Alexander Technique: For You, There Are No Obstacles

To my own surprise, I’ve now spent ten years working as an Alexander Technique teacher.  It has been my privilege to support dozens of students on their journeys toward pain relief, posture improvement, reduced tension, and personal growth.  As gratifying as our collaborations have been, I’m well aware of all the other people who need the Alexander Technique but who haven’t studied it.  And because the AT offers so many practical benefits, I’m keen to support those “new people” in learning the Technique.  But the question has always been how, exactly, to reach them.  Put another way, are there obstacles preventing more people from learning the AT?

This essay will discuss potential obstacles that  might be limiting study of the Alexander Technique.  I’ll tackle these obstacles one by one to advance a single objective:  To persuade you, dear reader, that there is no obstacle to your studying the AT.

Obstacle #1:  Many People Haven’t Heard of the AT

Low public awareness of the Alexander Technique is by far the greatest obstacle to increasing the ranks of its students.  When I examine Google Search Trends data, Alexander Technique barely registers in search volume compared to such disciplines as yoga or Pilates.  Only Feldenkrais competes with the AT for such low public awareness.  Here’s a graph of relative search term interest during the past year.

This graph isn’t meant to show that one discipline is better than another.  And search volume has little to do with how helpful Alexander Technique has been for individuals who learn and practice it.  Yet these data are useful to reflect upon, and it stands to reason that a person won’t seek lessons in something they’ve never heard about.  Over the years, I’ve done my best to spread the word through blog entries, workshops and more.  Unfortunately, the collective marketing efforts by me and other Alexander teachers have had little effect on public awareness.  Here’s how search volume for Alexander Technique has evolved (or, hasn’t evolved) during the past five years.

However, if you’re reading these words then you obviously have heard of the AT.  And according to google gemini, there are around 15,000 to 22,000 searches on Google searches for the term Alexander Technique worldwide during an average month.  Between 5,500 and 9,000 of those searches originate in the United States, so that’s still a lot of people like you who know of, but who haven’t yet studied, the AT.  So let’s look at the obstacles that might be preventing so many of those people from having AT lessons.

Obstacle #2:  People Don’t Understand the Benefits

It’s quite possible that someone who has heard of the Alexander Technique hasn’t taken AT lessons because they don’t understand why they should.

Many teachers do struggle in their attempts to explain the Alexander Technique.  This is partly due to the fact that the AT is much more an experience than an intellectual concept, and words cannot convey that experience.  But one can explain the reasoning behind the experience and the intended result, so here goes:  The AT enables people to improve their posture and reduce needless tension in basic daily activities.  By reducing postural distortions and tension-induced inefficiencies, AT students can obtain pain relief and prevent injuries, whether they are office workers, construction workers or performing artists.  Students can also conserve their personal energy, manage stress and improve their breathing efficiency, among other benefits.

Conveniently, all of these benefits result from learning the basic skill of paying a particular kind of attention to any activity we’re engaged in.  When we give ourselves this kind of attention, with the proper training, we can create the well-balanced support that allows a host of benefits to unfold over time.  And if that seems too good to be true, consider this simple question:  Does paying attention to what you’re doing improve the result?  The answer is, most certainly, yes!  So why would paying attention to the way we sit, stand and walk be any less vital than paying attention during a job interview?

Obstacle #3:  People Expect Instant Results

When students ask how many Alexander Technique lessons it will take to become proficient, I use the metaphor of learning a foreign language.  If a person wants to learn only the most basic phrases in a foreign language, that won’t take especially long.  On the other hand, if that person wants to be able to hold even a basic conversation in the foreign language, that will take some time.  And building the capacity to have advanced conversations will take even longer.

The rule of thumb that Alexander teachers use is that a new student will need 30 lessons to gain a basic understanding of how to apply the AT to their daily activities.  This sounds like a lot of lessons to people accustomed to buying whatever they want immediately.  And the sense of challenge may be compounded by the fact that the AT is a practice, something students must do for themselves with a teacher’s support.  This too runs contrary to the experience of many people who think in terms of buying services rather than learning to serve themselves.

When you’re learning the Alexander Technique, you’re learning to “speak” your own private language. How fluently you want to speak the language of your own movements is up to you, but a longer course of study and greater diligence usually produce superior results.

Obstacle #4:  AT Lessons Cost Too Much

Like any other course of study, Alexander Technique lessons must be paid for.  This can be uncomfortable for people, especially since the lessons proceed over a considerable period of time.

When the cost becomes burdensome for a student, there are several ways to lighten that burden.  First, the lessons can be spaced out to make the financial impact easier to absorb.  Second, group classes are generally less expensive than private lessons, although students receive less individualized attention.  Third, many teachers (including this teacher) offer lessons on a sliding scale to committed students.

Even when a student has the resources to pay for lessons, they may resist doing so.  However, the notion that AT lessons are expensive flies in the face of two important considerations.  First, the student is learning a skill that can help them to reduce or prevent a host of problems that may cost much more to address through other methods.  Second, certified AT teachers (myself included) have invested many thousands of dollars and studied over 1,500 hours to acquire certification.  After certification, most teachers continue to invest in pricey post-graduate training to enhance their skills.

When a credential costs as much as AT certification does, and requires as much training, that must be factored into the lesson price.  How much should that price be?  Nobody knows exactly, but it ought to reflect the cost of training, the teacher’s degree of experience and the value of individualized attention.

The End to All Obstacles

It is not easy, quick, or cheap to learn valuable new skills and create meaningful change in oneself.  This is certainly true of the Alexander Technique, a highly practical discipline that can produce life-altering results.  But for students willing to patiently invest their time and resources to become proficient in their most basic activities, the rewards can go well beyond their doubts and calculations.

If you’ve read this far, I’m grateful for your attention and hope you will take the next step.  Schedule an introductory lesson in the AT, set up a free 15-minute phone call, or send me a note to ask any questions you might have.  Let’s work from the premise that there are no more obstacles!