The life of a yoga and Pilates teacher in Australia is amazing, rewarding and full of challenges. The yoga teachers, when ready to teach yoga in class, have lots of expectations. New yoga and Pilates teachers in Australia have so much enthusiasm and energy to give to the world, but as the saying goes, no occupation is a bed of roses; the reality is far different.

However, if one learns and understands the technique to cope with the yoga profession, the expectations are fulfilled in time, and your dream to be successful in this career is then what you look forward to.

The life of a yoga and Pilates teacher – Expectations

1. You will get a handsome salary or revenue teaching Yoga
2. Taking smooth, ongoing classes is your passion
3. You think lots of students will come to learn yoga
4. You will have ample time to spend freely
5. There are lots of career options, and getting a yoga teacher job is easy

The life of a yoga and Pilates teacher – Reality

1. There is tough competition in the yoga business
2. You find it difficult to get students
3. Yoga is not only a spiritual practice, but it is also a business
4. There are different teaching methodologies, and you don’t know all.
5. You want space to teach, and paying rent and other expenses are high

As a yoga teacher, you expect that all will run smoothly as you are in a legit bliss. Your life seems to be all bliss, calm and peaceful.

1. Taking Classes a Challenge

When you go out practically doing the job of teaching yoga, you face the reality that, like any other normal human being, you are imperfect and might make mistakes. Remember how scary it seems to teach your first class. The sheer amount of studying and body conditioning involved, it is like being back in school all over again, just this time with an added intensive physical aspect. 

The biggest anxiety is having to stand in front of a room full of students waiting, watching and judging you, as well as expecting you to have all the answers.

<< Challenges in the business side of yoga >>

Furthermore, to have to think ahead of the cues, the pose alignments and muscle engagements, and to remember to create that safe environment for the students to practice in, all while owning the room.

2. Getting Fewer Students

The more worrisome is when you struggle to find a student to come to your class, and you convince him or her to join your yoga studio. When fewer students are coming to your class, you seem that your life is falling apart.

In the real course of time, things make you crazy, and you find yourself burdened with so much work, like finding students, maintaining the accounts, booking classes and hiring staff, plus other miscellaneous work.

3. Facing other issues

Then you dread the day a student asks for a request or has an injury that will mess up the sequence you’ve planned, also you pray no pregnant ladies come to your core & twist focused class.

Your brain is getting more complex when you find this is really a business and you need to have a license, insurance, pay taxes, and learn first aid/CPR. You never would have thought to learn some digital and technical stuff, and now you have to as most of the teachers go for online classes, are so active on social media, and you face the competitive stuff.

<< Read the reality check of becoming a yoga teacher >>

Expectation vs Reality – How to cope?

Expectation vs Reality equilibrium can be maintained by being more practical and working from the ground level.

• Prepare a road map and find what certifications you have and what you need. To become a yoga instructor, you need to learn yoga from a reliable and trusted yoga school. Find out which additional certifications or licenses you need to run your yoga business.
• Start taking yoga classes from home and find a local apartment for rent if you can’t afford a big studio. You can initially borrow or get the yoga accessories for your studios that are in your budget.
• Opt for private or group classes to increase your income. Personal or private classes for individuals pay much better, and remember that for this, you need to have a good reputation for yourself among your clients.
• Have your presence on social media sites and create a fan page. The more admiration you receive for what you are teaching and the way you are teaching can add more value to your yoga teacher personality.
• You need to work as a professional and opt for a booking system to get your students booked for your classes. Then create a smart teaching schedule, and when deciding on your timetable, select the days that you would most like to have off, and then commit to the days and classes that are the most time-efficient. If you join Yoga studios that want yoga teachers, note that they want you to be committed to their business and work in the long term.
• Don’t be dull, but be active to teach at least 20 classes a week. Always stay inspired and learn new ways of teaching different postures through the yoga sequence, to avoid repetition.
• While home practice usually takes its place, remember to stay connected to your original teachers or the school where you undertook your teacher training. This will help you feel supported and connected to the yoga community.

It’s imperative to conduct yourself professionally and get the right financial and legal advice right from the start, because it will prove invaluable when you need it the most.

Ensure you have set up your finance, marketing, social media strategy and administration processes. Remember to contribute to your superannuation fund, sign up for income protection insurance, allocate your wage each week, and know the terms and conditions associated with employment as an independent yoga teacher.

Teaching can be mentally, physically and emotionally draining, but once you find your sweet spot of how many classes work for you, it’s a pretty amazing ‘job’! Remember, you get to be uniquely you – teaching and sharing however you love to! Also, you can pretty much always find a cover, so you totally don’t need to work on day one of your cycle

Most yoga centres operate as a weird hybrid of business endeavour and spiritual community, and it’s a truly confusing mix. You have days that light up your soul, when a student comes up to you and tells you how much you’ve influenced their life, comes up at the end of class crying tears of joy and release, or a student gives you the biggest cuddle ever after a life-changing moment in class.

You get to use your life and all the stuff that happens in it as inspiration for your classes, showing your humanness and imperfections, sharing how you’ve learned from it all.

Finally, Yoga is indeed a wonderful, beautiful, rewarding journey. Keeping yourself updated with the times, learning new skills to practice yoga, serving the community, and working diligently are what you should keep in mind as a yoga teacher.