Meet Stephanie Alston

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Stephanie Alston. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Stephanie, first a big thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts and insights with us today. I’m sure many of our readers will benefit from your wisdom, and one of the areas where we think your insight might be most helpful is related to imposter syndrome. Imposter syndrome is holding so many people back from reaching their true and highest potential and so we’d love to hear about your journey and how you overcame imposter syndrome.

Imposter syndrome is a nasty sense of self-doubt that creeps in at the most inconvenient moments. I hardly ever feel that I’ve “learned enough”, “practiced enough”, or “had enough life experience” to be sharing what I’m sharing with others. Even as a business owner and successful entrepreneur there’s this sneaking suspicion that I need to be the expert and be able to answer ALL the questions that anyone could possibly have about my profession before I can call myself legit and stand up in front of others to represent, well, ANYTHING.

What I’ve learned over the years is that most people don’t want the “expert”, they’re just looking for YOU. They want someone with whom they can find a genuine connection. Someone who will honestly and bravely walk alongside them in their journey of self-discovery without judgement in the process.

I had an amazing teacher once who said, “less mastery, more mystery”, and in yoga and holistic wellness world, that is definitely true. We are constantly growing, evolving, studying, and learning more about the capabilities of the human body-mind. There really is no limit–so expecting that anyone could ever be done learning all there is to know is completely unrealistic. The more I have explored just showing up consistently to say, “here’s what I’m learning and studying this week. Let me share with you how exciting this is!” the more I have found that I know enough about what I know to make an impact in people’s everyday lives. And that’s all I’ve really ever wanted to offer people in the first place.

This same teacher reminded me that you don’t want a guide through the jungle that’s never had any scrapes or scars and has done everything perfectly. You want someone who has tried and gotten knocked down and rose back up again. You want the guide who knows the jungle like the back of their hand because they’ve lived it. And that’s what we are for each other in the human family–fellow travelers all just walking each other home. We share what we’ve learned so far and how its affected us, and invite others to explore with us along the way.

The only way to be an “imposter”, then, is to deny your humanity. Everything else is fair game.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

I am a trauma-informed yoga teacher, studio owner, and end-of-life yoga therapist in training. As a certified professional coach I also work 1:1 with folks to support them in living a life fully aligned with their vision of what could be.

At my studio, Santosha Yoga Collective in Loomis CA (just north-east of Sacramento), my passion is to help people see that yoga IS for them. My business partner and I truly believe that yoga is for every body, and that it is so much more of a lifestyle than just a movement practice. Having a studio in my hometown that allows for those with disabilities, limited range of motion, or in advanced stages of aging to find community and classes with people they can relate to is absolutely huge.

When I first went through yoga teacher training I recognized what a profound shift I was experiencing on the mat and wanted everyone to be able to have access to this transformation. I wanted to share with my dad, who had PTSD from being an Army Veteran, and my mom, who through significant trauma and abuse was now in poor physical and mental/emotional health and could not easily get up and down off the ground. Neither of them were ever going to come to a heated power vinyasa class at my gym. I knew that Chair Yoga, Restorative practices, and meditation and breathwork would be the most beneficial, but finding classes tailored to these special populations at a public studio felt nearly impossible.

The community that we have since cultivated at Santosha Yoga welcomes people from the prenatal stages of life, all the way to their 90’s. We have students with joint replacements, neuropathy, recovering from cancer treatment, in active trauma-recovery, with arthritis and osteoporosis, and everything in between. Our studio that is kept at comfortable room temperature, without added infrared heat and humidity, which can aggravate chronic disease, auto-immune disorders, and other physical symptoms for many bodies.

Yoga is a path of liberation from suffering, and the practices are designed to support everyone, whether in physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual pain and discomfort. The healing process occurs when we are in partnership and community, rather than isolation, which can prolong suffering and a sense of, “I’m the only one dealing with this.” When we have the opportunity to connect with others in our same life situation, or with similar aches and pains (both literally and figuratively) we feel a greater sense of unity and alleviation of symptoms can occur just with the naming of what is hurting or out of place.

My favorite thing is to see the variety of students who come through our doors throughout the week. It is such a joy to serve so many people in our own backyard, many of whom have driven past our building for years and then finally decided one day to muster the courage to say yes and give it a try. “This place has literally saved my life,” a student told me this week. When my mom experienced Chair Yoga with movements she could actually do, and the kindness of the group that welcomed her freely, she cried in gratitude. This is the power of a studio where all are truly welcome.

This year in 2025 we are offering our first Yoga Teacher Training program, in collaboration with All Souls Yoga Sanctuary and Integrative Yoga Therapy. In the 13 years that our studio has been part of the community, this is the first time we have offered a 200-hour base level training for aspiring yoga teachers. What makes it most unique is that the skills learned will be rooted in trauma-informed practices, Somatics, and Ayurvedic yoga therapy principles from the very beginning. Having teachers like this out in the world from day 1 creates ripples that I can’t even begin to imagine how powerful will be just a few short years from now!

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

The top qualities or skills in my journey have hands-down been the ability to connect with others in conversation (interpersonal customer service skills), the ability to create systems (seeing what needs to be organized and developing a strategy or protocol that can be easily duplicated by others), and a willingness to cut projects and ideas that aren’t taking off.

Especially with that third one, sometimes as entrepreneurs and leaders we can get attached to our ideas being the best, or just attached to how much we really really want to see something come alive. But the ability to let go of a project when it’s not happening or thriving can be a lifeline to your business or program. It can cause more time and strain to revive something or prolong a bad business move than it is to move on, reflect on what you learned, and go again with a better idea the next time around.

My advice would be to see first-hand how your industry needs every single part to create success. Take every job opportunity and consider the value in each role to develop it with an attitude of contribution to the greater whole–food service, sweeping floors at a craft store, cashier in retail, wedding photographer, administrative assistant at an HVAC company… these are all jobs I actually had in my years before becoming a business owner and I can now look back at every single role and see how it directly impacts the way that I interact and lead with my team and customers now. It taught me patience, the ability to see how to make job duties more streamlined, and creates a sense of partnership, collaboration, and humility, if you let it. There are no small jobs or parts that are inconsequential, and no one person can do or be it all.

Okay, so before we go, is there anyone you’d like to shoutout for the role they’ve played in helping you develop the essential skills or overcome challenges along the way?

My coaches and mentors over the years have been absolutely invaluable. It might sound cliche, but coaches are an incredible resource because they direct the power back to YOU, and help you to see what you really had inside you all along. I’ve had a couple of business coaches who were also in my industry so I was able to ask them first-hand knowledge of their experience running yoga studio teams. This kind of mentorship and having relationships where you get to ask someone who’s gone before you what they did and learned along the way can be a game changer. You don’t have to re-invent the wheel! Most folks are flattered to be asked to share their experience and knowledge, and it gives you a leg up when it comes to skipping over the ideas that are more likely to fall flat from the beginning and start instead with the ideas that are winners and already beta-tested. Find someone who is already doing what you’d like to do (or leading with the energy you’d like to emulate) and ask them to coach you. 5 years later and I don’t even recognize myself from who I used to be.

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