Yoga Teacher Confidential: Secrets of Becoming a Great Yoga Teacher

28. The Certification Myth: Why More Training Won’t Make You a Better Yoga Teacher

• Sage Rountree • Episode 28

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Are you caught in the cycle of chasing certifications, thinking one more training will finally make you feel ready? You’re not alone. Many yoga teachers—new and experienced—fall into the trap of believing that more hours, credentials, and certifications will give them legitimacy, confidence, and expertise. But here’s the truth: your ability as a teacher isn’t measured in training hours.

In this episode, I break down:

  • Why the yoga industry encourages a never-ending certification chase
  • How confidence comes from teaching, not from credentials
  • The historical roots of yoga education (spoiler: it wasn’t about certificates)
  • When additional training does make sense—and when it doesn’t
  • Practical strategies to build confidence in your teaching, right now

If you’ve ever felt like you’re not ready, not qualified enough, or just need one more certification before stepping into your full potential, this episode is for you. Let’s talk about what actually makes a great yoga teacher—and it’s not a piece of paper.

Mentioned in this episode:

• Mastering the Art of Yoga Sequencing Mentorship Program

• 300-Hour Advanced Studies Program

• The Professional Yoga Teacher’s Handbook

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? The number of hours of training you've had is not directly correlated to your ability as a yoga teacher and thinking you need just another training to be a good teacher is actually getting in the way of you stepping into your authentic power as a teacher. Have you ever found yourself saying, I just need to finish this training and then I'll be ready to teach that workshop. Or once I get this certification, I'll finally feel confident enough to apply at that studio. I hear this from yoga teachers at every stage of their careers, from newly minted 200 hour graduates to seasoned teachers with decades of experience. There's a widespread belief in our yoga community that more certifications equal more readiness, more authority, and more confidence. But I'm here to challenge that notion. In today's episode, we're going to explore why so many yoga teachers feel compelled to collect or even hoard certifications, What's actually missing when we feel that pull toward one more training, and how to build genuine confidence in the knowledge you already possess. This is Yoga Teacher Confidential. I'm Sage Rountree. The yoga industry has created a certification ladder that can feel never ending. 200 hours, then 300 more to hit 500, then specialized certifications in prenatal, kids yoga, yin yoga, restorative yoga, trauma informed yoga, chair yoga, The list goes on and while the Yoga Alliance stops at 500 hours, there are plenty of programs offering 1000 hour designations and beyond. It's easy then to fall into the trap of thinking, if I just had this certification, I'd finally feel legitimate. Or once I complete that training, I'll know enough to really help my students. I've watched talented teachers delay launching workshops or applying for studio positions or raising their rates because they didn't feel certified enough, despite having the exact knowledge their students needed. What's more troubling is that I see this pattern across experience levels. It's not just new teachers who feel this way. I know yoga teachers with 20 plus years of experience and multiple certifications who still think, I just need one more training and then I'll be ready. This certification chase creates a cycle where we're forever preparing to teach rather than actually teaching. We postpone our growth as teachers by staying in student mode. And here's the tough love. At some point, you need to stop preparing and you need to start doing. It might help to remember that yoga has been taught for thousands of years without a system of certified training hours. Traditionally, yoga was taught through direct transmission from teacher to student, often over many years. The focus wasn't on accumulating certifications, but on practice, observation, apprenticeship, and the gradual accumulation of experience and wisdom. Students would study with their teacher until the teacher deemed them ready to teach others, a process that was more about embodiment than about paperwork. The modern certification system really only emerged in the late 20th century, as yoga became more commercialized in the West. The Yoga Alliance itself, which has become the de facto standard setter in the United States, was only formed in 1999. That's just 26 years ago. In my book, The Professional Yoga Teacher's Handbook, I explain the Yoga Alliance is primarily a registry, not a regulatory body. They don't certify teachers directly. They just register schools and register teachers who meet certain criteria by going through those registered schools. Your actual certification comes from your school. Yoga Alliance just takes your money. It's a little like the emperor parading in his new robes. It's a shared fiction. I love the idea of there being standards of education, but let's not uncritically admire the new clothes of an institution that simply takes your money to say you're qualified. There are good reasons to play the Yoga Alliance game, especially if your class pay depends on it. Just do it with your eyes open. Paying YA does not make you a good teacher. Let's ask what's actually missing if it's not more training hours or certifications or registration that make a confident, capable teacher, what is it? In my experience, what's missing for most teachers isn't knowledge, it's confidence. And paradoxically, seeking more knowledge can sometimes be a way of avoiding the vulnerable act of stepping into your power as a teacher. Here's the thing about confidence. It doesn't come from knowing everything. It comes from taking action despite not knowing everything. Confidence is built through experience, through trial and error, through showing up and teaching, even when you don't feel 100 percent ready, or 90 percent ready, or even 80 percent ready. I had a teacher once tell me, you learn more from teaching one class than from taking 10. And there's so much truth to that. The real learning happens when you're in front of students, adapting to their needs, reading the room, and making split second decisions about what to offer next. Nothing, and I mean nothing, builds confidence like regular teaching experience. No certification program, no matter how comprehensive, can replicate the learning that happens when you are actively teaching real students with real bodies and real needs. Another thing that often gets overlooked in the pursuit of more certifications is the value of your own unique perspective and life experience. In episode five of this podcast, I talked about how your strengths as a practitioner might be holding you back as a teacher. The things that come easily to you in your practice are actually your biggest blind spots as a teacher. While conversely, the areas where you've struggled and had to figure things out step by step are where you will shine as a teacher. Why? Because you understand firsthand what it's like to work through those challenges. You have the language and metaphors and strategies for addressing those difficulties. You can emphasize with students who are facing similar struggles. This means that your unique life experience, your background, your body, your challenges and your journey are tremendous assets in your teaching. No one else has lived your exact life or inhabited your exact body. And that means you have insights that no one else can offer. A certification can't give you that. It's already inside you. Think about the end of the Wizard of Oz, after Toto pulls aside the curtain to reveal that the great and powerful Oz is just a guy. And this normal guy gives the Scarecrow, whose quest was to get a brain, a diploma, while explaining to the Scarecrow that he had it in him all along. Carry this mentality with you, and you'll be ahead of the game. Now, I don't want to suggest that additional training is never valuable. Education for education's sake is never bad. I have a PhD in English literature and I host a yoga podcast. There are absolutely times when more education is the right move. Here are some situations where pursuing additional certification or training might make sense. When you're genuinely drawn to a specialized area of teaching that requires specific knowledge for safety or effectiveness. For instance, if you want to teach prenatal yoga, a specialized training is important for understanding the physiological changes of pregnancy and how to adapt the practice accordingly. When you're pursuing a path where certain credentials are genuinely required. For example, if you want to teach at a particular studio that requires a 500 hour certification, or if you want to lead a yoga teacher training that holds a yoga alliance registration, which often requires an ERYT 500 designation. When you've identified a genuine gap in your knowledge that's affecting your ability to serve your students. If you're regularly encountering questions or situations where you feel truly unprepared, targeted education can help. When you're feeling stagnant and need fresh inspiration. Sometimes additional training can reignite your passion for teaching and bring new ideas to your classes. What doesn't make sense is pursuing additional training simply because you don't feel enough or because you think another certificate will magically bestow confidence upon you. Before you invest time and money in another certification, ask yourself these important questions. What specific knowledge or skills am I hoping to gain from this training? Can I articulate exactly what I want to learn? Is this knowledge something I genuinely need in order to serve my current or desired students better? Is there a way to gain this knowledge outside of a formal certification program? For example, through mentorship or self study or targeted workshops? Am I using this training as a delay tactic? Am I avoiding something that feels scary by staying in student mode? How will I implement what I do learn? Do I have a clear plan for using this new knowledge in my teaching? Is there an outlet for me to share my knowledge? And if not, how can I create this opportunity to help students better? Be honest with yourself about your motivations. If you're pursuing training because you're genuinely excited about the content and you have a clear vision for how it will enhance your teaching, great. But if you're doing it because you're afraid to take the next step in your teaching career without it, that might be a sign to pause and reconsider. If you're feeling the pull toward more training, but suspect it might be coming from insecurity rather than a genuine need for specific knowledge, here are some alternatives to consider. Find a mentor. Working one on one with an experienced teacher or one to many like we do in my mentorship program, Mastering the Art of Yoga Sequencing, can provide targeted guidance for your specific teaching challenges. A good mentor can help you identify your blind spots and develop strategies for growth. Join a teaching community like The Zone at comfortzoneyoga. com, link in the show notes. Regular connection with other teachers creates opportunities for peer feedback, for idea sharing, and for collective problem solving. Teach more. Nothing builds teaching confidence like teaching experience. Volunteer to teach in community settings if paid opportunities are limited for you. Each class you teach is a huge learning opportunity. Record and review your self teaching. Audio or video recording your classes, with student permission of course, and watching them back will be eye opening. You will see strengths you didn't realize you had, and you will identify specific areas for improvement. Develop a robust self practice. Your personal practice is the foundation of your teaching. Deepening your own practice, not just physically, but in all aspects of yoga, will naturally enhance your teaching. Read widely. There are wonderful books on yoga, philosophy, anatomy, pedagogy, and more. I have written several myself and yes, I do think they are wonderful. Reading deeply in these areas can expand your knowledge without the time and financial investment of a formal training. Better yet, borrow these books or order them from your library, which will cost you nothing and will allow readers who come after you to benefit too. Engage in self study, svadhyaya. Reflect on your teaching regularly. What's working, what isn't, where do you feel confident, where do you struggle? This honest self assessment is really powerful. Here's what I want you to remember. You already know enough to be a positive force in your students lives. Yes, there's always more to learn. That's the beauty of yoga. It's a lifelong practice with endless depth, but waiting until you feel like you know enough before fully stepping into your teaching is a recipe for perpetual postponement. Instead of focusing on what you don't know, start focusing on what you do know. Here are some practices that can help. First, make a knowledge inventory. Open your notebook or notes file and write down everything you know about yoga. Include anatomical concepts, philosophical principles, sequencing frameworks, breathing techniques, everything. You'll likely be surprised by how much you do know. And having done this exercise will directly improve your confidence in your next class. Number two, identify your teaching strengths. What aspects of teaching come naturally to you? Are you great at creating welcoming environments? Sequencing creative flows? Offering precise alignment cues? Weaving in philosophy? Recognizing your strengths builds confidence. Number three, collect positive feedback. Keep a file, either physical or digital, of positive feedback from students and peers. Review it regularly, especially when doubt creeps in. I still do this. My file is called rainy day notes and I look at it on a rainy day or when I'm feeling down. Number four, teach what you know deeply. Instead of trying to teach everything, focus on the aspects of yoga that you understand most deeply. Teach from your experience, not from abstract theory. And number five, embrace beginner's mind. Sometimes confidence comes from admitting what you don't know. When students ask questions you can't answer, it's perfectly okay to say, that's a great question. I don't know the answer right now, but I will look into it and get back to you. Most importantly, remember this, your students aren't coming to your class because they expect you to know everything about yoga. They're coming because something about your teaching resonates with them. Let me share a personal example of when a specialized training really did make sense for me in my teaching journey. When I started teaching yoga to athletes, I was drawing primarily from my own experience as an endurance athlete using yoga in my training. That personal experience was really valuable, but I realized I wanted a deeper scientific understanding of how the athletic body responds to training stimuli. So I pursued certifications with USA Triathlon, USA Cycling, and the Roadrunners Club of America. These weren't yoga certifications, they were coaching certifications that gave me specialized knowledge about exercise physiology, athletic performance, and recovery protocols. This additional education genuinely enhanced my ability to serve my athletic students. It wasn't about collecting credentials for their own sake. It was about filling a specific knowledge gap that was directly relevant to my teaching niche. The key difference was that I had a clear purpose for seeking this education and a specific plan for how I would use it in my teaching. I wasn't doing it out of a vague sense that I needed more to be legitimate. I want to reiterate that there are absolutely valid reasons to pursue more education, just not for the sole purpose of feeling more legitimate. And I want to point out that I myself offer various forms of continuing education. At my brick and mortar studio, Carrboro Yoga Company, AKA Carolina Yoga Company, and at my virtual yoga studio, Comfort Zone Yoga, we offer a 300 hour advanced studies program that's designed to help teachers hone their skills, develop their unique voices, and deliver a more meaningful experience to their students. And I won't pretend I'm not proud of the program we've built. I think it's fantastic, but here's the key. Our 300 hour program isn't designed to make you feel more legitimate or to give you a fancy designation, although it does qualify you for RYT 500 registration. It's designed to give you concrete skills that enhance your ability to serve your students. We cover things like language refinement, classroom management, effective sequencing, and creating safe and inclusive spaces. When you get these skills, confidence comes easily. Similarly, my Mastering the Art of Yoga Sequencing Mentorship program isn't about adding more letters after your name. It's about giving you practical tools that make your daily work as a yoga teacher easier and more effective. It focuses on helping you find the right balance of consistency and variety in your classes so your students can progress in their practice while staying engaged. If programs like these genuinely align with your teaching goals and will help you better serve your students, they might be worth considering. I'd sure love to talk to you about them. Write me at info at SageRoundtree. com or send me a message on socials at @sagerountree, no letter D. But if you're just seeking another credential to feel more real as a teacher, there are probably better investments of your time and money, including therapy or life coaching to help you recognize any self limiting beliefs and adjust your mindset to help you with your confidence. So what concrete actions can you take if you're currently feeling the pull toward more certification out of insecurity rather than genuine need? Well, you can teach more, find opportunities to apply what you already know, volunteer at community centers or offer classes to your friends or create short instructional videos. Every teaching experience builds your confidence. Find your people. Identify the students you are uniquely qualified to serve based on your current knowledge and your life experience. Don't try to be everything to everyone. Get specific feedback. Ask trusted colleagues or mentors for feedback on your teaching. Specific input is more useful than vague affirmations. Take a teaching centered hiatus from learning. Give yourself permission to stop consuming new information for a set period, maybe like a month, and focus solely on integrating what you already know and teach a lot. Practice self compassion. Recognize that feeling like you don't know enough is normal, especially in a field as vast as yoga. Be kind to yourself in these moments of doubt. Remember that becoming an effective teacher is not about achieving a state of complete knowledge. It's about committing to continuous growth while sharing what you already know in service to your students. The pursuit of knowledge in yoga is a beautiful thing. The problem isn't with seeking more education. It's with the belief that you need more education before you can fully step into your role as a teacher. Your students don't need you to be perfect or all knowing. They need you to be authentic, present, and willing to guide them with what you already know. They need you to remember that you are the guide, not the hero of the classroom. Here's an affirmation to help you remember. I know enough to help my students right now. I know enough to help my students right now. If you're ready to enhance your teaching in a way that truly serves your students, not just to collect another certificate, I do invite you to join me in Mastering the Art of Yoga Sequencing, my mentorship program that gives you concrete tools to plan and deliver more effective classes. Or consider our 300 hour advanced course. studies program, which we've thoughtfully designed to help you become a more impactful teacher. You can get to 300 hours with the mentorship plus Teaching Yoga to Athletes or other online modules or in person trainings in North Carolina or wherever you are. I do qualify you for electives. You can find information about the 300 or 500 hour yoga teacher training at sage roundtree. com. But whether or not you join these programs, I hope you will remember that you already have valuable knowledge to share. The world needs teachers who teach from their authentic experience, not just those with the most certifications. I'm Sage Rountree and this is Yoga Teacher Confidential. I'll see you next time.

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