Skipping Stones

I've always had Alaska on my bucket list and was fortunate enough to end up with a recent business trip to the state.  My husband and I were able to stay over after my work was done and participate in many adventures including bike riding, mountain and glacier hiking, a helicopter ride to the top of a glacier with a dog sled camp and a day long cruise.  The cruise was on a boat that held about 150 people and allowed us to see wildlife up close. We encountered killer and humpback whales, sea otters and sea lions, Dall's porpoise, and a variety of birds. We were also able to get up close and personal with a tidewater glacier as the glacier ice in the water clunked up and under the boat. We could hear the thunder and see the splash as part of the glacier slid into the water - "calving".  The scenic views were magnificent.  The tour ended on a private island called Fox Island for an all you can eat Alaskan salmon and prime rib meal. 

The beach near the shore was covered with millions of flat rocks perfect for skipping.  My husband was able to skip them like an expert getting a dozen or more skips per stone. Mine were a little less impressive.  A few managed four or five skips while the most of them just made a loud kerplunk as they hit the water and then sank.  I loved to watch not just the skipping (of my husband's work) but the reverberating waves that resulted from each skip.  They headed out to open water and toward the shore affecting more than the small spot where they initially hit. 

Just like the skipping stones, we affect those around us and that energy spreads like wildfire. 

In yoga class I try to spread peacefulness, fun, positive energy and delight in the moment. 

What are you spreading?

Passion Wins Over Living in the Past

Houston gets Super Bowl LI in 2017! 
Ric Campo, chairman of the Houston Super Bowl bid committee, and David Crane, another member of the committee, made a presentation to the Super Bowl committee that included a video with this theme: Texans love their football, and they love the NFL.  Houston won out over South Florida's focus on the past - the 10 Superbowls Miami has hosted.   I love that focusing on the people and our passion for the sport won over bragging about past efforts. 
I remember interviewing for a job several years back (which I was offered), and almost everyone I spoke with that day kept bringing up the awards the company had won over ten years back.  I was impressed with one executive that was real and down to earth and into the present moment of where the company was and where I could help take them into the future.
In yoga we work together to be present in the moment of class, to remove all distractions (cell phones, worry), and focus on our breath and the flow of poses.  The passion of every individual in the room shines through as they work hard and focus on every move.  There isn't any bragging about past accomplishments, or worry about not getting a pose - just enjoyment of where we are and where we are going.
Herein lies a great lesson for life and business proposals.

Talk Yourself Into It

We can talk ourselves into a lot of things and talk ourselves out of them just as quickly. 

I am intrigued by the difference between the person that comes to yoga class for the first time and not only stays for the entire class but returns another day in spite of the fact they were obviously struggling a bit during the session - and another person that comes to class once but never steps over the yoga class threshold again.

If you can catch them at the right time you are able to turn the "once in class and running as fast as they can away from the door" person into a regular attendee.  It involves bringing that internal voice outside for a discussion. 

A few years ago a girlfriend joined me for a flying trapeze adventure in a city a few hours away.  We were both terrified of jumping off the platform as we stood on the ground watching the other flyers, but when I reached the top and it was time to go - I listened carefully to the trainer's instructions and jumped - screaming all the way.  When it came to my friend's turn, she seemed paralyzed.  Each time after several minutes of building anxiety, she would finally exit the platform. But since she hesitated, she missed the opportunity to fly through the air with the greatest of ease. She would swing back and forth through half swings and drop to the net below.  When we were discussing the adventure over a margarita later that evening - she was agonizing over the conversations she had with herself at the top of the platform. Why was she telling herself negative things? -
that she hated it, that she wouldn't be able to do it, that it wasn't fun. She admitted that if she had a different discussion with herself before climbing up the narrow ladder to the platform the first time the outcome would have been so much more successful and fun.  Ah - next time...

I believe the people that enter the yoga room and return have already had a few conversations with themselves. Maybe they said - this is good for you, you always wanted to try something new, this will be fun, I will take it one day at a time. Whatever they said, it keeps them coming back again and again. I believe those that run are saying - "I can't do this so I am never coming back" - instead of "I can't do this so I need to come back".

Catching them outside the room later allows for a conversation to turn those inner thoughts around.  Encouraging them at the beginning of class and throughout (reminding them everyone is struggling and if they want - they are welcome to "become one with their mat") helps too. 

What are you talking yourself out of?

Stop Making It So Hard Because ISS - It's So Simple

I show my yoga students ways to modify poses so they will work more effectively for them. They are also very creative and find ways to change the poses knowing their own limitations. They don't typically try to find a way to make things harder to do - but sometimes they manage to.  In one pose where we balance on our forearms with our legs up in the air, the yoga practitioner can make it harder by pushing their shoulders forward.  Then they really have to use their strength to hold the pose and many of them can.  But they are making it so much harder than it would be if they lined their shoulders up with their elbows.  I don't think they are consciously trying to make it harder, it just happens as they work the pose, but sometimes they can really complicate the simplest of positions.  They do adjust when I show them the alternative way - unlike some corporations.

When a high performing employee suddenly starts performing at a less than stellar level the discipline process typically kicks in.  Why don't we just talk to them and see what is going on in their life that might have caused a change and offer to help? 

When employees are overwhelmed with work and bosses don't have time to sort through the urgent and non-urgent tasks when delegating - they get pushed harder to work longer hours and get more done in less time. Why don't we take a step back and evaluate what we are asking people to do - to see if it is necessary, important, needs to be done at all or could be accomplished in a more productive way?

When the business is experiencing a dip in sales, we jump to see what our competitors are doing and try to follow along. Why don't we pay better attention to our customers and give them valuable products and services?

A tragic event results in government intervention and more cumbersome rules and regulations that don't really address the problem, but look great politically.  Why don't we pause and examine the root of the problem and make changes that will be lasting and effective?

ISS - It's So Simple - stop trying to make things so difficult. Relax your thinking and look for the real cause behind the situation.  Then make a plan to move forward. 

Feet Planted Firmly In the Air

I loved to watch them as they squealed, shouted, clapped, flipped, jumped and made it all look so easy.  When I was a young girl I shied away from trying out for cheerleading.  The cartwheels and splits eluded me and those were two defining talents cheerleaders were required to perform. I did end up on the modern dance squad and performed at football and basketball games, but those splits and cartwheels remained on my bucket list.  (Maybe if I had practiced them they would have eventually come to me!)

A few years ago, while teaching a yoga class, I was able to make it completely to the floor in the splits for the first time in my life. I squealed with delight and shouted that "now, I could try out for cheerleading!".  A joke transformed into a reality and the next year I found myself in line at tryouts with a young waitress friend less than half my age trying out for the Houston Texan cheerleaders. I was able to make it through the second round while my young friend had to drop out because of neck and back problems. All of that day long hair flippin' and hip shakin' had taken a toll.  I really think the yoga kept me free from injury.  The second round was my last round but the memories of a day filled with excitement and dancing dreams was sure to last forever.

I still struggle with the cartwheel half of the bucket dream. I have been able to fly up into a handstand but rounding it out as a cartwheel will take some time.  I recently showed my yoga class my cartwheel for entertainment purposes only - and it was entertaining in its feebleness!  Why are my feet planted so firmly on the ground - afraid to fly freely in the air?

What are we really afraid of?  The worst thing that could happen is a little butt bounce on the floor.  I'm going to keep practicing until my feet are planted firmly in the air.  Join me.

Try It! - You'll Like Mine

My husband plays poker once a month with buddies from work.  I think it is great for guys to get together and when they do - the girls get together too.  This time he was hosting it at our house and it is customary for the host to feed the crowd.  Now, my husband is a great cook and I don't even bother to cook very much any more because everything he makes is so good.  But there are a few things that I make that he just cannot compete with me on - or doesn't dare try.  I cannot share my recipes with him because if I did, he wouldn't need me for anything anymore.  He asked if I would be able to make lasagna for the guys and I agreed.  After all - he is always treating me with delicious meals off the smoker/grill and the fluffiest omelets ever every Sunday.  It was the least I could do. 

Lasagna is a process.  It is best done with a glass (bottle?) of wine in one hand and a giant spoon in the other.  I enjoy making it but it can take a half of a day the way I perform this operation.  With each new batch, I buy more ingredients than I did the last time and definitely more than I need.  I end up making more lasagna than a family could possibly eat in a week.  I figure if I am going to do it and make a mess of the kitchen, then I am really going to do it up right.  This time it was six pans.  So I shared some with friends and neighbors. 

I have a girlfriend that has never liked lasagna. There is something in it that is common in lasagna recipes and it doesn't taste good to her.  She tried mine one day and couldn't believe that she liked it.  Now I always make sure she gets a pot of it when I make it.  I offered some to another friend from this batch and she readily accepted it saying she doesn't care for it but her family would love it.  I suggested she try it, telling her I have a few friends like her and I would bet that she ends up liking mine. And she did!  Now, I can't tell you what the secret is, no one would need me anymore - so I will carry that with me until I die.  (Or drink enough wine some night that you coax it out of me!).

So, we may all be making or doing pretty much the same thing but it is going to turn out a little different because we can't help but influence the outcome with a little bit of our style.

I teach yoga at the gym.  I have many people that love my class and some that prefer a little different style, though they still join me for class and modify to suit their needs. I encourage them to also try some of the other instructors until they find a yoga that really resonates with them.  It can be such a wonderful experience for us in many ways - mind, body and soul - and can only benefit those that practice it.

But if you've never tried it - try mine - you'll like it!

Silence Means You Agree

As I started my introduction to the yoga class, I mentioned today was going to be handstand and headstand day with a number of animal poses involving lifting our feet off the ground.  The room was silent. I could imagine what was going on in their heads.  "Is she really serious?", "what have I gotten myself into today?", "that sounds like fun!". Probably more of the former and less of the latter inner chatter.

As I started my cycle class I mentioned that we were going to start on a fifteen minute hill climb and then alternate every other flat ride song as a race paced top heart rate zone rush.  Again, the room was silent. Again, I could imagine what was going on in their heads. "Is she really serious?", "what have I gotten myself into today?", "that sounds like fun!". Again, probably more of the former and less of the latter inner chatter. 

Was I serious? - yes very much so in both classes.  And it turns out, they really had a good time in both instances.  But I do playfully warn them if they don't speak up I am assuming they are thrilled with the plan.  And they usually don't speak up. And I usually go ahead with my plan - devious as it can be. 

I found this to be true in many instances outside of the fitness world.  At work in the corporate environment there were numerous occasions in which I wasn't totally in agreement with the plan to move ahead but I also wasn't totally comfortable speaking up.  They certainly weren't life or death situations and no lives or equipment were on the line. I would certainly speak up then. But I quickly found out if you didn't speak up when the issue was addressed, they assumed agreement and moved forward.  Chalk it off to youth or naïveté, it is a lesson worth learning and worth learning quickly. 

When did you wish you had spoken up instead of letting silence mean you agreed?  I look forward to your stories.