Lets’s talk about TEAM

Letter From Diane

Happy New Year Everyone.   It’s off to a great start.  January and February in New England…there’s no better place to be than in the Hot Room…doing Bikram Yoga, especiall in winter.

Let’s talk about team and team building in your studio.  What is the team? How big is your team?  How to build a team. There is more to your team than you know!

My team includes teachers (of course) and some key students.

A new student, Louise, came to class with a boot on her foot.  The diagnosis, a broken foot.  This is a runner who cannot run and desperate to sweat.  I offered her a chair, the ballet bar and tons of encouragement.

She refused the chair and stood the whole time. She gladly used the bar and took the encouragement.  By Awkward, I asked another teacher in the room to go and get a towel and fold it up and put it under her bare foot so she could stand tall and be more even. She did better once her legs were even (the boot is big and cumbersome).

Mark, the student to her left, helped her when she needed to move the chair and offered a hand when she needed it.  Colette, the student to her right, was cheering her on and telling her how incredible it was that she was doing this yoga.  Thankfully, we have no rules at Yoga for You!

When she started to hobble towards the door at Head to Knee with Stretching, I said  “Louise, we are almost done” and she looked at me and said she felt nauseous and wanted to leave the room. I asked her not to leave and to rest on her mat (because there was no one outside the room to help her) and several students chimed in to reassure her that she would be better off lying on the mat.  Mark held out his hand and escorted her back to her mat!  It was awesome. She joined us for Spine Twisting and I assured her the the last breathing exercise would make her feel great.  Which it did. She did it all. She was glowing. Everyone gave her a big round of applause. She left happy.

Create a team of teachers and make sure they are all offering consistent instruction (dialogue), encouragement and corrections in class. Create a team of students and a community of love and support for everyone that walks through your doors.

For a thriving and successful studio, make sure your students become part of your team.  Some of them help you clean, a lot of them “sell” the yoga to the newbies, some of them bring in their friends and family, and then there’s the gentleman who (at the end of the night) wants to know if you want him to wait until you’re ready to lock up and go to your car.  Sweet!

Here’s to a magnificent 2017. I look forward to seeing you in Dedham or in my travels around the globe.

Love,
Diane
www.26and2.com

Events Near You!

• Guest Class with Margie Topf Saturday, February 25, 2017 9:00-1030am Followed by Q and A session 11:00 am- 2:00 pm presented by Margie and Linda Hewins, Owner Gulf Coast Yoga, Venice, FL

• Class followed by Q&A with Margie Topf March 4, 2017 Orlando, FL
  Margie Topf – Guest Class 10:00 am – 11:30 am Followed by Q and A session 12:00 am- 3:00 pm Teachers Dinner 4:00 pm – 6:00  pm Bikram Yoga West Orlando, Orlando, FL

• Posture Clinic and Class with Diane Ducharme Gardner Saturday March 11, 2017 10:00 am – 6:00 pm (class from 4:30 – 6:00) Bikram Yoga Wilmington, NC

• Class followed by Mini-Clinic with Diane Ducharme Gardner Saturday April 8, 2017 10:00 am – 1:30 pm East Bay Bikram Yoga Bristol, RI

• Posture Clinic and Class with Diane Ducharme Gardner April 29, 2017, San Clemente, CA

• Class followed by Q&A with Margie Topf May 6, 2017, Fullerton, CA 

• Continuing Education Residency June 5 – 8, 2017, Yoga for You, Dedham, MA

For a complete listing of our events and additional information about the hosting studios, please visit our events page at  https://thedialogueworks.com/our-services/#events or email Micheal, micheal@thedialogueworks.com