6 Affordable Ways to Grow as a Yoga Teacher

When do you know you’ve hit a plateau in your career? Is it after reaching some x number of teaching hours? Is it a moment when you’ve achieved many advanced poses in your practice? Or when you’ve opened a studio or a franchise of studios that you feel the need to shake things up? Being a yoga teacher broadens our horizons in all directions because the practice in and of itself stretches through a number of planes. Mental, spiritual and physical–our discipline allows us much room to grow. So how or why do we get stuck?

Right now, millions of yoga influencers create content on how to create a six-figure income via their online course. Experienced professionals hold thousands of dollars/euros in retreats to acquire five hundred hours in order to get your ERYT badge. Yoga-adjacent courses that will surely pad your CV so you can charge more. All well and good if one has the financial liquidity to attend these offerings. What if we want to branch out despite the lack of capital to invest?

There are ways. You don’t have to take a deep dip into your savings just so you can step up as a professional. Small investments of time and marketing are all you need to branch out. In this article, I will present you with six options that are within everyone’s reach to grow your audience and, in turn, your range as a professional. You can use them as steps until you make a decision on which direction to take, or try one and see how it goes.

1. Let your community communicate what they need from you

Financial investment: 0
Time investment: a few hours

The people around your neighborhood make the best business indicators. Their feedback will tell you what is lacking. When my studio took a bit of a dive this spring, it was the people around me who handed me ideas to get back on my feet. After this summer, I will be opening up with my new classes this September, and I already have a waiting list.

2. Connect with other wellness professionals

Financial Investment: 0
Time Investment: a few hours

One of the best ways to explore your potential is to enlist the perspective of other experts in fields close to yours. I met with other wellness professionals (not necessarily other yoga teachers) to suss out other possibilities for my career. I networked with personal trainers, dancers, Barré instructors, etc. to gauge what was working for them and what wasn’t. Most were kind enough to share their experiences, even offer advice. I think that with today’s landscape in the wellness industry, it pays more to have colleagues than competitors. It’s also less lonely.

3. Collaborate with these wellness professionals

Financial Investment: 0
Time Investment: a few hours
Financial Gains: Yes
Brand Placement: yes

Once you have created a presence for yourself within the professional ring, that’s when the ideas started rolling in. Taking part in events, creating workshops that combined each other’s expertise, the concepts and possibilities were endless and the experiences unforgettable. Through my collaborations with others, we were able to create experiences such as yoga with equine therapy, Yoga to help animal shelters find homes for cats, and yoga for acrobats (yes, they need us too.)

4. Invest in books

Financial Investment: 20€-50€
Time Investment: Several hours divided into weeks
Continuing Education Credits: Yes

Did you know that reading a book on yoga counts as continuing education hours in YA? It’s called asynchronous learning, which counts as part of your 30-hour minimum requirement for continuing education in Yoga Alliance. You just need to read a textbook within the scope of the YA educational categories such as: techniques in training, teaching and practice, Yoga anatomy and physiology, Yoga Humanities, or professional essentials. It’s a wonderful perk knowing that your self-improvement hours can be credited.

To log into your dashboard is to enter the title and author of the book with a brief description of your readings and notes on the subject.

Yogic organizations aside, investing time and money learning through the written word will always be enriching.

5. Write

Financial Investment: 0
Time Investment: a few hours a week
Financial Gains: yes

This is one of the most affordable ways to grow into your career. It is a joy and a skill to hone. It doesn’t matter if you start as a hobby or you took the plunge by writing for your blog or website. You will improve every time you put words to paper or screen. The process won’t be easy. There will be days when impostor syndrome might take over. I urge you to keep at it. It will pay off. I started by writing my first article on how I found yoga. Now I have 80 articles under my belt from different platforms. I have gained experience writing copy, blog articles, short stories, children’s stories, etc. Who knows where it will take me next.

6. Affordable short courses that give you continuing education hours with YA

Financial investment: 50€-500€ +
Time investment: Depends on the course if it's self-paced or you have a year to complete.

While this last option may involve the most monetary liquidity, there are still some affordable choices. Some are via subscription to certain platforms that offer CE credits (Continuing Education). One example is a subscription to Yoga International. Their platform offers free YA certified courses. Another is the Yoga Medicine platform founded by Tiffany Cruikshank. She features a range of online bundles and short courses, but you have to purchase each course separately. I have yet to try Yoga International. However, I do like Tiffany’s thorough

explanations.

Let’s Recap!

Your community could be the biggest asset in your search for professional growth. Listen to them. Next, being an active part of your community can land you a myriad of opportunities. Simply reading or writing can enrich your mind and abilities that have endless possibilities. Lastly, taking a course doesn’t have to break your bank. You just need to do a little research.

With eleven years and counting in this field, I have witnessed my fair share of highs and lows. It is the most normal thing in the world to have a winding career path. I say go with it and see where it leads. It will be amazing.

I hope this article has served you well, Momoyogis.

Good luck and take care!