As a yoga teacher, your passion lies in guiding others towards physical and mental wellness. However, to sustain your practice and thrive in your career, it's essential to master the business side of yoga. Today I want to explore practical financial planning and budgeting strategies tailored specifically for yoga teachers.
The first question I have for you is, ‘Do you actually know how much money you want to make on yoga?’ When you really think about it, it's not just a random number; it's a budget that aligns with your lifestyle and career aspirations. This number is a clear goal towards which you are taking or going to take strategic, logical, and calculative actions.
Now, let’s say you set your target, for example, $10,000 per month. The next question is, ‘How do you get there?’
Creating a financial plan is your number one action that you have to take, and it has to be written, not just in your head. Having this in your head will be just an idea without any strategic steps towards it, but having it on paper will help to create a clear roadmap towards your goal.
Basically, it is your yoga business dashboard, a fully automated Excel form. You just need to put certain numbers there, and it will give you a very clear analysis of where you currently stand financially;
there are income and expense trackers and graphs, which again will give you a clear picture of your next actions; and there is a goal-setting button that will enable you to reach your desired monthly income.
This guide also includes 25 different yoga business ideas to help you explore various income opportunities.
Once you set your financial goal, the second step is to learn about your current income and expenses. By tracking your income and expenses, you gain a clear understanding of your financial health and stability. This knowledge allows you to make informed decisions about your business operations and ensures that you can cover your expenses while generating a sustainable income. You might be surprised at how much you are missing, and you might find some hidden expenses.
Again, list down all your current income sources as a yoga teacher; it could be group or individual classes, maybe some workshops, online courses, or yoga retreats. The same needs to be done for your expenses; remember to note down even small numbers, like transportation fares. By analysing your income and expenses, you can identify areas of opportunity for increasing revenue and reducing costs. So, don’t ignore anything.
We’ve come to step number three: identifying opportunities for both revenue increases and cost reductions.
First, look into your expenses, because they are ignored the most. Understanding your expenses allows you to set pricing for your yoga classes, workshops, and services.
For example, your private yoga classes. A lot of yoga teachers set up the class price as per the market rate without much thought; they don’t consider yoga studio rent costs, travel expenses, or yoga teacher course expenses. Your mindset has to shift here, because this approach is wrong.
When you set pricing on your offerings, you need to keep in mind that your value as a yoga teacher and your class value are different; your class value needs to include your expenses. Does it make sense?
For example, if you want to charge $60 for your individual session and you pay $15 studio rent plus $5 travel expenses, then this $20 needs to be added on top of your original $60. So, final price for your offering is $ 80. And, if it happens that the studio charge goes up, your class price also has to go up.
What I am trying to say is: don’t settle for less; your goal is to get $60, and it’s not like you are robbing your clients; you are being reasonable, and you have a very clear explanation why you set this price. Does it make you feel better now?
Now let’s talk about more exciting things: how to increase your monthly revenue—step number four. We’ve already discussed offering price setting, so I’m sure you will do the needful there.
Now, look at your current sources of revenue, identify them, and write down four things:
If you have only one source of income at the moment, just mark it under the right category and think of at least one more source of income that you may be able to add to your offerings. You can refer to my free guide, ’25 Ideas on How to Make $10,000 as a Yoga Teacher’.
Look at your offering with the highest price; this is your number one priority and focus. Don’t jump ahead; we'll talk about actions later.
Now, check the least-consuming service; most likely, it will be something targeting the mass market. Maybe you sell meditations, offer online courses, or create guides for home practice. If you feel this offering has more potential and you can reach a larger audience, set this as your second focus.
Ok, it is the right moment to check the most time-consuming servicing. Ask yourself: Is it worth doing it? Does it bring you the desired results on both short and long runs?
The last thing I want is for you to look at your services at the lowest price. Do you think you want to continue that? Or would you rather spend this time on your top two priorities and make it work?
Before we jump into the last part, I want to remind you of one thing: you cannot have more than two priorities at the same time, especially if you are just starting and need more time to settle things in order.
Imagine you need to carry big watermelons in your hands. How many would you be able to carry? Most likely one, and what you can do is leave the second watermelon behind, carry the first one slightly forward, keep it down, and then go back for the second one and bring it to your first one.
The same applies to your business and growth. It is very hard to focus on multiple things, especially if you don’t have a team. Once you learn and automate/put on auto-pilot mode the process, or get a Team, you can add one more 'watermelon' into your hands.
The last and equally important step is step five: action setting and execution.
This is something you need to sit on for some time and create small steps towards your priorities. Your actions will depend on your focus. I again encourage you to write it down, create a plan, and set healthy timelines (I emphasize - healthy timelines!).
Regardless of your choice and focus, below is what applies to pretty much anything; you can choose a few actions that you feel you will be able to stick with and slowly add more to your list.
Tips: Reuse your content; it saves you a lot of time.
Grow Your Email List: Offer a freebie, such as a meditation guide or yoga sequence, in exchange for email sign-ups to build a loyal subscriber base.
Tips: Use social media and create your content all around your freebies.
Network with Influencers: Collaborate with influencers and other yoga professionals to expand your reach and tap into new audiences.
Collect Testimonials and Reviews: Encourage satisfied clients to leave positive reviews and testimonials to build credibility and trust with potential customers.
Tips: continually share the voice of your customer on your social media/website/blog.
Click Pictures and take Videos of your workshops/retreats, students, etc. and use them for social media marketing. If possible, invest in professional photography or videography to create visually appealing content that showcases your services and attracts potential clients. That's probably the only investment I would encourage you to make.
Regardless of whether you are just starting or continuing to grow your business, stay consistent and persistent. Success in any endeavour requires consistency and persistence, so stay committed to your goals and continue to take action towards building a successful yoga business.
✅ Join my Yogipreneur 101 Program, an 8-week journey with live sessions designed to empower yoga teachers with the knowledge and tools to build and scale a thriving yoga business.
✅ Download a FREE Guide '25 Ideas for Reaching $10,000 Monthly as a Yoga Teacher' with automated Yoga Business Excel Planner & Calculator.
✅ Sign up for Yoga Teachers Weekly Newsletters to get secret discounts for my upcoming courses; get some inspiration and learn tips and tricks on yoga business and revenue generation.
✅ Join my Online Individual Yoga and Yoga Therapy Live Sessions for a personalized recovery plan and to elevate your practice to the next level.
✅ Practice with me on my YouTube Channel.
✅ Find me on Instagram, I'd love to chat with you!
Stay Blessed! Stay Inspired!
Namaste!
Sviatlana Y.
