So you have finished your Dharma internship...now what?
How do you begin getting classes of your own?
Chances are, whatever you did to get your internship classes could become a regular (even paying!) gig. Begin by looking into your own work/social/ recreational network. Are you in the corporate world? Great! Schedule some classes in the conference room during lunch, maybe you will get some private clients or even a regular class from that. Live in a warm environment? Beach available? Facebook and flyer around your neighborhood and lead a sunrise yoga class next to the water! Got a rooftop available in a large building complex? Work-out space ? Contact the board about advertising yoga classes for residents- maybe they will even pay you!
All exposure is good exposure to a certain extent. All you need to do is get students into the door-some may come back, some may not. Chances are the ones that return may bring a friend. Word of mouth, social networking, and a some good ol' self promotion will do the trick! You may be teaching for free (wouldnt we all love to?) or maybe you need to pay the rent, but as long as all your classes are an offering to Sri Dharma Mittra, your students' wellness, and bettering the community at large, you will be rewarded tenfold.
My recent move has coincided with a blitzkrieg of emails, free yoga classes, cold calls and walk-ins with my resume, bio, picture, cover letter....the works! I have pulled out every contact I had in the book and slowly but surely things are starting to happen. The Number One best resource? The Dharma Yoga Center! That website is a treasure of contacts all over the world, explanation of poses, video of Sri Dharma, and you can contact them directly with any questions you may have. They put me in touch with Luna Delgado Dold, who has a Dharma Center in Chicago. There are only 4 Dharma teachers out here (including me!) and so she opened her arms and POOF! Now I have three classes and couldn't be happier. Unfortunately, I am trying to teach full time so here are some other resources I have looked into that may help you too!
http://www.yogajournal.com/ An immense resource for yoga teachers and students. They even have inexpensive liability insurance- a MUST for anyone teaching privately.
http://www.yamatalent.com/ If things start really heating up for you-YAMA is the talent agency for yoga teachers. They would organize your teaching life and help with everything from bookings to photo shoots.
Every gym and wellness center wants to offer yoga. Go in and explain how Dharma Yoga offers something they dont have!
Colleges are starting to get with the program too- think of stressed out undergrads meditating! Contact your nearest university, community college, etc.
Google, Apple, and Whole Foods have yoga classes daily for their employees. Can they pay you in company stock? :)
YogaGlo has online yoga classes. You may want to consider creating videos or podcasts of your classes for your own website or even ITunes. I used to subscribe to a podcast that was FREE on iTunes and I practiced right in my own living room but felt like I was in a studio.
I would love this blog to be an open forum for all Dharma trainees to add their own two cents. Best of luck and keep looking back here for more great tidbits!
Om shanti shanti shanti
