6 Traits of Successful Yoga Entrepreneurs

One thing I realized over the past few months is how needed good yoga teachers are. Living somewhat outside a metropolitan area,  I gave up a fruitless search for a prenatal class near my home – there was nothing offered.  I really craved the support of other yogi soon-to-be-moms and their unique perspective during this strange and amazing time.  And quite frankly, the general yoga classes in my area have often left much to be desired as well.

Studios are churning out yoga teachers left and right, and often neither the studio nor the teacher-in-training stops to ask whether teaching is actually a good fit for that person.  Great teachers know that it takes more than a desire to do yoga all day, more that desire to have people listen to what you have to say, more than a desire to escape from the rat race, to make a teacher memorable and effective.

You can implement all the marketing good money will pay for, and make it snazzy and attractive, and it will overcome poor teaching for a short period of time.  For your marketing efforts to stick (i.e to get people to COME BACK), you must first focus on being THE BEST at what you do.  Now, don’t get me wrong.  I don’t mean that you need to keep attending training after training after workshop after conference, thinking that these things will make you a good teacher.  These are important for sure, and you absolutely must have more than the basics down before you start teaching.  But spending all your money to get further certified in this or that really does nothing to make you a BETTER teacher.  So what does?

Getting out there and teaching!  And then listening to your students and making sure you are meeting their needs.  My philosophy with my coaching clients on what makes a good teacher (and by extension an excellent business person) is this:

1.  You must make a connection with each and every student.  I’m so surprised at how this gets overlooked.  I have entered a class, spent 90 minutes giving it my all, made eye contact with the teacher, hung around while she met with her die-hards, and finally left, all without making any sort of connection at all.  Do you want people to come back?  I hear nodding yes.  Ok then.  Connect with everyone, even if it’s brief.

2. You must show them you care by learning their name at a minimum and then learning more about them over time.  I’ve said this a million times, and will keep saying it.  Learn your students’ names.  It is the easiest thing you can do to get people to come back.  And it costs $0.  The other part of this is remembering that you are in business, and people in business find out what the person in front of them wants, needs, and desires, so they can attempt to fulfill their needs.  Ask questions, and see if you have what they need: an upcoming  workshop, a series that might help them, etc etc.  Helping your students get what they need is an extension of your teaching.  Oh, and its also marketing.

3. You must inspire and motivate.  At the very least this is what your students are here for.  Leave your baggage at the door each and every time.

4. You must make your students feel safe, welcome and cared for.  One of my private coaching clients was just telling me that the simple act of telling newbies that they can get up and go to the bathroom during class does wonders for making those students feel safe and cared for.  Why don’t people who like yoga return to your class?  It may be because you haven’t made them feel welcome or taken exceptional care of them.

5. You must make it personal.  Yoga is personal.  It’s a spiritual journey and you are the guide.  People give you their hard-earned money because they trust you. Show them you care.

6. You must also keep it professional.  Have integrity, first and foremost.  I can’t believe I have to put this one here, but it happens so often it needs repeating.  You are in business – whether as an independent contractor or a studio owner or entrepreneur.  Do what you say you are going to do.  Don’t take advantage of the personal nature of the business when your students are vulnerable.  Show up on time to class.  Show up to class.  Don’t jet the minute the clock strikes, like Cinderella, leaving students in your wake.  Respect the people who hire you.  Respect your students, even if some of them are annoying.  There are a lot of teachers out there.  It’s time to step up your game, and this is the starting point.

My favorite classes – the ones I returned to again and again – are the ones where the teachers did all of these things.  The more you do these things, the less “marketing” you will have to do.  Period.  And the marketing efforts that you do employ will pay off exponentially in returning students.

There is a flip side to all of this as well, and its just as important.  If you are doing all of the above, and truly making your teaching about giving your students what they need, you have a right and a responsibility to yourself to expect fair compensation for your time and knowledge.  Many spiritually centered entrepreneurs have a hard time with this, and deal with guilt, resentment and boundary issues when it comes to earning a true living.

Unfortunately, many people will take and take as long as you keep giving it up.  Don’t expect your students – or studio owners if you are an independent teacher – to implement your boundaries for you.  Make a contract with yourself on what you believe giving fully of yourself means, and once  you feel you’ve done that you can have the confidence to enforce your boundaries with loving kindness and without guilt.  And when you’ve fulfilled your contract with yourself on what you will provide freely and without attachment, you can stand tall in your power to say no when people cross the line.  It takes practice but makes your career, and your life, so much more fulfilling.

My hope is that I can start back up with what I know – and offer you information and inspiration to keep you motivated in your yoga business.  I believe more in yoga now as a soon to be parent of a newborn, than I even did before, and I believe that great teachers are sorely needed in this crazy world.  And I steadfastly believe that those great teachers deserve to earn an awesome living so that they can spend all their time spreading yoga to the world instead of worrying about how they’ll make ends meet.  My commitment to you is to help you in the ways you need to make this happen.

 

So…you have the basics down.  Next week we’ll look at my step by step system to get your marketing in order stat, and start attracting more students.  See you then!

 

Tagged as: connections, marketing, successful