Living Your Yoga - embodied wisdom with Shirlee Williams

Playing the Edge - Teacher's Style

Hey friends—welcome back to Teacher Style. Tales from the closet continue (yes, that’s still a podcast idea of its own!).Today’s conversation is all about Playing the Edge as a Teacher. Not about pushing our students deeper into poses, but about stretching our own comfort zones so we can grow into the best possible teachers.I share my very first teaching story back in 2004—nervous, over-prepared, voice shaking—and how that experience changed everything. Playing the edge is about saying yes to what scares us and then showing up anyway.Here are 5 ways teachers can stretch their edge:Experiment with your voice & language – Use tone, energy, and silence as teaching tools.Vary your sequence – Trust yourself, add philosophy, and weave in themes that challenge your creativity.Share more of yourself – Tell stories, be vulnerable, laugh at yourself, and call yourself out.Trust the room – Stop micromanaging. Give your students space, silence, and time to explore.Teach what scares you – Whether it’s meditation, breathwork, or a pose you don’t always demo—lean in.Remember: your edge isn’t about pushing students harder. It’s about modeling growth, showing your humanness, and giving them permission to explore theirs.✨ Reflective Question: What are you avoiding because it feels uncomfortable? That’s the edge calling you forward.If you’re looking for deeper support, mentorship, or inspiration, check the links in the show notes:Mentorship Packages 👉🏼 https://www.shirleewilliams.com/mentorshipThe Studio Membership 👉🏼 https://www.shirleewilliams.com/thestudioRetreats in Costa Rica (2026) ✈️ https://www.shirleewilliams.com/retreatsLots of love, teachers. Until next week—keep playing your edge.Follow me on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/shirleewilliamsliving/ Make sure to check out all my offerings: https://www.shirleewilliams.com/

Playing the Edge: Finding the Sweet Spot

What does it really mean to play the edge? On our yoga mats, it’s that moment just before we’ve gone too far—the sweet spot between safety and overwhelm. In life, it’s where growth happens: stepping out of our comfort zone, taking risks, and expanding our capacity to live fully.In this episode of Living Your Yoga – Embodied Wisdom, I share:A personal story about pushing too far and the lessons my hamstring taught me.3 ways to explore your edge—on the mat and in life.Why discomfort can be a teacher (and how to breathe through it).The difference between pushing past limits vs. respecting your boundaries.You’ll also hear about The Gathering—my upcoming one-day retreat in Ontario designed to help you step out of the noise, connect with yourself, and experience yoga, breathwork, sound healing, and nature in community.✨ Journal Prompt: Where might you be playing it safe—and where might you be pushing too hard?Let’s explore the edges together.Links & Resources:Join The Gathering 👉🏼 https://www.shirleewilliams.com/the-gatheringLearn more about Rooted + Rising Retreat in Costa Rica 👉🏼 https://soulinspiredgurl.com/rooted-rising/Become part of The Studio—my online yoga, breathwork & meditation community 👉🏼 https://www.shirleewilliams.com/thestudioVisit 👉🏼 https://www.shirleewilliams.com/Follow me on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/shirleewilliamsliving/ Make sure to check out all my offerings: https://www.shirleewilliams.com/

Fresh Eyes, Fresh Cues

Hey friends—welcome back to Living Your Yoga – Embodied Wisdom Teacher Style.Today’s conversation is for the teachers out there—but even if you don’t teach, you’ll still find something valuable here. We’re diving into beginner’s mind—what it looks like not just on your mat, but in your teaching.After two decades of teaching (and at one point 20 classes a week!), I know firsthand what it’s like to slip into auto-pilot: giving cues by rote, teaching the same old sequence, and realizing students aren’t even really listening anymore. That’s when things get stale—for us and for them.In this episode, I share five strategies to teach with beginner’s mind:Stay curious about your students—see everybody in the room as brand new.Simplify your cues—less is more, and presence matters.Treat each class like a fresh opportunity—because it is.Let go of outcomes—you can guide, but you can’t control the experience.Stay a student yourself—take classes, stay humble, and remember what it feels like to be new.Beginner’s mind is about curiosity, presence, and letting go of attachment, whether that’s to class size, the “perfect” sequence, or your students’ outcomes. When you teach from this place, your students feel seen, your cues land with impact, and your love of teaching stays alive.If you’re a teacher who’s feeling a little stuck, this episode is your reminder to pause, reground, and step back into the joy of teaching with fresh eyes.✨ Share this episode with a fellow teacher, tag me on social, and let’s keep the conversation going.And if you’re ready for mentorship, check out my 1:1 packages. 👉🏼  https://www.shirleewilliams.com/mentorshipJoin the waitlist for my group program, Beyond 200, reopening January 2026. 👉🏼 https://www.shirleewilliams.com/beyond_200Follow me on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/shirleewilliamsliving/ Make sure to check out all my offerings: https://www.shirleewilliams.com/

Beginner’s Mind: Letting Go of Outcomes & Staying Curious

Hey friends—welcome back to Living Your Yoga – Embodied Wisdom.I’ll be honest, this one could have been called Conversations from the Closet—because yes, I’m literally recording from the floor of our closet. But today’s conversation is anything but small. We’re diving into one of the most transformative teachings I know: Beginner’s Mind.Here’s the thing: the more we repeat a practice, pose, or pattern, the more we expect it to feel the same. We anticipate. We attach. We chase results. And yet, yoga—and life—ask us to stay present, unattached, and open to the moment exactly as it is.Inside this episode, I share: ✨ The wisdom of the Bhagavad Gita and why you have the right to the work but not the fruits of your action. ✨ My 30-day experiment with reverse triangle pose (and why I still don’t like it). ✨ The danger of chasing past experiences (like that one “perfect” meditation). ✨ 5 practical ways to embody beginner’s mind on and off the mat—curiosity, compassion, releasing outcomes, and more. ✨ Why even my dog Charlie taught me about letting go of expectations.Whether you’re moving through familiar yoga sequences, walking your daily route, or navigating your business, beginner’s mind invites us to release the expert within, pay attention to the smallest details, and show up with curiosity instead of clinging.📓 Journal Prompt: Where in your life can you practice beginner’s mind—letting go of attachments to outcomes and staying curious?👩‍💻 Want more embodied wisdom? Join me inside The Studio, my online yoga membership with live classes, challenges, therapeutics, breathwork, and a real-time WhatsApp community. 👉🏼 https://www.shirleewilliams.com/thestudio🌴 And—there’s ONE spot left for our Rooted + Rising Retreat in Costa Rica, February 2026. A week of yoga, breathwork, meditation, ocean dips, cacao, and soul connection. 👉🏼 https://soulinspiredgurl.com/rooted-rising/  👉🏼  Learn more at  https://www.shirleewilliams.com/ 👉🏼 More classes and wisdom can be found on my YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/@shirleewilliamslivingIf this episode resonated, share it with a friend and leave a review—it helps others find their way here.Follow me on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/shirleewilliamsliving/ Make sure to check out all my offerings: https://www.shirleewilliams.com/

Your Worth Isn’t in the Numbers – 6 Reminders for Yoga Teachers

Hey yoga teachers—let’s have some real talk.Your worth is not tied to the number of students who show up for your classes. Period. I’ve been there, staring at half-empty rooms, wondering if I was doing enough, sharing enough, or if I was even good enough. And I know so many of you wrestle with the same doubts.This week on Living Your Yoga – Embodied Wisdom (Teacher Style), I’m giving you six powerful reminders to shift your perspective around class numbers—because your value as a teacher has nothing to do with headcount.We’ll explore: ✨ Why your time slot matters (and why lunch classes aren’t “failures”) ✨ How taking over someone else’s class can affect attendance ✨ Why it takes 8–10 weeks to build momentum with a new class ✨ How seasons + timing (summer, December, September) can influence numbers ✨ The importance of focusing on depth over numbers ✨ And a bonus: the frequency and energy you bring to class—and how it attracts (or repels) studentsWhether you’re brand new or seasoned, these reminders will help you stay grounded, stay inspired, and keep showing up for the students who are right in front of you.💭 Journal prompt: What frequency are you aligning to before class? How can you shift your energy to attract more of what you want?Join The Studio, Shirlee’s online membership for yoga, breathwork & meditation: https://www.shirleewilliams.com/thestudioExplore 1:1 Mentorship:https://www.shirleewilliams.com/mentorshipFollow me on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/shirleewilliamsliving/ Make sure to check out all my offerings: https://www.shirleewilliams.com/