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Dear Hali,

You are about to embark on one of the most difficult yet beautiful journeys that you can ever imagine, being a yoga teacher. Your new role carries a lot of responsibility. And, although you may not understand what I am talking about now, one day it will be crystal clear.

One day, you will see clearly that it will be up to you to uphold what has been taught to you by your Gurus and Mentors. And, that your Gurus and Mentors are people too. They may have taught you The Sutras and Eight limbs of Yoga but they are human. Being human requires us to be weak sometimes so don’t be surprised if they do not practice what they preach.

Begin to see yourself as a brand. A brand protects itself from harm and holds itself up to a certain standard in order to maintain integrity and neutrality. This will help you stay out of your Ego and teach from a more humble perspective.

I know you have a lot of passion, thirst and hunger to teach but contain your drive. Don’t waste your vibrancy and energy on people and things that are irrelevant to the present moment. Lead by practicing the way that you want your students to. Come from a place of humility, always!

‘True humility is staying teachable, regardless of how much you already know’, so take other teachers’ classes, learn from them and always say thank you regardless of what you liked/disliked about the way that they taught.

Free yourself of un-necessary judgement. Some judgement is necessary; however, don’t spend your life telling people what they are doing wrong. When you come into this role, you will see what a lot of students are doing wrong. Correct them, yes! But, remind yourself that they are doing their best. Trust your students to find it in their bodies by using their intuition.

There will be many people who have something negative to say about your class but you are not teaching for them. You are teaching to spread the word of yoga, the yoga that can enlighten, can help move negative energy out of the body and can give one’s body an array of health benefits that we never knew was possible.

Yours truly,