For graduates beginning their teaching journey, as outlined in our step-by-step roadmap, one of the earliest practical decisions is where to focus energy: building an in-person studio presence, an online teaching platform, or some combination of both.
Teaching in a physical studio or gym setting allows direct, real-time observation of students — catching alignment issues, offering hands-on adjustments where appropriate, and reading the energy of a room in ways video simply cannot replicate. For new teachers still developing instinct and confidence, this direct feedback loop accelerates skill development meaningfully faster than teaching to a camera alone.
Building an in-person presence typically requires either an existing relationship with a studio or persistent, often unpaid initial outreach to build trust with a space's management. Income from in-person teaching alone is often inconsistent in the early period, dependent on class size and studio commission structures that vary significantly.
Online platforms remove geographic limitations entirely — your potential audience is global rather than limited to local studio capacity. Recorded content can generate ongoing income from a single recording session, and the barrier to starting (a camera and basic setup) is lower than securing studio space.
Building a meaningful online following typically requires consistent content creation and marketing effort that many new teachers underestimate — the technical and promotional skills required are genuinely separate from teaching skill itself. Without direct observation, correcting student alignment and safety becomes significantly harder, placing more responsibility on clear verbal cueing and students' own body awareness.
Rather than choosing exclusively one path, many successful graduates build a hybrid practice — teaching in-person classes for the relationship-building, feedback, and immediate income, while gradually building an online presence (social media content, occasional livestreams, eventually a structured online offering) as a longer-term, more scalable addition.
Regardless of which path you pursue, the underlying teaching skill — clear cueing, safe sequencing, genuine presence with students — transfers across both formats. This is precisely why a thorough teaching methodology curriculum matters more for long-term success than which specific platform you eventually choose to teach on.
Start in-person if at all possible, even informally with friends or community groups, before investing heavily in online infrastructure. The direct feedback and confidence built through real-time teaching experience typically makes any subsequent online teaching significantly stronger than attempting to build digital teaching skills as a complete beginner with no in-person foundation.
