DIY Yoga?

I was walking out of Trader Joe's, my arms filled with grocery bags (who needs a shopping cart?) when the man ahead of me offered to hold the door. "Thanks, I've got it," I said from behind my brown paper wall.

Immediately I heard the voice in my head say, "LET HIM HOLD THE GODDAMN DOOR OPEN FOR YOU!"

The DIY (Do It Yourself) mantra has got us all a bit hypnotized.

My own song goes like this:

"I don't need no-body; I Can Do It Myself, I'm Independent!"

If that's true, why does no one ever say, "I never want to find my soulmate," or, "My greatest wish is to die alone."

What if we've all been duped by DIY?...

I am convinced that the greatest leverage of all isn't other people's money; it's other people's knowledge. Consider The Mastermind, the secret of so many successful people from Rockefeller to Einstein: surround yourself with people you consider to be smarter than you, especially on subjects you hate (accounting...ugh!) and ask for THEIR help. And then take it!

How many DIY plumbing jobs have you been Home Duped into, only to call the Home Depot repairman and pay him anything to fix it - which now costs you more money, more time (his time and your own), plus think about what could have been doing instead (hot yoga!)

So what about DIY Hot Yoga?  Can you teach yourself to teach hot yoga? After all, you've taken a million hot yoga classes by now - you can do this in your sleep.

"Of all the greatest sins, false pride is the greatest." Is that Bible quote? Or Dickens? If not, it ought to be.

I believe that sometimes, DIY mentality is just that: false ego.

Here's a misquote we all know: "It is better to given than to receive." Did you know that this was a mistranslation from the ancient Greek which actually states, "It is better to be in a position to give than to be in a position of needing to receive." In other words, it's better to be abundant. But how can you be abundant without getting more, more, more...of everything everyone has to offer?

Think about this: there cannot be a giver without a receiver - so how can one be more valuable than the other? Both are equally worthy. And if you still insist that it's better to give, then the next time you do so, thank your Receiver, because you couldnt Give without them. And be a good Receiver yourself - so you can help those Givers get the better end of the deal.

When you are a good receiver, you interact easily with others without guilt (useless emotion). You seek out people you admire and let them give you the gift of their talent and knowledge. Nothing false about it: you KNOW they can do it better. In fact, they love what they do so naturally they are better at it than you,  who are often just slogging through it to prove a point ("I can see through brown paper shopping bags"?).

We are each unique. That's the fun of it, folks. When you're a physical being, you get to enjoy all the many physical sensations - sight, sound, taste, touch, smell - that are available to you. Why waste time fixing toilets? Do what you love and manifest a life worth living. What you don't love - find someone who does and let them support you. Give and take, receive and enjoy.

That's what our online mastermind community, Riverflow Online Yoga, is all about: sharing expertise, knowledge, discussions with others who are expert at the stuff you'd like some support with. And contributing to the discussions with your own answers and insights.

Because hot yoga is a great start. You CAN change your life with hot yoga...but first it will piss you off. Hot yoga uncovers the roots of the stuff that's got you stuck in the mud. And when that emotional stuff come up, who better to talk it over with than the hot yoga community?

Every member has something valuable to offer you in the FORUMS. In our online articles, audios, videos and eBooks, you get the mastermind perspectives of experts in areas like yoga, diet, your relationships, your money, and other little topics that make up that big life you're looking for.

JOIN US! If you're a hot yoga student at Riverflow, JOIN THE ONLINE YOGA COMMUNITY and I will add one FREE yoga class to your current package (EMAIL ME after you join).

If you're not a yogi, join our online community for less than $5 for the first month and get the benefits of a lot of shared wisdom. Hey, you can cancel anytime if this community isn't all I say.

Sure, you can do it all yourself; you can teach yourself to do anything, including see through shopping bags....but I wouldn't want to drive my car or my life that way. It's more fulfilling (and easier) to take the bag off and take in the bigger view.

PS - when you're feeling the urge for a career that inspires you, our online Yoga Teacher Training will take you to a new level of empowerment for yourself and others. Find out more

Comments

[AlexS]

I just want to thank you so so much for posting this. Mary-Rush did tell me this week that guilt is a useless emotion. I never thought of it that way. But now looking back everything I have ever done out of guilt has been well icky and kind of a pain in the ass to do. Hot yoga has changed my life because it is the first thing I have ever EVER spent any amount of time and thought that defies my basic instincts of rationality or what is practical or even what my family thinks. DIY. Think for yourself and if something doesn't feel right. It's not right. Right?