Teaching like a Student

Probably one of my greatest natural talents and skills is my love of learning. 

I maybe didn't fully realize or embrace this talent as a child, hunched over my math homework; but, as an adult I find myself feeling incredibly alive while experiencing the zing of new brain cells budding as I steam over a cup of chai with a new positive psychology book in hand.  I LOVE to learn new things.

This fact was doubly realized recently when I returned to my formal studies. 

As you may well know, I am a yoga teacher, and have been for the past two and a bit years.  Prior to beginning my yoga teaching career, I had been practicing and studying yoga for nearly 10 years.  Unfortunately, by the time I began teaching yoga, I didn't even realize that I had lost touch with the realities of what it feels like to be new to yoga: EEK, I had forgotten what it meant to truly have beginners mind!  Thankfully, yoga is a patient and lifelong teacher, and stumbling blocks like these are often essential on the growing path.  It was however, when I re-immersed in a completely different-from-yoga, formal learning environment that I was quickly reminded of what it feels like to be unsure, insecure and overwhelmed as a beginner at something.

Aside from the fact that it did take a bit of uncomfortable time for me to re-learn the mental coordination realities and needs for my endeavor in this formal academic environment, I was also, thankfully, flooded with all the benefits that come along with growing new skills as I overcame the challenges.  Learning new things inevitably adds completely unexpected and unexperienced 'things' into the dynamic system of YOU, your mind and being.  This newness resonates through your entire being, and floods you with the glow of vitality and aliveness.  Dynamic systems theory/chaos theory has shown that any information added into a system dynamically, and often unexpectedly, causes a ripple effect of change throughout most, if not all aspects of the system.  As a yogi, and neuroscience/positive psychology hobbyist, I generally apply the rule that good/positive things in equals good/positive resonance through out.  Which doesn't mean that bad things a.k.a challenges aren't good things in, it might just depend on how you frame the event/challenge.  In fact, all cells in our human body grow on stress.  Too much stress can break the cell, but too little stress and the same cell atrophies.  What we are looking for is EUSTRESS, enough stress to feel the vitality of our living selves (emotionally, physically, relationally, mentally, and spiritually).  We want to feel the self-efficacy of our own resilience, which is only possible in the face of overcoming some degree of challenge.  Here is where the old adage: "what doesn't kill me can make me strong"...however, this doesn't always mean "no pain, no gain".  We can become addicted to growth, with out enough time for rest and recovery (again on all levels of self: mental, emotional, physical, spiritual, relational).  We can wear ourselves overtly thin with an over indulgent amount of challenge and growth...balance is the key! 

Anyhow, back to my story!

Personally, through my studies I felt and experienced new perspectives on old, unrelated problems.  I experienced new constellations taking form while connections were drawn between new and old dots/thoughts in my mind.  I felt vital and capable as I met the challenges placed on me in the formal academic setting.  I felt the swell of resilience and growth.  I felt that wonderful feeling of saturating in my own self-efficacy, of expanding and truly taking up the space I was given in this life.  Suddenly new possibilities for the future were unfolding, doors I didn't know where accessible where starting to make themselves known.  I had to laugh at myself for forgetting the fact that until you learn something, you likely didn't even know it existed in the first place...this is the core reality of LEARNING.  So, best not to sell ourselves short thinking we already know it all.  Learning something knew, especially if it seems unrelated to everything else I already know, provides tantalizing opportunities to spice up life and take on new flavors of experiences and directions of growth.  This of course doesn't mean we have to know everything in order to feel confident placing one foot in front of the other on our paths in life, but if you find learning energizing, as I do, then why not?

Aside from my brimming with the fermenting joys of learning, since having gone back to studying I also had the opportunity to realize my disconnect as a yoga teacher to the beginner's mind insight and perspective...and oh what a wonderful and essential one it is.  In fact, since being reminded of the essential joy and usefulness of a beginner's mind, I've stumbled onto all sorts of philosophies reminding me of the wisdom in approaching life in general with fresh eyes, like the eyes of a young child.  Which really, now that I've reconnected with the EXPERIENCE of beginners mind, I can see and feel how it has brought me closer to my students and closer to understanding my purpose as a teacher/guide.  Which I now conclude, isn't to BE anyone else's GURU, but instead to help students realize that as students of life we all have access to inner guru/s and a capacity to grow and swell in the rapture of living with self and with others.

Re-immersing in the lived student process has reminded me that I am not only learning about myself through yoga, but learning about the experience of community and relatedness through teaching it.  Being a formal academic student has helped me as a yoga teacher to expand myself and my abilities from a students perspective.  There is such an incredible power in being able to relate.  Empathy allows us to experience heartfelt connection and compassion: truly the heart of yoga. 

Here are the top ten things I re-learned regarding being a beginner that is useful for me as a teacher:

1. Give clear instructions.

2. Repeat instructions through out classes, we students often forget and are afraid to ask.

3. Give demonstrations, regularly.

4. Use exploratory comments and questions: "How do you feel connected to the ground?  Where does your body feel light or heavy in relation to the ground?  Notice your breath, your mind, your emotional reactions in this posture.  Do you feel safe?  If not, what is your body/mind/spirit asking for, how can you listen compassionately to your thoughts/feelings/insights?"

5. Modifications for a variety of levels helps us feel successful what ever level we are at.

6. As beginners, we are sensitive to feeling like we don't belong or are maybe no good, encouragement and positive reflection is wonderful and welcomed.

7. A friendly, genuinely welcoming and not too serious demeanor is motivating to keep us coming back, a meaningful life doesn't have to be so serious.

8. Time for us to really be in and experience postures is useful, even repeating the basic postures a few times in a row helps with solidifying our learning.

9.  As all of these poses are new to me, learning and re-learning them over and over again helps me to feel confident in my skills and ability, maybe even repeating the same 5 postures every week for 10 weeks! (Kinda a repeat of #8!)

10. If breathing and presence are the core of yoga, please let me experience this every class.  Although there is a reasonable chance I also need to be more physically active, I also really NEED to unwind and move into rest and digest/parasympathetic/green brain.  I would maybe benefit most from only learning or practicing 3-4poses/class, and then spending a luxurious, "peace-is-essential", 20-30mins in relaxation, breath awareness and savasana.  This will give me the EXPERIENCE of peace, ease, connection and contentment that I'm not really getting anywhere else in my life right now...peace is what I really need.

If you found this in anyway useful, I am grateful.  I love to write (and learn), so thanks for reading!

Namaste,
Jenelle