The Connected Yoga Teacher Podcast
Ep 122: Productivity for Yoga Teachers with Amber De La Garza
Description:
Are you struggling with productivity and finding enough time to do all the things? On this episode, Amber De La Garza, The Productivity Specialist, shares strategies to help you become more productive and achieve your business goals.
Amber is a sought-after coach, trainer, speaker, writer, and host of the Productivity Straight Talk podcast. She helps driven entrepreneurs execute actionable solutions to maximize profits, reduce stress, and make time for what matters most.
There seem to be an endless number of tasks that we have to do to run our yoga businesses, and not enough time. Amber reveals the four buckets of highly productive activities we should be focusing our time on, and some strategies that you can put into action right now.
Whether you’ve been feeling stressed and overwhelmed by the number of tasks you have to do to run your business, or you want to improve your productivity to give yourself more time to do the things that you love - Amber has just the tips, strategies and advice you need.
Key Takeaways:
[4:14] Shannon introduces her guest for this episode - Amber De La Garza.
[6:28] How did Amber get into the industry of productivity?
[10:47] Shannon and Amber discuss how she found her niche as the productivity specialist.
[12:08] What is productivity?
[14:03] Amber shares an example of how she incorporates productivity in her personal life.
[16:25] Amber breaks down the differences between productivity, organization and efficiency.
[21:02] Money mindset - how can yoga teachers not feel guilty about charging for their services?
[24:53] In your business, one of the four buckets highly productive activities is marketing and visibility.
[30:36] The second bucket is sales. Amber explains why making the ask is so important, and some examples of how to do it.
[38:21] The third bucket is servicing the client, but remember that it doesn't stand alone!
[41:25] Bucket #4 is leadership. Amber reveals how this ties back to buckets 1, 2 and 3.
[43:52] How much time should you be dedicating to each bucket of activities?
[44:54] Amber dives into some visibility activities she does in her own business.
[48:18] What's the best way to deal with other activities like answering emails and doing financials that aren't part of the highly productive activities buckets?
[52:01] Hiring out administrative work and activities that are not in your zone of genius is a great way to increase your productivity.
[57:40] Check out Amber's podcast and her website to find out more about her strategies for improving productivity!
[59:23] Shannon shares her own takeaways from this interview.
Links:
Gratitude to our Sponsor Schedulicity
Quotes from this episode:
"I'm so busy working in my business, I have no time to work on my business."
"[Productivity] is a skill set that can be learned. And as long as you feel like you can learn something new, this can be something learned to help you in your personal and business life."
"[Productivity is] investing your best time into your best activities."
"At the end of the day, your business is not a business if it's not making money."
"Organization is not the same as productivity, and neither is efficiency."
"Not knowing that something is going to work 100% isn't a reason to not take action."
"The key to have this consistent revenue is to be consistent in all three of these buckets."
The Connected Yoga Teacher Podcast
Ep 121: Yoga for Pelvic Health with Shannon Crow
Description:
Why is yoga such an amazing gift for pelvic health? How does knowing this information and using it change the way we practice and teach yoga? In this episode, Shannon shares more about one of her favorite topics yoga for pelvic health.
Shannon reveals her own personal experiences of going through three pregnancies and births with no idea about pelvic health, and how finding out more about the topic ignited her passion in the topic. She talks more about the four key elements of yoga for pelvic health - breath, alignment, movement and information - and why yoga makes such a difference.
After learning more about pelvic health, Shannon started to incorporate some of the things she learned into her own yoga practice, and how she shared yoga with her students. She walks us through some simple examples you can practice, try out and share with your yoga students.
If you’ve been wondering about how to improve your pelvic health in some way or have students who have approached you with questions or concerns relating to pelvic health, this episode has some great information that will change the way you practice and share yoga.
Key Takeaways:
[4:14] Where did Shannon's passion for pelvic health begin?
[7:13] Shannon shares her first experience of meeting a pelvic floor physiotherapist.
[10:30] What are the four key elements of yoga for pelvic health?
[11:15] Element 1: Breath - How does breath relate to pelvic health?
[14:23] Element 2: Alignment - Focus on the yoga student in front of you and their unique needs.
[17:16] Element 3: Movement - Movement is a key element in our overall yoga practice, and also in pelvic health.
[19:41] Element 4: Information - Internal information is just as important as external information sources.
[23:10] Shannon explains how to apply these four elements to Bridge.
[28:49] Shannon shares more about rib cage breath vs belly breathing.
[30:53] Shannon no longer cues mula bandha / core engagement / pelvic floor engagement in her classes. Why?
[35:26] Share your thoughts and questions about these practices with Shannon, and check out her new offering around pelvic health!
Links:
Gratitude to our Sponsor Schedulicity
Quotes from this episode:
"In the three pregnancies and births that I had, no one talked to me about pelvic health. I didn't even know about my pelvic floor."
"The four elements to yoga for pelvic health, and why yoga is such a great tool to use for pelvic health, ... are breath, alignment, movement, and information."
"There is this amazing information that comes from internal, and this is where we provide the space as yoga teachers for students to come to an awareness of what's going on in their body and their mind."
"There is never a time anymore where I am working with a group class and telling them all to engage their pelvic floor."
The Connected Yoga Teacher Podcast
Ep 120: Teach Private Yoga Online with Yael Oppenheim
Description:
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to teach yoga online, live, in a virtual class via video chat with a student? We’re all using technology in a variety of ways in our yoga businesses, but Yael Oppenheim is taking teaching yoga to a whole new platform.
Yael Oppenheim is the founder of FitMyTime, a marketplace for remote personal fitness and yoga classes, founded in 2018. She was inspired to create FitMyTime when she realized there were no options available for people who wanted to work out from home with the guidance of a personal trainer or instructor. Since its launch last year, over 150 instructors have signed up, and the platform continues to grow.
Virtual yoga or fitness classes may seem unusual, but it definitely caters to a need in the marketplace for both students and teachers. Yael explains more about the platform, the business model, and some of the challenges as well as the benefits of using FitMyTime for both teachers and students.
If you’re thinking about expanding your offerings to include teaching online, or if you’re just curious about what it will feel like to share yoga from behind a screen, this episode is going to be an eye-opener.
Key Takeaways:
[3:07] Shannon introduces her guest for this episode - Yael Oppenheim.
[4:27] Where did Yael's yoga journey begin?
[5:45] What does Yael do now and who does she do it for?
[6:53] What is the platform, FitMyTime?
[7:42] How do teachers and students connect with each other virtually?
[10:49] What motivated Yael to start FitMyTime?
[15:02] Yael shares some of the challenges yoga teachers, fitness instructors and yoga studios face, as well as her own initial experience taking lessons online.
[20:14] How has the FitMyTime platform grown?
[21:10] How can yoga teachers apply to teach on this platform?
[23:00] Students also have the opportunity to try out different teachers on the platform.
[25:03] How do the payments work on this platform?
[26:34] Shannon and Yael discuss waiver forms, insurance for teaching online, and scheduling details of FitMyTime.
[29:47] How many students are on the platform?
[32:21] How has it been for Yael growing her business?
[36:01] Check out the platform on the website FitMyTime.
[36:39] Shannon and Yael discuss the different groups of people who might be interested in working out with personal trainers online.
[39:16] Shannon shares some of her key takeaways from this interview.
Links:
Gratitude to our Sponsor Schedulicity
Quotes from this episode:
"FitMyTime is a platform, a marketplace, that connects yoga instructors and fitness trainers with trainees, with students from around the world for the purpose of an online, live yoga classes or fitness workouts."
"The platform enables people ... [to] find instructors for different kinds of workout types."
"One of the things that I learned is that the connection between the teacher and students, not only in yoga but in general, is really reliant on the chemistry between two people."
"It's a great way to find teachers on one hand, and on the other hand, it's a great way for teachers to expand their work opportunities."
The Connected Yoga Teacher Podcast
119: Travel and Teach Yoga with Eva Hamilton
Description:
Have you dreamed of teaching yoga while you travel?? How can you create a feasible yoga business teaching yoga while traveling? If these questions have ever crossed your mind, Eva Hamilton is just the yoga entrepreneur you need to hear from.
Eva’s first yoga teacher training was in 2008, and since then she has completed multiple courses and trainings in yin yoga, restorative yoga, Thai yoga massage, and much more. She previously owned and operated a yoga studio in Canada, but in the past two years, Eva has traveled to several countries offering yoga teacher trainings, specialized yoga workshops, yoga retreats, online yoga classes and more. Her own practice is grounded in transforming feelings of anxiety into freedom, and she strives to help others to do the same in her classes.
Teaching yoga while traveling the world sounds glamorous and amazing, but it comes with its own set of challenges. Eva opens up about her own struggles with anxiety, and how she found her way to a path of teaching yoga while traveling. Shannon and Eva also discuss the practical aspects of moving abroad to teach yoga - finances, visa requirement, contracts and more, as well as what it’s like to teach yoga online.
If you’ve been wondering how to incorporate more travel into your yoga teaching career, or want to learn more about connecting with nomadic yoga teachers to bring what they have to offer to your yoga studio, this episode will be a real treat.
Key Takeaways:
[3:13] Shannon introduces her guest for this episode - Eva Hamilton.
[5:27] Where did Eva's yoga journey begin?
[8:42] How did Eva move from her realization that she had high anxiety and that yoga was helping, to wanting to travel the world?
[10:56] Where did Eva travel, and how did she deal with moments of high anxiety?
[13:03] In 2018, Eva traveled and taught in 5 countries. What were some of the things she learned along the way?
[15:00] Eva reveals more about the financial aspects of teaching yoga while traveling.
[18:35] Shannon and Eva discuss her transition into a more traveling path.
[19:56] What is Eva's advice for yoga teachers who want to become traveling yoga teachers?
[21:42] If you're considering moving abroad to teach yoga, it may be most beneficial to talk to a yoga teacher who is already teaching there to find out more.
[23:25] Eva shares more about her life in Thailand as a yoga teacher.
[25:32] What does Eva's average week look like?
[29:21] Do you feel like you're running away from something, or do you feel like you're running toward something?
[30:29] Making new connections has opened up new opportunities for Eva.
[33:32] Eva and Shannon dive into some of her challenges in teaching online.
[35:44] Eva shares some of her thoughts around competition in the yoga space.
[38:09] Get in touch with Eva via her website or on social media to find out more about her work.
[39:46] Share your questions in our Facebook group or in the comments!
Links:
Gratitude to our Sponsor Schedulicity
Quotes from this episode:
"I think I really made a strong connection to the practice in my first Savasana."
"I think a lot of people make the assumption because I was young that I was really attached to yoga as a physical practice, but for me it was always much more to do with this bridge between the mind and the emotions."
"I really believe yoga is not an answer in and of itself, but when we partner it with other forms of care, it can be extremely successful."
"A job letter is great, but get a contract before you uproot your life."
"It's a certain amount of stepping beyond the fear, trusting my intuition, but also do the work and the research and figure out what's going to make sense for you."
"Do you feel like you're running away from something, or do you feel like you're running toward something?"
"To me, what's the most meaningful part of teaching yoga is that human connection."