Yoga Practitioners and Teachers: Be Tenacious

Sep 9, 2018 | Yoga teaching  | 3 comments

Image of a plant growing out of a timber plank....

Taking aim and sustaining it

People who accomplish great things are characteristically tenacious. It doesn’t matter what domain these dogged ones operate in, they hang in there. As a result, they are likely to become brilliant.

My husband, Daniel, has been steadfast in learning about SEO (Search Engine Optimisation). He’s a website designer who needs to keep up on SEO to help promote ‘Yoga with Eve Grzybowski’ and other sites. When he’s learning about new technology, he’ll spent days drilling in to it. In the past he proved himself masterful as a software developer. Now he is finding his way around a whole different corner of cyberspace–and apparently loving it.

That’s an important ingredient in being tenacious. You need to get enjoyment out of the learning or activity you’re engaged in. Otherwise your resolution becomes sour and turns into obstinacy, and you may become as hard-hearted as a stone.

Beginning yoga teachers

When I started teaching, my first classes were not altogether successful in terms of bums-on-mats. It took tremendous staying power in the beginning to keep coming back week after week. My classes were small classes and I wasn’t making a living. One has to continuously calm the negative mind and recreate motivation for practising and teaching. Who knows if or when one is going to make a go of it? How long will it take to be a good teacher?  How long will it take to ‘be yoga’?

The above photo and this one that I took of a rocket plant in our driveway seems like the very definition of tenacious.

Photo of a rocket plant growing in gravel.

Or, this wildflower growing out of sandstone rock.

Wildflower growing out of sandstone rock.

Tenacity is inspiring, purposeful and mysterious. It works against all odds and is leads to triumph.

Eventually, my little classes of just two students grew to four and then eight. Probably, they numbers grew exactly in proportion to my improving skills in teaching.

Have faith in stick-to-it-ivity. It will get you there.

3 Comments

  1. I thought after 10 years of teaching that I’d be beyond this. Tried to get a class up for beginner blokes recently and didn’t get one taker for the next class. Ouch! Hang on a minute you yoga teacher….is this attachment to outcome? Decided to sit with the discomfort and to try again and the whole sting went out of the situation. You’re never to old to learn 🙂

    Reply
    • Hi Sue,
      Weighing the numbers in our yoga classes is such a simple (maybe simplistic) way to weigh our value as a yoga teacher.
      Ultimately we have to believe in ourselves but, as we are human, that belief flickers, like a candle in a breeze.
      Always lovely to hear from you and how you’re travelling as a yoga teacher.
      Don’t give up on the blokes. We need more of them doing yoga!

      Reply
  2. Girls thank u for this. I’m not a yoga teacher but not having attachment to outcome is an important message in my life at present. Thank u for reminding me…we need constant reminders…or i do anyway.

    Reply

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