Empower Your Students

A couple weeks ago I encountered a new student. Her friend, a regular student of mine, encouraged her to try this yoga thing and finally got her to come to the studio. Her first class was with another instructor. I happened to be in the studio lobby while this woman was in her first class. Within the first 20 minutes she walked out of the studio. While panting she asked, "How much longer is this class?" Now the class she was taking was a rather intense, more fitness based yoga class that is done with weights, but this poor lady was just destroyed. I responded with, "There's still 40 minutes left". Completely defeated, the lady dragged herself back into the hot and sweaty room.

Two days later, this new student returned to take my class. Her friend forced her to return and take the same class, but encouraged her to take my class. The new student said she had doubted this whole yoga thing. She thought it was for wimps and it would be a piece of cake. But two days prior she realized how wrong she was. (Granted this specific class format is not your gentle yoga class with lots of Wah! and MC Yogi softly playing in the background. Instead it's Crescent Lunge and Warrior II with bicep curls and military presses all while sweating the calories away to Rihanna.) After reassuring her that she'd be just fine in that day's class, she slowly walked into the studio and rolled out her mat. Her friend pulled me aside and told me to really talk about form and technique in that day's class so that her friend could understand what was going on. I assured her I would. Shortly after I walked into the studio to make sure everything was set up for class, the new student grabbed me. She looked at me and without hesitation said, "I need your help. I don't know what chow-a-bunga is". Of course I couldn't help but chuckle to myself. Of course she meant chaturanga (hi to low plank), but she honestly thought she was hearing the instructor say "chow-a-bunga" during her first yoga class.

After the humor passed, I suddenly felt compassion for this student. With zero knowledge of yoga postures, technique, or alignment, this new student was completely lost. Now of course I do not necessarily blame the instructor that taught the first class this woman took. Unfortunately, with the type of class this student had walked into on her first day, there's this mentality to push yourself to the limit. There's also the assumption that students already have a foundation of basic yoga postures before taking this class. However, there's always new students who just want a killer workout and jump right into these classes. What is an instructor to do when over half of your students want to get drilled into their mats for 60 minutes while only a few students don't even know how to set up a Low Lunge?

After my interaction with this new student, I realized I need to be held accountable for what I do as a yoga instructor. It's my job to keep my students safe. It's my job to make my students feel successful in the classes they take. For a while I was running with the mentality that when I teach an advanced level class, I'm only going to teach "advanced" level postures (whatever that means). For those who can't keep up, too bad for them. How un-yogic is that?! I never want a student of mine to leave my class feeling defeated, unsuccessful, or confused. Yoga is meant to be accessible. As Darren Main suggested in the Skype session I posted about a while back, give all of your students something to do. If they're more advanced physically, give them the option of binds/wraps, arm balances, and inversions. If you're faced with a beginner or a student looking for a more basic or foundation based class, then give them simple alignment to focus on and continue to offer modifications. Similar to the famous military quote: No yogi should be left behind!

So here's my request to all teachers: Empower your students. It doesn't matter if you teach  elementary school students, knitting, college level biology, photography classes, brick laying, the Russian language or yoga. Empower your students with the knowledge they need to be successful. Isn't that your job as a teacher?

When the Student is Ready...

There's a Buddhist proverb that states, "When the student is ready, the teacher will appear". I've had many teachers and mentors in my time as a yoga student and instructor, but the teacher who impacted my life the most came into my life when I needed him most. Our relationship just kind of happened.

First, we started as colleagues. He ran one of the studios I taught at and I, on a whim, applied to be his assistant at the studio. I was transitioning from a very unhealthy lifestyle as a bartender to a clear-headed studio manager and yoga instructor. This was a time of transformation and there should be no surprise that I needed a mentor.

Although he may have not realized it, he was (and still is) an incredibly inspirational person in my life. He was a vegetarian, rarely drank alcohol, and had a relationship with his wife that all people should envy. Being around him made me want to take better care of myself and better care of those around me. Magically I started eating better, I didn't stay out as late, I became more committed to my yoga practice, and started to create better and more meaningful relationships with the people around me. Not only was he a great human being, but he was a tremendous yoga instructor. His classes were just marvelous. I hate to put people on a pedestal, but he was able to create a 60 minute class that felt like it went by in the blink of an eye. Dance was my first true love, and every time I stepped onto my mat in his class I felt like I was dancing. He also pushed me to try postures I never thought possible in my body. People often ask me how I learned a certain posture and I always have to give the credit to my mentor.

As time passed I realized that a position in management just wasn't the best fit for me. Almost three years ago now, I decided to step away from my position and focus more on teaching and my yoga studies. Although a part of our working relationship was severed, my mentor was extremely supportive of my decision and continued to challenge me both on and off my mat.

Two months ago my mentor decided to take a promotion in Colorado. Although proud of my mentor and his success with our company, I was devastated. First, it started as a rumor that he might be taking a position elsewhere. Then it became an email to the studio's instructors that he decided to take the promotion. And then he was gone. I was saddened because my teacher who inspires me and challenges me on so many levels was now going to be thousands of miles away. Was my teaching going to suffer because I no longer had the inspiration of his teachings? Was my physical practice going to diminish because I wasn't taking his classes anymore? Of course the answer to both of those questions is "NO", but in the first few weeks of his absence, I was constantly battling with these questions.

It's been two months now since his departure and the world hasn't ended and I'm not a train wreck of an instructor or student. Although I do miss my teacher and my friend, I believe his absence has actually empowered me. He gave me so many tools as an instructor that I can now fully utilizing the information I gained from him. His absence has also pushed me to seek out more teachers and I am so thankful for that. I got into a rut of only taking his and a handful of other instructors' classes, and not that he didn't encourage me to take other instructors' classes, but now I'm seeking out new and different teachers. A lot of those instructors teach nothing like him, and that's great!

At this point in my studies I may not be ready for just one teacher, but many. Or perhaps I'm starting to discover the inspiration and challenges that I see within myself.