This changeover has made me think about what I like in instructors. Instruction is the main reason we do go to a class and the teacher is the most important facet of that class. I have had instructors who I love to take classes with. I have had others where I'll take a class because they are a warm body and I wanted to take a class. Finally, I have had others from whom, after one class, I would never take again.
Here are some observations I have made over the years about what I like in a good Yoga instructor.
Learn their students names - Two classes in the past weeks have had new teachers who barely introduced themselves. Neither bothered to ask who anyone was.
Ask if anyone is nursing an injury or is pregnant. - This is important.
Help people who are struggling physically immediately.
Ask people before you adjust them. Just moving their feet or arms may cause injury.
Do not hold people in poses while explaining to someone else who is learning it.
Suggest corrections to the whole class. Many people do very basic poses wrong (like Chaturanga). In the four years that I have practiced, only three times was Sun Salutation A broken down in a class. This is a key flow that is done in most classes . Good observant teachers stop classes when they see more than one person doing something wrong and explain how to do it correctly.
Plan their classes - Many instructors just dial it in. They lead the class and do not instruct it. Some instructors come with sheets of paper (or IPad) with their class plan while others just roll out their mat.
Pick up on the tenor of their class and adjust appropriately. The "Lunge of Death" may have been good last week but not this week.
Do not show off their latest cool pose that no one in the class will ever be able do. To me, this is a disincentive and wastes class time.
Make the class enjoyable.
Namaste..
