You don’t have to renounce your old self in order to step into your full potential.

A funny thing happened when I decided to become a yoga teacher.

Yoga teachers don’t have to fit a mold - in fact, they shouldn’t.

After my yoga teacher training, I stopped wearing makeup. I quit smoking. I pretty much quit going out to clubs.

I was shedding all these layers - which is a good thing in some cases - but I was shedding the layers of myself that didn’t fit this new archetype of the yoga teacher in my mind.

There’s this narrative around what a yoga teacher “looks like” or “should be” and I wanted to fit that narrative so badly that I basically renounced my old self.

Another big piece of this is that I was also freshly divorced and releasing those past years of my life was a high priority, which in my mind meant that I could no longer be the person I was with my ex.

The old me had to die in order for the new me to be born.

This is a strange phenomenon I see all the time.

New yoga teachers start dressing differently, and exhibit all of these changed behaviors to announce their place in the yoga community. When in truth, you don’t have to renounce your old life and persona when you step into your new role. It can feel inauthentic.

What I LOVE to see is new yogis and new teachers INTEGRATING all of their internal changes. It takes so much strength and vulnerability and authenticity to be able to be YOU while entering a new space and role.

Several years later, I’ve integrated my own self with this new lifestyle and role I’ve taken on. It feels better to live authentically rather than trying to fit in to some arbitrary mold.

What’s your story? When you started a yoga practice or became a teacher, did you change who you were the fit the script? Or were you true to you?

Self acceptance is key. Your students will recognize your authenticity - or lack thereof.