Yoga Teacher Confidential: Secrets of Becoming a Great Yoga Teacher
Yoga Teacher Confidential is your backstage pass to the unspoken truths of being a yoga teacher. Sage Rountree, PhD, E-RYT500, dives into the real challenges and rewards of teaching yoga, offering expert advice and secrets to help you build confidence, connect with your students, and teach with authenticity. Sage draws on her two decades of experience teaching yoga, running a studio, and training teachers to share practical insights you can use right away. You'll also hear advice from her books, including Teaching Yoga Beyond the Poses, The Art of Yoga Sequencing, and The Professional Yoga Teacher's Handbook. Whether you’re navigating imposter syndrome, mastering classroom presence, or refining your skills to teach specialized niches like athletes, this podcast empowers you to lead your classes with clarity, grace, and ease.
Yoga Teacher Confidential: Secrets of Becoming a Great Yoga Teacher
What If No One Shows Up? How to Handle Low Attendance with Confidence
Have you ever walked into the studio, set up for class . . . and no one shows up? Or maybe just one student arrives, turning your group class into an unintentional private lesson. It happens more than we admit, and it can feel discouraging—but it doesn’t have to be.
In this episode, I share how to reframe low attendance as an opportunity. Small classes (or even empty ones) can help you refine your teaching, build confidence, and prepare for future private lessons. Plus, I share stories from my own experience—including one that led to free legal advice!
What You’ll Learn in This Episode:
• Why low attendance isn’t a reflection of your teaching
• How to embrace and maximize unintentional private lessons
• Ways to use empty class time for self-improvement
• The unexpected benefits of solo student classes
Want to become (almost) everyone's favorite yoga teacher? Get in the Zone at Comfort Zone Yoga, my virtual studio focused on teacher development. I have a ton of Sage advice in there for you—let's chat there!
For more insights, subscribe to Yoga Teacher Confidential, check out my YouTube channel, and follow me on socials:
And come explore my continuing education workshops and 300/500-hour teacher training programs. It's all at sagerountree.com.
Can I tell you something? When you show up to teach a group class and instead find it's an unintentional private lesson, it can be intimidating. There's a gut drop feeling seeing one student on your roster or seeing zero and then waiting to hear the studio door open. And this happens more than people admit. It could be due to seasonal shifts, or new class times, or the weather. At my studio, class numbers plummet on really nice weather days, especially the first warm days after a cold spell. And of course, if there is bad weather, which here in the South could mean rain and temperatures below 40 degrees or snow in the forecast in the next 24 hours. Sometimes a single student class though is just plain old bad luck. So today, let's talk about what to do when you have an unexpectedly small class or no one shows up and how you can use these moments. as an opportunity to improve your teaching and build your confidence in the classroom. I'm Sage Roundtree and this is Yoga Teacher Confidential, Secrets of Becoming a Great Yoga Teacher. It's normal for you to assume that the low attendance in your class is a consequence of your teaching, that it means you're not a good teacher. But let's reframe the fear. Almost always, it's not about you. Students schedules and habits are unpredictable. There might be a traffic jam, or a sporting event you didn't know about, or any host of reasons why no one comes. Once you accept this reality, you can adjust your mindset to see that small classes are a gift. They offer you a chance to guide your solo student through deep work, personal connection, experimentation. And often, it's these unintentional private lessons that have the biggest impact, not only on your students, but also on you. A couple stories for you. In 2016, I taught an unintentional private lesson to a student who was like 10 minutes late. I was just about to leave the studio thinking no one was coming when I heard the door clack. Not only did this student roll in with late, frazzled energy, she kept interjecting observations about the upcoming presidential election during the practice. Now that was understandable, and I tried to offer her a practice where she could process her experience. After her one person class, she said, can I give you my card? I was confused because she had already paid for the class, but then she pulled out her business card and said, I'm a lawyer and I specialize in traffic cases. Hit me up next time you get a ticket. I'll take care of it for you for free. That was a win. Another memorable late arrival to an unexpected private lesson was a woman who arrived not just late and frazzled, but teary. It turns out she had just dropped off her mother at assisted living. Like she literally came to the studio from the care home. When she saw she was the only student, she tried to beg off of class, but I convinced her to stay and practice some restorative yoga. That was a style she had not tried before. As you might expect, she left in a different headspace than when she arrived. What an honor it is to get to offer these practices to people. That's why teaching yoga is such an important job. And the best teachers practice teaching when no one's looking. They're constantly looking for ways to provide a better experience for their students, whether it's careful sequencing, or refining their cueing, or just undertaking ongoing self study to lead to self improvement. When you wind up with a solo student, it's time to shift your mindset. Treat it like a private lesson, not a letdown. And position it as such. I would say something like, Lucky you, you get a 150 private lesson at a group class rate. I also would offer the student an option at my studio when we have unintentional private lessons, solo classes, we say something like, if you are not interested in a private lesson today, we can call it off and the class credit will return to your account. If you're saying something like that, though, be careful not to imply that you don't want to teach a private as that's exactly what will make your students say no, because they want to please you. Ask your solo student about their needs. Then adapt your chosen lesson plan, but don't overwhelm them with choices. The student has booked a group class experience, not a private lesson. So it's okay to stay structured with your lesson plan. Don't go fully off script just because it's one on one, unless that is the clear direction that the energy is going. Practicing in these unintentional private lessons will make you better at teaching intentional private lessons. That's the topic of the last episode of this show, season one, episode 23. Private lessons, both intentional and accidental help you learn how to adapt on the spot. They help you personalize your cues and they help you refine your ability to read your students energy. And all of these are invaluable skills in private lessons, as well as in group classes. Plus, an unintentional solo class is a great way for you to demonstrate the value in intentionally booked private lessons. You never know when a solo student class could become a recurring private lesson booking. If no one shows up, you can use the time for self improvement. Because in the rare case that your numbers are low because your teaching isn't as good as it could be, this is your chance to change that. Treat it like a rehearsal. Practice what you'd say if the room were full. This will feel awkward at first, but getting in the reps matters. The more practice you have with your language, with using the space in the room, with holding the space for 25, 5, 1, or 0 students, the better a teacher you will be for everyone. And this practice teaching doesn't have to happen to an empty room. If no one shows up, record yourself teaching all or even some of your class to the camera. Then watch the video with a kind eye. This is, as I covered in season one, episode 14 of the show, the single best way you can improve your teaching self assessment using video. Not up for video recording or don't have the storage space on your phone? Do an audio recording using the voice notes feature on your phone. Even audio will help immensely as you work to refine your cueing. You'll notice what you can drop. That makes then room for you to add back either more specific or more metaphorical cues. Or use your time for lesson planning. Review the sequence you plan to teach and work on ways to iterate it across the next several weeks. This is how you find the right balance of consistency and variety. And as a side note, if you need help with this iteration and finding the right balance. between consistency and variety in your yoga lesson plans, my six month mentorship program called Mastering the Art of Yoga Sequencing will help you with this very project. So you can always walk into class confident in what you're teaching. This can also be a great opportunity to reflect more broadly on your teaching. What worked well in your last class? What could be improved? Taking notes or mentally reviewing your approach can help refine your skills over time. Now, at some studios, you're paid for the class regardless of numbers, and in exchange you're expected to do some light chores with the free time if no students appear. Even if this isn't the case where you teach, you could use a few minutes out of the unexpected free time to help out. Let me tell you, as a studio owner, prop organization is an ongoing, constant chore at many studios. Taking out the blankets, folding them neatly, and replacing them in an orderly stack is a mindfulness opportunity for you, and a delightful gift to every studio owner. And it's something that your students will notice when they next arrive. It's a great energetic gift to everyone. And energy matters. Stay professional and prepared, and you'll be more present for the students who show up next time. So, the next time you find yourself in an unintentional private lesson, or no students show up at all, remember, you are not alone. This happens to every teacher at every stage of their career. The more comfortable you get with small classes, the more confident you'll feel in big classes. And the real measure of a teacher isn't how many people show up. It's how you show up. Here's an affirmation to help you remember. I show up at my best no matter how many students are there. I show up at my best no matter how many students are there. Do you have stories to share about unintentional private lessons or any questions after listening to this episode? I would love to hear them. Come to comfortzoneyoga. com and join the discussion in my free community for teachers. It's called The Zone. There's a link for you in the show notes. We have a great time in there and I'd love to see you there. For now, I'm Sage Rountree and this is Yoga Teacher Confidential. See you next time.
