Since 1995, I dreamed of opening a yoga studio.
I knew I loved the practice and the life of a yoga studio owner seemed much more meaningful than life as a pharmaceutical executive. I remember explaining all of this to a friend I met in India. She said with a wry smile, “don’t discount what you are doing.”
Little did I know my research skills would prove to be invaluable and put to the test years later when a loved one had cancer.
Research and my pharma experience coupled with my love of alternative medicine proved to be the perfect healing blend. I’ve shared what I learned during that journey with so many people. Without either part of my journey my suggestions would not be as effective.
Fast forward to 1998, and to my first attempt at opening a yoga studio after returning from India. In the idealism of my mind, it sounded great, until I realized all of my friends worked during the day when I was off, and they went out at night, when I was working.
Plus, the financial outlook for a yoga teacher differed from the six figure salary and lifestyle I had grown used to. I was faced with the choice of moving out of my swanky city apartment, getting a roommate and selling my car to be able to afford my “yogic” lifestyle. I came to the realization there was nothing particularly enlightening about living a life of poverty, so I went back to the corporate world, but I promised this time it would be different. I planned to bring my yoga and mindfulness practices with me into the office.
My corporate job funded my yoga lifestyle for many years, and my yoga lifestyle allowed me to manage the stress of my corporate job. It seemed like a win-win situation.
The truth is, I still longed for a life I imagined would be filled with channa masala and chai tea. I longed for mid-morning yoga practices followed by a freshly chopped open (with a machete) coconut.
However looking back, I can see the skills I learned in my corporate gig prepared me for tight timelines, multi-tasking, managing risk, dealing with teams, clients, project management and content development… all things required in my yoga studio business.
Your path is your path. Trust you are learning precisely what you need for your life to out picture exactly as you’ve dream, exactly as intended.
I learned many things in India, and along the way. But one of my big a-ha moments was that I didn’t need to go aIndia to learn the lessons I needed, I just needed to get my mind quiet enough to listen.
Trust your path. It’s all connected, all beautifully intertwined. A complex web that will reveal beautiful patterns in due time.
Don’t discount or disown any part of you. Forge your own path and trust that the pull of you soul is leading you in the right direction.
xoxo