Advice to My Younger Self

It’s been roughly a year and a half since I started teaching yoga publicly. Being able to consistently hold space for students and potential interest in friends alike has something that I have never openly acknowledged and fathomed but this is something I am coming into full acceptance and gratitude for all of this unfolding. As friends, family, and older students have approached me and asked about this recent one-year benchmark, I had to pause and think about the progress that has been made over the past 12 months and the future as to where I will be heading.

I was pretty headstrong and naive when I first began teaching. I thought I would be able to land a fully booked schedule of permanent classes each week at a variety of studios across the city. I guess that’s the general misconception of your role from anyone OUTSIDE the fitness and wellness industry.

You don’t start off with a roster of regularly attending students - nobody knows who you are or what you represent - heck, you don’t even start off with your own permanent classes.

I guess got off pretty lucky then.

I enrolled in a mentorship program at a local yoga studio last August, working with one of my favourite and well-seasoned yogis to improve my own sequencing, cuing and better finding my voice in the style and methodology that I felt most comfortable with. Within a very supportive community that I was already very familiar with of instructors, friends, and yoga enthusiasts alike, I was able to refine and simplify what it was that I wanted to teach.

A colleague of mine had mentioned that volunteering at the YMCA as an instructor would be of absolute benefit, especially while getting started, and I hopped onto that train immediately. After visiting a local YMCA centre, and auditioning with the programming staff, I was onboarded to teach by the end of September.

When I first started teaching, there were many opportunities on my palate. I must say I was blessed to have an early and consistent line-up of teaching timeslots, however, there were definitely many hiccups on the way that I wish I would have known or better prepared for. If you are starting in your career of teaching or coaching, here are some helpful tips to keep in mind:

1. The timeslots of these classes sometimes brings few if not, any students for the first few weeks.

   • How to retain new students?

   • How to work with the studio owner to ensure the timeslots work for most people?

2. Clear and efficient communication of your needs with studio management and staff

   • It takes time to find the environment that you vibe with and can appreciate the timeliness and effort for management staff to support you and accommodate for any class needs and changes.

3. Accept payment for your time

   • Regardless if you are teaching or assisting or simply showing up for your scheduled class - saying yes or asking for payment is not wrong nor should it feel guilt-induced.

   • If monetary payment is not available, then an exchange of services or other proprietary item can be requested in lieu of your time.

4. That being said, never do it for the money or reputation.

   • Try to see it from the viewpoint of your students or attend more classes yourself. Reputable instructors with a large following are never after the money

   • You attract the vibe of the tribe that you will naturally belong in. Don’t try to be everywhere all at once, in hopes that someone in a higher, managerial position will notice you.

5. Take on open subbing opportunities but also be able to say "no.”

   • One of the most imminent things I’ve learned while making yourself available to sub is sometimes knowing when to pass over a good opportunity to someone else. There will always be other teaching opportunities if you maintain good relationships and strong networks so be careful if you are weaning yourself thin just to take on an additional class.

   • You will gradually receive more opportunities to teach based on the quality of the classes you sub, not the quantity.

   • Not every studio will provide the support you need to grow as an instructor.

On top of thinking I could teach fast-pased power and vinyasa classes, I had to actually simplify my sequences and improve my cuing for slower Hatha-based classes.

Since then, I have learned to teach at a slower and engaging pace and make time to attend and teach more mindful Meditation, Restorative and Yin classes in addition to my regular Vinyasa Flow classes. I have also assisted a handful of classes providing hands-on touch, adjustments, massage and Reiki. Providing energy healing is a practice that enables my own

The art of slowing the f*ck down and doing less (The Guide to a Happy Heart)

It's February - the midst of winter in Toronto. New Year's resolutions? How are they coming along?

Not so much, don't sweat it - most people falter and create unrealistic goals for themselves too. 

Reality check - maybe you were seeking change in January - maybe it was a change in healthy
lifestyle habits, maybe they were better exercise regimens, maybe it was a new job...

Perhaps we place too much on our plates all at once - how do we focus on simply one task at a time? So, it's a little difficult to sit here, be present, quiet the mind - simply take a meditative seat? Well, these artful practices can be incorporated into your daily life so you won't even have to buy more products, spend more energy, or become confused at never feeling good enough. 

The simple regimen, where less is more: 

Doing less

• taking on less stressful and time-sensitive deadlines 
• prioritizing what you can get done in a week 
• allowing yourself to focus on tasks at hand without being barred by social media, digital distractions
• taking rest days and mix up your exercise routine (i.e. HIIT, yoga, sports, walking, swimming)

Eating less

• less sodium
• less processed foods
• less caffeine
• less refined sugar 
• less fast food

Saying Less

• not having to prove your self-worth
• summarizing what it is that you stand for, every day
• journalling, writing important thoughts, tasks, and emotions down as opposed to wasting energy ramble

What can you do more of?

• drink more water
• take more naps
• write more letters of gratitude - either to yourself or to others that you regularly interact with
• eat more fresh veggies
• take more mindful walks 
• stretch (using therabands, mobility balls, foam rollers, tune up balls)
• spend more time doing charitable work and volunteering your time to support an organization

Which brings me now to a second important note:

Showing up to your mat 

(whether for a sweaty asana practice or for a few minutes of meditative mindfulness), is the bare minimum when we say less is more. When done regularly, this habitual practice creates effective persistence and duration, which can create a healthier mindset in the long-run that is easily translatable on and off the mat, in real life situations. 

So the first part of the practice is:

• scheduling your first class of the month
• just showing up
• being on time, if not allowing yourself a big buffer time to make it to your mat (so you don't feel flustered and can settle with ease onto your mat)

Secondly, the most marked lesson I can still lay my eyes on is the practice of *patience*

So much patience - everyday is a growing phenomenon in this world full of different conditions, situations, emotional turmoil. Basically if you cannot predict how the people around you are going to react, how on Earth will you be able to pre-conceive how your own body and mind will even feel the next day? Living presently allows you to assess all that is happening without having to overthink or press ideas or expectations of how your body should move. 
Basically, the goal is to.. Move it. Forget about the how, why, how much. Just a little bit of attention and effort is insinuated on the action: Movement is better than stagnancy.

Once, you've shown up and have committed to making that first step to being on time and being present on your mat, the next lesson is DURATION. 

Whether you have days where you lie completely on your back in savasana, or sit upright and meditate. Whether your practice is full of active asanas, and a sweaty flow, or perhaps a long-extended yin practice - no progress occurs overnight. There will be days when your attitude shows no differently that you don't want to put the effort in, where your physical energy is low, where your mind is completely emotionally flustered and unsettled. And your only option here to stay committed? Simply continue showing up. Whether it's 10 minutes or a conventional 60-75 minute practice. Making a habitual life-long commitment to the practice will allow you to reach new life lessons and "Aha!" moments when you least expect them over the longer course of time.
I've heard the frequent "I'll wait until my injuries heal, I'll wait until I become more flexible..." is setting yourself to avoid the act of showing up from the amateur but yet interested yogi.
I mean, all you have to do, is show up. In the end, it's not about the $60 workshop you pay for, the $100 yoga pants you stretch in, or the $10 green juices that you consume following class. 
It is the simple practice of mindfully giving back to yourself, and that little bit of effort of just showing up will increase twentyfold in the greatest journey of spiritual and physical maturity.

I'd love to hear how your practice in progress is going in the comments below!

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