How to Build Community at Your Yoga Studio

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The world can feel overwhelming these days. If you’ve been feeling small or alone, you’ve probably read that being part of a community can make a profound difference. But how, exactly, do you find and build that community?

You may be overlooking it at your local yoga studio. Maybe you shy away from chatting up other students or feel intimidated by the clique of cool yoga girls (or, worse, mean yoga girls). Maybe you feel like you need to be one of the students in the front row doing fancy poses in order to belong. Maybe you’re a teacher who longs to be friends with the more established personalities at the studio.

But overcoming these scenarios doesn’t actually guarantee you a sense of belonging. That’s because community is never about a few people or a single behavior. It’s about a shared culture. This connection has an intangible vibe, a feeling of welcome and belonging that’s difficult to describe.

So as a student or teacher, how do you become part of an established yoga community or create one for yourself and others? As a studio owner, what does it take to create a supportive community? And what does this even look like?

How to Build Community at Your Yoga Studio

The foundation of community is individuals who take a genuine interest in one another, engage in activities together, and serve as a support system for each other.

It would be easy to assume that community building is the responsibility of teachers and studio owners, but we each have to do our part to connect and create the kind of culture we want to experience. The following advice is for anyone—student, studio owner, teacher, front desk staffer—who wants more from their studio than simply a place to unroll their mat.

1. Show Up

This may seem obvious, but the most important—and easiest—thing you can do to build community is to literally show up. Show up for classes, show up for workshops, show up for volunteer events.

That doesn’t mean forcing yourself to attend three classes a day. It means that everyone needs to be active and consistent in creating the community they want to experience.

“Showing up is absolutely key,” says Haiyan Khan, founder and co-director of Sama Studio, a donation-based studio in New Orleans. “It’s what makes a community sustainable.” Khan’s partner, Laura Hasenstein, co-director at Sama Studio, agrees. “Part of building community is being willing to put time into community,” she says.

Putting time in can be, well, time consuming. It can also mean that you might need to let go of some of your preferences in exchange for being part of something larger. Consider checking out classes that aren’t your usual style—both in terms of the style of yoga and the people who practice it. You’ll also need to let go of what you think community should look like so that you can experience the community that is actually taking place around you.

“It’s easy to think of community as something you just belong to, but the truth is, it’s something you build,” says Avery Kalapa, founder of Yoga with Avery, a mostly virtual queer-centered yoga community. “The strongest communities I’ve seen are built by people who just keep coming back. Even when they’re tired. Even when they feel like outsiders.”

2. Be Intentional

Showing up isn’t the same as simply showing up to class. It means coming with your full attention. You want to be intentional with your presence.

For students and teachers, that can mean embracing a broad group of individuals whose values align with yours. Honestly, it’s not that hard to tell what values a studio emphasizes. Yes, there are cliquey studios out there. Others have lofty or rigid notions about what constitutes an ideal yoga community that may not align with reality. Notice how you feel when you walk in the door, follow the studio on social media, peruse their website, or take a class. You’ll know when you’re in the right place.

On the studio owner’s end, being intentional can look like cultivating a value-oriented space that attracts the kinds of students and teachers who help create a distinct culture. “We didn’t just luck into a strong community,” says Hasenstein. “It took time to develop and it required intentional decisions, like gathering teachers together, defining our mission, and reinforcing the values that we wanted to cultivate.”

“At some point, we had to ask ourselves—who are we, and what kind of space do we really want to create? That clarity was a turning point,” says Khan. They decided to center everything in their studio around the concept of seva (service). They reinforce that emphasis through monthly dharma study groups to talk about ethical practices, conversations about how classes and workshops can align with seva, and developing a volunteer program in which students and teachers can be more engaged with the community.

All that behind-the-scenes work is totally worth it, says Hasenstein. “Once you get clear in your purpose, it draws in certain people. You stop trying to be everything for everyone, and you become a real home for those who align with your values.”

3. Introduce Yourself

If you want to feel like you’re part of something, you need to be proactive about getting to know people. That doesn’t mean you need to suddenly become an extrovert. It can be as simple as introducing yourself to the person who always attends the same class as you.

“Saying hello, sharing a moment of recognition—those things change the whole energy of a space,” says Kalapa. That can be especially challenging in online studios on days when you want to turn the camera off and be incognito. But even a tiny gesture, whether from the teacher or another student, can make all the difference.

“A simple ‘Hey, I’m glad you’re here’ is an invitation to be part of something bigger,” says Kalapa.

4. Have a Beginner’s Mind

Part of building community means letting go of your preconceptions. “Community is about staying open, staying curious, and being willing to learn from each other,” says Khan.

If you’re holding onto certain ideas about what a yoga community should look like or worrying about whether you’ll be accepted, it’s time to loosen your grip. That means engaging in conversations with openness and acceptance.

It also means being willing to experiment with different classes and events, even if they’re not exactly your thing. Maybe you’re an experienced practitioner or teacher, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t go to a beginner’s class. You may learn something new or encounter people you’d like to get to know.

As Khan says, “If you think you’ve mastered something, that’s when you stop growing.” That goes for everything in life.

5. Host or Attend Gatherings Outside of Class

You are, after all, more than your yoga practice—and so are the people around you. Being together in the studio helps everyone get to know each other within the context of yoga, but you learn only one aspect of a person’s life. Hanging out outside of class adds some of the complexity that connection requires.

There’s something magical about getting together outside of a formal yoga class, says Kalapa. “It’s where you get to know people as people, not just as yoga students. That’s when real relationships form,” they explain.

“People need space to connect in ways that aren’t just about learning poses,” says Khan.” They need ways to gather without the pressure of performing or achieving.” There’s also something to be said for doing something totally unrelated to yoga, such as community potlucks or bowling nights where everyone can mix and mingle.

If there’s not an event that you want to attend at your studio, suggest what you’d like to experience to the studio owner. Better yet, offer to organize it—that’s one way you’ll definitely get to know individuals.

6. Volunteer

When students volunteer, they feel like they’re part of something. And that’s when they stop being “just students” and become family, Kalapa explains. Service is, after all, a core tenet of yoga.

Most studios need help with something and would welcome your time and expertise in anything, whether tech, accounting, plumbing, or social media. It could be as simple as offering to organize props or greet new students in a Zoom room.

Also, volunteer in ways that extend beyond the studio to build culture and put your yoga into real-world practice. Try hosting donation classes, organizing clothing swaps, collecting blankets for a nearby animal rescue, or launching fundraisers for local causes.

7. Show Appreciation

Consider what you appreciate about your yoga community. Is there someone who makes you feel welcome? Did your favorite teacher create a playlist you love? Tell them.

“The best communities are built on mutual appreciation,” says Kalapa. “When people acknowledge each other’s contributions, it strengthens the entire group.” Amen. Jai. Blessed be.

“It’s amazing how much a simple ‘thank you’ can do,” says Khan. “When teachers, students, and volunteers all recognize each other’s efforts, it creates a culture of support.”

It might feel extremely vulnerable to walk up to a stranger and say, “Hey, thanks for making me feel welcome.” But imagine what a difference it would make if someone said that to you. Even the tiniest things make a difference in self-awareness and spiritual maturity.

Community isn’t something we find — it’s something we create. When everyone contributes, the result is a culture worth showing up for, again and again.