Personal Growth

7 Steps to Stand Out as a Yoga and Wellness Teacher

7 Steps to Stand Out as a Yoga and Wellness Teacher
The wellness industry is booming—in fact, the global wellness industry is a $3.7 trillion market. The Yoga Alliance reports that in 2016, 80 million people were estimated to try yoga for their first time. Their study shows the number of U.S. practitioners has increased to more than 36 million, up from 20.4 million in 2012. In some cities, where it was once difficult to find a single yoga studio, they are now more prevalent and easier to find than a local Starbucks.

Facing these staggering statistics can be exhilarating, overwhelming, and daunting all at the same time for new, passionate yoga teachers or wellness coaches, or for seasoned practitioners, who may find it frustrating to now compete with new neighbors. For many, it can seem nearly impossible to rise above the noise and stand out in the crowd. So how do you make your mark and stand out in the wellness industry these days?

Well, the good news is this: You don’t need to jump on the latest fad or change who you are. You simply must know yourself, be yourself, and communicate that clearly with others. Showcasing who you are through your personal brand is the number one most important thing you should understand as a yoga or wellness teacher to stand out and attract your tribe.

Personal branding is all about exploring, uncovering, and sharing what makes you unique and finding the right tribe that is looking for you to support them. Here are seven steps to creating an irresistible personal brand and becoming a recognized wellness professional this year:

1. Be Comfortable and Confident in Who You Are

This one might seem like it goes without saying, but complete confidence is no small feat and a lack of confidence can be a real buzz kill for you and the people you serve. Confidence comes from the Latin word confidere, which means “with full trust.” You must have full trust in yourself before others can fully trust you. The best way to have confidence is to continue to deepen the mastery of your craft as well as your understanding of your personal brand. A great way to increase your self-awareness and confidence is by discovering your strengths, skills, passions, and purpose through assessments and 360-degree feedback from friends, family, and colleagues.

2. Embrace Your Story

Most wellness professionals don’t choose their path lightly or because they had nothing better to do. You have a unique backstory, and you chose to help others on their path because of that story. Write it down, find the nuggets of wisdom and truth, and tell your students and clients. Find the points that resonate most and streamline your story into something easily shared and digested that hits home with others.

3. Create Your Personal Brand Vision

Having a vision means imagining your ideal version of how you use your mission or purpose; it describes what you see as possible in your life and in the world. Your vision is often bigger than what you can individually accomplish, but includes the role you will take to contribute. You can discover exactly how to create your personal brand vision by visiting this website.

4. Find Your Specialty and Niche

Once you get clear on your story and your vision, you may start to see a pretty clear specialty forming. Some themes should come up about what your focus within the industry is. Some examples might be nutritional consulting for digestive wellness, yoga for heartbreak or improved relationships, or wellness coaching for migraine sufferers. Your specialty and your niche are intricately connected.

Once you define who specifically would benefit the most from your specialty or who would be most attracted to your core values and interests, you will know exactly how to build your classes or consults and who to market them to. Working with a brand strategist might help you uncover these pieces and create a message that fits your personal brand.

5. Build a Visual Recognition of Your Brand

Visual recognition is what people most often associate with branding (i.e., your logo and website colors and fonts). Although your personal brand is much more than just these things, creating visual recognition is an important part of personal branding. Do this part only once you are feeling confident in who you are and have a clear vision and a defined specialty and niche. You will want to find both a designer and brand photographer to create your visual brand identity around your messaging and target audience.

6. Create Multiple Consistent Channels of Exposure

Next, you must consider various ways to gain exposure beyond just your classes or primary services. Consider starting a blog and posting on social media channels, but only create profiles that you can consistently post valuable information on. This is a great way for people to get to know more about you without interacting directly with you. It can be a lot of upfront work, but the great news is once you create a piece of valuable content, it will always be there to refer people to.

7. Rinse and Repeat

It is important to recognize that your personal brand will be ever-evolving. As you change, evolve, and gain experience, your brand will also shift and evolve. The above steps are not a one-time process, but rather processes you will come back to time and time again to gain clarity and craft a deeper message for your personal brand, students, and clients.

In conclusion, the most successful yoga and wellness teachers are confident, they have a clear story, vision, and personal brand identity—plus, they know how to communicate that with their target audience. It is not difficult but it is necessary for you to go through the seven steps above to create the foundation of your personal brand and stand out from the crowd this year. Take some time out to plan for your success and there is no doubt you will create the yoga or wellness career of your dreams!



Are you ready to take your yoga classes or coaching to the next level? Click here to learn more about Chopra’s Coaching Enrichment Program.