How is your personal practice? Usually when I ask a student this question the response is riddled with guilt. Rarely is a student able to live up to her own expectations (or what they think mine are). I am always a bit amused because the guilt is causing more harm than not having the practice the student thinks she should have. We need to grow into our habits. We cannot force them on ourselves. Using will power is just a recipe for failure. Whenever we effort for something, we aren’t flowing with what we need in that moment. So, you’re thinking, “Great, Laura, how am I ever going to start a practice then?” I am glad you asked!
Reread my column under “Thoughts from Laura”. Now get excited on two levels. First, the everyday one. You can have more energy! I have heard many things from students. I guarantee I have never heard, “I have enough energy. I don’t need anymore!” Think of how good you can feel every day. Let the excitement of feeling good spur you on.
Second, the life-long one. Begin to be drawn by the excitement that your life can be more, that you can feel better, and then what you do for the world is add to it, not take away. Adding to the world doesn’t mean doing Nobel Peace Prize work (although you may!) Just being a kind person to the clerk at the grocery store adds to the world. Plus, as you feel better and experience more joy in your life, you will be drawn effortlessly to whatever the best thing for you to be doing is, your life purpose, if you will.
Kind of gets you excited to get to the mat, doesn’t it?
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Laura; Guilt is amazing and energy draining. When I committed to my personal practice-knowing it could be whatever I needed that day then the guilt was gone. Just doing something for myself to meet my own needs and nourish myself became more of a routine. Which is exactly lacking in many of us, the routine and daily ritual of nourishing ourselves and what better way than through our yoga practice! Deniseb
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