10 Qualities of a Good Yoga Teacher
During Yoga Theory’s experience both nationally and internationally, Yoga Theory has been lucky enough to learn from some of the best yoga teachers in the industry. This is a list of the 10 common characteristics, we believe make them the good yoga teacher.
Energy
A good yoga teacher should be full of energy and have the ability to lift the energy of the room. A good yoga teacher should be confident and down to earth, but at the same time serious and experienced.
Physical Discipline
Physical discipline is a reflection of mental discipline. Although you do not have to be the best at physical yoga or be able to do the best yoga poses, a good teacher should be competent and comfortable doing the poses that they teach and are inspiring by nature.
Versatility
A yoga class will always have different people with different physical abilities. A good yoga teacher should be versatile and be able to adapt accordingly. This might mean adding or subtracting a few poses to keep it suitable.
Personalization
Good teachers are aware of the students in the room. They are teaching to the person and not reading a script. At the same time they are drawing on there personal experience and sharing there intrinsic knowledge of yoga.
Work the room
They know how much to project their voice and how to read people intuitively. The environment determines the yoga, a one size fits all simply does not work for a good yoga teacher.
Adjustments
They know when to touch, and when not to touch. A good yoga teacher can read whether someone will respond well to adjustments and knows what limit to push them. Not everyone wants to be adjusted by the teacher.
Attention to detail
They know when to be strict and when not to be. They show attention to detail when it counts. If someone is doing something that can lead to injury, they will call it out. If someone is resting because they are tired, they may decide to leave it. The details and context matter.
Teaching
They teach yoga. Sounds simple but a lot of yoga teachers simply lead the class without actually teaching. A good yoga teacher should be a leader, but also be able to teach the poses in an easy and an understandable way, with clear communication. A good practice is to 1) show the pose, 2) teach the pose and 3) correct the pose.
Experience
This one should be natural. A yoga teacher can only teach what they know, however with the popularity of yoga and the competitive market place, a lot of teachers are teaching what they do not know in the hope for more students. Good teachers focus on what they are good at and keep it authentic.
Preperation
Leading on from experience, a yoga teacher should be prepared for their class. Although some experienced teachers may be able to adapt on the spot, a good teacher should have some sort of structure for their class.
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