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Welcoming
Posted: 7-7-10
Welcoming is a great resource we have to nurture, build and strengthen our yoga community.
Welcoming makes all the difference.
You are a new student and you walk into the yoga studio and you stand alone waiting for something to happen. You are new to yoga. You don't know what to expect. You are a little anxious and nervous and excited all at the same time. Other students enter. They are chatting. They have their own props. They seem to know the ropes. They are more experienced that you. No one talks to you. No one helps you. No one acknowledges you. You feel alone and isolated. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all. Maybe yoga isn't friendly!
Maybe yoga isn't friendly? How could that be? The teacher enters and is immediately surrounded by students and questions and issues to resolve. It's time to start the class. The teacher says hello and asks if you have any injuries. You say no and the class begins. You are still alone. You have not met a soul and no one has made the effort to meet you. The overriding feeling you have is of sadness. You were hoping to be greeted with warmth, kindness and a sense of belonging. Instead you weren't really greeted at all. You want to leave. But you are to embarrassed to leave in the middle. The moment class ends you gather yourself and your things and walk away.
What a difference a real welcoming could have made. What if, on walking into the studio, another student had introduced herself and had helped you get settled. What if she had introduced you to other students? What if they had been interested in your new interest in yoga? What if they had helped familiarize you with the layout of the studio: the restrooms, the props and the sign in sheet. What if they had truly extended themselves to you? What a difference that would have made. What if the teacher had come to you first to meet you, greet you and welcome you to the class. What if the teacher had introduced you to the rest of the class? What if you had really felt welcomed? What would that have meant to you? How would that have changed your first experience with yoga, with the community of yoga? What would that kindness have meant?
Welcoming is the greatest tool we have to nurture, build and strengthen our community. Welcoming brings them back. It means everything.
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I totally agree with this
I totally agree with this item about welcoming. I will never forget my feeling upon entering my first yoga studio where I experienced exactly what this said. However, I persevered and after 25 years of practicing yoga and 18 years of teaching Iyengar yoga, I make a real effort to make people feel welcome and try to introduce them to the rest of class before we start. They seem to appreciate it.
I agree that students,
I agree that students, especially new students need to feel welcome. Even in a beginning class I have students take that level over and over and thus, get to know the other students who take it over and over well. Then some new students come in! So at the first class of a session I always have everyone introduce themselves and say why they are taking yoga, or, if they have been taking for while, why they continue to come. And I always make a point to ask the continuing students to welcome the new students and help them get to know how to put the props away etc.
Another thing is that I ask any teacher at the studio to arrive at least 15 minutes before the class and sit at the desk to welcome students. The students sign in to a notebook, and, if the teacher has forgotten their name they can look at the notebook. I think it is very important to be available to students when they first come in and to get to know everyone's name as soon as possible. My goal is to know everyone's name by the end of the first class and I often make notes to myself about anything particular that will help me remember for the next week. Also, if a student tells me that they will be gone to France and not there for a week or two, I write it down on my attendance sheet so that I can ask them how their trip went when they come back. Students appreciate that they are special to you and you remember something about them.
These things cultivate friendliness, compassion, and a sense of community.