My little sister… (yes, no matter how old she is she will always be “little” to me) made a powerful decision last year.
Yoga has always been a passion of hers and has gotten her through the ups and downs of life.
But after our father’s death last Spring — a very quick diagnosis and a short prognosis — she turned to yoga for so much more. She found solace, comfort and quiet (she took on the primary caregiving role during the final months of his life).
She also found something more!
She was called to become a yoga instructor.
I was initially surprised but not shocked.
She has a wonderful way with people and is incredibly caring. However she also had worked hard to make a career for herself and had gotten pretty comfortable with the income and niceties that come with a job.
Her full-time IT job however is grueling and demanding of her time, energy and her spirit!
Since finishing her program last Winter she has been in demand!
She has yet to search for gigs. Studios are coming to her. Wineries are asking her to do yoga at events. Outreach agencies have asked her to come and work for them. It floors me how much work she could have if she had the hours available.
Juggling her passion (and all the hours of teaching each week) AND the 9-5 grind has been wearing on her lately. She texts me messages during the day like a prisoner who is desperately making his periodic phone calls to his family.
We’ve all been there.
She is deep in that phase where you’ve realized your passion and you’re moving in that direction BUT you’re still planted in a past world.
You desperately want to pull yourself up from the roots and be transplanted to a bigger, gorgeous glossy planter that represents the ever growing possibilities you feel in your heart.
You’re in two vastly different worlds and you feel pulled and pushed.
… Few people in her job get her new “hobby”.
… They whisper and make snide remarks about the little yogini.
… They give her grief for having to leave (on time!) to make a class she’s teaching.
… She feels how they treat her differently now that she has found her calling.
She’s different from the person they once knew and It makes them uncomfortable watching her expand and grow. They can no longer put her in a box – a box that looks a lot like their own.
Yesterday she texted about the internal chatter that often happens when you’re between two worlds.
So many decisions, so much seemingly at stake, so many beliefs, so many stories.
Which way to go… which way is the best.
And just when the mind comes to a solution, it begins to turn over again—- with a new issue, a new perspective to consider and a long list of to dos!
All this wrapped with rabid excitement for really getting started… building the business, working more with clients, taking on this new role for herself.
This is when the internal winds of chaos churn and swirl…
This was some of my sisterly advice to her…
How do you curb the winds of chaos.
1 | Vent some of that wind
Reach out to someone who really gets you. And, when possible, someone who really gets the transition you’re going through.
A supportive friend can be incredibly important but a fellow business owner or someone a few steps ahead of you on this journey can be a lifeline! They get it. They get you.
They get the mental and emotional rollercoaster you’re on. They’ve been there. They can provide suggestions, advice and simply say, “You’re not crazy!”. Even when you feel like most days you are.
2 | Ground yourself so you can bend in the breeze
Find ways to anchor yourself when negative thoughts come up or other people’s opinions overshadow your dreams. It is easy to get caught up in the chaos like a scrap of paper on a windy day. But it’s important to find something that keeps you rooted.
Find a talisman that represents the person you are becoming (and already are deep down) and hold it in your hand for a few minutes.
Take a few minutes to breathe deeply with your eyes closed. Slowing your breathing down allows for a softening of the frenetic.
Practice mediation. I know, I know. “I don’t have time”, “I can’t sit still for that long”, “My mind is too crazy”, “I have better things to do”. All excuses!
I’ve used them all so I know.
But finding regular quiet and calm will not only ground yourself in the moment but also will hold that calm as situations arise.
Keep a grounding crystal or stone near by and hold it for a few minutes. Our friend and Savvy Circle alum Ashley Leavy has an amazing business with tons of resources https://loveandlightschool.com/
3 | Heat can stir up wind.
There are three weather ingredients that can affect wildfires: wind, temperature, moisture.
However, most people aren’t aware that wildfires can produce winds that are 10X stronger than the winds surrounding them. Crazy!
In our bodies a hot temper, stress, resentment and anger can heat you up and stir up internal wind (yes I’m bringing back my days of being an Acupuncturist). All these emotions have an elements of heat and fire. Even though internal.
Passion (which is also a form of heat) can stir up the wind too. Yes it gets you moving and excited but too much (that doesn’t find an expression) can also call restlessness.
When all that passion (or the not so favorable emotions) produce internal heat stirring up the winds of chaos… then it’s savvy to find ways to cool down.
- Drink more water.
- Slow down.
- Find ways to relax and reduce stress.
- Sit by a body of water.
- Take a shower or bath.
- Channel that passion. If you want to paint – then paint. Keeping it bottled up just makes one agitated.
4 | Find peace between the gusts
Don’t succumb to the belief that your life is all gusts and turbulence.
In a storm, there are moments of reprieve. The winds settle down and you have a chance to run from the awning to your car.
Take those moments of quiet and find peace. Reflect on where you’re at and where you want to go. Step outside the mental chaos and imagine yourself watching as an observer.
What is really going on?
5 | Know that the wind is part of nature. It serves a purpose
So many people want things to be positive, upbeat, and happy – all the time! Who doesn’t, right?
But life is about Yin and Yang, opposition, and contrast. The sun rises and sets. The tides ebb and flow. The seasons change from cold to hot and from hot to cold. Darkness gives way to light. The trees blossom and then they drop their leaves.
The chaos is stirred for us to see the contrast, to appreciate the beauty in the opposite. To open us up, to strip away the facades we’ve created to protect ourselves. We need a bit of chaos to get out of our comfort zones and to propel us forward.
6 | It’s all temporary.
A wind storm — no matter how ferocious— doesn’t last forever.
All these winds stirring because you feel uncertain or restless are fleeting.
Don’t create a story about them. Don’t make them out to be a character flaw. But also don’t prolong them by searching for the next storm cloud to sit under and sulk.
Let the storm ride out, observe the movement and what you can take away from it and then prepare for when the clouds part and sun returns.
Image courtesy of Unsplash:
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