After graduating from my yoga teacher training, framing (well, Instagramming) my certificate and updating my social media bios to read “yoga teacher *praying hands emoji” I had a moment of “wait…how do I actually get a teaching job?”. 

Teacher training is the easy part. Yes, it’s hard work and the days are long but mine, an immersive month in Bali, felt like the safest, most supportive bubble of positivity. A long way from actually finding a job in a new industry and embarking on something I’d always been told was a rarity: having a career which is also your passion. 

I’ve been working as a yoga teacher for the past two months (sorry to all the legal recruiters who have filled my LinkedIn inbox with legal roles despite me changing my picture to one of me doing yoga!), starting out as a cover teacher and now teaching for a Dubai gym chain. I am absolutely loving teaching! 

I hope this is helpful for teacher training graduates (yoga as a career path isn’t always covered fully on teacher trainings), and interesting to anyone who has ever taken a yoga class as to what goes on “behind the scenes”… 

Build Your Network 

A word that filled me with horror during my days as a corporate lawyer but one that has been the most important in getting started as a teacher: networking. Build a network of teachers and chat to them about their path to teaching. I was scared at first to speak to my teachers about my own teacher training ambitions but every single one was so supportive and encouraging! 

I took my teacher training as a networking opportunity too and wouldn’t have the teaching job I have now if I hadn’t been vocal about wanting to teach (just because it’s a teacher training doesn’t mean that everyone wants to teach afterwards). I met a fellow Dubai yoga teacher during the last week of my teacher training, who told me that the gym she worked at was looking for teachers. We stayed in touch when I returned to Dubai and (short version) we are now colleagues! 

Put Together a Yoga CV

The first time I got asked by a yoga studio to send them a CV I somewhat bemusedly dug out my lawyer CV before realising that they probably aren’t interested in my last legal deal… I put together a simple one-page CV detailing my yoga experience and credentials which I’ll update as I undertake further trainings and grow my teaching experience.  

I am registered with Yoga Alliance and REPS UAE. I’d advise doing your own research on these organisations and deciding if you want to join as, of course, there are enrolment fees and not all studios/gyms require them. I wanted to both have the credentials on my CV and keep my options open, especially when cover teaching. 

Prepare for Auditions 

Far less scary than it sounds, I promise! No matter how strong the credentials of your yoga school, studios will require a try-out to check out your teaching skills and make sure you’re the right fit. I prepared a fifteen minute sequence, keeping it simple, giving options for different levels of practitioner and stating the contraindications to the poses to show that I could teach safely. Do some research on the studio and try to attend a class before your try-out to tailor your audition accordingly. 

This isn’t the time to teach a fancy sequence but to show that you’ve taken on board the learning in your teacher training and can clearly and competently teach. Make sure your favourite leggings aren’t buried in the laundry basket, put together a short playlist and arrive early. 

Cover Teaching 

Cover teaching is a great way to get started as a new teacher, especially if you also have a full-time job and want to start out with just a couple of classes per week. This is where networking comes in again as the more teachers you know…the better your chances are of being asked to cover. Also, remember to TELL your teachers that you’d be happy to cover for them – self promotion is something I really struggle with but I’ve had to put my apprehension aside and really put myself out there. The fact that I was willing to do this really reaffirms how much I wanted to get started with my teaching! There are bound to be WhatsApp and Facebook groups in your area so get yourself added (using your yoga network of course) and respond fast if a cover slot comes up!

Put Together a Yoga Teacher Kit

Mine includes: notebook and pen (for sequences), small digital clock (not all studios have a clock and from my own experience of being a yoga student I really appreciate teachers finishing bang on time), essential oil room spray, reusable water bottle, portable Bluetooth speaker and an offline Spotify playlist (there are some pre-made ones – just search “yoga”). Oh, and a yoga mat as some studio’s mats might have seen better days… 

Just Get Started! 

Yes, practicing sequences and finding your teaching voice is necessary – rope in friends and family in those first few weeks after graduating to really help cement all that you’ve learned. For me, the real learning has come from being in front of a class of paying attendees. I was super nervous for my first “proper” class but after a few it felt natural and normal to be the teacher. Make the most of fresh knowledge, momentum and excitement from your teacher training rather than stressing about whether you are “ready”. If you’ve done your teacher training, you are a qualified teacher and you are ready. 

Don’t Work For Free

Despite being a new teacher, I have never offered my teaching services for free or accepted requests to teach for no payment. Of course there will be exceptions, I’m not referring here to teaching say at a women’s refuge or holding a community class. Teaching for free (in instances when you should and deserve to be paid) negatively impacts all yoga teachers, and changes the balance of power to suggest that working for free is the norm. It’s the same with blogging where bloggers are constantly asked to work for free for “exposure” and “experience”. 

Back when I was a lawyer, it was fully understood that my firm paid me x amount for me doing my work, and that clients of the firm paid xx amount for an hour of my time, my salary and client rate reflected the fact that I had a legal education and experience in my field. Being a yoga teacher is no different, I have a yogic education (which unlike my legal education I paid for myself!) and ten years experience practicing yoga. Obviously I don’t expect to be paid the same to teach yoga as I did to practice law, but I see no reason that just because I’m now working in a creative/spiritual field, and that I enjoy my work to be a reason not to get paid fairly. 

Enjoy it!

Don’t be nervous! Your class attendees don’t know that it’s your first, second or fifth yoga class ever. The yoga world is wonderfully supportive and everyone in your class is there to enjoy it and not to catch you out and show you up. If you get your left and right muddled, correct yourself and move on. Even my favourite teachers who have years of experience do this.

Take the focus off of you – more and more I am realising that those who come to yoga classes have a million and one things going on in their lives (grief, injury, anxiety, a stressful job, a sick relative), that yoga probably isn’t their number one priority and that a one-hour class is less than 4% of their entire day. If someone leaves my class with a smile, then my work is done and done well.

Namaste! 

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