UMISSION

This job is so much fun because I can see people relax and tap into their own potential.  It is not about adding anything in but allowing people to recognize and utilize what is already within.  

1.  What led you to the mission of being a yoga instructor?

I had been teaching dance aerobics for several years when my facility wanted to add a yoga class to the schedule.  The director asked me if I would consider training to be a yoga instructor because she thought it was a good match with my personality.  I had  always been curious about yoga and was happy to have this opportunity.  I thought it was wonderful that my supervisor recognized an ability in me that I had not.  When I first started the training I wasn’t sure if I could do well, as I had not been very athletic or coordinated as a child and this feeling still haunted me.  However, I eventually learned that the discipline was more about transformation than talent.  Feeling incapable helped me understand how my students might feel.

2.  What does this mission mean to you?

This job is so much fun because I can see people relax and tap into their own potential.  It is not about adding anything in but allowing people to recognize and utilize what is already within. It makes me happy to help people feel healthier and happier.  I like to believe that this positive energy radiates out into the world affecting countless people for the better.

3.  What was your best day as a yoga instructor?

One of my best days as a yoga instructor was when a woman came back to my class after being out of class for a while and told me she was so glad to be back because she felt that her yoga practice had transformed her relationship with a neighbor.  I always do inspirational  readings at the end of class and then an ending meditation.  She said she had been inspired one evening after a yoga class to forgive a neighbor that she hadn’t been speaking to and they had since become friends.  She explained that my end of class meditation had healed her of the anger she had felt.

4.  What was your worst day as a yoga instructor?

My worst moments happen when I see someone frustrated and I feel unable to teach them to be patient with themselves.  I hate to see people quit before giving the practice of yoga a chance.  It is hard not to blame myself for not reaching someone.

5.  How did you survive your worst day?

To cope with this sense of failure, I try to release the egotistical  attitude that I could be responsible for another person’s success OR failure.  I can facilitate and present the ideas but I can’t  force them to utilize them.  I also hope that a seed has been planted and even though it might not be immediately apparent, the seed might sprout eventually  and ultimately bear fruit.  If I can just make a life a little better for someone I feel good.