Hi Reader, The best way for a yoga teacher to get a return on the investment they make in training is to enroll in a program that offers practical, actionable skills for building a sustainable career. Skills like brand development, strategic marketing, and how to design classes and workshops that reflect your unique voice as a teacher. Unfortunately, these skills are often missing from YTT curriculums—making it harder for yoga teachers to recoup the time and money they’ve already invested. Of...
3 days ago • 2 min read
Greetings Reader, What does yoga philosophy say about . . . [fill in the blank]. Physical fitness? Mental health? Religion? Politics? The origins of the universe? The nature of consciousness? What do the teachings of yoga have to say about . . . anything? Well, actually, yoga philosophy has something to say about everything. This may come as a surprise if you think staying focused on the ultimate goal of yoga — realization of the true nature of the self — would narrow the bandwidth of...
7 days ago • 3 min read
Hi Reader, Having a mentor can be a very powerful and empowering experience. I've found that the experience is even more powerful when you're one person among a small group of people who are taking the journey together. Small group mentorship taps into the ancient tradition of yoga, where teachings were passed down from teacher to student in intimate settings. Working in small groups allows for both a personalized approach to developing your unique style as a yoga teacher and the benefit of...
9 days ago • 2 min read
Greetings Reader, You may have seen the recent ruling by the United States Supreme Court against the Trump administration’s attempt to deport Venezuelan migrants without giving them the opportunity to challenge the grounds of their deportation. It was a decision that affirmed the right to due process, a fundamental principle of fairness in legal proceedings and government actions. And thank goodness it did, given that such deportations are intended to be irreversible and condemn those...
14 days ago • 3 min read
Hi Reader, I’m writing to let you know that I’m accepting applications for my next small group mentorship program for yoga teachers, which starts on June 21st. Mentorship offers a special opportunity for personal growth and professional development. It’s a great way to gain knowledge, develop skills, and build confidence. My small group mentorship program is designed to help you grow into the kind of teacher who leaves a lasting impression. You’ll learn how to design classes that integrate...
17 days ago • 2 min read
Greetings Reader, When yoga was introduced to the West at the dawn of the 20th century, it quickly developed a reputation as a peculiar practice for cosmopolitan occultists of questionable sanity. By the time I got interested in yoga, it was seen as a fashionable accoutrement of counter-culture exotica for flower children who wanted to expand their headbands. Now, yoga is a health and wellness regimen that’s so mainstream it qualifies as a humanizing brand narrative in corporate ad campaigns....
21 days ago • 3 min read
Greetings Reader - Our free monthly series, Community Conversations, continues next week. This month, we’re going to talk about how the wisdom tradition of devotional yoga offers us a unifying vision of a possible future as an alternative to the mythic core of fascism. The mythic core of fascism is one of rebirth through purification—as in "Make America Great Again." But at what cost? At the cost of truth, of conscience, of freedom, of the Earth herself! And yet, in the United States, fascism...
24 days ago • 1 min read
Greetings Reader - When I ask yoga teachers which aspects of their craft they want to take to a higher level, expressing cultural appreciation and avoiding cultural appropriation are always near the top of the list. This is, of course, a good thing. Efforts to raise awareness about cultural appropriation have succeeded in drawing attention to negative impacts of colonialism and helped make yoga environments more inclusive. However, they haven’t done much to close the gap between yoga’s...
28 days ago • 4 min read
Greetings Reader - A few weeks ago, I learned a very important lesson. It’s not something that you can use in everyday life; it’s knowledge that’s reserved for special occasions. But on those special occasions, it can mean the difference between mere cordiality and sublime exaltation. It was a revelation that I’m sure will stay with me for the rest of my life because once you hear it, you can’t unhear it. And when the time comes, as it eventually, but inevitably, will, I’ll know exactly what...
about 1 month ago • 2 min read
Greetings Reader - Survival mode can take you places you never wanted to go. I never wanted to go to Huntsville, Alabama. But there I was, living in Rocket City, as culturally displaced as a native New Yorker can be. It wasn’t all bad: I got to see Metallica . . . at the Von Braun Civic Center. Yup: the city’s big arena is named after rocket scientist—and Nazi war criminal—Wernher Von Braun. But it was a great show. Survival mode can also turn you into a person you never wanted to be. I never...
about 2 months ago • 3 min read