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The first time I ever went live online was at the start of the pandemic in mid-March 2020. I had never done anything like that before. Boy, was I scared!
I started that week parallel working with Shannon Crow from The Connected Yoga Teacher Facebook group. I had no intention of offering live classes. She suggested putting myself out there despite not having online experience. She encouraged me to just do it, no matter what technology I had available. At the end of our session, I took the leap.
I was blessed to already have a community from my in-person yoga classes. I advertised, offering a live, Slow Flow Yoga, free of charge. They’d receive the gift of yoga, and it’d allow all of us to try Facebook’s online, live platform.
Did I say how nervous I was!?! I was thrilled to have so many people join me. I had a great start to class with folks commenting to let me know they were there. Little did I know that the world had bombarded on Facebook! It was swamped with people utilizing their platform. As a result, the yoga practice dropped before the end of class. I was bummed and worried my students would be disappointed and not return. But that’s not what happened! They kept coming back!
I HAD succeeded in teaching my first live, online class. Just putting myself out there was a huge boost to my self-confidence and encouraged me to explore alternative technologies to connect with my yoga community. Zoom has been a lifesaver for many of us in the yoga community. Live, online, interactive classes have maintained our sanity and connections during the pandemic.
I floundered for awhile with technology and my yoga space. I used an Android phone, two Kindles, and an iPhone to Zoom classes- finally settling on my Kindle to livestream and my iPhone to record. I started teaching in our bedroom with a screen and eventually shifted to our sunroom where there is more natural lighting. I had a flat curtain backdrop and ultimately changed to a rippled curtain to give it a more professional look.
It’s not a perfect setup. I still need more lighting. Yet, the space is inviting. The streaming device functions appropriately for the space, and my video recordings are much clearer. Not only have I successfully taught yoga online, but I’ve created a YouTube channel (YouTube.com/ConnectionsYoga) with over 475 videos for students to utilize when their yoga passes are running out or for a monthly subscription to do yoga on their own time.
The journey has not been easy. It’s definitely been a lot of trial and error. Yet, I’ve triumphed. I’m now confident teaching online yoga. I am able to keep my students connected and continuing their yoga practices. I feel much more comfortable in this stage of my journey, and I look forward to what lies ahead.
Take the next step of this journey with me. Book an in-person, live online, or on-demand class with me: https://connectionsyogava.wixsite.com/yoga/pricing.
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