For several years, I’ve been thinking about how to help new yoga teachers get their teaching practices off the ground. Teachers spend a lot of time and a lot of money to get their certifications so that they can share this practice with others. Training programs don’t have a lot of time to teach yoga teachers the skills to secure teaching jobs because they need to focus most of their efforts on training teachers to properly care for their students with strong alignment, safe sequencing, and proper technique. Furthermore, it can be tough for new teachers to get the experience needed to get a studio teaching slot and it’s tough to get a studio teaching slot without the experience.
As an MBA with 14 years of business experience and an experienced yoga and meditation teacher, I can fill this gap to help get new yoga teachers started on their teaching path. I put together a training course to provide business know-how to yoga teachers.
Option 1:
A kit to craft their mission statement, find their market, write a one page business plan, and put together a course of action for their first year as teachers to reach exactly the kind of student they want to teach. Price – $25
Option 2:
Everything in option 1 plus Skype sessions to walk them through the kit as well as give new teachers advice and resources to set up their business: how to incorporate, taxes, basic accounting, expense tracking, and marketing assistance including basic website set up. Price – $200
Option 3:
Everything in options 1 and 2 plus in-person sessions with me, a regular teaching slot in the Compass Yoga teaching roster to start earning their hours toward the Yoga Alliance 500-hour certification teaching requirement, tracking of teaching hours in Yoga Alliance format, and a selection of other goodies to help jump-start a new business. Price – $500
IN BRIEF
Author, journalist, digital product manager, and licensed New York City tour guide. Creator and host of NYC's Secrets and Lies. Alumna of the University of Pennsylvania (BA), the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia (MBA), Arizona State University (Biomimicry), and the University of Cambridge (MSt in Sustainability Leadership).
I build digital media platforms, report on urban climate resilience and biodiversity, and produce live narrative experiences that connect communities to history, nature, and place.
THE DEEP DIVE
My work centers on a single thread: building systems and stories that foster deep connection to our shared world. Across digital streaming, environmental reporting, and live civic storytelling, I design experiences that help people understand complex ideas and the environments around them.
DIGITAL PRODUCT STRATEGY & MEDIA LEADERSHIP
At Carnegie Hall, I serve as Digital Product Manager, leading product strategy, operations, and technical delivery for the video streaming platform Carnegie Hall+. I translate artistic mission into scalable, high-performance streaming architecture that reaches audiences globally. Previously, I led agile product and delivery teams across operations and compliance at American Express, managed Broadway theatrical productions and national tours, and guided strategic initiatives across cultural institutions.
ENVIRONMENTAL JOURNALISM & AUTHORSHIP
As a freelance journalist, I investigate how living systems, urban infrastructure, and human culture intersect. My reported features on urban decarbonization, biodiversity, coastal resilience, and biomimicry appear in publications including Smithsonian Magazine, The Washington Post, Mongabay, Natural History Magazine, and Foreign Policy Magazine. In fiction, I write the Emerson Page young adult novel series, alongside upcoming historical fiction and nonfiction works on New York history, mythology, and human resilience. I also write Togetherhood, a LinkedIn newsletter focused on urban ecology and community restoration, and co-host the podcast Frameworks in the Wild.
LIVE EXPERIENCE & CIVIC STORYTELLING
As a licensed New York City tour guide and live event producer, I transform urban landscapes into shared narrative encounters. I created, produce, and host NYC's Secrets and Lies, an interactive live storytelling series staged across cultural landmarks including the New York Transit Museum, the South Street Seaport Museum, and the historic tall ship Wavertree. I also design and lead site-specific walking tours exploring coastal ecology, food history, and neighborhood evolution, often with partners at Climate Week NYC and the Natural Areas Conservancy.
DOUBLE OR NOTHING MEDIA
Through my independent production studio, Double or Nothing Media, I develop ventures across media, ecology, and public history:
Digital Products & Strategy: Architecting scalable digital platforms, streaming experiences, and operational models for mission-driven institutions.
Environmental Reporting & Publications: Delivering long-form reporting, books, and newsletters grounded in climate resilience and regenerative design.
Site-Specific Live Storytelling: Producing immersive live shows and educational walking tours that engage public audiences in community history.
CONNECT
Website & Production Hub: doubleornothingmedia.com and christaavampato.com
Newsletter: Togetherhood on LinkedIn - linkedin.com/newsletters/togetherhood-7273771832221089792/
Instagram & Threads: @christarosenyc
Emerson Page Novels: emersonpagebook.wordpress.com/
View all posts by Christa Avampato
2 thoughts on “Leap: My Business Course for Yoga Teachers”
great idea; great description; good pricing. I just got certified as yoga teacher through David Vendetti at South Boston Yoga. If I were interested in teaching; I would see this as a very useful investment. I am not going to teach; I did the training for myself. I started taking yoga classes 2.5 years ago, and have gone almost every day. Yoga has really changed my life and I have a deep appreciation of all it can do. I am 60 years old and have a satisfying, financially stable job as an Occupational Therapist. I plan to retire in 5 years; and may look you up; as I may be interested in teaching then. Thanks and I hope for your success and all yoga teachers out there.
Thank you so much, Marcia. I know a number of people who go through teacher training to grow their own practice and I think that’s a wonderful way to do it. Good for you! If any of your teacher training classmates are interested in teaching, please feel free to send them my way. Namaste.
great idea; great description; good pricing. I just got certified as yoga teacher through David Vendetti at South Boston Yoga. If I were interested in teaching; I would see this as a very useful investment. I am not going to teach; I did the training for myself. I started taking yoga classes 2.5 years ago, and have gone almost every day. Yoga has really changed my life and I have a deep appreciation of all it can do. I am 60 years old and have a satisfying, financially stable job as an Occupational Therapist. I plan to retire in 5 years; and may look you up; as I may be interested in teaching then. Thanks and I hope for your success and all yoga teachers out there.
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Thank you so much, Marcia. I know a number of people who go through teacher training to grow their own practice and I think that’s a wonderful way to do it. Good for you! If any of your teacher training classmates are interested in teaching, please feel free to send them my way. Namaste.
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