I like the quote “if your compassion does not include yourself, it is not complete.” To me this is part of charging a certain value for the classes.

I admire what you did and all the principles behind it.

Kind Regards

Linsey

Thanks for your input. I’m no longer teaching those classes, but you raise some great points. We certainly learned a lot running the classes in that way – like you said, many people just pay what they can ‘get away with’, because that’s where they’re at right now.

It made me realise the need to put a value on something, because we’re taught to try and get things as cheap as possible, and when there’s no definite value, we’ll always set it as low as we can…

Many blessings,
KL

Yoga teachers need to set the standard for self respect and being able to pay your rent is one of those standards.

My teacher once told us he Gave Everything he had to learn the yoga, entering the ashram with nothing other than the shirt (having given them everything) on his back and working for it for the next 13 years. I think there is a conflict here between whether the class is for those who can’t afford regular classes and those who can, I understand the idea of an experiment , but unfortunately people do take advantage, those that have not ‘eveolved ‘ enough yet to see what they are doing, or see it and don’t care cause they just saved money.
If you want to purely help others and have the resources to do that, teach for free, donation or suggestion,- on our tt course we were told regardless of your personal circumstances at least cover your costs, or else you are in effect paying to teach. Thats not ahimsa towards yourself.

I would clarify your cost with students and get the good feelings back into the class, they will still love your classes and may feel better about themselves too.

Hari Om

Linsey

You raise some great points. The option of a set fee is something we’ve discussed with students. We only teach three classes a week, and students who come to all three tend to work out what they’d like to pay weekly and then spread that payment over the three classes.

Your second point is also a great one. If unlimited funds were available to pay a yoga teacher, what would be a “fair” rate?

Our classes are 75 minutes long, but it’s important to remember that a teacher doesn’t just show up for those 75 minutes. There’s also the 15 minutes either side of class setting up and closing up, including talking to students about their practice. There’s the admin required to run the classes. Time to prep for class – how long does it take to create a playlist and a flow to teach? That playlist and flow can be used more than once, but might take up to 5 hours to prepare, learn and hone.

If one decides that $100/hr is a fair rate for a teacher… you could assume at least 3 hours goes into every class. That’s $300. Divided by 20 students. $15 each – which is about what regular classes charge for drop-in. And what happens when only 5 students show up?

Great to have you stop by

Blessings,
KL

Appreciate your feedback, and glad you’re enjoying the classes.

Blessings,
KL

Zanet,

You display so much passion and energy – just like when you come to class. Thank you!

Jim,

So glad our classes mean you can come – exactly one of our intentions.

Jeff,

You raise an interesting idea – but for me it’s not about how much is given, but the energy, understanding and mindfulness about what people choose to contribute.

Shanna,

You raise some great points about what it is we choose to value, and how we spend our money accordingly.

We don’t want to make a suggestion, because it takes away from our intention of getting people to be mindful in their choices and how they spend their energy/money. If there’s suggestion, people don’t have to think at all.

Donna,

Ah yes – there are so many other ways that students do give, and these are wonderful and heartfelt. Cards, yoga magazines, yoga DVD swaps. This is definitely a lovely way of expressing energy and gratitude.

Shanna,

And yes, they don’t necessarily pay the bills, but they can mean less money spent on other stuff. You raise an interesting point about what it takes to teach full time and be able to invest your energy 100% in teaching yoga – definitely something I’d like to address in an article.

Mike,

Great to get your perspective as a teacher. And yes, New Zealand doesn’t really have that tipping/bargaining culture going on. I lived in Canada for a number of years, working as a waitress and learned to really appreciate that system from both sides. I LOVE going out and tipping well for excellent service. It feels fantastic.

Anonymous,

One important point – this is not a donation class. We don’t ask people to “donate” at all. We give them the freedom to decide what the class costs. There is a definite difference in connotation – so thank you for highlighting how easy it is for people to get confused on this point.

You’ve shown me it’s something we need to address for sure – I noticed in quite a few previous comments, people mention “donation”. Yet we never use that word, it’s not on any of our advertising, and I never refer to the class as a donation class.

I have no issues at all about what people are giving. It is what it is. I see this as an experiment in life, and this post for me was like reporting back on collected data. This is what we did. These are the results. What can we infer from it? Are people being mindful and aware as they pay for class? How can we increase this mindfulness and awareness?

My intention in having the discussion is not to encourage people to give more, but to encourage people to be mindful of how their beliefs and attitudes around money, cost, value and yoga. This is actually part of the yoga practice.

Thanks again for everyone who’s weighed in to date. You’ve given me some fabulous feedback and perspective, and a few ideas about how best to proceed from here.

Watch out for the next post in this series.

Namaste,
Kara-Leah

The concept of offering a yoga class for a donation is a noble one. Unfortunately, in NZ we have no culture of giving or the consumer deciding what a thing is worth. There is no culture of tipping or of bargaining.

When Victoria and I traveled to India, we found that we were terrible at bargaining, because we are used to being told what something is worth and are much more comfortable with that. Also, we think that a donation generally means a gold coin, so don’t equate the request for a donation with the chance to decide what something is really worth.

In NZ we tend to under value anything that is out of the mainstream. From the point of view of me being and old man and traditionalist, it was always the teacher in India who decided what the student would pay. We have all heard the stories of the aspiring student being made to sit on the masters doorstep and starve until he has proved worthy. It was generally then the students job to tend to all the teachers worldly needs. In this day and age that requires the payment of money.

In my classes, I take the approach that I have set the price, but if someone has shown a real desire to practice with me and genuinely can’t pay, I always say “pay what you can afford”. This can mean paying less in cash or an exchange of some sort. My obligation in return for payment is to teach with honesty, compassion and with no ego, and to live what I teach to the best of my ability.