Pride Month: Teacher Q&A

At CorePower Yoga, we know that it’s the unique and diverse voices within our communities that make CorePower what it is, and we are dedicated to uplifting and amplifying these voices every day. We want to share stories that enrich the CorePower community and expand perspectives by sharing other people’s points of view. To celebrate Pride, our CEO Niki Leondakis sat down with teacher and Williamsburg Studio Manager, Aaron Eskelson, for an inspiring conversation about his trajectory at CorePower.

They discuss how Aaron landed in New York, how he creates a deep sense of belonging and community, and how he intentionally integrates play into his classes.

Niki: Hi Aaron! Thanks for doing this. I'm really excited to talk to you.

Aaron: Hi Niki. I’m excited as well. Thank you for having me!

Niki: Let’s get started. I’d love to hear about what brought you to CorePower Yoga.

Aaron: I had a professor in college, in one of my dance classes, who told me I needed to work on my strength and flexibility. He said he'd been going to CorePower Yoga, and that I should come with him and try it out. I had never even thought of yoga. Growing up in a small town in Idaho, yoga really wasn't a huge offering. But I thought, ok, I'll give it a try.

So I went to a class, and I despised it. I hated the class entirely. I didn't understand the movement. It was way too hot. I was sweating and slipping. And I was like, I don't get it. I can't do this. I didn't go back for an entire year. I didn't practice yoga, didn't even think about it again. Then all of a sudden, I was living in Salt Lake City and the offer came up again to go to a CorePower class, and that's all that it took. I guess it was probably a more clear intention for me as to why I wanted to go. There was so much more intention and mindset behind it. I fell head over heels in love with it, and then just continued to go consistently. I was able to go to a bunch of different locations, and I slowly found myself wanting to be immersed within the community. I joined the SET team, then worked at the front desk, seeing familiar faces, and getting to know the community even more. One of my teachers suggested I consider Teacher Training. At the time I thought, no, I didn’t think I’d ever want to teach yoga. I loved that this was my space, my place to go, and I didn't want to detract from that. But when they explained that I could do Teacher Training to gain a deeper understanding of yoga, and go on a journey of self-discovery, I thought, absolutely. And so I signed up and had the best experience. I learned more about yoga, and more about myself, than I could have even imagined.

Niki: Aaron, I hear this from so many teachers. They never thought they’d ever want to teach, but were curious and wanted to dive deeper into the practice of yoga.

So what made you take the leap and start teaching?

Aaron: After Teacher Training, I never looked back, I guess. That was 2018, and at that time, there was the Extensions program after the 200-hour training, and I jumped right into it. Then, I auditioned and found myself almost immediately teaching C1 classes. Something just propelled me in the direction of teaching.

After the summer of 2018, I moved to New York City to pursue my love for musical theater. Knowing how much I loved CorePower, and what a strong community I had there, I sought out the Upper West Side studio for a class on my third day in the city. Shortly after, I auditioned and started teaching. Yoga had been my plan B if theater didn’t work out. I didn't expect that to flip. While my love for the arts is still there, the whole amalgamation of what CorePower offers, just sucked me in entirely and I haven’t looked back. I’ve loved every minute of the journey.

Niki: That is so great. I love hearing stories of people seeking out their CorePower community in a new city. And now you’re studio manager, yes? Do you still teach?

Aaron: Yes, I very much still teach!

Niki: So how would you describe your WHY for teaching yoga?

Aaron: My WHY is to co-create and inspire. I have a very strong connection to my yoga practice, not only at CorePower, but within the broader community. Brooklyn offers a variety of yoga, so I’m able to practice at studios throughout the borough as well. The one thing I find that’s different at CorePower is the open-ended opportunity to continue to learn and evolve and grow together.

At other yoga studios, it feels like you come, you unroll your mat, and you have 60 minutes to be with the body, the breath, and flow in a self-guided practice. Then you roll up your mat, and you leave. But here, people actually want to show up 15-30 minutes before their class to connect with the teacher, and talk about the practice. It’s much more of a full, true experience, as opposed to just the yoga. And that goes beyond the student experience, you know? As someone who’s now a studio manager, and has been a teacher, and was on the SET team, I know first-hand that there are consistent growth opportunities for everyone. There are opportunities for continuing education and things like that. So I feel like my WHY is the co-creation of that experience for everyone. From the person who is cleaning the mats to the person who is signing the checks, we're all learning and growing as a team.

Niki: I’m just elated you feel this way! When I joined CorePower, almost three and a half years ago now, I heard consistently how important it was to our teachers that there were opportunities to grow and continue to learn in their yoga journey. So a couple years ago we launched CorePower Yoga University, and we've been continuing to add classes and learning opportunities on that platform.

It’s our vision that CorePower Yoga becomes THE learning organization nationwide for yoga. The place to go for yoga teachers on their journey. And all of our employees will have access to all this knowledge as a benefit. The 300-Hour teacher training program we launched is part of this vision. And we're continuing to offer different types of learning opportunities, in yoga, but also programs that help our managers and leaders grow their management and leadership skills. This is a real commitment of ours. We want to ensure everyone at CorePower can craft their own learning journey with us.

Aaron: I absolutely see that vision. I think I have a unique perspective having started my personal journey at the CorePower in Utah, which was fairly small, to New York City where we see so many individuals and students coming in and out. I'm really grateful that I've been a part of this transition with the company, even through the pandemic. I’ve been able to see so many aspects through my experiences so far. And I know that the trajectory is still there, and it's just getting stronger.

Niki: You're giving me a lot of inspiration!

Okay, so shifting gears now. I want to hear more about your experience as a student at CorePower. In all the classes you've taken, what's one thing a teacher has done during a class experience that really made an impact on you?

Aaron: I was in class once when the teacher made a really beautiful, personal share about somebody in her life who had just passed. It so happend, at the time, I was also going through a similar situation. You know, it’s a very thin line to teeter when you share a personal or emotional experience, and bring it to your class. It can be received as heavy-hearted, but this teacher had such a beautiful, succinct way of saying that this was something she was dealing with, and she invited those who were dealing with - or have dealt with - something similar to connect with that grieving part of ourselves and hold space for it, and also space for those who have passed on. It just spoke volumes to me. Because of her vulnerability, I felt comfortable sharing my experience with her after class, and she gave me the safe space to do that. With the way she sequenced the movement and intention of her class, I truly felt so connected to the person I had lost. It was a beautiful experience.

Niki: Wow, I can tell that really had an impact on you. I think loss and grief are some of the most difficult things we have to go through in life. But working through some of it on the mat, and going through it with another human – even for a moment – can be very soothing and validating in a way.

Aaron: Yes, you feel seen and validated. In that class, I felt so loved. And that teacher made such an impact on me. She held that space for me, not only inside the yoga practice room but outside as well. I was like, wow, this is the full CorePower experience.

Niki: It's incredible she was able to do that for you while she was going through it herself. That’s a totally open heart.

Aaron: Yeah, a big, open heart.

Niki: Alright, another question. Tell me three things your students can expect from you when they take your classes.

Aaron: I feel like this has been an evolution for me, as I’ve grown as a teacher and yoga practitioner. It always comes back, though, to the ideas of intention, self-discovery, and exploration. I love when we're at that five-minute mark of class, setting our intention together as a whole. I like to open it up to each student to think about what they are here on their mat to work through, and also ask them what they are working with. It’s this idea that you're not completely putting aside where you just came from. That’s still a part of you, and you have these moments to move, and to find some introspection and reflection.

The idea of play is a big one for me as I think about and theme my classes. I feel as adults, we come to our mats, and we have a rare hour to find movement and play. I put a lot of intention into the sequencing of my classes and also allow space for self-discovery.

Niki: I want to take one of your classes, Aaron! Williamsburg, here I come! That sounds incredible.

Aaron: I would love that, yes!

Niki: What a great, well-rounded class experience. The play part is really important. I love that. Anything that brings out your inner child to me is definitely worth spending time on.

As you know, June is the month we set aside to celebrate Pride. Can you tell me a little bit about what pride means to you?

Aaron: I would say to be proud is to lead with love. This one secular month serves as a reminder for me of Pride. I don’t like to think of Pride month as the one time that Love is Love, and we’re all about inclusion. It’s a reminder to hold space to love and to grow all the time. It's a reminder of how to be the best example of leading with love. Maybe we can think about all the other months of the year as a time to be introspective and grow from within. Then, Pride month is a chance to live loud and proud; to celebrate the growth that we've done through our individual work, so we can lead with that love beyond Pride month. It’s just a beautiful reminder that we are powerful beings who love from the inside out. And it's this one month that we celebrate all the love that we have cultivated from within, and get to live it loud and proud.

Niki: Leading with love. Nicely said.

So that’s a good transition to my next question. We hear a lot from our students that CorePower is their home away from home, and that they love the feeling of community they get when they come to the studio. How do you create a sense of community and help students feel welcome in your classes?

Aaron: That's such a great question. I mean, when I think about what we've all recently been through with the pandemic, a big missing piece was the sense of community. As human beings, we did all that we could to find it, I think. I know I was offering virtual yoga, chair yoga, and mindful meditation, anything for people to have a space for not only self-exploration and discovery and breath work, but also a sense of being together as a community even when we couldn’t be together in person.

When the Williamsburg studio reopened, I knew that building community was going to be my first priority. The way I began was through inclusion. Brooklyn is such a beautiful array of human beings, and I knew I wanted to create not only an inclusive space, but also an intentional space, for all beings to express themselves. CorePower does a really amazing job of developing our teachers and employees in cultivating connection, leading with love, and fostering community. One of the main ways is simply by remembering people’s names. By saying someone’s name, you create a powerful moment to connect with that person in class, and at the front desk. I think the Williamsburg studio does an incredible job of creating community and fostering this inclusive space. We’re having conversations with students and showing we really care about them. We want to know more about their yoga practice and also about their life off the mat.

We also love to take each other's classes at Williamsburg. Our SET team takes classes, our leadership team practices in our studio consistently, and fellow teachers are taking each other’s classes. That has been such a strong staple in our community, and it allows us to step away from everything else, and come back to being a student. It also means the students are seeing us practice, and we get to practice alongside them. I’ve seen it really decrease some intimidation for students. They can see we’re students too, practicing shoulder to shoulder with them. The ongoing pursuit of the practice for all of us really strengthens the community.

Niki: I can tell you are intensely passionate about your community, and I'm sure you have a lot of people that come to your studio because of that.

I'm really grateful to hear you refer to using people's names. That is just so important. It’s not about the fact that you know my name. It really means you see me, you know me. You care about me enough to use my name. I think it's one of the most powerful things we can do in the studios with our students. It conveys all of that with one word.

Aaron: It's so true! At Williamsburg, it’s almost overwhelming. We’ll have five teachers or leaders by the front desk, and everyone turns to the person walking in, recognizes them and knows their name. They get a unanimous, almost overpowering, amount of love from the entire team. It’s really cool when not only one teacher is saying your name and sparking conversation, it’s multiple people. It's infectious.

Niki: That's so awesome! I’m so thrilled to hear this.

Okay, another question for you, Aaron. As you know, we put words to our higher purpose last year to power love from the inside out. Can you talk a little bit about what that means to you?

Aaron: I was so excited when we transitioned to this mission, because I feel like we all power with love. That's what we do, and it’s one of the main reasons people choose CorePower. Powering love is beyond just filling a class roster and teaching a class. It’s about seeing a person, saying their name, and it’s having compassion. Intentional compassion is truly powering love from the inside out. When you show up with your heart and your mind, in this openly curious place, it allows others to match that intention and then move forward from there.

Niki: Yes, intentional compassion. Wonderful phrase.

Is there anything else, Aaron, that you'd like to share?

Aaron: CorePower has been a constant in my life for just shy of a decade now and I'm just so grateful for the ongoing support and willingness to listen and grow and evolve. Over the last couple years, I've really seen an intentional bridging of the gap between leadership and the studios and teachers. And I just want you to know I see you, and I'm grateful for all the work that you do for this team.

Niki: Oh, thank you. You just made my day!

Aaron: You made my day, Niki!

Niki: Thank you so much, Aaron. It was so fun to talk to you, and get to know you a little bit. I'm very grateful for this time. It has been the best part of my day, honestly. And I promise I will seek your class out when I get to New York again. Thank you!