Life as a yoga teacher can feel like a grind, but workshops can change that.

Whether you’re a fresh graduate of your 200-hour training or a seasoned teacher, a workshop is a smart next choice for your yoga career. In this episode of Yoga Teacher Confidential, Sage Rountree shares why leading a yoga workshop can elevate your teaching, solve your students’ problems, and build your confidence.

With this episode you’ll learn:

• Why workshops are essential for building confidence and teaching your niche
• How workshops can deepen your students’ yoga practice and loyalty
• The difference between workshops and weekly classes
• How to use feedback to improve future workshops

Introduction (0:00): Why workshops are the perfect next step for yoga teachers.

Workshops Build Confidence (1:00): How leading workshops can help you hone your niche and feel secure in your teaching.

Workshops Test Ideas (3:00): Experimenting with low-commitment content to solve specific problems.

Workshops Can Happen Online (4:43): Expanding the definition of workshops beyond in-person formats.

Workshops Are Like Movies (5:02): Delivering deep, impactful experiences compared to weekly yoga classes.

Stories: Good and Bad (7:30): Lessons learned from teaching workshops early in Sage’s career.

Collect Feedback (12:58): Why gathering feedback is key to improving and iterating workshops.

Give Clear Takeaways (14:24): The importance of providing actionable solutions for your students.

Help Your Students Better (15:43): How workshops support students’ growth and problem-solving.

Scaling Your Career (17:00): Using workshops to diversify your income and teaching impact.

How to Get Started: Resources (17:13): Free and paid tools to help you plan and promote workshops.

Affirmation (18:46): “I help students solve problems with yoga.”

Mentioned resources:

📧 Free 5-Lesson Email Course: Learn how to design and lead your first workshop

📘 Workshop Workbook: The ultimate guide to creating, marketing, and improving yoga workshops

For more insights, subscribe to Yoga Teacher Confidential, check out my YouTube channel, and follow me on socials:

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Want to become (almost) everyone's favorite yoga teacher? Explore my continuing education workshops and 300/500-hour teacher training programs. It's all at sagerountree.com.

Life is hard—but how we show up for our students in difficult times can make all the difference.

In this episode, Sage Rountree shares how to create a consistent, supportive space for yoga students during tough times—for them or for us as teachers.

We'll explore:

Ritual and Consistency

Rituals offer comfort in challenging times. Sage emphasizes the power of a dependable class structure to help students process grief and trauma.

Showing Up for Students While Managing Your Own Emotions

Through personal stories, Sage highlights the importance of a teacher’s presence in helping students feel supported, even when words fall short.

Clean Energy in the Classroom

Focused energy keeps the class centered on students. Providing agency through options allows them to choose movement or stillness based on their needs.

When to Disclose Personal Challenges

Sharing personal stories can foster connection, but knowing when to keep struggles private ensures students remain the focus.

Practical Tips for Teachers

•Have a Go-To Lesson Plan: A familiar sequence helps you hold space when feeling emotionally depleted.

•Prepare for Hard Days: Use focus modes, keep backup subs on call, and prioritize your students’ needs.

Chapters:

Introduction (0:00): Welcome to today’s episode, exploring how yoga teachers can support students during difficult times.

Challenges of Showing Up in Hard Times (0:49): Teaching during national and global tragedies and navigating collective grief.

Consistency and Ritual for Students in Grief (2:03): The stabilizing power of ritual and how to create a dependable class structure.

Maintaining Clean Energy and Showing Up (5:26): Holding space with care and consistency, even in challenging circumstances.

Personal Story: Teaching During a Family Crisis (7:52): Sage shares experiences balancing personal grief and professional responsibilities.

Nothing Lets Go Unless It Feels Supported (14:01): The importance of support in creating space for emotional release.

The Importance of a Go-To Class Plan (18:45): Why every yoga teacher needs a reliable, adaptable lesson plan for tough days.

Conclusion and Affirmation (21:10): Centering students’ agency with the affirmation: “I hold the space with sympathy and clean energy.”

Additional Resources

Get Sage’s go-to lesson plan for challenging days: Greatest Hits Back-Pocket Lesson Plan

For more insights, subscribe to Yoga Teacher Confidential, check out my YouTube channel, and follow me on socials:

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Want to become (almost) everyone's favorite yoga teacher? Explore my continuing education workshops and 300/500-hour teacher training programs. It's all at sagerountree.com.

Ever looked out during a yoga class and thought, “Why do my students look so disengaged? They must be hating this!” Good news: those blank faces are often a sign of deep connection—not disinterest.

In this episode of Yoga Teacher Confidential, Sage Rountree sheds light on the often misunderstood signals yoga teachers receive from their students during class. Discover why blank expressions, furrowed brows, and even sleepy faces could be indicators of a truly engaged, introspective practice. Sage shares her own teaching experiences and valuable insights to help you embrace the quiet, counterintuitive signs of a successful yoga class, freeing yourself from the need to entertain or seek outward validation. Learn to recognize that true connection in yoga is often subtle and inward.

You’ll hear how:

• Students’ expressions in yoga often don’t reflect disengagement; they signal deep personal connection.

• In yoga, unlike in academic or high-intensity fitness classes, students don’t need to actively respond or engage with the instructor.

• Quiet faces, even sleepy ones, often mean students are having an inward experience, processing their practice.

• Focusing on your students’ journey rather than outward engagement frees you from the need to entertain and reinforces your role as a guide rather than the center of attention.

For more, visit Sage’s site: sagerountree.com.

Help me reach and help more yoga teachers like you by following the show and leaving a rating or review on Apple and Spotify!

For more insights, subscribe to Yoga Teacher Confidential, check out my YouTube channel, and follow me on socials:

• Instagram
• Facebook
• Threads
• Pinterest

Want to become (almost) everyone's favorite yoga teacher? Explore my continuing education workshops and 300/500-hour teacher training programs. It's all at sagerountree.com.