4/5 - Headstand vs Change Management

When I decided to write these article-series to demonstrate how yoga can be translated into the work-life, I had two goals in mind:

1. Introducing the diverse benefits of yoga and yogic mindset to my colleagues and friends who have never tried it before and who might be even a bit sceptical and find yoga too mystical.
2. Showing anyone who likes and practices yoga the perspecitves that it can bring beyond the yoga mat, even into your life at work.

I chose Change Management as a story line not only because this is one of my focus areas during my projects at work but also becasue it fit`s perfectly with the change journey concept that can happen to you on the yoga mat.

Intro - Why yoga?

Link to the intro post answering general questions about yoga

1/5 Be respectful

Link to the first of the five learnings. Sun salutation vs. Client salutation

2/5 Find your own voice

Link to the second of five learnings. Find your own voice

3/5 Be flexible

Link to the second of five learnings. Be flexible

4/5 Be open-minded

On the mat - Be open to try modifications of a pose and new, challenging ones

I know..., yoga is not about fancy poses and headstands, as there is also a lot of philosophy behind. Still, practicing the physical poses (asanas) can affect our mind and might trigger positive changes in our mental state. Unless you really have a health issue that prevents you from challenging yourself, you should always be open for a new pose or aim for the advanced version of the ones that you feel already comfortable with.

Yoga is an internal practice, the rest is just a circus.*

You train your mind through your body. Headstand is THE pose that scares many of us. Why is that? Just becasuse you are upside down. Your body gets into a state which is 180 degrees different than normally. Practicing headstand can help you to feel more comfortable with a quick change in your life or to understand opposite opinions of other people easier.

Off the mat - Be open to consider different perspectives

Leaving old habits and safe established patterns behind for something new which might be scary at first, is never easy. There is no smooth change journey, the road is always bumpy. It is better to get prepared for the challenges and even simulate them in advance.

Putting yourself into the shoes of different stakeholders can help you to understand why they are reluctant to the change.

This gives you various perspectives which might be completely upside down compared to yours. As a consultant teaching this mindset to your clients can be very valuable because at the point when you will be gone from the project, they can still continue to apply the way of thinking that you established.

Yoga mat takeaway:

We are thought to become experts on certain topics, influence others by formulating strong views. Sometimes it is challenging to get out of our comfort zone and listen to different ideas. Creating an open-minded, diverse culture at work starts at a very individual level, when you start listening, observing and reacting without judging.

5/5 is coming soon :)

About me:

I am Reka, an experienced management consultant, a freshly certified yoga teacher and a life-long yoga student experimenting how this puzzle fits together: an advocate of yogic / mindful mindset in professional life.

If you are interested in similar topics, yoga vs. professional life, etc… , follow me on LinkedIn or like our page of a project kicked off together with Zsanett Czifrus.

Quote reference:

* from Sri K. Pattabhi Jois who developed and populized Ashtanga yoga