Move On Up - To The Front Row

I find it interesting to observe where people place themselves in a room. 

When I am teaching yoga some new people come right up to the front so that they can see and learn the right way to perform the poses.  Others that want to hang back and relax and participate at a different level may set their mat down in the back row or back corner. Occasionally they get a little surprise when I move to the side or back of the room to lead the class through a few poses and all of the sudden they are the front row now.  

In cycle class those that really want to focus and work the hardest tend to resonate to the front of the room.  In the front they can observe their form in the front mirrors and make corrections.  I sometimes wish I could automatically turn all of the bikes in cycle as easily as I can rotate my yoga class, (by having them turn on their mats), so that the back row would become the front row. It all makes for interesting dynamics.

I was presenting to a group of technical professionals on perceptions and assumptions in a business setting.  I was part of a half day long combined trainings plus meetings for a group that was only together once a quarter.   The finance group was presenting after my talk.  After I finished, I grabbed my lunch and stayed for part of their presentation before I headed out, on to my next adventure. While I was eating my lunch I observed that there were a few technical females in the room but they were seated in the last rows in the back.  The finance group that was presenting also had representation but they were also seated at the back of the room around a round table.  I noticed that several of them were texting or checking e-mails on their phone while their co-worker was presenting. 

There are a number of reasons people take a back seat at meetings. Some don't want to be called on.  Some may not think they have anything to contribute.  Others may have work that needs to be done and they don't want to disturb others in the room while they toggle back and forth between listening to the speaker and answering e-mails on their laptop or their device. But the truth is - they aren't totally "there".  We are most effective when we are totally present with whomever and whatever we are involved in.

What do you need to do to be more present and effective in your personal and professional life?

The Dentist Can Tell

I love to go to the dentist. That is not something you usually hear people say.  But I really do. I love the feeling of clean teeth after my appointment and don't really want to eat anything for a while to savor the fresh clean feeling.  But I eventually get hungry and give in.  My dentist's office is like a spa: with low lights, water fountains trickling, beautiful carefully lighted artwork and spacious treatment rooms.  It actually is a spa.  Her husband is a massage therapist and treatments are available to relieve stress from coming to the dentist or life in general.

The hygienist notices everything and made a comment recently that the left side of my mouth looked like I was doing a better job of brushing it.  I told her that made sense since I was right handed.  So, now I try to brush with my left hand half the time to even things out. It feels awkward but I know it is all for the best.  We will see if it is working next time I have my check-up.

In yoga I jokingly tell the class they need to even out their bodies or when they get older they will walk funny and I demonstrate. I also tell them if they leave class early and don't do the same poses on the other leg they will walk funny for the rest of the night. It always solicits a laugh and they stay.

This can be carried over into many areas of our lives. We tend to do the same things and stay with the same routines and get caught in ruts not realizing how "uneven" we are making our lives.  Try to do things a little differently - not only to stay balanced and even but to stay interested and excited about your day and your life.

Your yoga instructor can tell too. 

Just Take a Step

I attend a yoga conference in one of the most beautiful and interesting cities in the world every January. This year was no different. I was able to spend a week in San Francisco - the city by the bay.  The weather was so beautiful, unusually warm for January (i.e. it was 70 degrees some days), and though I've been there so many times before there were always things and places to discover that were new for me. 

The weekend conference is split up into six sessions.  For one of my sessions I selected an acro yoga workshop.  Acro as in acrobatic - where one person is on the bottom as the base and the second person is on top as the flyer - with the feet or the hands of the base supporting the flyer at the hips, hands, back or feet.  We started the workshop walking around the room weaving in and out of other people.  Eventually we were asked to select a partner and stand face to face with our arms up and hands pressed together.  We closed our eyes and were told to have one partner push into the other person's hands.  The reactions were very interesting.

Some people pushed back with as much force as the pusher, trying not to get knocked over. Others simply took a step back or to the side when the force became too much.

So what do you do when the "pressure" gets to be too much?  Do you fight back with all your might?  Do you stop and realize that sometimes the best thing to do is take a step back, to the side or out of the way in some way?  Sometimes the best reaction is not a reaction at all - but merely a reflection.  

Kicking the Bucket List

I taught an indoor cycle class for another instructor earlier in the week.  I always check in with everyone in the room and ask new people to identify themselves so I can give them tips and check them out on the bike.  One young lady told me she was new. I felt her uneasiness and asked if she was a little nervous. She admitted she was but also very excited about being there. Taking this cycle class had always been on her bucket list and she was finally here to check it off the list.

Wow. I had to pause for a few seconds and think about that one. Bucket list: a list of things one hasn't done that they want to do before they "kick the bucket"!  Typically people have things like climb the Great Pyramids or walk the Great Wall of China.  I hadn't come across anyone with cycle class on their list.  Then I thought - how cool - I get to be a part of this very special moment in this person's life.  She commented how serious everyone in the class always looked and how they would come out of class soaked with sweat from head to toe.  It was a fear she wanted to conquer.  

So, I encouraged her, gave her some tips and started the music and the ride. Part way into class I thought she might like to have this recorded so I asked if she would like me to take her picture with her phone so she could savor the memory. She was delighted and smiled for the camera through her grimace.  

At the end of class she was practically jumping up and down with delight that she had survived and I was so thrilled to have been a part of a bucket list kicking. 

The same thing happens in yoga class.  People see poses and either dismiss it as something they will never be able to do or consider it as a possibility some day and put it on their "list".

What's on your list?  Do you even have a list?  What is stopping you from doing the things you know would have you jumping up and down - silently inside or physically outside?

Take the first step - the year and the week are young and the moment is now.  

Force vs Flow

Force vs Flow

I recently started with a personal trainer, a treat to myself.  I never had one before.  It might seem a little silly to some people; after all, I am a fitness instructor and have trained other people.  But, I've never been able to do a pull-up and I wanted to kick up my strength a notch.  That is my real goal - to be able to crank out some pull-ups on door lintels (top part of the door frame).  

My personal trainer and I play with yoga after our weight lifting session.  He comes to my classes and knows where I want to progress in the poses, so we are good partners.  I was working with him on handstands today. To practice, you place both hands on the floor with your feet down and your body in an upside down V-shape.  Then you lift one left up. Gently bending both knees slightly, the practice work is in kicking the top leg up until the bottom foot starts to lift off the floor. The ultimate handstand is a graceful controlled lift to an upside down vertical position.  My trainer is a very strong guy and tried to muscle it up on the first one, knocking the wall with his feet. We both laughed as he dropped his feet back to the floor.  On his second attempt he let it flow and was able to lift up without torturing the wall.  It looked, and felt (he said), so much better.

Where are you "pushing" when you need to ease up and let things come to you?

Relax, breathe, know that you've taken all the right steps to get to this place and let it flow - onward and upward.

 

Bring It On Back To You

I attended a recent business lunch and presentation for women in the energy industry.  The speaker was a very professional, knowledgeable and personable young lady - probably in her mid thirties if I had to take a guess (which I don't usually do because I am usually wrong).  As I listened to her speak I found myself thinking about myself as a young professional in the power industry.  I thought about the opportunities I had, the people I worked with, and how fun my work was. I would have enjoyed the position and the work the woman was describing.  Then the shoulda, coulda, woulda started to speak within me.  I caught myself and focused back on what I had, where I was and how much I enjoyed what I was currently doing - bringing it on back to me.

The same type of thing happens to people in yoga class.  They are working in class moving through the poses doing perfectly fine and then they start to look at the people around them. There will always be someone who can go a little farther in a pose or flip upside down with the greatest of ease while you struggle to touch your toes.  The best thing to do - and the only thing to do - is bring it on back to you.  Relish in the feeling the yoga is producing in your body, congratulate yourself for coming to class and the progress you are making and know that you are in the right place for you and they are in the right place for them.

Bring It On Back To You.

The Squirrel Whisperer

I decided to add an occasional walk (working up to more frequent) in the park to my routine. Working out of the house, there are some days I don't get out of the house until late afternoon to run an errand or teach a fitness class, unless I have a scheduled business event. I figured it would be a good way to get motivated and energized for the day.

I drove over to the park (I suppose I could have run - but I quickly nixed that idea!), closed the top on my convertible since it looked like rain was a possibility and started walking briskly along the one mile path surrounding the main part of the park.  There are some beautiful trails in the woods but those paths are reserved for days when I have a buddy with me for safety reasons.

My focus for my park adventure was to be more present in the moment and to practice that out in nature.  As I walked about the park I noticed the variety of trees, the empty picnic tables, the tennis players, the sounds and the sights. Suddenly there was a shrill voice coming from the middle of the park off the trail.  It was a woman speaking very loudly, like she was calling out to her missing dog.  "Come here fella", I thought she said.  Her monologue was consistent and purposeful, shaking the peacefulness of my mindful walk.  She was carrying a plastic bag that swelled at the bottom. As she came closer I realized she was talking to the squirrels.  She was wishing them a good morning and calling out to them with "hello's" and "come here guys" in a constant chatter.  While she wandered with purpose she intermittently tossed something from her bag toward the animals.  It must have been some kind of squirrel chow that included peanuts in the shell (I noticed some on the ground as I made my rounds on the trail).  I laughed as I looked back at the path behind her and saw a half dozen squirrels munching away at whatever  treat she had tossed. Maybe they were used to that voice calling out good morning to them, or maybe they just smelled food and came running. Whatever it was, she left a bunch of happy squirrels in her path.  Her voice drifted away into the background as we moved farther and farther from each other, heading in opposite directions on different missions.  I did run into her again as we converged near the other end of the park. This time I did not bristle in reaction to the sound of her voice, but was entertained by the squirrel whisperer and her trail of happy new friends.

As I walked, I realized that I had come to the park to be present and had fallen into the habit of looking only at the ground as I contemplated certain issues or situations silently in my head, checking for unevenness in the pavement or staying focused on all things low. Her voice made me look up from the path as I walked around and around the park.  I stood up straighter and returned my focus to all of the beauty around me.  

In yoga, we start our practice frequently in mountain pose - a simple standing pose to ground our feet into the earth, lift our hearts and open our chests.  We can sometimes sink low in a pose, stare at the floor or forget to stand tall and look forward as we struggle in a pose.  It is okay to look back occasionally to see where we have come from, to focus briefly on what we have accomplished (i.e. progress in a pose), but I encourage you to charge forward with conviction like the squirrel whisperer - moving forward and leaving a trail of happy people you have encountered along the way.