It's What I Do

Hello Yogi, Over the last several weeks we talked about burnout, which is a chronic state of stress that many of us are feeling right now. As you know, we’re going to take this issue, break it up into bite size pieces and practice programs that will allow us to navigate our way through it. You can choose to follow along the schedule I've laid out in these programs, or go at your own pace. We discussed the concept of helplessness, trying to understand why it seems as though, no matter what the circumstance, some people fall prey to a sense of helplessness, while others fight to escape whatever hole they’ve fallen into. All this, to only discover that, no matter what, situations, experiences, circumstances, hold no meaning until we decide what it all means. Everything that’s laid in our path is nothing until we choose what it’s purpose is or was; was it laid there to help us grow, to teach us a lesson, to fill our soul, to fuel our future, to warm our hearts or E) all of the above? So now what? What comes next now that we've gathered this information? As a society we often focus on the next chapter, the next step, the next phase. There’s power in this. It's the purpose in our drive. Yet, if we are always looking (as evolution has programmed us to) then we will miss out on it all. Miss out on what’s right here, in this moment, before us. We must find the balance between reflecting on our past to heal, to learn, to grow, paired with intentionally deciding the direction of our future to align, to evolve, to discover. And yet, these mean nothing if we do not take the time to ground down and live right here, right now. Balance between the ebb and flow. The pause between the inhale and exhale. We are a pack of dreamers - of brilliant beings who have hopes, dreams, desires. We know what these look like in our minds, what they feel like in our bodies. From this place of knowing, we fight like hell to achieve them. And then we obtain them, tangibly hold them in our hands, see them with our eyes but, unfortunately, we’ve spent so much time having them safely tucked away in our hearts that we have no idea what to do when they come true. Right? We then look for the flaws, the dangers, the red flags. And if we don't see any, we find other ways to protect our scared hearts. Does this sound familiar? These, almost subconscious behaviors are completely understandable, so please offer yourself compassion. Truth is though, there's going to be hurt regardless, so why not grab on to your dreams, why not hold on as tightly as you can, for as long as you can? I’m a fighter, who's turned dreams into realities, only to watch those dreams dissolve into nightmares. Sure, I could give up and never put myself out there or try again. Sure I could sulk into a comfortable state of helplessness… but that’s not me. It's not what I do. It used to be, until I accepted all that I am and all that I am not. There’s a beautiful story about a spider and a monk. To summarize... One day, on a monk's daily trip to a river, he spotted a spider flailing about. He reached in, scooped the spider up, at which point the spider stung him. The monk placed the spider safely on a rock nearby and went about his day. The next day, same silly spider, same monk, same sting. On the third day, the spider asked “Why do you keep saving me when you know I will sting you. It's what I do?” The monk simply replied, “Because it's what I do.” “It's what I do.” No matter the unknown outcome, no matter the environment, no matter the circumstance or people involved - what do you do? What specific strengths do you have? Who are you? Who are you not? What’s meant for you? What’s not? Stop trying to have it all. Stop trying to be everything. Everything is not meant for you. But if you become courageous enough to be all that you truly are - all that you have will feel like everything. I can help you with this, Nicole. I can help you discover your truth, your voice. I can reconnect you with your authentic self. But the choice must be yours to make. I’m here whenever you’re ready.