Mother, editor-in-chief and yoga teacher Ulrike Schäfer in an interview with tips for more reach and full courses
Starting out as a self-employed yoga teacher is not always easy: How do you manage to take over courses in existing yoga studios? Does it make sense to write your own blog? And how can you make a name for yourself in your city? In an interview, yoga teacher and content strategist Ulrike Schäfer reveals how you can take the first steps.
Dear Ulrike, you are a Jivamukti yoga teacher in Berlin, a mother of a one-year-old and also the editor-in-chief of the successful online magazine Fuck Lucky Go Happy (FLGH). We are curious to know what the work of an editor-in-chief is like. What are your tasks here?
My job is extremely varied, but that's exactly what I love about it. As editor-in-chief at FLGH, I always keep an eye on what content needs to be created and shared, when and where. I edit and proofread texts, develop ideas for articles and social media content with the team, and also create content about yoga myself. I lead our weekly editorial meeting, which is the focal point of our work.
As an online magazine that also relies on advertising content, the conception of cooperations and the communication and collaboration with partners who book advertorials or other formats with us are a very important part of my work.
Together with the founder Rebecca Randak, I also take care of strategic issues at FLGH: What are our priorities and why, where are we heading in the future, what people do we need in our team and what channels do we use? These are the kinds of issues that keep us busy. After all, it's not enough to just carry on as before!
Can you give us an insight into what a typical Ulrike day looks like and how you structure your time between editing, teaching yoga and being a mom?
Since my son was born, this has honestly been my biggest challenge! There is no longer any room to just see what I can get done in a day. Instead, I have to focus very precisely and do the urgent things first.
FLGH has three fixed office days. On these days I reserve my full working time just for that. On the other days I take care of other projects, teach and prepare my yoga classes. Unfortunately, my own practice is always the first thing to fall by the wayside. I find it difficult to simply prioritize myself when the calendar is full. My current strategy is to write my practice in the calendar in the same way that I write meetings or office hours. Let's see if it works!
When and why did you take the step to become self-employed as a yoga teacher and content strategist?
I did my first training at Jivamukti Yoga in February 2017. When I returned to my job as Head of Content at an art startup, I felt like I was in a cage. Even though I really liked my job! I wanted to teach more, work remotely sometimes, travel and stop having everything dictated to me. In fact, it was Rebecca who then offered me the opportunity to work for FLGH and thus gave me a secure foundation on which I could add a few freelance projects.
I am now tied down by a family and can no longer travel around the world for weeks at a time, but I still love how flexible I am in my work and how many great people I can work with as a freelancer.
In 2014, you started your own blog, “Days of Yoga,” and wrote about the practice of yoga. Can writing a blog help yoga teachers to become better known and reach more potential clients and yogis?
The blog was never intended to make money. It died down around 2017 when I started working at FLGH and my co-founder also moved on to other projects. But it did put me in touch with Rebecca, for example - so it definitely helped me! We were also able to network very well within the scene through the blog.
I think having your own blog is a good idea for anyone who really enjoys writing. If it's an unloved chore and not fun, then you should give it up and instead create or have created a solid website with good, long-lasting texts that is also optimized for Google. Keyword: SEO. Maybe you're more interested in social media overall or like going to events where you can make yourself known and network. I think everyone should first use the channels that best suit their own interests. Then you can communicate authentically.
Can you share some tips with us on how we can start our own blog and how we can reach readers?
If you want to write a professional blog that is not just for personal enjoyment, you should do the following three things. Firstly: Find out about SEO, i.e. search engine optimization, and design your own web presence accordingly so that people can actually find you. Secondly: Have a newsletter strategy and maintain your own email list well. Thirdly: Consider whether and how the blog content can be "translated" on social media. This all sounds very strategic and it is. But all the work is simply not worth it if you don't approach it properly right away. You simply won't reach anyone!
Do you have any other tips on how newly qualified yoga teachers in particular can make a name for themselves in their city and also reach yogis outside of their studio?
The most important thing is that you go to the studios where you want to teach to practice. If you ask out of the blue and say, "hey, I want to teach with you," you have less chance of getting a class than someone who has been taking classes at the studio for a long time. Personal contacts are simply the be-all and end-all. Teaching your own classes consistently and reliably is also super important. People have to be able to rely on you being there. They don't want to spend time looking through a timetable every week; they want to keep to their routine.
In order to reach new students, it can be useful to work on your own web and social media presence, organize events with teacher friends and even take on a substitute role in studios where you are not usually present that often.
Thank you very much for your time and the nice interview.
Ulrike Schaefer
Ulrike is an Advanced Certified Jivamukti Yoga teacher and editor-in-chief at Fuck Lucky Go Happy. She has lived in Berlin since 2005, studied humanities and worked for a long time in various startups. Since summer 2017 she has been self-employed as a yoga teacher, freelance author and content strategist. She teaches regularly at Peace Yoga Berlin and also trains other yoga teachers there. What she particularly loves about Jivamukti Yoga is that it is a method that goes far beyond physical practice and appeals to all the senses. This allows her to move from thinking to feeling.
Photo credits: Lena Fingerle and Maddalena Zampitelli