Financial forecasting for yoga teachers
A simple, realistic way to plan your income, feel more secure, and build a yoga business that supports you.
Ok yoga teacher, let’s be honest… do you have a clear financial plan?
Maybe you have a rough idea of what you’re earning now, but do you have a clear idea of what you need to, or what you’d like to earn?
Financial planning isn’t about creating a restrictive plan; it’s about creating financial sustainability as a yoga teacher.
When you know what you need, what you’re working towards, and how your income fits together, that’s the start of a solid plan of knowing where to put your valuable resources of time, energy and mental bandwidth.
But, before you can plan where you’re going, you need to understand where you are; where your earnings are coming from, and where they’re going…
Your financial forecasting guide
This guide will help you:
Understand what you actually need to earn
Map out your income for the rest of the year
Spot gaps and issues - before they become stressful
Plan offers like workshops, courses or 1:1s intentionally
Feel more grounded and in control of your business
Let’s go!
Step 1 - Understand your earnings so far
Grab your bank statements, your class attendance lists or reports from your booking system, and start by looking at what you’ve actually earned. Not what you think you earn, but what has actually come in.
Break it down by:
Studio classes
Your own classes
1:1 clients
Workshops or events
Online offerings
Log your income by month and by source, and then it’s time to…
Step 2 - Understand your outgoings
This is the step that yoga teachers often underestimate. It’s easy to think: “The hall hire is £15 an hour, so that’s my cost.” But your business costs more than that.
Consider:
Venue hire
Travel (fuel, parking, public transport)
Insurance
CPD / trainings
Equipment
Marketing or software
Time (yes — your time matters too)
To make this super easy, grab your free worksheet below 👇
FREE WORKSHEET
Your Yoga Business Financial Health Planner
Have you ever made a best guess at your yoga prices ,but then things end up feeling unsustainable, underpaid, and just… not worth it?
This free planner will help you get clear on your numbers - so your yoga teaching actually supports your life.
Get your free worksheet👇
Step 3 - Define your “enough”
The step is designed solely to reduce any pressure on you; and it’s a case of defining what you actually, definitely need to earn each month? I used to think about this as the minimum amount I need to earn to stay alive and stay out of jail!
This includes:
Rent / mortgage
Bills
Taxes
Food
Transport
A little somethings to enjoy life
Tally up these costs; and note this figure down somewhere prominently. If you’re already earning this, go to Step 4. If you’re not, go to Step 5.
Step 4 - Define your “ideal”
I often say that being a yoga teacher probably won’t make you a millionaire but it can, and should, allow you a life where you thrive. So, yoga teacher, back to your spreadsheet or your list created for step 3 (if you’re not using the financial planner here yet, you might find it really useful now) and add on anything and everything that will help you thrive.
Consider:
Holidays
Trainings, and yoga retreats
Massages or other yummy appointments
Etc
Put estimates to the cost of these things that help you thrive, and add those onto your figure from step 3; this is your ideal earnings amount.
Step 5 - Get planning
Ok yoga teacher, now it’s time to align your earnings with your enough, or your ideal, amount. So, define the extra that you’re looking to generate, and keep your findings from step 1 in mind, and start to brainstorm how you can earn this.
Ask yourself:
How many extra people do I need in my classes?
What if I was to run an extra workshop a month?
What if I increased my class or workshop rate?
Could the extra be covered by one or two private yoga sessions?
How else could I cover the deficit?
Let your cogs turn, and please do keep in mind how you love to teach, and where your strengths are. If you’re struggling here, book in a free mentoring clarity call with me, I’d love to help!
Step 6 - Get actioning!
Hopefully, yoga teacher, you’ve clarified what you need to teach or cut back on to reach your enough, or your ideal, target income.
So now, it’s time to make that happen.
If you’re increasing your class or workshop rate, do it soon. If you’re targeting extra people to come to your classes, get your marketing planned out for that. If you’re teaching an extra workshop, get them booked in!
You’ve got this! And don’t forget, if you need guidance, it could just be a free 15 minute call away…