I sometimes stumble in my yoga class doing balancing poses.
I’ve been practicing yoga consistently for two years and we perform some sort of balance on one leg pose just about every class. Still, I find that I can have trouble staying balanced, which is especially true when I push myself to make the pose more challenging.
In a recent class, we were doing what’s known as an “airplane” pose. You stand on one leg as straight as you can with your flying leg, torso, and arms in one line as close to perpendicular from the floor as possible.
For most yoga practices, this is a standard and fairly routine pose. For me, I can find myself wobbly at times.
As I was getting into the airplane pose, setting my grounded foot and leg up for a solid foundation, the teacher prompted the class with “what’s working for you?”
Something is always working for you
When we have new goals and are beginning to stretch ourselves, we can find that to be shaky ground.
After all, we are doing something that we’ve never done before. If you made one million dollars last year and you want to make a quarter million more this year, you must do something different to make that jump.
That’s where we get in trouble. The habits that got us to where we are might not take us where we want to go. When we start something new, different or more, we can become wobbly in the beginning.
It’s great to come back to the anchoring question, “what’s working for you?” In a world where it seems as if challenges are overtaking you, there’s always something that is working for you.
Characteristics & actions
The two categories that I most routinely ask my 1×1 coaching clients about are characteristics and actions.
Characteristics are the qualities that you possess inside of you. These could include: hard working, friendly, determined, smart, intuitive, rational, interpersonal skillsets, to name a few. It’s the internal intangible and learned tools you use to get through each day.
Actions, of course, are the activities that you actually do. Or, in some cases, the inactions you don’t do. This includes what you say and how you say it. Your actions and inactions produce a result.
Ask yourself which of your characteristics can you bring to a challenge to help you succeed? You may look back at challenges in the past that you found success in and consider the characteristics you displayed in that scenario that lead to the outcome you wanted. Many of those same characteristics can be used in the challenge of today.
Also, ask yourself what are the actions and activities that I’ve successfully done previously that I can apply here. Moreover, what tweaks and changes can I make to allow those actions to produce the desired result in this circumstance.
You’ll find your characteristics are up to the task and you can take the necessary actions for the achievement you desire.
Everything is working for you
Take the perspective that everything is working for you. Every setback is a lesson. Every win is a gift.
Life happens and sometimes it gets dumped in our laps. Sometimes we earn it, other times we don’t.
The lens with which we look through life with determines so much of our mental & emotional energy which generates the actions that we take. So, if everything is working for you, you are much more likely to have more success despite adverse situation & challenges.
A great question to ask yourself is “what would I do if I believed this situation was working for me?” That will give you the perspective to take the best actions in the face of a challenge.
So, in my yoga class, when the instructor asked us what is working for us in the balancing airplane pose, it prompted me to explore the foundation of my standing leg and how to balance. I made minor adjustments to the angle of my foot, shifted my weight and maintained focus on a spot on the ground all while remembering that I do have tools for this pose.
When we’re met with the challenges of stretching this new year, remember that something is working for you. Lean into that and you’ll find the start of your year will be even more successful.