Forums > Social Chat > How much should I charge?

Posted: 5th Jan 2004
Way hey! Wherabouts in Nova Scotia, eh? I'd be interesting, providing it doesn't cost too much, and that I have time! Good luck

~ Bobo

wie weit, wie weit noch?
fragst mich, wo wir gewesen sind...
du fehlst hier

Posted: 6th Jan 2004
I've only ever done it for free, with an option to buy the poi I provided at the end for cost price or I'll tell them how to make their own.

It's up to you but that's what I'd suggest. At least until you at least know you're able to teach a class well anyway. Maybe you've taught loads of classes already, I dunno but I know it wasn't as easy as I thought it was going to be.

I live in a world of infinite possibilities.

Posted: 6th Jan 2004
I never charge. I enjoy teaching too much. That is until my pupils start getting better than me!

Poi... it's an obsession.

Posted: 6th Jan 2004
You want to charge????

Let's relight this forum

Posted: 6th Jan 2004
Charge??? Hmmm....here in Perth we just turn up and anyone that knows different moves to you at the turn out is usually more than willing to give you a few tips and hints for nothing....

Posted: 6th Jan 2004
arsn and I dont charge, we just ask for a donation for the fuel we provide

TAJ "boat mummy." VALURA "yes sweetie you went on a boat, was daddy there with you?" TAJ "no, but monkey on boat" VALURA "well then sweetie, Daddy WAS there with you"

Posted: 6th Jan 2004
Ya I would have to put my vote in for not chargeing... I had a really tough time starting because it was only me and one friend... I tried to seek help from the snob sqaud known as the Buskers but recieved nothing but an upturned nose.. I think the artist formaly known as DCL would agree with me.. I dont think i would like to see poi mainstream but i do like it when I see people spreading the art for fun and enjoyment.

-Beeaaatch please, I'm the macaroni with the cheese.
-This message will self destruct in 10 seconds.

Posted: 6th Jan 2004
Yeah, no charge is really the only way to go, you need to ask yourself, did you pay somebody else to learn off, or did somebody, atleast once show you a trick, move, or routine for free... I don't ever believe poi, staff or even fire twin tigerhooks will go "mainstream"... because the human race is lazy... I can say this freely as I am a duck.

I can't hear you... I have a banana in my ear.

"You mean I'll have to use my brain?... but I use staff!!!" ~ ben-ja-men

Posted: 6th Jan 2004
I have charged for doing school shows but only because my teacherfriend running it insisted..and that way it covered my consumeables when I ran poi making classes in my boys classroom..I am not a terrific spinner or teacher so it was almost embarrasing to get paid. But it was good to pass the money onto other kids.

.....I like what Valura and Arsn do with fuel subsidy.

I am hearing grumbles where we spin because some ppl seem to be sponsering the great unwashed and its not fair if one or two ppl have to pay for the rest.

Is it the Truth?
Is it Fair to all concerned?
Will it build Goodwill and Better Friendships?
Will it be Beneficial to all concerned?

Im in a lonely battle with the world with a fish to match the chip on my shoulder. Gnu in Binnu in a cnu

Posted: 7th Jan 2004
Meh, it's difficult to say without knowing more of your background and what form the classes will take.
Generally I (infact "we" - Burnt Toast) just teach for free at all of our local meetings, festivals, gatherings whatever. That's how I learnt, I love teaching and I wouldn't feel right asking to be paid for that. If after the workshop they want to buy poi - fantastic, but I just get pleasure from spreading the word. Also, these are rarely structured lessons, just winging it and seeing what happens.
BUT
If we've been booked to run a workshop, whether for kids, adults or whatever - we will charge. Partly because we're specifically giving up our time to teach, it also involves some preparation time, often involves buying/making extra poi etc and it is a completely different ball game.

It's the difference between organising a social gathering to teach, or specifically running a class giving really good, organised lessons.

You also really need to ask yourself are you worth the money? (Not being nasty, but genuinely, should people pay to have lessons from you?)

Maybe let us know what your experience, background in spinning is and what form the classes would take?

Oh, and as to what we charge - it's the same as our performance rate without fuel costs.

Burner of Toast
Spinner of poi
Slacker of enormous magnitude

Posted: 7th Jan 2004
for me, teaching poi is a bit like sex.

i dont pay for it.
i dont get paid for it.
i just do it cos its fun!

"Here kitty kitty...." - Schroedinger.

Posted: 7th Jan 2004

Quote:

---

for me, teaching poi is a bit like sex.

---

hey me too. I always find myself doin it alone
ooooooooooooooohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!
That was bad but i couldn't resist...

-Beeaaatch please, I'm the macaroni with the cheese.
-This message will self destruct in 10 seconds.

Posted: 7th Jan 2004
Wow I never realised how much spinning poi IS actually like sex.....There's two balls, my hands can get tied up with rope or chain, sometimes it ignites a fire you can't put out, it takes a while to learn but eventually you get the hang of it and become and expert *ahem* and I often get covered with various dubious fluids!!

I think I should end it there....*goes to think of more comparisons best left for INSIDE the mind*

Let's relight this forum

Posted: 7th Jan 2004
but do you get callouses on your fingers when you first start?

sorry. i seem to have initiated a thread hijacking again.... ill stop now.

*bad dentrassi bad bad sick bad should be banned from hop bad me bad*

"Here kitty kitty...." - Schroedinger.

Posted: 7th Jan 2004

Quote:

---

but do you get callouses on your fingers when you first start?

---

Only at the finale!!! heh heh he

Let's relight this forum

Posted: 7th Jan 2004
id like to say poi is like sex, id like to really i would, but i just cant see it, cos im good (well i rekon so anyways, and no one has complaind, hell ive even had some compiments) and im crap at the other, and.....well its only going to get worse form here so i thin k ill leave it!

but yes bad ed! stop stealing threads, always going for teh cheep sex gags! but they are so funny

later days guys

Step (el-nombrie)

Posted: 7th Jan 2004
HA! a thread that went kinky and i didn't even post!!!!! see, it's not just me!!!!



resisting urge to make sexual comments......

I was always scared with my mother's obsession with the good scissors. It made me wonder if there were evil scissors lurking in the house somewhere.

Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons for you are crunchy and good with ketchup.

**giggles**

Posted: 7th Jan 2004
But you've gone and posted that now, thus entering the thread and encouraging others to pin the blame on you!

My state of mind is not yours to define!

There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness."

Posted: 7th Jan 2004
gah! no! it was kinky before i was here!!!!

I was always scared with my mother's obsession with the good scissors. It made me wonder if there were evil scissors lurking in the house somewhere.

Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons for you are crunchy and good with ketchup.

**giggles**

Posted: 7th Jan 2004
that's a minor detail, and won't stop people blaming you now

My state of mind is not yours to define!

There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness."

Posted: 7th Jan 2004
AAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!! I CAN'T WIN!!!!!!!!!

bows head and accepts her unshakeable reputation of being a kink influencer

I was always scared with my mother's obsession with the good scissors. It made me wonder if there were evil scissors lurking in the house somewhere.

Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons for you are crunchy and good with ketchup.

**giggles**

Posted: 7th Jan 2004
You have got to protect the reputation!

What would people think if you changed now??

we couldn't lose the pounce we know and love!

My state of mind is not yours to define!

There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness."

Posted: 7th Jan 2004
HEY POUNCE! STOP TAKING PART IN STEALING THREADS WITH SEXUAL COMMENTS!
god dam hippies

it must be green

Posted: 7th Jan 2004
Anywho, BACK to wether or not Josette should charge, and/or how much....

Take it to pounce's thread

~ Bobo

wie weit, wie weit noch?
fragst mich, wo wir gewesen sind...
du fehlst hier

Posted: 7th Jan 2004
GAH!!!! IT'S NOT MY FAULT!!!!

sheesh!

I was always scared with my mother's obsession with the good scissors. It made me wonder if there were evil scissors lurking in the house somewhere.

Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons for you are crunchy and good with ketchup.

**giggles**

Posted: 8th Jan 2004
So stop posting random comments in the thread....

Burner of Toast
Spinner of poi
Slacker of enormous magnitude

Posted: 8th Jan 2004
There's a huge difference between teaching a regular class and casually showing someone how to do something at a workshop.

Knoxious and Michal teach poi and staff courses that i've only ever heard good things about. Both of them really know their stuff, though.

As to how much you should charge...

I say it should be weighted around how much your students can afford. I'd charge a class of businessmen a much higher price than a bunch of penniless hippies. Mainly because the penniless hippies would be more fun to hang around with anyway.

Also should take account of how many students there are. You're perfectly justified to charge more if there are fewer people in the class, because they're getting more attention.

My Brother teaches dance classes for competetive ballroom dancers (you wouldn't know it, to look at my stumbling lack of poi style ) and i think he gets paid roughly £150 for three hours. That means a class of 15 would pay a tenner each, and a single couple would pay £75 each (Though you obviously have to make clear what the price will be before people turn up).

i reckon thats maybe a little steep. But if the student, and you, feel they're getting their moneys worth then cool.

"Switching between different kinds of chuu chuu sometimes gives this "urgh wtf?" effect because it's giving people the phi phenomenon."

Posted: 8th Jan 2004
As a teacher I can tell you that charging for classes is a bit different than for workshops...and I completely agree that teaching a class is so very different than showing up at a weekly meet and sharing what you know, which is well and good but for a weekly class when a foot of snow is falling, asking for donations gets you nil.

Everyone else wants reimbursement for their time and effort in sharing their skills, so why shouldn't we? Obviously not at a gathering where everyone is sharing, but if you are teaching on a weekly basis, you are there specifically to help further the skills of others, then why not charge?

A loooong time ago I was one of the people who said not to go too far with charging but then, you end up being the starving artist in the end. Unfortunately it is hard to for people in this material based society to respect someone as a professional in their field if they are homeless and hungry. When people sign up to take classes they not only expect knowledge and skill, they expect a presentation that is comprehensive. They expect someone who *makes money* at what they do. In this society today, that is "proof" that you know what you are doing. Now, do I believe that? Nope, but I still have bills to pay, this is my job and I am going to get paid to do it to the best of my ability.



That being said....

For a class there needs to be a consistent time and location each week.

There needs to be class plans which build progressively upon each previous class to really help people learn through practice of the old but challenge them with new at the same time. This creates a protocal between teacher and pupil that is very different than when you are all hanging out and sharing in a park.

Class has structure. Students will know that the first 10 minutes are warm-up, then work for 40 minutes, then 10 minutes of cool down at every class. There is a sense of comfort in that structure.



And for all that people should get paid. No doubt. Just like performers should get paid.

It helps to pay for the space (obviously indoor for Nova Scotia at this time of year), for time and effort put into planning.



Cost really depends on alot of factors.



Are you having a 6 or 8 week course where the student is suggested to show up to all classes? Then you have them pay for all the weeks at once.



Are you having open classes where they just continue and anyone can drop in at any time (not recommended for beginners classes, because if they show up the 3rd week, then you have to dedicate more time to that one person than to the rest of the class).

In this case you will want to have a drop-in rate (around here that is $12) or students can purchase a class card for 4, 6 or 8 classes at a discounted rate ($10 per class, so a class card for 4 is $40).



Or...you can do this...offer a workshop for beginners. Generally workshops are 3 hours in length and I have charge or paid anywhere from $25 to $50 for a workshop. For a beginners workshop I suggest $25 per person. Then what you do is use that time to see if there is enough interest to form a weekly class. This will also give you an idea of the skill levels out there and who you will be working with when you sit to plan your classes.

At this type of thing if you want to do a demo of fire, so that people can be encouraged for something to work towards, it is a good thing. However, teaching with fire this early in the game is generally not recommended until you get a feel for your students and how responsible they are.



Just keep in mind that your butt is on the line. Make sure either you, or where you are teaching, has insurance enough to cover the students. Charge accordingly. If you are keeping all the profits then you can probably come down in price a bit but I wouldn't suggested anything less than $8 per person per class. Most people like $10 only because it is a nice even number. If you are renting space, make sure you cover your costs. Check around to see what classes of a similar nature charge in the area... juggling, dance, performance art classes and average what you are finding that they charge.



I also agree with offering poi (or flags) for sale as well. Every little bit helps, right?



Anyway, hope this helps.

Best of luck to you!

Pele






EDITED_BY: Pele (1073617104)

Pele
Higher, higher burning fire...making music like a choir
"Oooh look! A pub!" -exclaimed after recovering from a stupid fall
"And for the decadence of art, nothing beats a roaring fire." -TMK

Posted: 8th Jan 2004
yay for pele [aka Goddess of the Smokin' Keyboard]!

"Here kitty kitty...." - Schroedinger.