What does it take to become a meditation teacher? What are the pros and cons of this career path? And is an accredited meditation teacher training program necessary?

Find out all these answers and more in this post.

Do you actually need any formal qualification to be a meditation teacher?

I'm going to be honest with you. Anyone can call themselves a meditation teacher and they probably wouldn't be breaking any law (although I can't promise that!). They may not even have their own practice, and yet still call themselves a 'meditation teacher' or even 'mindfulness teacher'.

However, there are 3 very good reasons why this is a very bad idea:

Legal Issues - You could get taken to court by someone because you didn't teach them properly and this lead to mental heath issues - this can happen, and I'm sure this alone is a good reason to get yourself properly qualified. With a qualification and professional certification, you can get insurance to protect you against these situations. And can also avoid them all together by not putting yourself in such a sitation.
Quality - If you haven't completed a high quality training, you may not teach meditation well. Only a very experienced mindfulness or meditation teacher would be able to train you up so that you don't make obvious errors.
Support - If you haven't done any trainings, you have no support from a community or teacher if any challenge comes up. And also miss out on opportunities to grow as a teacher.

For all these reasons and more, you want to find yourself a good quality certified and accredited meditation teacher training program.

So if you agree with me, and want to do the right meditation teacher training, read on.

How to Choose the Right Meditation Teacher Training for You

With the recent popularity of mindfulness and meditation, there's been an explosion of mindfulness teacher training programs. Which can make it very confusing for someone looking to start their mindfulness teaching journey.

Here are 5 key things to look for when choosing the right mindfulness teacher training:

Does the program have an experienced teacher running it?
Is the program flexible enough for the needs of your future clients? For example, do they just encourage you to teach a fixed syllabus 8 week course, or do they encourage you to be creative to meet the needs of your clients?
Does the program offer a community you can connect with both during and beyond the course?
Does the program offer certification and accreditation so you can get suitable insurance after completing the program?
Does the program incorporate the value of kindness and compassion?

There's other things you may also want to consider. For example, does the program encourage your own meditation practice? Is it training you to teach meditation in a way that appeals to you - e.g. teaching mindfulness or something else. Does learning from the meditation teacher help to grow your own practice?

I can answer these questions for you for our teacher training program:

I teach our mindfulness training program and have 22 years of mindfulness meditation. Google the teacher if you're looking at some other program to find out their level of experience.
Our program is flexible and encourages creativity if you want to be creative. Other programs such as MBSR or MBCT are fixed programs and discourage creativity when it comes to guiding the mindfulness meditations as the 8 week course has a fixed syllabus.
Community is at the heart of our Teach Mindfulness program, right from the very start. Other programs vary wildly as to whether they offer community support.
Our program is certified and accredited by the Complementary Medical Association and offers insurance to mindfulness teachers worldwide.
We are passionate about teaching meditation and mindfulness with kindness and compassion. We even call it kindfulness! Other programs don't emphasize that so much. Find out and see what most appeals to you.

What's the difference between meditation teachers, meditation instructors and meditation coach training?

The trainings of each of these programs are essentially the same. The only difference may be with meditation coach training, as they may emphasise working with one to one whereas most programs teaching meditation focus on training groups.

Just FYI, in our Teach Mindfulness program, we train you to teach both one to one and in groups, so you could call yourself a mindfulness coach or mindfulness teacher - bonus!

Mindfulness Meditation Training or Meditation Teacher Training?

If you want be a meditation teacher, ideally you want to decide what kind of meditation teacher. Mindfulness meditation teacher or something else?

The most popular meditation in the world right now is mindfulness, according to google searches. So when deciding which meditation instructor certification is for you, you may want to opt for mindfulness teacher training.

If you want to teach mindfulness as well as other forms of meditation, opt for a flexible mindfulness teacher training such as our Teach Mindfulness program. That way, you can also include visualizations for example, and even create your own mindfulness meditations.

Pros and cons of MBSR and MBCT Trainings

And if you want to teach an 8 week program and never want to change the curriculum and like the idea of just repeating the same thing again and again, perhaps one of the many MBSR teacher training programs may be better suited for you.

In the case of MBSR or MBCT, the training can be longer and more expensive, with ongoing costs, and often requires attendance to a retreat such as offered by the insight meditation community or insight meditation society.

If you don't want to teach mindfulness meditation at all, then seek out the specific type of meditation you wish to offer and join that course.

FAQ

Can Teaching Meditation be a full time job?

Yes. Once you become a meditation teacher, with the right level of authentic marketing, you can end up working full time, as I do.

Can I make a living as a meditation teacher?

Yes, definitely. I have made a full-time living for 12 years and couldn't be happier with the lifestyle. But it took work and dedication, just like any other work.

Is a yoga teacher also a meditation teacher?

Some yoga teachers are qualified to teach meditation too, but we've had lots of yoga teachers do our program.

I think it's because they are seeking to boost their confidence to become a better. Joining a program alongside other meditation teachers appeals to them.

What are the other forms of meditation?

There are also many other types of meditation offered such as vipassana, metta, kundalini, and more.

Do programs usually encourage us to do our own practice or some other special meditations?

Most programs will encourage you to do the meditation that they recommend, as it's a training course.

Should I get accredited?

Having an accredited mindfulness meditation teacher training will give you the skills and qualifications necessary to teach others.

The program should provide you with a strong foundation in mindfulness theory and practice. It should also offer practical guidance on how to lead.

How important is personal practice?

If you want to teach mindfulness or meditation, personal practice is vital.

A good mindfulness teacher will enjoy and wish to develop their own mindfulness practice.

If you have a daily meditation practice, when you come to offering guided meditations to others, they will sense your meditation instruction is coming from a place of peace and serenity. Your own practice is vital and core to our training

Summary

When deciding which meditation instructor certification is for you, a flexible mindfulness teacher training may be the best option if you want to teach mindfulness as well as some visualization based meditations.

Our Certified and Accredicted Mindfulness Teacher Training Online Program offers just that. Apply to find out more.

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