I believe yoga teachers are doing some of the most powerful work on the planet right now. Yoga teachers are creating transformation by helping people shift their belief systems and heal in mind, body, and spirit.

You deserve to financially thrive in your work as a yoga teacher, and also to make an impact in the world. But I understand that a lot of yoga teachers really struggle to make money and to help their clients in a scalable way.

This is such an important topic that I went live on Facebook to give you five ways to think and act like a boss to build a yoga business.

Here are the highlights in the video:

• 1:22 – Why I believe teaching yoga is some of the most valuable work that’s being done on the planet right now.
• 4:35 – Why you need to start approaching your business like a CEO.
• 8:18 – How you can harness the 80/20 rule to start thinking like a boss.
• 11:58 – Where to look for inspiration when traditional yoga business models no longer work for you.
• 16:25 – Why upleveling your inner circle can make a profound difference in your success level.
• 23:13 – How to create a signature offering that anchors your business.

The Biggest Problem with Being a Yoga Teacher

Many of my students and clients are yoga teachers, and most of them are not making the kind of money they deserve. They feel like their work isn’t sustainable or profitable. They often work long hours, including evenings and weekends teaching classes, but their income doesn’t match the effort they’re putting in.

In my recent Yoga.Psyche.Soul program, I asked the participants, “How many of you are making the kind of impact and income that you want, as a yoga teacher?” Not a single hand went up.

Today I’m going to give you the five best ways to shift your mindset and start thinking like a boss, so you can grow the business you’ve been longing for.

1. Approach Your Business Like a CEO.

When it comes to your business, I want to ask yourself, “What would a CEO do?”

When I shifted my own mindset and began thinking of myself as the CEO of my own company, I started to show up differently in my career.

As yoga teachers, many of us are right brain thinkers. We’re artists, visionaries, and healers, and we don’t necessarily think of ourselves as entrepreneurs and business-builders. That mindset can get in our way.

Change the way you think (and talk) about what you do in your business. Yes, you are a yoga teacher – but you’re also an entrepreneur. You are the CEO of your own company.

The way a CEO thinks through a business process or problem is quite different than the way an artist or visionary views it. For example, when I started thinking like a CEO, I looked more objectively at my products and offerings. I wouldn’t say yes to a new project unless it was a fiscally responsible proposition. I didn’t just lead from my heart or my intuition. I made decisions based on business strategy.

Now when I evaluate a new project, I ask myself, “How does this fit into the larger strategy of my company and my income? Is this a smart vertical for my business? What would this offer funnel into?”

These are the questions a CEO asks, when he’s guiding his company ship – and I want you to think the same way.

2. Follow the 80/20 Rule.

The 80/20 rule, also known as the Pareto Principle, states that 80% of your outcomes will result from 20% of your inputs.

In your business, your job is to identify the work that you’re doing (or could be doing) that is potentially the most productive and more profitable for your business…and make that work your highest priority.

Right now, you’re probably spending the majority of your time teaching yoga in person, in group classes, in private lessons, or during retreats.

Most likely, you’re only spending a small portion of your time creating new offerings, setting up systems, doing your marketing, taking care of finances, and other tasks that will help your business (and your income) grow.

To think like a boss in your business, I want you to swap your priorities. Spend 20% of your time teaching yoga, and the other 80% building your business.

Take a look at this week’s schedule, and figure out how to make more room for activities focused on business growth. Can you schedule your yoga classes all on one weekday? Can you block out your mornings so you can generate new leads and find more people who are interested in your work?

Take a step back and look at your schedule like a CEO, making room for the tasks that will get you where you want to go in your business.

3. Look to Other Industries for Inspiration.

Don’t be afraid to look outside the yoga and wellness industries to gain inspiration and get ideas. Unfortunately, there aren’t a lot of successful business models within the yoga industry.

When I first started my business, there was really only one way to be successful in our industry: You had to grow your in-person classes over many years, until you could finally tour across the country as a teacher and maybe create your own DVD series. If you were really lucky, you would get on the cover of Yoga Journal.

That’s what my mentors were doing – and I followed in their footsteps for a while. Eventually I realized that kind of business wasn’t scalable and sustainable. I wanted to stop trading my time for money and create the lifestyle I wanted.

I give you full permission to look outside the yoga industry, so you can find inspiration in other types of businesses, experts, and teachers. Follow people you admire and respect online, and explore all kinds of fields, including things like interior design, personal styling, business consulting, social media marketing, and more.

Absorb other business models and best practices from as many places as you can. See what other successful business owners and entrepreneurs are doing that is working well, to keep your ideas flowing and maintain a fresh perspective.

4. Uplevel Your inner circle.

“Kula” is a Sanskrit word that means “community” or “inner circle,” and your kula has a big impact on your success as a business owner.

The next way you can start thinking like a boss is to uplevel your inner circle.

Examine your closest friends and family members—the people you spend the most time with— and ask yourself “Where are these people, in their health and wellness, relationships, spiritual practices, and their professional and financial lives? Is this where I would like to be in the future?”

Spend time with people who inspire you and push you further – people you want to emulate. Surround yourself with friends and relatives who excel, who are advancing in their lives and their careers. Set up your social circle so you have regular conversations with people who move you forward and inspire you to do your best work.

5. Have a Clear Plan.

The fifth way to think like a boss is to create a clear strategy for your business.

Make sure you have a signature offering, and that everything else you do funnels back into that product or service. Your signature offering might be private lessons with you, or a retreat that you do every six months, or an online course. This offering must be something that goes beyond your regular yoga classes.

Once you’ve identified your signature offering, build your brand around it, so all of your other products and services clearly funnel into that offering, and each step in your business moves clients up to the next rung of your ladder.

Creating a plan and a signature offering to focus on helps you get crystal clear not only about your brand, but about your boundaries and how you want to prioritize your time.

Think Like a Boss to Make a Bigger Impact

Taking these five steps will help you shift your mindset and your actions, so you can think like a boss to create a business that really works.

When you approach your company like a CEO, follow the 80/20 rule, get inspired by other industries, uplevel your inner circle, and draw up a clear plan for you business, you can create a financially viable, successful company that not only gives you the income you need, but lets you leverage your time, money, and effort so you can help more people as a yoga teacher.