With our new Yoga Teacher Training Course beginning in September, we are excited to be welcoming a new crew of students to embrace their yogi journeys together.
Training to be a yoga teacher isn’t like taking a place on a usual training course. Although there is information to learn and writing assignments to be done, it goes way deeper than that. Learning to be a yoga teacher is a life choice. Even if you are not planning on putting your teaching into business practice, you will be embarking on a path that will no doubt change your life.
Whether you have already signed up for a teacher training course, or are still thinking about it, here are some things you might like to consider before you start…
Set your intention
Just as your yoga teacher might ask you to set an intention at the beginning of a yoga class, so should you set an intention for your teacher training course.
Remember why you practice yoga and think about why you want to deepen your knowledge? Are you hoping for a career change to begin a business that is very flexible and rewarding? Do you want to help people and guide them in their own practice? Or are you wanting to find out more about yoga in order to improve your own personal practice and benefit your own lifestyle?
This intention is useful to come back to throughout your training, even when things might get a little tough or overwhelming at times.
No matter the reason why you are deciding to take the teacher training, above all, you are doing this for yourself. Whether you want to teach afterward or not, you’ll really get the most out of your teacher training course by absorbing everything there is to absorb. “It’s only after fully embodying something that we can share it from an authentic and pure place.”
Lose the ego & embrace the unknown
Just like everything in life, when we embark on a challenge, there is sure to be fear and doubt creeping in at some point. However, try to go into your training with an open mind and embrace all the things that you don’t know or even understand. There are no expectations on you as you begin the training, and everyone will be at different levels to being with. Don’t let this put you off. Yoga is for everyone and is different for everyone.
There are sure to be words, postures, subjects or whole days that you don’t understand. No problem! Prepare to be confused and lost for words. Be prepared to make mistakes and fall over! Be prepared to ask hundreds of questions along the way. Knowing that you don’t know everything is a great start and it does wonders for the ego!
Be prepared for change
Change is natural, and change is good. Even though you have set your original intention for taking the teacher training, accept that your intentions might shift. You may begin your course with the intention of quitting your job and teaching yoga full-time , but halfway through find that the idea of teaching full-time not as appealing as it first seemed. And vice versa: you may think that’s there is no way you ever want to teach a roomful of people, but then discover that you are a natural born presenter with a passion for standing at the front of a room!
Also, there will be times when you feel like you can’t possibly fit any more information inside your head. At times like these, just breathe and let it all settle. Take a break and spend time doing something completely different to yoga.
Go running, see friends, take a long weekend away or read some books that are totally unrelated to yoga. This is healthy.
Be kind to yourself
Yoga teacher training courses are a mixture of physical practice and sitting down learning.
Be mindful and kind to your body throughout as to avoid injury. You definitely DO NOT ‘need’ to be able to do every posture in order to be a fantastic teacher. Don’t put so much pressure on yourself to do a pose that you end up being injured and unable to complete the rest of the course. Don’t look around at the other teachers in a perfect headstand wondering why you can’t look the same. Remember, it’s all about losing that ego from the start. This is your own personal journey – different to anyone else.
Feel your body and listen to it. Remember you’re just at the very beginning, and that the best teachers are the ones who have learnt their very own unique way in order to be able to pass on this unique experience to their students.
If you are interested in joining our new September Yoga Teacher Training course in Harrogate, then visit our Teacher Training Page and drop us a message so we can arrange a time to chat things over with you when it suits you best.