It’s not a crazy idea…

After twenty years in this ever-expanding world of yoga, I’ve learned a few lessons about teaching:

  • It doesn’t matter if you can or can’t do Adho Mukha Vrksasana.
  • It doesn’t matter if you don’t even know what pose that is.
  • It doesn’t matter what you look like, your size or shape.
  • It doesn’t matter what kind of fancy (or un-fancy) pants you wear.
  • It doesn’t matter if you’re fluent in Sanskrit or Spanish.

You can let the nagging doubts stop you. . .

doubt graphic

Or you can take the leap like I did…

I’m Shannon Caldwell, Texas gal, and passionate yoga teacher trainer. During my 18 years(!) as a yoga teacher and more than 10,000+ hours of teaching experience, I’ve seen yoga (and yoga training) transform, improve, and uplift lives (including my own).

In 1999, I was where you are. I loved yoga and wanted to teach, but I couldn’t do all the postures. I didn’t bend and flex like others. I’m vertically challenged and have T-rex arms. I looked nothing like my yoga teacher or any of the other teachers I’d met.

There were no yoga schools so I had to ask my teacher (someone I greatly admired) to mentor me. SCARE-Y. She probably wondered what the heck I could bring to the table as a teacher, but I surprised us both.

That 5 minutes of nervous discomfort (and telling my self-doubts to shove it) led to me to a life I could never have dreamed of…and I had plenty of people along the way telling me I was crazy.

No mud, no lotus

In 2002, I opened a yoga studio, but after a year of ownership, I was nearing burn-out. I was teaching 15 classes a week and handling all the responsibilities that come with running a business (marketing, paying bills, buying rolls of toilet paper).

I needed additional teachers, stat, and in 2003, Purple Lotus Yoga bloomed on the surface of the water.

I had 5 participants in my first teacher training. I truly thought after a couple of years, I’d have trained all the people who were interested in teaching yoga. I never imagined I’d still be doing what I love most 15 years later.

That simple need, so many years ago, put me on the path to YOU.

Random Fun Facts

I’m born and raised in Texas. Between my Southern roots and yoga background, I have a pretty laid-back approach to life (most of the time).

I love unsweet iced tea and it’s rare to see me without it. And that’s about the only thing unsweet I like.

Until 2011, yoga was my number one passion and writing my second, then a certain blond-haired, blue-eyed baby boy took the number one spot.

I like ellipses (those three little dots you see everywhere, not the exercise machine) and parentheses.

I believe yoga is more than black pants, green smoothies and pretzel poses. It might be the original self-improvement program.

I’m a walking billboard for “if I can do it, so can you.”

I’ve been called the girl-next-door and down-to-earth. I’ve never been super-bendy and I love cheeseburgers, chocolate chip cookies and coke.

If you want to connect with me on social media, I’m on FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM & PINTEREST.