breath, and attention. Read a little about its symbolism and elemental qualities. Then build a class around one or two core feelings it evokes.
You do not need ten mudrās in one class. One is enough. Introduce it clearly, revisit it two or three times, and let it return in the closing practice. That alone can make your sequencing feel fresher, more integrated, and more thoughtful.
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Mudrās offer yoga teachers another source of sequencing inspiration that is subtle, embodied, and deeply connected to the wider tradition of yoga.
They can help you move beyond pose based planning and into energy, symbolism, and felt experience. They can support your students to experience a pose differently, and they can help you create classes with more depth and coherence.
When inspiration feels thin, a mudrā can be enough to begin again.
In this workshop, we explore a question many yoga teachers are quietly holding: how do we continue to teach, serve, and sustain our yoga business during challenging socioeconomic times?
With rising costs of living, financial uncertainty, and shifting student priorities, it is natural for concern to arise. Yet alongside that concern sits a deeper truth. Yoga still matters. For many students, it matters more than ever.
Yoga is not just a luxury, it is a necessity
One of the most important shifts for a yoga teacher is how you perceive the value of what you offer.
Yoga can be seen as a discretionary spend. But for many students, it is not optional. It supports mental health, physical wellbeing, emotional regulation, and a sense of stability during uncertain times.
When life feels unpredictable, practices that create calm, strength, and clarity become essential. This is where a yoga class moves beyond being a luxury and becomes something far more meaningful.
As a yoga teacher, it is important to stay rooted in that understanding. Not from a place of ego, but from clarity. When you understand the value of your yoga teaching, you communicate it more effectively and teach with more purpose.
Focus your yoga classes on real, felt value
During challenging times, students are more discerning about how they spend their money. This makes clarity of value essential.
A yoga class plan becomes more impactful when it is rooted in what your students truly need. That may be stress relief, physical tension release, better sleep, or a space to pause and breathe.
Rather than offering broad or vague sessions, consider theming your yoga class sequence around specific outcomes. A month of classes might focus on reducing anxiety, easing back pain, or supporting nervous system regulation.
When students understand the benefit of attending, they are more likely to prioritise their yoga class, even when finances feel tight.
Keep your yoga business lean and sustainable
A key part of sustaining a yoga business during economic pressure is understanding your costs.
Every yoga class, workshop, or event has a price, costs, and a remaining margin. Reviewing that margin honestly can reveal where you can simplify.
Often, teachers increase the price of offerings by adding extras that are not essential. Props, gift bags, guest facilitators, or premium venues can all raise costs significantly. While these can enhance an experience, they are rarely the reason a student attends.
Students come for your yoga teaching. Simplifying your offering allows you to keep prices accessible while maintaining a sustainable income.
This same principle applies across your business. Reviewing subscriptions, software, and recurring expenses can help you operate more efficiently and reduce unnecessary outgoings.
Offer flexible pricing options for your yoga classes
Clarity and choice around pricing can support both you and your students.
A yoga teacher might offer a higher priced drop in yoga class alongside a lower cost membership or class pass. This allows committed students to access classes at a more affordable rate while giving you more predictable income.
Consistency in pricing builds trust. Rather than offering unclear or variable pricing, clear options help students make decisions with confidence.
Create access without devaluing your work
There may be students who genuinely cannot afford to attend regularly. Supporting them does not require lowering your prices across the board.
One approach is to create a sponsored space or fund, where a student or group of students supports others to attend. This maintains the value of your offering while increasing accessibility.
Another approach is exchange. A student may help set up the room, support administration, or bring new students in return for access to classes. This creates mutual value rather than reducing your worth as a teacher.
Adapt your yoga offering with intention
Small shifts in how you structure your yoga classes can make a difference.
Shorter sessions may be more accessible financially and easier to attend. Outdoor classes can reduce overhead costs. Simpler venues can make workshops more viable.
Even the language you use matters. A workshop framed around learning and practical benefit may resonate more strongly than something positioned as a luxury experience.
These are not compromises. They are refinements that align your offering more closely with what your students need right now.
Stay steady in your mindset as a yoga teacher
Beyond strategy, there is mindset.
Uncertainty can pull teachers into worry about numbers, income, and the future. Yet the steadiness cultivated through yoga practice remains one of your greatest tools.
Noticing the emotions that arise, allowing them to move, and returning to clarity helps you act rather than react. From that place, decisions become more grounded and less driven by fear.
Continuing to teach, to serve, and to show up consistently is itself a powerful response to challenging times.
Teaching yoga through challenge
Economic pressure changes how people spend. It does not remove the need for connection, support, and wellbeing.
A yoga teacher who understands their value, simplifies their offering, and stays connected to their students can continue to grow, even in uncertain conditions.
The focus remains simple. Serve well. Communicate clearly. Keep your offering accessible where possible. And continue to teach with steadiness and intention.
For more support and FREE resources, join our Facebook community, The Yoga Teacher Collaborative. Connect with other yoga teachers, share your experiences, and gain valuable insights on how to make your classes more inclusive and accessible.
Understanding the lymphatic system can help us teach with more clarity, especially when students are dealing with swelling, lymphedema, recovery after cancer treatment, or simply a body that tends to feel puffy, heavy, or sluggish. It also offers useful insight into how breath and movement support health for all students, not just those with a medical condition.
In this workshop with guest expert Sinead Cobbe, we explore this topic in more depth.
What is the lymphatic system?
The lymphatic system is a fluid system in the body that sits alongside the bloodstream. It is separate from the circulatory system, but works closely with it.
Its job is to collect excess fluid from around the cells, transport cellular waste, help move fats from the gut, and support immunity. That fluid, once collected, is called lymph. The system then moves it back towards the neck, where it returns to the bloodstream and can be processed by the body.
The lymphatic system also includes lymph nodes, which act as small processing points along the way. There are hundreds of these throughout the body, with many around the neck, armpits, groins, behind the knees, and around the organs.
Why the lymphatic system matters
We often only notice the lymphatic system when something feels off. Puffy ankles after a flight. Hands swelling in heat. Shoes feeling tighter by evening. Glands coming up during illness.
Yet this system is working all the time. It helps keep fluid moving, waste clearing, and immune responses functioning. When it is under strain, sluggish, or damaged, that can affect how the body feels and functions.
The lymphatic system does not have a pump like the heart. It relies heavily on movement, muscular activity, and breathing to keep fluid moving.
That is where yoga becomes especially relevant.
Yoga, movement, and lymphatic flow
Because the lymphatic system depends on movement, yoga can support it well.
Muscle activity helps move lymph, especially from the limbs back towards the centre of the body. This means movement itself matters. Not just stretching, but activation. Gentle pulsing, pressing into the floor, subtle repetitions, and muscular engagement can all help encourage flow.
This is also why long periods of stillness, sitting, or inactivity can leave some people feeling more swollen or heavy.
Inversions may also help, especially for the legs, because they assist fluid back down with gravity. This can include very simple variations such as legs up the wall, not just advanced inversions.
Why the diaphragm matters so much
The diaphragm is considered a major driver of lymphatic flow. Deep, low breathing helps create movement through the torso and supports lymphatic drainage. Stronger diaphragmatic actions, such as more forceful breath techniques, may also stimulate the system.
For yoga teachers, this reinforces something already important: belly breathing and diaphragmatic breath are not just calming for the nervous system. They may also support the healthy movement of lymph.
Even simple low breathing into the base of the lungs can be valuable, especially for students who tend to breathe shallowly into the upper chest.
Can yoga help students with lymphedema?
Yes, but with care and clarity.
Lymphedema is a specific type of swelling caused by damage to or blockage within the lymphatic system. A common example is arm lymphedema after breast cancer treatment, though it can happen elsewhere in the body too.
Current understanding is that movement and exercise are helpful, not harmful. Strengthening, activity, and yoga can all be supportive. If a student has lymphedema and is trying a new type of movement for the first time, it may be wise for them to wear their compression garment and to monitor how their body responds afterwards.
Yoga is not likely to suddenly cause lymphedema. But for someone with an already compromised system, large changes in activity may need a gradual approach.
As teachers, we do not need to diagnose or treat. We do need to teach intelligently, encourage pacing, and respect that some students may need to check in with their specialist therapist if they are unsure.
Simple things yoga teachers can include
You do not need to redesign your whole class to support the lymphatic system.
A few simple inclusions may help:
diaphragmatic breathing
gentle repetitions rather than only static holds
muscular engagement in standing poses and all fours
subtle shoulder and neck movement
inversions or legs up the wall where appropriate
stretching and backbends that create movement through the front body and torso
The key idea is simple: lymph likes movement.
A simple self massage area to know
The neck and collarbone area are an important place, because lymph returns to the bloodstream here.
Very gentle massage around the sides of the neck, below the ears, and around the collarbones may support this area. The touch should be light, not deep like muscular massage.
This is not a replacement for treatment where needed, but it is a helpful reminder that the lymphatic system can be supported through very gentle work.
Why this matters in teaching
Most yoga teachers are already doing things that support the lymphatic system without naming them as such. Breath. Movement. Gentle inversions. Repetition. Awareness of swelling. Encouraging students to move rather than stay static for too long.
What this understanding adds is context. It helps us teach with more precision and gives us another lens through which to understand fatigue, puffiness, recovery, and the value of simple practices.
Yoga does not need to become medicalised to be informed. But when we understand a little more of what is happening inside the body, our teaching becomes more skilful, more relevant, and more supportive.
For more support and FREE resources, join our Facebook community, The Yoga Teacher Collaborative. Connect with other yoga teachers, share your experiences, and gain valuable insights on how to make your classes more inclusive and accessible.
In this workshop, we explore a part of teaching many yoga teachers overlook: the subtle stages through which something comes into being.
In yogic philosophy, creation is not random. It unfolds through three expressions of śakti that shape how ideas, classes, workshops, and whole bodies of work come to life. When teachers understand this rhythm, creativity becomes steadier, clearer, and far more grounded.
Creation begins with śakti
Within tantric philosophy, Śiva represents pure consciousness and potential. Śakti is the energy that animates that potential into form. In practical terms, this matters because teaching yoga is deeply creative work. Every class theme, sequence, workshop, retreat, and training begins as potential, then needs energy to become real.
This is where the three śaktis come in. They are icchā śakti, jñāna śakti, and kriyā śakti. Together, they describe how something moves from inspiration to embodiment.
Icchā śakti: the spark of desire
Icchā śakti is desire, impulse, longing, and the first spark of an idea. It is the moment something stirs.
In teaching, this may be the sense that you want to explore a certain theme, create a new event, or bring a new offering into your community. It is not yet the full plan. It is the inner pull.
This stage is often rushed. Teachers can either dismiss the idea too quickly or jump into action before it has had time to deepen. Yet desire needs space. Ideas need time to percolate. If they are pushed too soon, what gets created can feel thin or underdeveloped.
A useful question here is simple: what do I desire? Not what should I teach. Not what might perform well. What do I genuinely want to explore, experience, or share? Very often, that desire becomes the most alive and compelling seed for teaching.
Jñāna śakti: the wisdom that shapes the idea
Jñāna śakti is wisdom, knowledge, and understanding. Once the spark is there, it needs form, reflection, and discernment.
In teaching, this means asking what you need to know in order to bring the idea to life well. Do you already have the knowledge to hold it? Does the idea need more research, more study, more planning, or a collaborator with different expertise? Is the concept strong enough yet, or is it still vague?
This stage is where ideas gain depth. It is also where teachers can get stuck. Some rush past wisdom and go straight into action with half formed ideas. Others stay in learning mode indefinitely, always studying, planning, and refining, but never actually creating.
Jñāna śakti is not there to trap you. It is there to strengthen what you are making.
Kriyā śakti: the action that makes it real
Kriyā śakti is action. It is the movement that takes an idea from the inner world into tangible reality.
This is where the class gets planned, the proposal gets written, the page goes live, the email gets sent, the venue gets booked, and the thing actually happens. Without kriyā śakti, even a beautiful idea with real depth stays imaginary.
This is often the stage where procrastination appears. The most helpful response is not to think about every future step at once. It is to ask: what is the next right step? Then take it.
Not the final step. Not the whole map. Just the next one.
That is what makes action possible.
How these three śaktis show up in real teaching
These three forces are not abstract. They appear in very practical ways.
A class sequence may begin with icchā śakti, a feeling, an image, a theme, or a desire to explore a part of practice. Jñāna śakti then asks what needs to be understood, refined, or supported in order to teach it well. Kriyā śakti is the actual sequencing, teaching, and delivery in the room.
The same is true for a workshop, a retreat, a training, or even a moment of decision while teaching. There may be a subtle impulse, then an inner knowing, then the action that follows.
Understanding this rhythm helps teachers stop forcing creativity. It also helps them notice where they tend to get stuck. Some stay in desire and never shape the idea. Some stay in learning and never move. Some rush into action before the work is ready.
Teaching becomes stronger when you honour the rhythm
There is a real intelligence in this sequence. Desire gives life. Wisdom gives clarity. Action gives form.
When teachers honour all three, their work becomes more conscious and more coherent. Ideas are no longer rushed, overthought, or abandoned. They are felt, understood, and then created.
That rhythm can shape not only your bigger offerings, but your weekly teaching too. A class can begin in desire, deepen through understanding, and land through action. So can your business.
Creation is not about waiting for the perfect idea or forcing constant output. It is about learning how to work with the energies already present within you.
For more support and FREE resources, join our Facebook community, The Yoga Teacher Collaborative. Connect with other yoga teachers, share your experiences, and gain valuable insights on how to make your classes more inclusive and accessible.
We often talk about marketing, visibility, and growth. Yet one of the most important assets in any yoga business is far quieter than any of these. It is trust.
Trust is what makes a student return. It is what makes someone book the retreat before they have read every detail. It is what makes a new student walk into class feeling nervous, and come back again the following week. It is also what allows a yoga business to grow through loyalty rather than constant chasing.
For yoga teachers, trust is not an extra. It is the foundation.
Why trust matters so much
Yoga asks a lot of people. It asks them to move when they may feel apprehensive, to rest when they are tired but wired, and to soften when life has made them brace. Students often arrive carrying pain, injury, stress, grief, self consciousness, or simple uncertainty. The fact that they come at all is already an act of trust.
That trust deepens even further when students join longer courses, retreats, or trainings. In those spaces, they are not only trusting the teaching itself. They are trusting the quality of care, the steadiness of the experience, and the integrity of the teacher holding it all together.
This is why trust is such a powerful business asset. It affects retention, referrals, bookings, community, and reputation. More than that, it affects the quality of the relationship at the heart of the work.
Trust is built when students feel seen, heard, and held
One of the clearest ways to build trust is to make students feel seen, heard, and held.
To feel seen is to feel noticed as a human being, not treated as a body in a room. To feel heard is to know that questions, concerns, injuries, and hesitations are genuinely listened to. To feel held is to sense that the class, retreat, or course is being guided with steadiness and care.
This does not require perfection. It requires presence.
It might look like arriving early enough to welcome people properly. It might mean checking in with a new student who seems nervous. It might mean offering options without fuss. It might mean noticing when someone needs reassurance rather than correction. These moments may seem small, but they are often the moments when trust is formed.
Consistency builds trust over time
Trust can be built quickly in a moment of real care, but it is strengthened through consistency.
Students need to know that what has been promised will be delivered. The class starts when it says it starts. The retreat is what it was described to be. The teacher shows up. The teaching is reliable. The atmosphere is steady.
One of the quickest ways to erode trust is inconsistency. Cancelling classes unnecessarily, changing the format without warning, or quietly shifting what was originally offered all make students feel less secure.
This matters especially when building newer classes. Cancelling because numbers are low may feel practical in the short term, but it weakens confidence in the class itself. Students stop trusting that the class will run, and once that doubt is there, loyalty is harder to build.
Consistency is one of the clearest ways to show students that your work is dependable.
Reliability matters more than attention
It is easy to assume that business growth comes from attention alone. But attention and trust are not the same thing.
Attention may help people find you. Trust is what makes them stay.
A teacher can be highly visible online and still not feel reliable. Equally, a quieter teacher with strong consistency and genuine care can build a deeply loyal student base. In the long term, reliability is more valuable than noise.
This is especially important when offering something new. Students are often willing to follow a teacher into new spaces when trust is already there. They are not only buying the offer. They are buying the relationship and the confidence that it will be held well.
How trust gets eroded
Trust is not only built through what you do well. It is also weakened by the small things done carelessly.
It can be eroded through poor communication, hidden terms and conditions, unclear pricing, or last minute changes that leave students feeling wrong footed. It can be weakened when classes do not match what was advertised, or when boundaries are unclear around what a student is being invited into.
Transparency matters. If something is non refundable, say so clearly. If a class is outdoors, themed in a particular way, or includes partner work, make that obvious beforehand. Students are far more likely to feel safe when they know what they are choosing.
Trust can also be eroded when presentation becomes disconnected from reality. In a time where AI and over edited imagery are increasingly common, honesty matters even more. Students want to know who they are actually learning from. The more artificial the representation, the easier it is for doubt to creep in.
Trust is a responsibility and a privilege
The trust students place in a teacher is not something to take lightly. It is a responsibility, but it is also a privilege.
When students return again and again, when they book the next retreat without hesitation, when they bring their whole vulnerable humanity into the room, they are offering something precious. They are saying: I believe this space will be held well.
That kind of trust is not built through clever branding alone. It is built through care, consistency, transparency, and the repeated experience of being met well.
A strong yoga business is not only built on visibility. It is built on the quiet, steady work of becoming someone students know they can rely on.
For more support and FREE resources, join our Facebook community, The Yoga Teacher Collaborative. Connect with other yoga teachers, share your experiences, and gain valuable insights on how to make your classes more inclusive and accessible.
Corporate yoga is one of the areas many yoga teachers feel drawn towards, yet it often feels difficult to access. Questions usually arise around where to find companies, how to approach them professionally, what to include in a proposal, and how to price corporate sessions without underselling the work.
Corporate yoga can become a valuable part of a yoga business when it is approached strategically. Organisations increasingly invest in workplace wellbeing, and yoga, breathwork, mindfulness, and stress reduction practices are all highly relevant within that environment. Understanding how companies operate, how decisions are made, and how to position what you offer makes a significant difference to whether corporate yoga becomes worthwhile. This workshop with guest expert Shruti Srivastava is a clear, practical guide for corporate yoga.
Start with “Why” before you start with outreach
Before approaching organisations, it is useful to clarify why you want to work in the corporate space and what kind of organisations you want to work with. Corporate yoga is most effective when there is a clear connection between the teacher’s experience and the environment they are serving.
Companies also have their own “why.” Most organisations now have a wider corporate mission and a people strategy that includes wellbeing initiatives. Understanding this context allows you to position yoga as a solution to real workplace challenges such as stress, burnout, physical strain from desk work, or team wellbeing.
Researching organisations beforehand helps shape this approach. Information can often be found through company websites, employee feedback platforms, industry reports, and public information about company priorities or wellbeing initiatives.
Build a simple outreach system
Securing corporate yoga rarely happens through one conversation. It usually comes through consistent outreach and follow up.
Creating a simple spreadsheet helps organise the process. This can include companies you want to approach, contact names in HR or office management roles, contact details, and notes on when you have reached out and followed up. Prioritising a smaller number of key organisations while maintaining a wider list helps keep the process manageable.
Warm introductions are often the easiest starting point. Current students may work within organisations that would be open to introducing workplace yoga. Friends, family members, and professional contacts can also help connect you with relevant decision makers.
Cold outreach is still possible, but it benefits from being organised and persistent rather than relying on a single message.
Make first contact about connection, not price
Initial contact should focus on opening a conversation rather than immediately discussing pricing.
A short email introducing yourself, referencing a mutual connection if possible, and suggesting a brief conversation is often sufficient. The goal of the conversation is to understand the organisation’s needs, priorities, and current wellbeing initiatives.
Corporate decisions are rarely made instantly. Follow ups are a normal part of the process, and many opportunities develop through continued contact over time rather than a single exchange.
Pricing without underselling yourself
Corporate pricing often causes hesitation for yoga teachers. One of the most common mistakes is treating corporate work as if it were simply a regular class.
Corporate sessions involve more than the teaching hour. Time is spent on meetings, preparation, proposals, administration, and ongoing communication. Pricing should reflect the wider professional service being delivered.
Charging per employee attendance is generally less sustainable. Most organisations have a wellbeing budget, and a session or programme fee paid by the company is usually a clearer model. The number of employees attending does not necessarily change the amount of work required from the teacher.
When organisations ask about pricing early in the conversation, it can be helpful to keep the answer flexible. Corporate wellbeing initiatives can range from a single session to longer programmes including yoga, breathwork, mindfulness or workshops. Understanding the organisation’s goals first allows you to design a more relevant offer.
Proposals that land
Once a conversation has taken place, a proposal allows you to outline how you could support the organisation.
Effective proposals reflect the needs discussed in the conversation. A simple structure can include a short summary of the organisation’s goals, an outline of the sessions or programme being suggested, and practical details such as delivery format and pricing.
Including two options can be helpful, for example a simple session structure and a more comprehensive programme. This allows the organisation to compare possibilities while keeping the proposal clear.
Proposals should also include practical details such as insurance, company information for invoicing, and any other administrative information the organisation may require.
LinkedIn as the corporate shop window
LinkedIn is often the most relevant platform for connecting with organisations. Unlike other social media channels, it is designed specifically for professional networking.
A LinkedIn profile acts as a professional introduction and allows connections to be made with people working in HR, management, or wellbeing roles within organisations. It also allows you to share content related to workplace wellbeing, resilience, stress management, and other topics relevant to corporate environments.
Posting insights, articles, or short videos about wellbeing in the workplace helps position you within that space. Many professionals use LinkedIn as their primary online platform, which means it can reach audiences that are not active on other social media channels.
Professionalism is part of the pitch
Working with organisations requires a slightly different level of professional communication. Clear emails, careful proofreading, punctuality, and organised administration all contribute to building trust.
Corporate environments operate with formal systems and processes, and demonstrating reliability and professionalism helps organisations feel confident about bringing external wellbeing practitioners into their workplace.
Find out more about Shruti’s work on Instagram at @studio.shruti
For more support and FREE resources, join our Facebook community, The Yoga Teacher Collaborative. Connect with other yoga teachers, share your experiences, and gain valuable insights on how to make your classes more inclusive and accessible.
Corporate yoga can become a meaningful and sustainable part of a yoga teaching career when approached with structure and professionalism. Understanding organisational priorities, building consistent connections, and presenting your work clearly allows yoga to be positioned as a valuable part of workplace wellbeing rather than simply an additional class.
If you are feeling stagnant in your teaching or your yoga business, you are not alone. It is one of the most common messages I hear from yoga teachers. Motivation dips. Inspiration dries up. Everything can start to feel oddly flat, even when you still care.
This is not a personal failing. It is information.
In this workshop, I unpack the word “stagnant” and use it as a practical lens. Stagnant water is water that is confined and not moving. That gives us two simple diagnostics: do you need more space, or do you need more flow.
Then we look at another meaning of stagnant: no activity, no forward momentum. That opens the door to something even more important: are you quietly heading towards burnout, or are you simply in a natural season of drawing inward.
What “Stagnant” Really Means
When we describe water as stagnant, it is usually because:
It is in a confined space.
It has no movement, no current, no flow.
When you feel stagnant, the same questions apply. Are you feeling confined, with no space to breathe, think, or create. Or are you lacking movement, variety, and forward motion in your day to day life.
Most teachers need a bit of both.
Tip 1: Create Space, Because Space Creates Creativity
A spacious mind is a creative mind. Yoga teaching is creative work. Sequencing, theming, language, holding a room, writing captions, writing emails, building offerings. If you have no space in your life, your creativity will not show up reliably. That can feel like stagnation.
Ask yourself honestly: how spacious does your life feel right now?
For most people, creating space is not about finding time. It is about priorities and boundaries. Nobody is coming to rescue your diary. Nothing is magically falling off your to do list. Space only appears when you put yourself higher up the list and accept that something else might be left undone.
And yes, that can mean disappointing people in the short term, so you do not burn out and disappoint everyone in the long term.
If you want your mojo back, start here: what does “more space for me” look like in your real life.
Twenty minutes of quiet. A short walk. Reading a few pages. A boundary around your mornings. One evening protected.
Small acts. Big consequence.
Tip 2: Move Every Day, Without Making It a “Yoga Practice” Problem
If stagnant water needs flow, your body does too.
Movement does not have to mean āsana practice, especially if your relationship with practice has become loaded with pressure. Many yoga teachers fell in love with yoga through going to classes, not through perfect personal practice.
So widen the definition. Could movement right now be a walk. Pilates. Dance. Strength training. A swim. Anything that gives your system current.
If yoga feels like “more yoga” at the moment, let movement be something else. Your nervous system still gets what it needs.
Daily movement is one of the simplest ways to shift stagnant energy, because it creates literal momentum.
Tip 3: Question the Pressure to Always Grow
Another meaning of stagnant is “no activity” or “no forward momentum.”
Sometimes that is true and needs addressing. Sometimes it is a story you have inherited from a culture obsessed with constant growth.
Not every season is for expansion. Some seasons are for integration. Repetition. Refinement. Repair.
Teachers often put enormous pressure on themselves to be endlessly original. New sequence every week. New theme every week. New insight every week.
That is not the only way.
There is power in repetition. Some of the most established yoga methods are built on repetition and familiarity. When students know what is coming, they soften. They stop striving. They go deeper.
If your mojo is wobbling, consider this: you might not need more creativity. You might need less pressure.
Tip 4: Spot Beige Out Before Burnout
Feeling stagnant can be an early warning sign.
Burnout is not just mental. It is physiological. It is the cost of too much stress chemistry for too long. And before burnout, many people pass through a phase I call beige out.
Beige out looks like this: you are there, but you are not really there. You can still perform, still teach, still smile, but the moment you stop “being on,” you drop.
A clue I watch for in myself is when I finish teaching and as soon as I end the call, my face changes instantly. The smile goes. The energy drops. That is my warning light.
If you recognise beige out, the answer is not a new marketing plan or a fresh theme. The answer is rest.
Ask yourself:
When did you last take a proper break. When did you last have a week without teaching. When did you last stop outputting.
If you need a holiday, take it. If you need cover, ask for it. If you need to cancel a class, cancel it.
Tip 5: Balance Teaching and Learning
Stagnation often comes from an imbalance between teaching and learning.
Teaching is output. Learning is input.
If you are teaching constantly without new input, your inner well runs dry. If you are learning constantly without teaching, nothing has time to integrate.
I use the metaphor of a mug. If you keep pouring tea in without drinking, it overflows. If you keep drinking without refilling, it runs dry.
So ask:
Are you teaching a lot and learning very little. Or learning endlessly and not giving anything space to land.
Yoga teachers are prone to becoming course junkies. Course after course, without time to practise, digest, and teach what they have learned.
A cleaner rhythm is:
Learn. Absorb. Practise. Teach. Then learn again.
That is sustainable. That is how you build mastery.
Tip 6: Learn Outside Yoga to Refresh Your Teaching
If your teaching feels stale, your inspiration might be too narrow.
You do not need to stay in a yoga only lane. Yoga is life. Everything you learn can feed your teaching.
Read about anatomy and theme a class around shoulders. Learn constellations and build a class series around the night sky. Study trees and explore mythology through seasonal teaching. Follow your curiosity, then translate it into a sequence and a theme.
Your classes get fresher, and you feel more alive, because you are learning again.
Also, look at your community. Who are you spending time with. Are your conversations nourishing your mind. Are you learning through friendship.
Ask someone you love: what was the most interesting thing you learned this week.
That question alone can bring your mojo back.
Tip 7: Track Input and Output Like Energy Budgeting
This is prāṇa.
You have a finite amount. If you are outputting all day, you will feel stagnant, flat, or numb. Not because you are ungrateful, but because your system is depleted.
Start noticing your days.
How much is output. How much is input.
Input can be rest, nature, bodywork, quiet time, reading, learning, being with someone who feeds your mind, or even doing nothing without guilt.
When you feel stagnant, it is often because the scales are tipped: too much output, not enough input.
Tip 8: Consider Seasonality Before You Label It Stagnation
Sometimes what you call stagnation is actually a natural inward season.
In autumn and winter, especially in the UK as the clocks shift and darkness increases, it is normal to feel more introspective. This can be heightened around intense astrological seasons and periods that invite reflection.
Drawing inward is not failure. It is integration. It is composting. It is what makes the next phase fertile.
So ask gently: am I stagnant, or am I incubating.
If you are simply in an inward phase, the task is not to force momentum. The task is to honour the season while staying connected to small daily supports: space, movement, and balanced input.
Bringing It Together
If you are feeling stagnant, start with these three questions:
Do I need more space. Do I need more movement. Do I need more input, or less output.
Then look deeper:
Am I pressuring myself to be endlessly creative. Am I heading towards beige out. Is my teaching and learning out of balance. Am I misreading a natural inward season.
Your mojo is not gone. It is usually just buried under pressure, depletion, or a life that has become too tightly packed.
Make space. Create current. Protect your energy. Then let inspiration return on its own terms.
For more support and FREE resources, join our Facebook community, The Yoga Teacher Collaborative. Connect with other yoga teachers, share your experiences, and gain valuable insights on how to make your classes more inclusive and accessible.
In this workshop with guest teacher Dina Cohen, we explore what Yoga Nidrā truly is, how it differs from Śavāsana, the stages of the practice, and how yoga teachers can guide it safely and skilfully.
Interest in rest based practices has never been stronger. Students are exhausted. Nervous systems are overloaded. The appetite for restorative yoga, meditation, and Yoga Nidrā continues to grow. Yet many teachers still feel unsure about what Yoga Nidrā actually involves and how to teach it responsibly.
This guide clarifies the foundations.
What Is Yoga Nidrā?
Yoga Nidrā is often translated as yogic sleep, but this can be misleading.
It is not simply falling asleep on the mat. Nor is it merely an extended Śavāsana. Yoga Nidra is both a practice and a process, and also a state of consciousness.
During Yoga Nidrā, practitioners move along a continuum between waking and sleeping. Rather than dropping fully into unconscious sleep, awareness “surfs” between different brainwave states. These include:
Beta, the alert and active state
Alpha, relaxed awareness
Theta, dreamlike or meditative states
Delta, deep sleep
In daily life, we pass through these states quickly. In Yoga Nidra, we linger in the in between. This is where the power lies.
Students may appear asleep, yet remain aware. They may forget parts of the guidance, yet still receive and process it. Yoga Nidrā works within these subtle states of awareness.
For new students, it can be helpful to describe it simply as a guided relaxation practice that moves through different states of consciousness.
Yoga Nidrā vs Śavāsana
Yoga teachers often ask whether Yoga Nidrā is simply a long Śavāsana.
There are overlaps. Both involve lying down. Both involve relaxation. Both may access altered states.
The distinction lies in intention and structure. Śavāsana may be silent or lightly guided. Yoga Nidrā follows a deliberate progression. There is a clear arc: preparation, journey, and return.
However, it is important not to reduce Yoga Nidrā to rigid rules. It is not defined solely by duration or by ticking off stages. It is defined by the process of guiding awareness through specific layers of experience.
The Traditional Stages of Yoga Nidrā
When Yoga Nidrā was introduced to the West in the 1970s by Swami Satyananda Saraswati, it was presented in a structured format. Over time, variations have emerged, but the foundational elements remain consistent.
While not every session must include every stage, a classical structure may include:
1. Preparation and Settling
Creating physical comfort and psychological safety. The nervous system must feel held before deeper states can be accessed.
2. Saṅkalpa, Setting an Intention
A resolve planted at the beginning and revisited at the end. This is not wishful thinking. Traditionally, it arises from a deeper inner alignment.
3. Rotation of Consciousness
A rhythmic awareness moving through different parts of the body. Similar to a body scan, yet typically quicker and more patterned. This process is believed to stimulate corresponding areas of the brain.
4. Awareness of Breath
Observing or counting the breath. Sometimes subtle internal pranayama visualisations are included.
5. Opposites
Exploring contrasting sensations or experiences such as heavy and light, heat and cold. Holding opposites in awareness develops psychological flexibility and expands perception.
6. Visualisation
Imagery or symbolic journeys. These may be simple landscapes or more layered narratives.
7. Returning to Saṅkalpa
Re planting the intention in a deeply receptive state.
8. Gradual Reorientation
Bringing awareness gently back to the physical body and surroundings.
The beginning and ending are especially important. Students must be guided into the practice with clarity and brought out with care. Abrupt transitions can leave practitioners disoriented.
The Neuroscience and Therapeutic Potential of Yoga Nidrā
Emerging research continues to explore how Yoga Nidrā influences brainwave patterns, trauma processing, sleep quality, and emotional regulation.
While more study is needed, clinical research already supports its use for:
Stress reduction
Sleep disturbances
Anxiety management
Trauma informed therapeutic settings
However, it is essential to remain within scope of practice. Deep therapeutic applications require appropriate training. Yoga teachers should avoid improvising trauma related explorations without specialist education.
The subtle states accessed in Yoga Nidrā can be powerful. Safety, clarity, and containment are essential.
Do You Need a Script to Guide Yoga Nidrā?
Many teachers begin with scripts. This can be helpful for learning the structure.
However, reading verbatim often sounds mechanical. Over time, teachers benefit from understanding the framework deeply enough to guide organically.
A useful middle ground includes:
Clear outline of stages
Key phrases or imagery prompts
Awareness of timing and pacing
The voice should feel embodied, not recited. Students respond to authenticity.
Why Training in Yoga Nidrā Matters
Yoga Nidrā may sound simple on the surface, yet its depth warrants proper training.
Training provides:
Personal experience of different states of awareness
Understanding of psychological safety
Clarity on sequencing and pacing
Knowledge of how to respond if emotional material arises
Confidence in holding the container
Without training, teachers may unintentionally rush the process or omit important elements of integration.
Yoga Nidrā is not merely another relaxation technique. It is a subtle and layered practice that requires sensitivity.
How to Introduce Yoga Nidrā to Your Students
If you are beginning to offer Yoga Nidrā in your classes:
Describe it in accessible language
Clarify that falling asleep is not wrong
Encourage comfort and warmth
Allow generous time for re orientation
Avoid heavy themes unless appropriately trained
You may choose to start with shorter sessions embedded at the end of class before offering dedicated 30 to 40 minute practices.
A Final Reflection on Rest
Modern culture confuses rest with distraction. Scrolling and streaming are not the same as conscious restoration.
Yoga Nidrā offers something deeper. It invites students into states they usually pass through unconsciously. It supports both physiological repair and mental integration.
For teachers, guiding Yoga Nidrā is an invitation to understand consciousness more intimately. To respect the threshold between waking and sleeping. To cultivate patience with subtlety.
The more you practise it yourself, the more clearly you will understand how to guide it.
For more support and FREE resources, join our Facebook community, The Yoga Teacher Collaborative. Connect with other yoga teachers, share your experiences, and gain valuable insights on how to make your classes more inclusive and accessible.
Social media does not need to feel chaotic. Many yoga teachers swing between posting constantly and disappearing completely. They overthink captions, second-guess content, and worry they are either saying too much or not enough.
The truth is simple: clarity replaces overwhelm.
When you understand how, what, and when to post on social media, your content becomes consistent, strategic, and far less draining.
How to Post on Social Media as a Yoga Teacher
The “how” is not about algorithms first. It is about intention. Before posting anything, be clear on why your account exists. Are you building community for local classes? Filling retreats? Supporting online students? Mentoring yoga teachers?
Your social media strategy must serve your business model.
Once that is clear, your content should do one of three things:
Build trust
Demonstrate expertise
Invite action
This creates a simple framework. Every post either nurtures connection, shows your skill and knowledge, or points people towards a next step.
Consistency matters more than volume. Two thoughtful posts a week that align with your offerings will outperform five rushed posts that lack direction.
What to Post on Social Media as a Yoga Teacher
Many yoga teachers default to posting class times and inspirational quotes. While this may feel safe, it rarely converts into bookings.
Instead, focus on content that answers real questions your students are already asking.
This could include:
Explaining your teaching approach
Sharing insights into sequencing or philosophy
Addressing common student challenges
Talking about the experience of attending your retreat or training
Clarifying who your classes are for
Educational content positions you as a knowledgeable yoga teacher. Relational content builds warmth and connection. Promotional content invites people to join.
All three are necessary.
If you only teach and never invite, people forget to book. If you only promote and never teach, people lose interest.
Balanced content builds momentum.
When to Post on Social Media
Timing is less mystical than it seems.
The most important “when” is consistency. Choose posting days you can realistically maintain. For many yoga teachers, two to three posts per week is sustainable.
As for time of day, experiment. Look at your analytics and notice when your audience is most active. Early morning and evening often work well for yoga teachers, but your specific audience data matters more than generic advice.
The bigger question is cadence.
If you are launching a retreat or teacher training, your posting frequency will increase. If you are in a quieter season, you may focus more on educational content and relationship building.
Social media should reflect the rhythm of your business.
Removing Overwhelm from Social Media
Overwhelm often comes from trying to reinvent the wheel every week.
Instead of asking, “What should I post today?” create repeatable content themes. For example:
One educational post
One behind-the-scenes insight
One invitation or offer
This creates structure without rigidity.
Planning content in advance, even two weeks at a time, reduces daily decision fatigue and allows you to focus on teaching rather than scrambling for ideas.
Social Media as an Extension of Your Teaching
Your social media presence is not separate from your yoga teaching. It is an extension of it.
The same clarity you bring to class planning should guide your content planning. The same intention you bring to holding space should shape how you communicate online.
When approached thoughtfully, social media becomes a tool for connection rather than a source of stress.
Clarity. Consistency. Communication.
That is how, what, and when to post on social media as a yoga teacher.
For more support and FREE resources, join our Facebook community, The Yoga Teacher Collaborative. Connect with other yoga teachers, share your experiences, and gain valuable insights on how to make your classes more inclusive and accessible.
Food can make or break a yoga retreat. Teachers often focus on the teaching, the space, and the schedule, assuming the food will simply take care of itself. In reality, catering is one of the biggest energetic and logistical factors in how a retreat feels, for both the host and the guests.
When expectations are vague, food becomes a source of stress, resentment, or exhaustion. When expectations are clear, catering becomes a powerful support for the retreat experience.
This workshop with guest expert John from Hampshire Vegan, explores how yoga teachers can work well with caterers, understand different levels of service, and make informed decisions that protect their energy while elevating the retreat.
Why yoga teachers should always use a professional caterer
Cooking for your own retreat may seem like a way to save money, but it often costs far more than expected.
There are legal and safety considerations around food preparation, including hygiene standards and professional kitchens. Beyond that, hosting and catering at the same time places an enormous drain on your energy.
Your role as a retreat leader is to hold space, teach, guide, and connect. When food preparation is added to that, something inevitably suffers. Either the quality of the food drops, the quality of the teaching drops, or you arrive at meals depleted and distracted.
Working with a professional caterer protects the retreat experience and allows you to show up fully in your role.
Catering is not a luxury, it is often the sensible option
Many yoga teachers assume caterers are expensive or indulgent. In practice, caterers often work more efficiently and cost-effectively than individuals shopping and cooking for a group.
Professional caterers buy ingredients wholesale, cook in bulk, and work with systems that save time. When you factor in shopping time, preparation, cooking, serving, clearing, and washing up, the cost difference is often far smaller than expected.
Catering also removes the hidden cost of emotional and physical exhaustion.
Understanding the three main catering food options for yoga retreats
Catering is not one single service. There are multiple tiers, each suited to different budgets, venues, and retreat styles.
1. Food delivery only
This is the most affordable option and works well when facilities are limited.
Meals are delivered fully prepared, often as cold or ambient food, such as bento boxes, salads, wraps, or breakfast items. There is no on-site staff and no service beyond delivery.
This option works well for outdoor retreats, venues without kitchens, or entry-level events where budget needs to be kept low.
It is also important to clarify who is responsible for waste and disposal at the end of the meal.
2. Buffet or table-sharing meals
This mid-range option includes food delivery and on-site setup, often with one person managing the buffet.
Food may be laid out on trestle tables for self-service or placed on tables for sharing, depending on group size. Buffet-style works best for larger groups, while table-sharing suits smaller, more intimate retreats.
This option balances cost with support, but it is essential to clarify how long the caterer stays, who clears plates, and whether kitchen reset is included.
3. Fully plated and fully serviced meals
This is the highest level of service and is most appropriate for residential retreats.
The caterer arrives early, sets tables, serves meals, clears plates, washes up, and leaves the kitchen as they found it. Guests are not asked to help and the teacher does not need to manage anything food-related.
For residential retreats, this level of service protects the nervous system of both teacher and guests and supports a true sense of rest.
Service level matters as much as the food itself
Food is only part of the equation. Service has a significant impact on the teacher’s energy and the guest experience.
Questions to clarify in advance include:
Who sets the table
Who plates and serves
Who clears plates
Who washes up
Who takes rubbish away
How long the caterer stays on site
Unclear responsibilities often lead to awkward moments on the day and resentment afterwards. Clear agreements allow everyone to relax into their role.
How catering decisions affect your energy as a retreat leader
Retreat schedules often run yoga practices straight into mealtimes. Without full catering support, this can leave teachers rushing, reheating food, or stepping away from students when questions and integration are needed.
A caterer who manages food independently allows you to remain present, grounded, and available.
At higher service levels, caterers also act as quiet space holders, welcoming guests into meals and maintaining continuity of care even when you are not in the room.
Planning for snacks, drinks, and food between meals
Many retreat issues arise not from main meals, but from what happens between them.
Guests often need:
Arrival snacks
Fruit bowls for grazing
Herbal teas and milk alternatives
Afternoon snacks
Something small for the journey home
These items should be discussed explicitly. Never assume the caterer is providing them unless it has been agreed.
Sharing your full itinerary with your caterer allows them to flag gaps you may not have considered, such as long arrival windows or late dinners.
Dietary requirements: clarity over overwhelm
Dietary needs must be handled with care, but boundaries are essential.
A clear policy helps. Many retreat leaders specify vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, and medical dietary requirements only. Preferences and dislikes are not the same as medical needs and cannot realistically be accommodated at scale.
Professional caterers who cook from scratch can adapt more easily to genuine allergies and intolerances. However, it is reasonable to say no when requirements cannot be safely met.
When in doubt, it is better to offer a refund and ask someone to bring their own food than risk leaving them hungry or unsafe.
Designing retreat menus that support the retreat intention
Food should match the purpose of the retreat.
Lighter meals suit mornings and intensive practices. Heavier meals work better in the evening. Silent retreats, restorative retreats, and physically demanding retreats all require different approaches.
Sharing the intention and flow of the retreat allows the caterer to design menus that support energy levels rather than disrupt them.
Cultural food norms may also influence timing and portion sizes, particularly when running retreats abroad.
Using food to support connection and group bonding
Food can actively support group cohesion.
Shared platters and table-sharing meals work particularly well on the first night of residential retreats. Passing dishes naturally encourages conversation and eases social awkwardness.
Later meals may shift to plated service once the group has bonded and settled.
These small decisions shape the emotional tone of the retreat.
Deposits, payments, and managing financial risk
Deposits are standard and fair. Caterers often block out entire weekends and turn down other work to support retreats.
Key questions to ask include:
Is a deposit required
Is it refundable
When is final payment due
How late can numbers change
Is pricing per head or fixed
Flexibility is often possible when communicated early, especially outside peak season. Clear agreements protect both parties and prevent misunderstandings later.
The thread running through everything: communication
Nearly every catering issue can be traced back to unclear communication.
Asking questions, sharing budgets honestly, and naming when something is your first retreat is not unprofessional. It allows caterers to support you properly.
Small moments of discomfort in planning prevent large moments of stress on retreat.
For more support and FREE resources, join our Facebook community, The Yoga Teacher Collaborative. Connect with other yoga teachers, share your experiences, and gain valuable insights on how to make your classes more inclusive and accessible.
