How To Become a Yoga Instructor

If you’re thinking of a career change, you might be wondering how to become a yoga instructor and all the details about how long it takes, what accreditation you need, and what sort of money you might make. All of these are important aspects when it comes to changing careers, so we’re going to look at them today.

There are quite a few qualifications you can achieve to become a yoga instructor, but a Level 3 Diploma In Teaching Yoga is recognised internationally, and tends to be the most popular course. How quickly it can be completed depends on whether you study part time, but it often takes about six months. Being a yoga instructor is considered a wonderful career by many!

Is Yoga A Good Career?

Lots of people very much enjoy being yoga instructors, and make good money at it. Becoming an instructor does mean committing, but for many people who truly love yoga, it becomes a way of life – and that means that you are likely to feel as much joy in teaching it as you do in practicing it.

If a good career to you is more about promotion prospects and wages, this may not be for you. You can’t really get promoted when you are your own boss, but you will enjoy flexible hours and a salary that is based on your success, rather than the worth someone puts on your job.

For many, yoga is a great career that offers satisfaction, relaxation, good social opportunities, and good money.

How Hard Is It To Become A Yoga Instructor?

If you’re wondering how to become a yoga instructor, you might be thinking about the difficulty levels. How difficult is it to qualify?

In general, as long as you choose a good, supportive provider and you enjoy the course, you shouldn’t have any difficulty passing it. It is not particularly difficult, and while you may find some aspects challenging, you will probably not find the whole course too hard overall. If you’re a genuine yoga enthusiast then it will be a breeze!

How Long Does It Take To Become A Yoga Instructor?

This totally depends on how much time you can put into the course, and how fast you learn. Some people – especially those who are already well-practiced and very familiar with yoga – can complete the course in just a few months. These people will usually be studying full time and have lots of hours they can commit to practicing.

Others may need quite a bit longer. If you are only studying part time and you can rarely practice, you will probably find that a yoga course takes six months or even longer to complete. If you struggle with any parts, it will also take more time, so make sure you study hard in the areas you find particularly difficult.

What Qualifications Do You Need To Be A Yoga Instructor?

Though it may depend on where you are, there are not really strict rules about what qualifications you need to teach yoga. Anybody can set up a yoga class and offer their services to those around them – even someone who has never practiced yoga before! However, it will quickly become apparent to the students that their teacher is a little under-qualified.

You should look to get your Level 3 Diploma as a means of proving to both yourself and your students that you are a suitable teacher for them. If you want people to pay you for your time, you should be able to demonstrate that you can provide them with good value!

You will also learn lots of teaching skills; being good at yoga is not everything it takes to make a successful yoga teacher. You must also be able to teach well, control a class, help people progress, and deal with the different skill levels you will encounter.

A yoga teacher will need patience, enthusiasm, confidence, discipline, organization, and a good sense of how to manage themselves and their clients in order to be successful. You should not just launch into teaching without any experience. You can teach without formal qualifications if you know what you’re doing, but that piece of paper may help more than you expect!

How Much Do Yoga Instructors Make?

This will vary enormously depending on how much time you’re prepared to put into the job and how many clients you can attract. If you only run your business part time, you may not make very much. However, assuming it is a full time job and you have the qualifications and skills to attract regular clients, you can make a good living.

Yoga teachers can make a salary of up to $50,000 or £35,000. However, that is very much dependent on how much teaching you can do, how big your classes are, and how much clients are prepared to pay. Do not expect to make that in your first few years of business. There are a few who make much more than this and have become real icons in the field, but these are very much the exception.

To get a more realistic figure, try and find out how much classes in your area cost, and calculate how many classes you could run per week, and how full they might be. This should give you a better estimate of how much you might make as a yoga teacher.

Conclusion

So, on how to become a yoga instructor, you now know which qualification to go for, how long it might take you to achieve it, and what else you need besides the piece of paper. Being a yoga instructor can be rewarding and fun, and can be done part time or full time – so give it a try!