I owe you an apology. I made a mistake.
For those of you who don’t know me very well, I spend a lot of time researching and learning about how to do things. One of those things that I’m really interested in learning more about is blogging. There are a lot of people online who can tell you how to blog. And I listen to some of the best. But I was reminded yesterday of what I call multiple coach syndrome.
When I was in high school and played golf, I had a personal swing coach in addition to my team coach. Both were excellent coaches but they each had their own way of teaching. I had to pick one to listen to, otherwise my swing went all out of whack. Sometimes the two would tell me completely opposite things! Everyone has a philosophy that works for them, but that doesn’t mean it has to work for you.
It’s the exact same way in yoga. It’s great to have a teacher, to experiment with different styles, but it’s also important to know what philosophy you believe in and stick to it. When a teacher tells you how to do something different and it doesn’t jive with your philosophy, being true to yourself and your beliefs is admirable and encouraged. Of course, this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have an open mind; if you’re going to make a decision based on what you believe, make sure you know why you’re disagreeing rather than following blindly what someone in front of a room says to you.
I’ll admit, I fall prey to this often. I get starry-eyed and listen to what all the experts say. The thing is all the experts have a different way of going about things and I was listening to them all instead of checking in with my heart and what I felt was right for my growing community. Yoga practitioners are different than entrepreneurs, marketers, travelers, small business owners, artists and bloggers (although there is a lot of overlap).
The survey results confirmed this for me. I owe you a big thank you for taking the time out of your busy day to fill out my survey. The results were so interesting and informative and have helped guide me in ways I couldn’t even have imagined. I found out you prefer to read blogs and watch video almost equally. And here is where I made my mistake.
A month or so ago, I was listening to a newer expert talk about blogging. His philosophy is to write one piece and then spend a lot of time marketing that one piece. So I decided that I better stop writing so many blog posts. I figured no one wanted to read what I had to say. I thought people just want my yoga videos and since I had committed to the 2013 Wellness Challenge, I would throw in a recap post for two total blog posts a week. I wouldn’t write anything else, despite the fact that I have a VERY long list of ideas for things I want to write about. I figured I would just write those pieces and publish them elsewhere to attract new viewers to my site. And this is a mistake.
By not writing about spirituality and other yoga-related topics as it relates to work and life, I’m stiffing you. I played you for dumb thinking that you didn’t want to hear any spiritual mumbo jumbo. This is partly influenced by where I live right now and a fear I have of saying things that might offend all the zealous church-goers.
Another thing that I learned from the survey is that almost every single person is seeking a deeper connection to source/spirit/self. It would be a shame if I were just like every other blogger who decided to offer yoga practices stripped of the spiritual conversation.
It’s sad that a lot of yoga teachers coming out of some of the most successful teacher trainings are instructed to keep it simple. To be wary of including too much spirituality, especially if you are teaching to the corporate population, the military population, children, men, in hospitals, at gyms, and the list goes on.
Last time I checked I am teaching the human population.
Humans are hungry. By not offering something different, something deep, something to think about, I’m doing you a disservice.
And I’m deeply, truly sorry.
From here on out, I will continue to write. I will keep creating videos and keep updating the 2013 Wellness Challenge, but I will also write about other issues and topics that I find important, worthwhile, challenging and relevant. I don’t take you for dumb and I respect you and your willingness to learn, your willingness to have an open mind, your willingness to express and be free and have your own opinions. Heaven forbid I contribute to the robotitizing of the world. You’re more than that, and I respect you.
Thank you again so much for helping me realize that I was taking the wrong path. I certainly understand that you are busy and can’t spend every minute of your day reading my blog, but I hope you’ll visit every once in a while and read what sounds interesting to you.
As always, please let me know what you want to learn about in the comments below, through an email or on Facebook. I want to help serve you in your spiritual journey to the best of my ability.
