I know somebody who’s a massage therapist and an Alexander Technique teacher. He makes most of his money from doing massage. He has no Alexander clients. “I can’t sell this [Alexander] stuff,” he says.
On the other hand, almost everybody I know who wants to be a full-time Alexander teacher is a full-time Alexander teacher. Why? Because life rewards a laser focus.
If you go through life answering the question of what work do you do with “I’m an Alexander teacher”, then the world will regard you as an Alexander teacher. If you answer the question with, “I’m an Alexander teacher and I also do massage and pilates”, then the world will not regard you as an Alexander teacher.
Unless they’re sleeping with you, people have only a small amount of space in their brain for you. If they can’t easily categorize you, they will generally dismiss you as too much bother.
A friend of mine wants to become an Alexander teacher and he also wants to become a yoga teacher and to get certified in massage and also take some instruction in Feldenkreiss Technique.
“That’s fine,” I said, “but most people only have a small amount of space in their brain for you. If you do all that, you won’t be regarded by people as an Alexander teacher. If they want Alexander lessons, they’re not likely to come to you.”
