The Connected Yoga Teacher Podcast
Ep 153: Licensing a Yoga Teacher Training with Aruna Kathy Humphrys & Claire Matthews
Description:
As our yoga business grows and expands, one of the things that we may consider offering is yoga teacher training programs. However, it can be challenging to create your own curriculum and and there are many different aspects to consider. Aruna Kathy Humphrys and Claire Matthews have some insights to share on this topic and their unique business model.
Aruna and Claire are the founders of Ambassador Yoga. They have created and licensed a 200 Hour Yoga Teacher Training program that provides teachers with manuals and lesson plans to run their own YTTs in their own homes or studios. In addition to their work at Ambassador Yoga, Aruna and Claire both run their own yoga business. Aruna has been a certified yoga instructor since 1998, and is the Co-Founder, Director and Lead Teacher Trainer at Young Yoga Masters Registered Children’s Yoga School. Claire’s yoga journey began in 2002, and she is the Co-Founder and Director of Yoga Truly Studios where she teaches guided classes & restorative therapies.
Aruna and Claire share more about who can become a yoga teacher trainer, why you might want to register with Yoga Alliance and the requirements for that, and how licensing a training program works for them and the yoga teachers trainers they serve. They also have some advice on writing the curriculum for a yoga teacher training program and some resources around that..
If you have a yoga teacher training program, or have wondered what it takes to create a yoga teacher training - this episode will be a useful one.
Key Takeaways:
[8:14] Shannon introduces her guests for this episode - Aruna Kathy Humphrys & Claire Matthews.
[9:29] What is the work that Aruna and Claire do and who do they do it for?
[11:15] Claire runs her yoga teacher trainings on a different schedule than the usual system. She explains how it works.
[14:16] How did Claire and Aruna first meet and decide to put together a yoga teacher training?
[15:48] How does the licensing work in terms of other yoga teachers wanting to run their own yoga teacher trainings?
[18:10] How are yoga teachers screened for their suitability to run a yoga teacher training? Claire and Aruna discuss how the changes in the requirements of Yoga Alliance could impact the screening process.
[23:58] When yoga teachers buy the licensing program from Yoga Ambassador, how do they execute it?
[25:03] What are some things that Aruna and Claire learned when they first started licensing out their program?
[29:15] Aruna and Claire have had a few "Beautiful Mind" moments and share the experience of that.
[32:59] What were some things that were surprising to Aruna and Claire when delivering their teacher trainings?
[35:37] What is Claire and Aruna's advice to want to license their own teacher training programs?
[42:00] What are Claire and Aruna's thoughts on selling their manuals?
[43:32] How does the licensing work in terms of a yoga school's business name?
[46:28] How do Claire and Aruna deal with updating the manual?
[48:46] Claire and Aruna do a lot of the work behind the scenes for teacher trainers.
[50:34] What is Claire and Aruna's #1 tip about putting together a teacher training?
[54:03] There are plans for a 300-hr training in the works. Claire and Aruna share some of the considerations they have to deal with.
[57:10] Get in touch with Claire and Aruna via their website to find out more about their licensing program.
Links:
Gratitude to our Sponsor Schedulicity and Yoga for Pelvic Health Teacher Training
Quotes from this episode:
"If you qualify with Yoga Alliance, then you would qualify with us." - Aruna
"They choose their price, they choose their schedule. What they do have to stick to is the trainer lesson plans, just making sure the right amount of time is spent in each educational category but how they deliver that is really up to them." - Claire
"I think the big learning was how to make the training experiential." - Aruna
"Use the thing to teach the thing." - Aruna
"Editing the manual - it is an ongoing process, also because there is always new information about yoga." - Aruna