This post is part of an occasional series about how yoga influences how I work with clients. I don’t expect you to do yoga. Ever. In your whole life. The point of this series is that yoga has taught me some interesting things about how to approach other things.
Differences are not necessarily things we can fix. People vary.
What works for someone else may not work for you. Not because they are doing it wrong. Nor because something is wrong with you. You are just different.
What are you trying to achieve?
Your Triangle pose may look different from their Triangle pose.
The important thing is that you focus on the essential elements.
What is essential about teaching? Research? Or whatever your focus is right now?
Get as clear an image as possible of what success will look like for you.
What are the possible approaches?
It is useful to know how other people organize their work. What kinds of writing practices do people have? How do they teach? How do they deal with this particular issue?
Knowing what kinds of options are out there can help you figure out which ones might work for you.
Props are not a sign of weakness
When I walk into yoga class the first thing I do is pick up a blanket, a couple of blocks, and a strap. When I need one of those things to help me do a pose, I grab what I need.
I can’t reach my foot in a hamstring stretch so I use the strap. I need to put my hand on blocks in a lunge.
The purpose of the advanced practice is not being able to do the pose without the props. The advanced practice is knowing what props you need and using them appropriately.
Experiment
Try things. Systematically.
Pick one thing. Try it for enough time to really see what kind of a difference it might make.
Use your essential elements to specify how you will know if it is working or not.
Decide how long the experiment is going to last. Reflect on it and make a decision about whether to keep doing it that way, whether to tweak it, or whether to stop. (And remember “If it hurts, stop.“)
Related Posts:
Using the supports you need: Part 2
Is working at or just beyond your limits really effective?
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