Yoga, Work & Leadership
It’s been over 3 years that I have become a fan of Yoga. And when I say Yoga, it’s not just about Asana or a couple of breathing practices but the underline philosophy of Yoga which encompasses a certain kind of lifestyle. Therefore, on this “International Yoga Day”, I thought to write about my experience with Yoga, a brief introduction to Yoga and how it has been shaping me in the professional context.
What is Yoga – “Art of living”
Yoga is a practice that encompasses the physical, mental, and spiritual dimensions of our being. It was introduced to the world by Maharishi Patanjali through his profound work, the Yoga Sutras. Dating back to 200-500 BCE, these sutras guide a Yogic way of life. In the second verse of the Yoga sutras, Patanjali captures the essence of Yoga with the words “Yogas chitta vritti nirodha”, which means the cessation of the fluctuations of the mind. The aim is to calm, soothe or tame the continuous fluctuations in our minds and allow them to flow gently.
Relevant article: Asana Practice is not Yoga
My experience
In simple words, one must adhere to all the practices to reach the 8th stage, which I have been trying to do since I completed my certification. I must say, it has been a ride. However, during this entire period, I gained immense insights into myself and improved several aspects of my life.
Out of the several benefits of holistic health, one important aspect I would like to talk about here is mindfulness. I believe that’s what shaped me to be a leader (soon to be awesome) in all aspects of my life. The idea of being able to see, acknowledge, and work on my weaknesses wouldn’t have been possible without learning this extraordinary skill of “being aware.” It took me a huge amount of effort to build this skill, where I can spend time and effort improving myself. And this is where yoga (or any other such philosophy) plays a vital role. Yoga helped me become authentic and proactive, pushing me to live an intentional life. It served me by putting all these perspectives into the life around me.
In addition to mindfulness, another significant aspect of yoga is understanding and managing the tensions we accumulate in life.
To simplify, in life, we accumulate all kinds of tensions (in yoga, it’s called “knots”) in our mind and body by consuming different types of content—such as food which our body doesn’t appreciate or the content which our mind suffers from. With time, these tensions make us feel a certain way, shape the way we think, and drive us to treat the world around us accordingly. Usually, the more knots we have within us, the tighter we become and the more agitated we feel. What’s more fascinating is that this tightness or agitation often drives us to seek temporary pleasures, such as junk food or intoxication, to name a few. Yoga empowers us to take control of this process, enabling us to consume what our mind and body cherish. As a result, we can lead a fulfilling life and embrace our potential. This is one of the core objectives of Yoga.
Leadership & Yoga
Yoga is all about authentic living, and to achieve that, we must understand the concept of intentional or proactive living, which I am personally a big fan of. It’s not only about some practices or rituals; it’s about having a certain mindset. It’s about changing our entire lifestyle to live a life that is aligned with our health, values, and everything we do. Yoga helps us hone this aspect and pushes us to reach this goal. To be an effective leader, alignment in personal and professional spheres is crucial. Isn’t it?
How does yoga help me become a better leader? It simply helps me live an intentional life with compassion and integrity. And this is not just on an intellectual level but on an experiential level. For instance:
- Physical and Mental Well-being: It helped me understand that if I am not feeling good in my body or mind, there is a high chance for me to be frustrated by my surroundings.
- Diet and Concentration: Eating junk food or having a bad diet affects my concentration level and, above all, makes me feel lethargic, both physically and mentally.
- Authentic Living: Yoga helped me understand a clean and truthful life, which improves my interpersonal interactions.
- Energy Utilization: It helps me utilize my energy wisely—whether consuming content on the Internet, food in my body, or even while interacting with people.
- Perception and Healing: Most of the problems in my life could be solved by changing my perception, which needs healing of my own body. This can only be achieved by introspection, which comes from mindfulness, and that is what I learned by implementing the 8 limbs of yoga in my life.
And the list goes on..
I truly believe that we all have huge potential, but due to certain twists in life, we aren’t able to access it. There are tons of concepts or practices to access our potential. I have explored some, and yoga is the one I kept. I try to see everything that goes on in my professional life through this lens. Of course, it’s not easy and almost impossible at times, but I believe in the long run, this is perfectly aligned with my goals: to be an influential leader and have a fulfilling, healthy, and wealthy life.
I hope this post gave you some perspective on yoga. Please feel free to DM me if you have any questions, or confusion, or need help in beginning your yoga journey.
Thanks for reading.
Namaste!
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