Blog 6: Executive Director at Living Yoga for the Day

Living Yoga is an amazing organization, however, if I were the executive director I would make a variety of changes. First, I would begin by developing a more in-depth screening and selection process for the volunteers who want to take the instructor training course. From my time at Living Yoga, I have realized that many individuals often decide that the commitment to the organization is difficult to maintain. I think the procedure for selecting and training volunteers needs to be a longer process in order to find individuals who can commit to the organization. Volunteers are only asked to teach one class a month, but it is important that the volunteers are consistent and reliable. I taught my first class because an instructor did not show up—this not only makes Living Yoga look bad, but it is also a huge let down to the students we teach.

The next change I would make revolves around the name of the organization. Our name is somewhat deceiving because it does not accurately communicate Living Yoga’s primary mission, which is to help individuals who are in a difficult place in their lives, such as in prison or battling addiction, by teaching them yoga as a tool for positive personal change. I do not think the name properly suits us, even an organization that we share an office with was not aware of what Living Yoga actually does. I think a name such as Street Yoga or The Yoga Project would give people a better sense of what the organization is all about.  

Overall, I would maintain most of Living Yoga’s framework and policies because the organization does a great job in serving the public while providing a comfortable environment for its employees and volunteers. I am very grateful I had the opportunity to work under the leadership of Living Yoga’s staff.