Congratulations and welcome to the club! Being a yoga teacher is a fulfilling and exciting profession that demands integrity and authenticity. But now that you are qualified, what next? Here are 5 tips to help you get started as a new yoga teacher:

1. Practice compassion – especially towards yourself. Sometimes there will be classes that you nail and sometimes you will feel like it wasn’t your best performance. Try not to be hard on yourself. Be prepared, be authentic, practice your craft, teach what you know, and try your best every class. Your students will see that and appreciate the time and effort you have put in.

2. Continue your education – when I completed my 1000+ hour teacher training it made me realise how little I actually knew and how much more I wanted to explore and learn. My teachers encouraged me to find what I loved and build on my knowledge. Whether it is attending workshops, retreats or more training, commit to being an eternal student so you can evolve as a teacher and share with your students.

3. Continue your own practice – it is really easy to get caught up in lesson plans, finding more classes to teach and life in general. But you will soon find that self-care is one of the most important things of being a yoga teacher. Make sure you take the time to practice what you preach and get to as many classes as you can for inspiration (and your sanity).

4. Put yourself out there – finding classes to teach can sometimes be challenging. But don’t wait for people to come to you, take the initiative to get to know the people who run studios and gyms around your area. Attend their classes, get to know what they are all about and then approach them for work. Studios are always looking for teachers who can cover classes. For extra tips on how to promote yourself, enrol for my 5-day ‘Mindful Marketing’ online course.

5. Keep track of all business related income and expenses – I know this may be snooze-worthy, but being a yoga teacher also involves running your own business. Make sure you document and store all invoices and receipts you send and receive on a monthly or quarterly basis. This will make tax time easier and reduce expensive accounting costs. Check out my 5-day ‘Business Basics’ online-course to for tips on how to efficiently and effectively run your own yoga business so you can spend more time doing what you love.

From one yogi to another, I wish you all the best in your yoga teaching endeavours. And remember, if there is no joy in your practice you’re doing it wrong.

Namaste xx