My YOGIST sticky note: Make Your Work Life Better
Fight hard, but have fun doing it!
A concept that is falling apart, and one that I’ve unwittingly fallen victim to. One day, while talking about my entrepreneurial journey, I found myself focusing on the administrative, financial, and managerial aspects rather than the creative vision. At the end of the conversation, I was surprised to hear myself say, “Right now, I don’t think I’m having fun anymore.”
My sense of duty had gotten the better of me. The joyful and enthusiastic mission I had set for myself had been stifled by the burdens and hard work imposed by my company’s growth: I had simply forgotten to make room for enjoyment in the midst of my challenges.
Today, I see things differently. It’s perfectly possible to work while having fun, to put in effort while enjoying the process and accepting its imperfections—as long as you take pleasure in creating. When you know yourself and where you want to go, you can enter life’s great battle and fight it with a sense of playfulness and joy.
That’s also what yoga teaches us: the technique is difficult and sometimes challenging, the practice requires consistency and can sometimes feel restrictive, but you can still have fun! In the Yogist method, I usually tell my students who are tense and grimacing during a stretch: “If it pulls, breathe and smile!” Nothing is more effective for easing the pain, reducing stiffness, and making progress with the stretch.
MY TIPS
You are free to choose how you respond to your work and to decide what attitude to adopt. Remember that a negative mindset negatively affects every one of your perceptions. You can’t always quit your job, but you can change the way you look at things.
When you focus your attention on a specific object and take an interest in it, you discover a wealth of details. In the same way, whenever you embark on a new task, focus solely on what you’re doing—even if you don’t feel like it—and fully immerse yourself in the experience: you’ll appreciate that moment all the more.
My Post-it note
SMILE! Did you know? Smiling isn’t just a reaction to an external stimulus or an expression of joy—it’s first and foremost a neural mechanism: by activating the facial muscles, smiling sends a positive message to the brain.
This, in turn, boosts the production of hormones that have a positive effect on our emotions: endorphins, which reduce our perception of pain and lower our blood pressure, and serotonin, which combats stress. In fact, we don’t smile because we’re happy—we’re happy because we smile!
Laughter has been shown to be an excellent way to prevent cardiovascular disease: it dilates blood vessels and is said to have the same effect as walking up four flights of stairs! Fifteen minutes a day is all it takes. So make sure to set aside some time each day to surround yourself with things that make you laugh and smile: your coworkers, your family, or a good comedy on TV.
It’s the best remedy you can give yourself!
THE YOGIST METHOD HELPS YOUR EMPLOYEES FOCUS BETTER AT WORK
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