Guidance and Language: how you speak in a class

Dimensions 11 to 15 of the 25 Dimensions. This is where most teaching is won or lost, and it is almost entirely about restraint.

The five dimensions of guidance and language

11. Cuing with precision

A cue is a direction, not a lecture. It should let someone find the practice in their own body without you explaining it to them.

Be direct where you can. Feet hip-width apart. Hands on your hips. Scoop the hips forward, around and back, making a large circle. That directs. It does not describe.

Then layer. Physical first, then breath, then energy. That way people at different depths can all meet the same practice where they are.

12. Permission language

Every room contains someone who is afraid of their own body, or unsure they are allowed to take up space in it.

Instead of do this stretch, try: you can fold forward as far as feels good, or simply stand and breathe, whatever your body needs.

That tells someone that modifying is not failing, and that their own signals matter more than the shape you demonstrated. Your job is to offer practices, not to collect compliance.

13. Speaking from presence, not from ego

The most effective instruction is the shortest one that works.

Speak from what you have lived rather than what you read last week. People can tell the difference, even when they cannot name it. They need you to be clear and to actually believe in what you are offering far more than they need you to be eloquent.

14. Invitational versus commanding language

Commanding language gets a body into shape quickly. Feet shoulder-width apart. Knees soft. That has its place.

Invitational language creates ownership. You might allow your feet to be shoulder-width apart, with soft knees. Now the person is choosing rather than obeying.

For openings and main practices, invitation usually works better. For closing and meditation it works much better, because a directive keeps the nervous system slightly braced and an invitation lets it open.

15. Holding space for all emotions

A Qigong class is an emotional and energetic event, not only a physical one.

When something moves in someone, that is the practice working. Do not rescue them. Do not make it a moment. Offer space, let them sit, hand them a tissue if they need one.

Know your edges too. If someone needs more than a class can hold, have somewhere to point them. Most of the time what is needed is a calm person nearby who is not alarmed.

Next: Embodiment and Integration.

Part of the 25 Dimensions of Sharing Qigong.

The practical route into teaching is at how to become a Qigong instructor, and the wider picture of the practice at what Qigong does for the body.

By Christopher Grant, Great Energy.

Frequently asked questions

What is permission language in teaching?

Language that tells a student modifying is not failing. Offering a practice rather than demanding compliance with a shape.

When should a teacher use invitation instead of command?

Commands get a body into position quickly. Invitations create ownership, and they work much better in closings and meditation.

What should a teacher do when a student becomes emotional?

Offer space rather than rescue. Emotion moving is the practice working. Know your edges and have somewhere to point them if they need more than a class can hold.

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Where to go next

If you have never practiced Qigong. Jump Start Your Energy is a free beginner class. No background needed, nothing to buy, and it is the fastest way to find out whether any of this does anything for you. Most people know within one session.

If you practice and want to go deeper. We teach live classes online every week, and there is a self-paced Introduction to Qigong if you would rather work through it in your own time.

If you want to teach this. Everything in this library is drawn from the Great Energy Qigong Teacher Certification. The frameworks are here in full because they are more useful shared than withheld. The training is where you learn to deliver them.

Keep reading. The rest of the framework library is at the Library, and our longer articles are on the blog.

Great Energy is an independent educational organization founded by Christopher Grant and Daniela Hess.