Like most new teachers, I started out attending endless auditions for a place on cover lists in search of that elusive permanent teaching slot. New teachers know the cycle all too well: can’t get in the studios without experience, can’t get experience without opportunity.
At an audition for a leading gym I was told that I seemed to undergo a personality change when stepping on the mat. I was one person when I walked in the room and a different one when standing in front of it teaching. This was difficult feedback to hear and it wasn’t something that had been touched on in teaching training. We had learned the mechanics of teaching, but we hadn’t necessarily explored a personal teaching style. I realised that ‘my’ teaching was likely to be a close-copy to my (much more experienced) teacher. I needed to step out of this shadow to find my own authentic rhythm in order to become the teacher I wanted to be.