An Ode to Part-Time Yoga Teachers 💗

Dec 06, 2024

Hi everyone — I had so much fun hearing from the part-time yoga teachers who responded to my call on social media. The responses are below and we also just published a Yogaland episode featuring their stories (I’ve linked to it at the bottom of this page.)

A few notes:

There are minor edits below for length and readability.
I’ve included photos and social media handles if people included them — go support each other and check them out!
If you’re reading and wish to share your part-time teaching story, please do so in the comments!

Thank you to everyone who participated! It made my heart so happy to hear from you.

Andrea

Name: Blossom Namsom Law

Where she teaches: Awakened Yoga Studio, TX

Instagram: @BlossomBeing.yoga

Tell us about yourself. How long have you been teaching? How did you decide to teach part-time?
Hello! I’m Blossom, or Namsom.

I’m Thai and moved to the U.S. less than 10 years ago. I worked in the book and art industry in Thailand for a decade before moving here, where a new chapter of my life began.

In the U.S., I became a full-time mom and spent 3–4 years navigating postpartum depression. I was fortunate enough to return to yoga, which helped me feel like myself again. Becoming a yoga teacher had been a long-time calling, and I finally stepped into this world last year, taking YTT in a local studio. I started to teach right away. I love it.

I teach part-time because that’s what works for me now. My main responsibility is still being a mom and managing my home, and I embrace it. I currently teach a few times a week and am looking for more opportunities to teach within the limited time I have while my two kids are at school.

Oh, and I’m also a mom to two cats! They came with me from Thailand and love joining Jason’s class—lol!

2. What other jobs do you do?

I’m a full-time mom, and I’m also trying to draw and paint more, creating art again.

Teaching part-time really helps me balance my life as a full-time mom, which is the most challenging job I’ve ever had. It’s so easy to fall into that tiny little world where all you see is your kids and your family’s schedule. As parents, we are teaching our kids to be independent from us in the future. At the same time, we need to learn to be independent from our kids too. Letting them grow and giving them space to be by themselves sometimes is good.

Teaching yoga and connecting with people through it gives me the opportunity to step away from my family’s needs for a while, and it’s so meaningful.

3. What are some of the challenges of teaching yoga part-time?

When it comes to something part-time, it might not sound very serious, but I’m actually very serious about it. Sometimes I feel like a jerk when people around me see how much I invest in my part-time job. I invest my money and my time, yet I earn so little teaching just a few hours a week. I know what I’m doing, but it’s not easy.

4. What is it that keeps you going as a part-time teacher?

Knowing what I’m doing is the key to staying grounded.

Seeing my family—my husband and kids—gain something intangible, not just money, from me teaching yoga is much more meaningful. I love that my kids have learned that to be good at anything, they have to practice and practice—there’s no shortcut. I love that they enjoy moving their bodies, just as I do. My husband, an investor who didn’t initially agree with my decision to become a yoga teacher, is starting to see that life’s rewards aren’t always financial but can also come from knowledge and good health.

I have to revisit and check in with myself often—reflecting on what I’m doing and what I want to see next. This practice keeps me at peace, even as I look for more opportunities to teach and grow as a yoga teacher.

Thanks for reading Yogaland! This post is public so feel free to share it.

Name: Rosa Aronson

Where she teaches: Kiss Yoga studio in Ocean Isle Beach, NC

Instagram: @rosaaronsonyoga

Tell us about yourself. How long have you been teaching? How did you decide to teach part-time?
I have been teaching since 2017. I started YTT after retiring from my position and subsequently did my 300 hour Training. I am 71 years old and teaching part time has provided me with a sense of balance in my life. I also practice an Ashtanga based style if yoga. I will continue as long as my body allows.
What other jobs do you do?
After I retired from an association executive position, I was called back as a contractor during COVID, and then again in 2024 when the next executive director left after just two years.
What are some of the challenges of teaching yoga part-time?
It doesn’t pay much, LOL. But I don’t see many challenges.
What is it that keeps you going as a part-time teacher?
Teaching part-time has allowed me to grow in my own practice and to participate in trainings with Jason.

When I am at the studio teaching, I am able to focus on helping students. They are always so grateful for the opportunity they have to get to know themselves better. We laugh a lot, too. Which I don’t do in my other job 😁

Name: Sara Evans

Where she teaches: Bloom Yoga Room

Instagram: @bloomyogaroom

Tell us about yourself. How long have you been teaching? How did you decide to teach part-time?
I did my YTT in 2009. I didn’t plan to teach, but wanted to deepen my yoga practice and learn more about prenatal yoga — I was pregnant with my daughter during my YTT.

I taught part-time and worked a corporate role as a business analyst and mothered my young kids. In 2011, I opened a small suburban studio part time — the first of its kind in my area. It took off pretty quickly, which I was not expecting! So, after 18 months I went full time into teaching at the studio.
I taught full time for 10 years. Then in March 2023 decided I had enough of running a business. I’d made it through the pandemic and was still thriving financially, but wasn’t loving teaching for a living anymore.
In September 2023 ,I closed down my studio and took a six-month sabbatical with my family to Europe who are now teens. When I returned,I wasn’t ready to give up teaching altogether, so I now teach part-time and I’ve gone back to full-time non-yoga work for the last 6 months. It was a bit of a trip initially, but I am LOVING the flip. It was exactly what I needed!
What other jobs do you do?
I work as a personal assistant for the department of education of Western Australia. It’s so refreshing after working for myself for so long — I love the routine, the regularity of a paycheck, and not having to make money from yoga has allowed me to fall back in love with just being a yoga teacher when it suits me.
What are some of the challenges of teaching yoga part-time?
I feel like teaching part time is less about the money you make and more about getting to teach. I chose yoga and for 10 years it was challenging, fulfilling, and provided me the freedom I needed in that time. I have zero regrets and I’m proud to have stepped back and chosen myself because that can be hard to do when you’re so invested in your students and all that you’ve built.
What is it that keeps you going as a part-time teacher?
It’s the students for me that lift me up! Admittedly, I have smaller classes now but the numbers game doesn’t matter as much as the students, many of whom are older, some who have grown with me over the years and truly have an appreciation of being in their bodies. It’s not fast or hard like it once was. It’s comfort and community above all else! Oh, and I feel like I’ve found my feet as a teacher again!

Name: Kristin Helena Vestrheim

Where she teaches: Kristiansand, Norway and online

Instagram: @kristinhelena.yoga

Tell us about yourself. How long have you been teaching? How did you decide to teach part-time?
I have been teaching for almost five years. I completed YTT just before covid hit. I did my YTT with the intention to teach a little bit. I have a "dayjob" that I enjoy, and with four children I need the predictability of a steady income.
I didn't expect to love teaching yoga as much as I do, and in a dream world I would be able to live off just teaching yoga.
What other jobs do you do?
My dayjob is a a clinical psychologist in a psychiatric unit. Teaching yoga is a wonderful complement.

It can be quite tough being a psychologist, at times it can feel quite hopeless and the suffering I encounter is immense.

Teaching yoga I get so much job satisfaction. I really feel that I make a differenceand I need that feeling. To watch 20 people leaving class with a happy smile on their face is immensely satisfying. And from the feedback I get, I know yoga contributes in a real way to people feeling better in themselves and in their bodies. So, the two jobs really helps me feeling balanced.

That said, there is a lot of cross-over with yoga and psychology (hello nervous system regulation), and I do use yoga, breathwork and mindfulness in individual therapy too. I also teach trauma sensitive yoga in the hospital which is a lovely and important part of treatment.
What are some of the challenges of teaching yoga part-time?
Time! I would love to teach more classes but that takes time from my children, my puppy, and my own practice. Finding a balance is a challenge.
I want to do more things than I have time for. I have a lot of ideas but not enough time to make them reality.

Also, if I’m able to teach more classes in a row, I get into a different teaching groove somehow. It is hard to explain, but I feel like a better, more effective teacher. So teaching less may be an impediment.
What is it that keeps you going as a part-time teacher?
I love teaching yoga. I feel that my dharma is to help people feel good, to heal, and find their centre — and teaching yoga is a way that I get to do that.
I teach various types of yoga, from arm balances and inversions, to therapeutic styles. The expressions of my teaching and the results are different, but the same. It's all the same, helping people, through the magic of yoga, to feel well, strong, connected.

When someone tells me that a class has made a difference to them it is so meaningful to me. Like the lady who said she believed that she was too old and weak for Crow and she proved herself wrong. She walked out with such a "I'm a bad-ass" attitude.

As for personal growth, I think teaching yoga is one of the first things where I have felt "I am good at this" (at least at times), people want what I have to offer. I have challenged myself to get up and speak and teach in front of people after hiding in the shadows most of my life. I take myself less seriously and have learned that I can even make people laugh. I am more brave, putting myself out there and risking rejection. And, knowing that I do good in the world, makes me feel really good.

Name: Maria Urso

Where she teaches: Freeport, PA — Numa Yoga Studio

Personal Instagram: @lilurspg01

Studio Instagram: @numayogastudio

Tell us about yourself. How long have you been teaching? How did you decide to teach part-time?
December 4th will be my one year anniversary for teaching. I started yoga shortly after COVID hit. During a time when our society was isolated and scrambling, I found that being on Covid lock down gave me the chance to finally figure out the truth of who I really was.

After battling an ongoing eating disorder (and other addictions) since I was 12, a COVID shut down along with some free Yoga with Adrienne on YouTube transformed my life in ways I would have never imagined possible. It helped me heal my relationship with food, addiction, and over-exercising. I had shed so many tears at night thinking there was something wrong with me, thinking that my body defined who I was, or how much love I was able to receive. But here I am, 20 years later, happy to report that I am becoming the young, beautiful, strong woman I had always hoped I’d be!

When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, I started to feel uneasy, scared, and vulnerable again. I knew I needed to find some more spirituality and purpose in my life. The Catholic faith that I had grown up with had helped so many members of my family during this time, but it just didn’t provide that same feeling for me. And after the transformation I saw in myself from practicing yoga those past 2 years, I decided to sign up for the 200 YTT.

I didn’t anticipate teaching right away, but the stars aligned when a new yoga studio opened up minutes away from where I lived right after my YTT graduation. I realized maybe my purpose in life was to bring the practice that gave me so much hope, self love, and a peace of mind to others.
What other jobs do you do?
I work as a customer service rep for the automotive industry full time, 8-5 Monday through Friday.
I do find that I have more patience and understanding for customers and coworkers than I had in the before I was introduced to yoga. I also am able to find more gratitude in just being able to a full time job.

Right now, it’s mostly only serving me as a paycheck to help with bills. I would love to be able to teach yoga full time. I know I could probably hustle and make it work, but I think the universe will let me know when my time is ready for that change. Until then, part time teaching has allowed me to study yoga, teach yoga, and work a full time job.

A win/win/win.
What are some of the challenges of teaching yoga part-time?
A big challenge of mine with part time teaching is always wanting to say yes. The thought of letting students down by having to cancel a class because no one can cover it is really reallllly hard.

The studio owner is also such an incredible and loving person to work for! She has given me so much support and confidence in my abilities to teach. And she really took a risk by hiring me (a newbie!) right after I got my teaching certification. I am forever thankful to her for giving me that chance. I never want to let her down, the studio down or the students down.
What is it that keeps you going as a part-time teacher?
What keeps me going as a part time teacher is… yoga!

I learn just as much from my students while teaching and I do from my own practice. I love watching the community grow as I had watched myself grow with this practice.

We created such a beautiful space at Numa that feels safe and supportive. We try to encourage honest connections with ourselves and others. I don’t see myself ever backing away from this practice. And when I do feel like I haven’t showed up on the mat in a while, I know it’s because I probably need even more yoga in my life, lol.
This practice is so beautiful and inspiring and has even helped me understand my religion that I grew up with. Another spiritual force that serves so many of us daily.

Name: Linda Post

Where she teaches: Recently certified; looking forward to teaching in her retirement.

Tell us about yourself. How long have you been teaching? How did you decide to teach part-time?
I have been practicing yoga for almost three decades. It has saved me many times and continues to provide me gratitude and peace. I am nearing retirement, and started thinking that teaching yoga could be my next chapter in life. I completed the yoga training program through Breathe for Change, which was an excellent decision.
I recently became certified this past August, I am still working full-time, and looking to do a community yoga program in my neighborhood.
The original purpose for me pursuing this program is so that when I do retire, I get to share what I love doing, practicing yoga, with other people. This also would offer me a sense of purpose each morning, knowing that I would be able to share this passion a few times a week with others, hoping they can experience the same enjoyment as I do.
What other jobs do you do?
I am a special ed teacher in a middle school/high school. My days are filled with noise, an infinite amount of decision-making and a great deal of stress. Being on my feet and standing most of the day is extremely uncomfortable for me. Working on my own yoga practice has helped me find balance in my life, and help me to feel a sense of calmness and stillness.
What are some of the challenges of teaching yoga part-time?
I feel a little intimidated, going to yoga studios, knowing I am so much older than the other students attending class. Despite my years of practicing yoga, I feel starting in a smaller program would help to build my level of confidence.

Name: Maria Caldwell

Where she teaches: Dublin, Galway, and online

Instagram: @caldwellmaria

Tell us about yourself. How long have you been teaching? How did you decide to teach part-time?
I’ve been teaching for 21 years!

I did my initial teacher training because I wanted to learn more about yoga than I was getting in my weekly classes.
I’ve only ever wanted to teach part time because I wanted to have a professional career and a regular stable income. Because of my personality type I know this was the best choice for me — I didn’t want this thing I loved to be a cause of stress trying to make an income. In Ireland yoga teachers do not get paid well. Being a yoga practitioner and student is something I want to do for the rest of my life. Teaching part time and having a regular, stable income has allowed me to actually practice more, learn more about yoga.
What other jobs do you do?
I work in an International NGO in donor development. Teaching yoga is a way for me to step out of the 'office mode’ of my day-to-day, and do something I’m passionate about. I like my 'main job' a lot, and I work with great people. Social justice is something I deeply care about and I am 'activist-adjacent'. Yoga is a complement to this in many ways. I see it as a privilege to be able to share teachings and tools to help people in their daily life. It definitely helps me feel more balanced.
What are some of the challenges of teaching yoga part-time?
Teaching on weekends for workshops or trainings can mean there is a bit of pressure on your free time. But when the rest of your family and friend group are free on the weekend, and you are not - this can sometimes be tricky to manage. Important to take at least one or two full weekends off per month.
What is it that keeps you going as a part-time teacher?
What keeps me going is that I love teaching yoga. I feel like its an amazing honor and privilege to be entrusted to share these teachings.

Name: Angie Noden

Where she teaches: Yoga Pod, Fort Collins, Colorado

Instagram: @angienoden

Tell us about yourself. How long have you been teaching? How did you decide to teach part-time?
I have been teaching for about three years. I didn’t plan to teach when I started my YTT, but ultimately felt compelled to teach by the end of it.

My primary job takes a lot of mental and physical energy, so I am only able to teach one class per week. There are four set sequences that I teach beginners so that takes another layer of prep off of my plate. I also help with the teacher trainings at my studio and recently co-led a workshop for yoga teachers about how to teach folks who are new to yoga.
What other jobs do you do?
I am an assistant principal at an elementary school. I love teaching in a school setting so much, and I don’t get to do it anymore in my current role, so teaching yoga fulfills that need for me.

I teach beginners because I really believe that the world would benefit if more people practiced yoga and I know I can create an inclusive and welcoming space for people who are new to the practice.

In my job as an assistant principal, I help students who are experiencing strong emotions and so we do a lot of nervous system regulation and breathing. So, I would say that my jobs definitely overlap in various ways. I also lead yoga classes for my staff a few times a year, which is a nice way for them to unwind after a busy day.
What are some of the challenges of teaching yoga part-time?
I don’t think there are really any challenges for me other than I wish I could teach more!
What is it that keeps you going as a part-time teacher?
Honestly, teaching beginners is so fulfilling. It is super rewarding to watch people get to know the practice, to be in their body, and to teach them critical thinking skills. I teach them how to adjust their practice so they can start to take more advanced classes.

Name: Abra

Where she teaches: Ames, Iowa

Tell us about yourself. How long have you been teaching? How did you decide to teach part-time?
I have been teaching for two-and-a-half years. I knew I wanted to teach part-time when I started YTT.
What other jobs do you do?
I am a dental hygienist who quit after YTT, but have recently starting to fill in at an office. I also work part-time at my local library. I’m a mom of two girls. I adjust my schedule and only work in the early morning or during school hours, so it won’t affect them.
What are some of the challenges of teaching yoga part-time?
Teaching part time is really a blessing for me so I don’t see many challenges in it.
What is it that keeps you going as a part-time teacher?
Seeing the students’ growth, seeing them become stronger, teaching them a new way to feel their body.

I enjoy the relationships with the students. Welcoming them back from cancer treatments, children’s weddings, vacations, college finals. It’s hard not to form a relationship with them even when I only talk to them a few minutes before and after class.

Name: Amy Farajian

Where she teaches:

Instagram: @amyfarajian

Tell us about yourself. How long have you been teaching? How did you decide to teach part-time?
I've been teaching for about five years now. I had every intention of teaching when I went into my YTT.
I only want to teach part-time and am privileged to do just that. No matter how small our home may be, I have shelter. We have a house filled with food. We are able to pay our bills, and our grown college children are doing well.
I appreciate that I’m able to teach in a way that keeps me sane — aligned my mission of serving my community — and make a wee bit of money on the side. Also, since I am extremely introverted, I can only handle people-ing for so long. I need my quiet down time to breathe and recharge.
What other jobs do you do?
I am a Mom first and foremost. I had a career and then stepped away to raise our children. I loved it. Teaching part-time allow me to still be available for my children (ages 18 and 21) when needed, spend valuable time with my husband, and keep up my passion of yoga and serving my community.
I only teach in Pleasant Hill. I occasionally get offered spots outside of my community, but I always turn them down. My entire goal has been to be with my people (my husband and children), while teaching yoga at an accessible price point for the older community in my area who may be on a fixed income. Could I make more? Yup. However, I'm have a mission and I’m following my heart.
What are some of the challenges of teaching yoga part-time?
Part-time isn't really part-time. There's the unpaid prep (which I still love), the constant classes we enroll in advance our knowledge of yoga. There's the emails, the computer work. There's the room set-up and take down (some places). There's the staying after with students to hear their stories, to help them out in various ways. That said — challenges mean growth.
What is it that keeps you going as a part-time teacher?
My love of yoga, and the students. I really enjoy seeing them. I am extremely introverted but they still make me happy and smile. When I notice a student hasn't been to class in a few weeks, I check in on them. They feel seen.
I teach to mostly retired people. It's so awesome to see them grow stronger, when the aging population generally trends in the opposite direction. I love hearing that they feel stronger, they sleep better, they feel good in their bodies. And honestly — because of Jason's way of teaching, I often get told by many students that they like how I make things accessible for them in their bodies.

Name: Sasha

Where she teaches: The Hague, Netherlands

Instagram: @atyukova

Tell us about yourself. How long have you been teaching? How did you decide to teach part-time?
I’ve been teaching for five years. I started to teach before my YTT — it was the first lockdown in 2020 and my friends asked me if I could teach a class online. After my YTT, I rented a place and taught full time. I couldn’t make it financially — teaching in studios with two small children didn’t seam feasible, and decided to teach part-time.
What other jobs do you do?
I work 32 hours per week in demand planning. Yoga is my hobby job. I love teaching yoga; it feels like I do something meaningful. People come in and they leave saying that they feel better. In the corporate world, I miss this feeling. Also, teaching other people somehow grounds me, calming down.
What are some of the challenges of teaching yoga part-time?
Sometimes I feel that I have no spare energy left to share. I have two children and I am a single mom, so there is just a lot on my plate. There are times that I feel that I’m not prepared enough for my class, and that I could have done a better job.
What is it that keeps you going as a part-time teacher?
I like my students. I enjoy seeing how they develop their skills and seeing that yoga actually works. I also feel a responsibility, like I can’t let them down. My yoga job feels also like my place, there is more of me here and I try to keep going even in really busy times.

Name: Dee Fey

Where she teaches: Paoli PA, Phoenixville PA, West Chester PA

Instagram: @deeda8

Tell us about yourself. How long have you been teaching? How did you decide to teach part-time?
I’ve been teaching since 2018. I thought I would teach flow when I graduated from my 200 YTT, but I studied YIN right away with Corina Benner and fell in love with the dark side. I focused on YIN and my goal was to niche myself in YIN. I obtained a 2nd certification with Nyk Danu in therapeutic YIN. Fast forward to present moment, I teach exclusively YIN and sub flow. I also build workshops around YIN.
What other jobs do you do?
I am a trainer for a Travel Agent and train all new hires that come through our door.

Sometimes I’m really tired when I’ve been training nonstop and my cup is empty when I arrive at my classes. But 15 minutes into the class, I find my grounding after breathing with my class.

It does balance me to end my day with a YIN practice. If I sub flow, I’m more exhausted because compared to YIN it’s so much talking!
What are some of the challenges of teaching yoga part-time?
My 3 challenges teaching part time yoga:
1. Time to prep for classes
2. Having an empty cup
3. Just needing a break from teaching at times
What is it that keeps you going as a part-time teacher?
My goal to keep teaching part time. I continue to build so that when I retire from my FT gig very soon I have a “something” to do that I love, is familiar, and already established.

Name: Shelly Rasnick

Where she teaches: Stanford Medical Campus, Movement Santa Clara

Instagram: @shellras

Tell us about yourself. How long have you been teaching? How did you decide to teach part-time?
I was first introduced to yoga during undergrad, which was a challenging, transitory time for me. Yoga helped ground me and give me tools to cope with the uncertainties of life. I embarked on my YTT journey in 2017, with the intent to be able to share the practice with others. I have spent the majority of my career focused on the holistic support of students in the university setting, and knowing how foundational yoga is to my own health and well-being, it felt like a necessary next step to think about how to bring its benefits to others.
What other jobs do you do?
I have a full time job in higher education where I support graduate students in their health, well-being, and access to resources that support their academics.
My job involves helping to carry some heavy burdens for others as they navigate the stressors of academia. It’s a big job with a lot of moving parts, which can leave me feeling stressed and ungrounded. My personal yoga practice is an important part of dealing with the chaos. My teaching complements my role nicely — the tools and philosophy I’ve learned from my teacher training apply to many of my conversations.
I've been able to offer free, open community classes for our students, which has been one of my favorite things about my entire job. It breaks down barriers to connection, helps me build relationships, and adds a unique layer of support that I am able to offer to others.
What are some of the challenges of teaching yoga part-time?
Finding the time and schedule coordination! I became a mom this year and that has added a whole new element to juggling all the competing priorities. Right now, teaching my evening yoga classes means missing bed time with my son. I struggle with missing that time, but ultimately I try to center that an important part of being a parent to him is maintaining the community and practices that I need for myself.
What is it that keeps you going as a part-time teacher?
I'm motivated by the impact that my teaching has on others. My yoga community is what got me through some very difficult times in my life. I am grateful that my offerings can help hold that space for others. I have had students share their struggles and their traumas — yoga is what creates the space to feel supported enough to share vulnerabilities. My teaching helps to remind me of the humanity in all of us and the power in love and connection.

Listen to the episode! 👇

Let me know how these stories made you feel and share your own in the comments.

An Ode to Part-Time Yoga Teachers 💗

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