As of last month, I've been teaching yoga for 7 years. That means hours and hours (and hours and hours!) of cueing students into down dog, child's pose, chaturanga, and half moon. It means days and days of staring at peoples' bodies in extended side angle and warrior 1, buckets of sweat lost, too many playlists made, and countless readings picked out + shared with my students while they rest on their right sides.
In all of this time, I've obviously changed a lot and learned quite a bit about who I am as a yoga teacher; I wouldn't say that I have everything figured out and I'm definitely not an expert at teaching (always a student!), but one thing that I've recently realized is that I do finally feel comfortable with my voice as a teacher. Most of the time. What do I mean by that? Well, when teaching a yoga class, it can be hard to figure out what to say, how to say it, and how to stay true to who you are as a person while speaking about the asanas and/or yogic philosophy for an entire class. I've had incredible teachers who can say things like, "Reach up towards the heavens as you inhale, bring heaven down to earth as you exhale" or, "Bloom your sitting bones towards the sky and unfurl like a spring blossom into the sun" and sound inspiring, beautiful, and normal, but if I tried to say those kinds of things, I would sound ridiculous [and feel even more ridiculous]. Similarly, I am not a super commanding, direct, unapologetic person (like it or not, I'm the opposite), so although I love teachers who are no-nonsense and cut-to-the-chase, I can't be like that, either. And despite reading and taking many courses on The Yoga Sutras and The Bhagavad Gita, I still don't feel knowledgeable enough on these subjects to weave deep yogic philosophy or history into my classes, and don't feel that I can do either of these texts justice on the base level at which I understand them, so I don't fill my classes with old world wisdom, either. When I first started teaching, I struggled a lot with the fact that I wasn't able to be the kind of teacher who did the aforementioned things while teaching. I had a hard time figuring out what "my" teaching language was going to be if it wasn't flowery, super direct, or steeped in philosophical lessons. What did I have to offer? How should my voice sound? How could I use metaphors in my teaching and not cringe internally as I said them? How could I give precise cues and still be warm and welcoming? How could I teach my students something about themselves without getting in over my head or revealing how little I actually knew? But over the years, I've settled into what I have now come to realize is my teaching voice. It's not super flowery, it's not super direct, it's not super simple, it's just me. I don't share a lot about my own experience, I don't tell lots of stories (I wish I could, but they always come out wrong), I don't weave super deep spiritual themes into my classes (again, I wish I could but it doesn't feel authentic), I don't make my classes into anatomy lessons (argh, I wish I could do this, too!); I just teach the asanas, try to hold the space as best I can, and remind my students to check-in with their minds, their bodies, and their breath at regular intervals throughout class. And I *think* that after 7 years, I'm finally okay with this. I don't mean to say that I've become complacent and am going to stop challenging myself as a teacher or stop learning how to speak and guide in a clearer, more precise, more inspiring way, but that I'm finally starting to accept that my authentic voice is a valid one, even if it's different from the voices of the teachers that I admire. I'm learning to accept that the space and opportunities that we create for our students through our sequences, our silence, our readings, and our sensory touches are just as important--if not more important, sometimes--than the words we say or the way in which we say them. And I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that this lesson applies to life outside of the yoga studio, too (I mean, don't they all?). Learning to feel comfortable with who you are and what you have to offer, instead of beating yourself up for what you lack, is a pretty great skill to master. What you say is obviously important, but the way in which you show up, the body language you use, and the energy that you bring to the relationships and activities in your life are often just as important as your words and the meaning behind them. {Especially when you regularly say silly nonsense things like, "Energize all 3 quadrants of the body," as I did in a class last week. Cringe.} So, for my fellow yoga teachers: I hope this post reminds you that your voice is valid, even if it isn't as experienced or poetic as some of your teachers. My wish for you is that it doesn't take you 7 years of teaching to stop comparing your voice to others and accept your authentic voice as a part of who you are. And for my fellow yoga students: remember that your teachers are forever students, too. I encourage you to take classes from lots of different teachers so that you can experience different voices, different teachings, and different energies and hopefully, learn something different from them all.
La
6/19/2017 07:12:04 am
Wow. This spoke to me! Thanks for sharing!
Silvia
6/19/2017 09:34:13 am
Dear MCS, I love your voice and the way you teach your class is always so pleasant. Long time ago when I was taking my yoga teacher training program someone told me " don't ever worried about being someone else, just be yourself and your students will follow you", it's about the connection you share with your students when you are true to yourself. With that said, I think you are one of the best yoga teachers I've ever had and I mean it. Btw, miss your class. Much love. ❤️🙏🏻
Ingrid Jaeger
6/19/2017 01:28:07 pm
Loved this. Thank you.
Michelle
6/20/2017 10:34:21 am
Thank you MCS, love your voice of experience! Thanks for sharing.
Karin Small
6/19/2017 01:47:47 pm
You are an amazing teacher who teaches with love. I totally enjoy every class I take with you!
Tracy
6/19/2017 02:30:26 pm
I loved every bit of this and can totally relate! I spend so much time beating myself up about this very topic.
Mary Catherine
6/19/2017 06:23:14 pm
Thank you SO much for all of these sweet comments, ladies! Glad this post spoke to you and thanks for the kind feedback. I wasn't fishing for compliments by writing this but I am grateful for your thoughtful, loving words <3
Diane
6/20/2017 03:46:22 pm
I couldn't wait to read how you see yourself and found it nothing short of interesting. As you can see by the attendance at your classes you are a sought out yoga instructor. Your caring and positive approach not to mention the incredible gift to your sequencing always leaves me fulfilled. I leave class complete body mind and soul. I never feel like " I can't wait for this to be over on the contrary wow that class flew by" your a gift Thanks Ben for bringing us this shinning Star⭐️
Whitney Ennis
6/20/2017 03:46:36 pm
As a new teacher (6 months in) this was so great to read and I struggle with this during every class. Thank you for sharing! Comments are closed.
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HELLO!I'm Mary Catherine, a Cape Cod-based yoga teacher, painter, designer, writer, mom, and list-maker extraordinaire. My goal is to inspire you to start living a more creative, simple, joyful, + purposeful life.
{Learn more + read my story}
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