If you’ve been struggling with Low Yoga Class Attendance I hope we can work through some reframing techniques to ease frustration.
A few feelings can quickly snowball and feel overwhelming when you’re seeing low numbers week after week especially when you’re giving your best. There are a few valid reasons for feeling a certain way, I’m going to share when it became a burden for me and how I chose to reframe the situation.
1. Getting paid by person or group numbers. This pay scale forces attendance to completely set the mood for a teacher. I worked at a studio and they paid according to class attendance. I was still offering my absolute best if there were 5, 9, or 13. My training was still the same, effort and planning top quality. But pay was never reliable. I was making $15 to $30 over something I could not control, attendance. We can’t control if Mary shows up or if she’d rather hit happy hour.
Worse, the owner did absolutely nothing to market nor promote classes. She was a social media ghost. We had little to no representation online so effort to grow classes was not supported from the studio itself. You can’t grow a business with hands over eyes, ears and mouth. Hope was her strategy.
You have a few choices here. Offer to sit down and explain that the pay should not be based on attendance. Or accept it’s beyond your control and stop counting heads. I fought to get all the teachers paid the same wage. We lost the opportunity to get paid the highest bracket, but no one was ever making it. Our training and planning deserved to be paid not class attendance.
2. Prime Time schedule and waitlist classes. But your 4:30p is only just half full all the time. I began to covet Saturday 10am just because the teacher had a full room. She was sharing IG photos and FOMO wormed its way into my lonely heart.
I started to question if I was just a bad teacher. I’m not, timing does matter! 1pm & 4:30pm are more challenging hours to fill a class. Summer classes are, usually, harder to fill. Timing matters not your ability to teach yoga. Let your boss know as soon as a better time becomes available you’re ready to fill the spot. But most importantly, give what you have to give to however many people are in front of you.
These lighter classes gave me the opportunity to workshop ideas and also work on learning more modifications. When there is a room full of people, it’s harder to serve everyone individually while keeping the space moving. Lower classes really offer time to slow down and perfect your teaching. If you’re new to teaching, embrace the smaller classes as you grow your confidence.
3. Replacement drives regulars away. It is incredibly hard to replace a teacher who has been there for a while and built up her loyal following of yoga troopers. But the same opportunity is available to you. It just takes time. I’ve been the replacement – more times than I can count. Recently I replaced a woman who had been there for over a decade. She was beloved! I won some over, many others I did not. They couldn’t accept my style of teaching after doing the same thing for way too long. But eventually, and I mean eventually, your people will find you.
You will grow your own group. This is when consistency matters. Don’t call in for subs because you’re not feeling it. I worked with a great teacher who would rather call in sick and enjoy the sunshine than show up for her newly taken-over class. She didn’t want to hear how they all missed the former teacher. I don’t blame her, that is exhausting! And students don’t make it easy with their complaining. I’ve heard it and smiled through it.
Press in, take ownership and make the class your own. It will grow. Just like when we prune plants. It can look and feel stunted, but it eventually grows. Think of poor Liam Hemsworth taking over Henry Cavil in the Witcher. Not a show I watch, but I was aware because of all the complaining online. It happens but it still feels overwhelming. Just because one teacher is great doesn’t mean you’re not. Let time reveal you are too!
I’ve also watched my replacement tank a full class. When I was replaced at a studio by someone who was not qualified to teach Yin, that was a bad call on the owner. I was once told by them, “teachers are replaceable. I have 10 resumes on my desk right now.” She figured she could slide anyone into a “specialty” class, and she was wrong. Sadly that once full class dwindled and was removed completely from the schedule. Make sure if you’re replacing – you’re qualified to teach it. Otherwise it will be an uphill climb.
Over the years I have taught 1 student and I have led 200. It was a vibe to look out upon a sea of yogis, but it had absolutely nothing to do with me being Stef Layton. They came out for free yoga in the park! They came out all summer long for free yoga as each weekend was taught by a different teacher. I didn’t offer them something better than a class of just 2 or 3 students. Because excellence is not audience-dependent
Reframing Low Yoga Class Attendance Frustration
Teach your best regardless. Notice why the number you have in front of you bothers you. Is it something you can control? If not, acknowledge and call it what it is – uncontrollable.
I believe yoga is a gift. We’re offering an hour of something completely different from the rest of the day to day. Yoga class is a gift to 3, it’s a gift to 15, it’s a gift to 300. The size of your class is irrelevant. What you’re offering matters.
I know we live in a numbers dominant world. The scale is numbers driven. Our clothing sizes are numbers. Our age is a number. Anniversaries add up to a number. Our paycheck is a list of numbers. Our teaching hours and RYT status are numbers driven. Naturally, the size of class becomes a numbers game too. But hear me out, it’s not worth playing.
Instead of counting how many are not in the room, pour into the ones who did show up. The ones who will be changed by your class.
“So you start one person at a time. Change one person, you can change a village.” – Robin Quivers.
From my mat to yours.
Stef
If You’re a Studio Owner and Numbers Matter
Help grow your teacher’s classes!
1. Get on social media, stop making excuses why you’re not good at it. Any presence is better than no presence at all. Promote your teaching staff, you should be proud of them.
2. Be neighborly. Chat with the local businesses and offer some beneficial deal. Either a discount to their shop or a first time free class for their employees. Word of mouth is king in marketing.
3. Add fun one-off classes: sound healing, mala bead making, date night couples, yoga workshops, etc. Glowga is a vibe and people will pour out for fun events. Don’t chase people with membership info. Just offer a fun night and let it speak for itself. This also generates more money and a loyal fan base.