What you’ll get out of tuning in:

• Why old structures of communication are outdated
• Learn what a liberating structure is and why it’s effective
• How to incorporate a liberating structure into your next call or group meeting

Links Mentioned in Episode:

• Have a conversation
• Join Body Thrive last call for 2019 pricing!

Show Highlights:

• Rachel shares her success using liberating structures in a group coaching
• Examples of favorite liberating structure activities in action
• Rachel explains how doing less allows richer more valuable experiences for her members

Timestamps: 

•  14:05 Ten principles of liberating structures
•  15:30 Five elements of every liberating structure
•  25:50 Developing questions for a troika

Favorite Quotes:

• “Liberating structures are innovative and expansive and I feel like there’s a celebratory quality. There’s a willingness to be surprised to what the answer is; not coming in with needing to know.” – Rachel Peters
• “What I knew I needed to do was get out of the way and allow the ‘we’ space to take over. It’s quickly built this know, like and trust, not between me and the group but between the individuals in the group. Now they know each other on a more intimate basis.” – Rachel Peters

What you’ll get out of tuning in:

• Why you don’t need to be tech savvy or “just like Cate” to be a good Yoga Health Coach.
• How the habits of Body Thrive carry us through tough times.
• How to determine when you need support and when that support needs to be paid help.

Links Mentioned in Episode:

• Suzanne’s FB
• Suzanne’s website
• Be a coach
• Have a conversation
• Discover more about Body Thrive 
• Watch the Masterclass NOW

Show Highlights:

• 9:15 -14:47 Suzanne talks about her struggles with learning the technology needed to run an online course. Through mentoring, she learned that the tech was just a supporting component of the real work: connecting with and supporting other people.
• 14:48 – 17:59 Suzanne and Rachel discuss the process of making a course your own by utilizing your own strengths and interests and by responding to the needs and desires of your course members.
• 22:30 – 31:14 – Suzanne talks about how the habits of Body Thrive carry her through tough times in her life.
• 32:37 – 40:00 Suzanne talks about how her coaching skills have evolved and how she models the practice of the habits.
• 40:00 – 42:15 Suzanne and Rachel discuss how Yoga Health Coaches show up as we are with no pretense.
• 43:23 – 53:05 Suzanne and Rachel discuss how to determine when you need support and when that support needs to be paid help.
• 58:00 – Suzanne talks about the new framework she is using for her work: energy management, nourishment, connection, and the launch.

Favorite Quotes:

• “I’m still in a learning curve.” — Suzanne Lynch
• “Those are the things – thinking I had to be a tech expert, thinking I had to have it all done yesterday, thinking I had to be like Cate, and then dealing with life issues – the biggest life issues of my life came up in that period – so I’m really grateful for all the growth that I had, and the support of the habits, and the support of the community.” — Suzanne Lynch
• “One thing I appreciate about Yoga Health Coaching is that we’re talking about what is really happening in our lives” — Suzanne Lynch
• “This is my ministry, my work.” — Suzanne Lynch

Guest BIO:

Suzanne has been helping people get out of pain, and live happier, healthier lives for over 12 years. She has a special talent and affinity for Therapeutic Yoga, and loves helping clients feel better than they have in years. Suzanne has been a meditator for 30 years, and was certified in 2001 by the NACC as a Catholic Chaplain. She has studied yoga since 1989. Suzanne lives in Saratoga with her husband, Bruce. She is a mother of two grown children. Connect with Suzanne on her FB page and get more info on Suzanne’s website.

We all know it’s a big deal to be on the path of a Yoga Health Coach (YHC). Your hunger, desire, and passion to support your community and your family doesn’t go unnoticed. How you’ve likely shifted your life in more than one domain to make this happen is clear to me. It’s a potent path and has multiple levels of payback.

If you are new to Yoga Health Coaching, I’m here to remind you that your investment in yourself has returns you likely have no possibility of knowing today. Given that I started the program in 2013 and am currently in YHC Continuity, I’ve noticed the returns on my YHC investment continue to present themselves, oftentimes in surprising ways. One return on investment that doesn’t need to be a surprise is that the curriculum is designed for you to offer 1 to 2 Pilot Programs to get experience marketing, onboarding, and running your own courses. This is the perfect model for you to end your YHC course with zero debt.

Follow the breadcrumbs, put yourself out there, price your course to FILL, and you’re golden. What I did worked, to my own surprise, and I’ll share it with you. I say “to my surprise” because I wasn’t crunching numbers all along, but I when finished Yoga Health Coaching I doubled my return on investment, meaning I paid myself back twice. Here’s how.

I entered Yoga Health Coaching  in 2013 as part of the first class. I remember my hands sweating when Cate started talking about running a pilot program. I was nervous to offer something new and charge for it when my community knew me as their yoga teacher. What did I know?

I followed the set curriculum, strategies, and step-by-step formula, and I started sending out surveys. What I found was there were many people intrigued by what I was learning. The more I shared, the more people gravitated towards me.

The YHC curriculum is setup to easily follow along step by step. For me, the hidden curriculum of YHC was putting myself “out there.” It was the tiny print of the process. Here are 3 tips if you want to be “in the black” (as they say in accounting) by the time you test for your YHC Certification.

1.Follow the Breadcrumbs.

Not only is the curriculum designed for you to follow sequentially like a beautiful yoga class, but you also have a community of members at different stages of the sequence who are ready and willing to help. When you are invited to laser coaching with your Mentor, sign up. When Cate asks for questions on the live calls, press 1. Keep following the breadcrumbs and maintain momentum with the curriculum. You don’t have to make this up yourself, but you do need to show up and do the work. You got this.

2. Put Yourself “Out There”!

This for me was the hidden curriculum of Yoga Health Coaching. Putting myself out there has never been an easy task. My social media presence was super inconsistent before Yoga Health Coaching and I really worked at showing up on an ongoing basis and pressing “post” even when my hands were sweating. Now I create videos and am playing with Facebook LIVE. I would have NEVER done that 4 years ago. I’m here to remind you that you have knowledge, wisdom, guidance, and value that is ready to be shared with your community and your people need you to be doing this work.

3. Charge to Fill Your Course + Pay Back Your Tuition.

Decide how many pilot programs you are going to run, and pick dates for both. Consider offering one in person and one online so you can have the systems in place for both. Then, determine the price that you want to offer the course based on who your niche is and the people in your community you’ve been talking to about it. Do the math. How many people do you need in each of your courses in order to pay yourself back for your tuition. Then, give yourself plenty of time to reach out and set up strategy sessions to invite your community.

4. Invite. Invite. Invite.

You don’t need a webpage or have a brand and logo before you run your pilot. Pick a date, and set a goal for the number of people you want to participate. Keep inviting people to join you on the journey. Some people will jump at the chance, and others will waver. All you have to do is offer the invitation. Don’t wait until you have a website or have all your curriculum perfected. Remember, there is no one way to do this. The more people you have in your pilot program, the more feedback you receive, and the more testimonials you get for future offerings.

5. Have Fun!

This is the most important tip of all. Remember to HAVE FUN! Your pilot is a great time to experiment with different models and create a gravitational field into your future offerings.   

Remember, your pilot group and one-on-one coaching programs are laying a strong foundation for your future courses and your confidence as a coach. The more coaching hours you have during the pilot program, the more confident you will be. I found that $375 was the perfect cost for my pilot, and I ran two: one in person and one online. I coached 28 members of my community that year, and many of them continue to retake the course, register for my 10-month Mastermind, and still work with me to this day. I’ve always found the first groups of any teaching endeavor to be the most remarkable, whether it’s yoga immersions, teacher trainings, or the new 10 habits program.

Enjoy the potency and the tangible and intangible return on investments the YHC course has to offer. I know, it’s a gift that keeps on giving.

The pursuit of becoming a Yoga Health Coach (YHC) requires you to have a good computer, a phone, and internet access. It doesn’t mean you need to own a desk, one of those leather swivel chairs, have a fancy home office, or even hang a shingle in a rentable space in town. The tools for the work are minimal.
If you are anything like me, you’ve found yourself spending hours sitting in front of your computer or on your phone, engaged in the experiential and educational pursuit of learning. With everything I have learned from my years of studying and teaching yoga I have found that once I launch into a new educational pursuit I still tend to fall back into the habits from my time in school: sitting to learn. It’s true even in the best yoga trainings I’ve ever taken. There is a lot of sitting.

We know that movement matters, wherever and however we work, whether we spend the day in an office, a lab, a classroom, a yoga studio, or in our living room. Many of us are yoga teachers and wellness professionals, fields where movement is an integral part our daily life.

I worked an 8am to 5pm office job for almost 20 years at a liberal arts college. For the first 15 years, I thought it was enough to workout before heading into the office, walk or bike to work, or take a yoga class midday or after work. The truth is that my body, mind, and focus habits got entrained to sit.

Opportunities to Move

I did my best to create opportunities for movement, but most days I knew that I needed more. My office was on the edge of a college campus, so I walked to and from meetings every day and made a point to deliver mail and paperwork to other offices by hand to help me get out and about more often. My last three years, I prioritized walking meetings, wore a fitbit, moved my office to the second floor to work the steps, bought a rebounder, which I placed it in my office for hourly jump breaks (at the risk of being judged my colleagues). I still found myself sitting for hours at a time.

I started working from home and was able to change EVERYTHING about my day and be fully in charge. First, I created my “Shakti Shed” home office by renovating a 10’x10’ tool shed  I set up a standup desk and pulled in a chair from the high bar in the kitchen as a back up from standing. I found I had to retrain myself to move throughout the day. I had no stairs, no campus to walk across, no meetings to walk to, I was sitting.

When I started YHC, I had a desk job and had the habit of sitting for the LIVE calls so I could focus, engage, and take notes. I was sitting to watch the weekly videos and again capture highlights and notes, and I was sitting to work on my marketing campaigns, website content, and social media posts for my business. In June 2016, I took on a workstudy position for YHC as the Coaching Team Leader. This revved up the momentum of my participation behind the scenes and added more meetings to my weekly rhythm.

I was totally into it, but all of a sudden I was participating in more meetings and moving even LESS.

Uh Oh. Now what?

I Need a Dynamic Workstation

So, I reached out on Facebook to find an old treadmill, lifted my standing desk a few more inches, charged up my 2014 fitbit, reorganized the furniture, bought a nice rug, and created an open space to work from the floor. I wanted various options for working that would leave me moving more and in dynamic and various positions throughout the day.

I put a timer on my phone to remind me to jump on the rebounder in my garage. I also started varying my activities during my accountability and YHC LIVE calls;

• I walk outside if the weather permits,
• put my legs up the wall,
• do restorative poses,
• roll around a foam roller,
• do a few bicep curls with the 2# weights on my bookshelf,
• or walk on my treadmill.

When the weather is nice, I bust a few moves on my flagstone patio in between appointments. Most Business Team and Coaching Team meetings, I’m either squatting on the floor, walking on the treadmill, or in a rare moment you’ll find me sitting on a chair with my legs folded under me.

Tips to Moving Dynamically While you Work

1. Design dynamic workstations in your space.
2. Use kaizen to take it step by step. Your body and your mind need trained to work in dynamic positions.
3. Determine the calls, projects, meetings you can be walking, moving, or have your legs up the wall and still be SUPER engaged and present.
4. When working within a long strategic block, set a timer to remind you to move.
5. Change positions every 25-30 minutes.
6. Schedule a buffer to move between meetings, calls, and blocks of time.
7. Track your steps.

The Rewards of Moving Dynamically

1. Increased mobility.
2. Burn calories while you blog.
3. Make your DNA happy with more movement.
4. Reduce edema and swelling in the legs with movement.
5. Accomplish more in less time.
6. Sleep like a baby.

This is still an experiment for me and will likely continue to be for the duration, but so far I don’t feel as stiff at the end of a long work day, have fewer neck issues, and I am tired at the end of the day. Many days, I am even sore from walking. Try it, and see how it works. I’ve been super inspired by the daily movement ideas from Cate, of course, and the practices and lifestyle of Katy Bowman from Nutritious Movement. Check out her stuff. It will likely inspire you to trade in your swivel chair for a treadmill.

Structure vs. Flow

For many of us when we make the switch from a corporate job to working full time as a yogi or Yoga Health Coach we are looking for less structure and more creative time. What we often don’t realize is that creating structure in our day is what allows us that time to be creative. Without structure and routine we are always stuck jumping from task to task that needs our attention and we never get to enjoy those creative moments that really help us get to the next level of teaching and coaching.

Another bonus of structuring your day and getting organized is that when we sit to do one thing – just like in meditation – we will find that time tends to stand still. We end up getting far more accomplished than we ever dreamed possible when we are able to shut out the distractions around us.
Rachel, our Coaching Team Leader shares her top 3 tips for a YHC Mentor to structure their time to experience more creativity, fluidity and an expansion of time.

Top 3 Tips to Structure Your Time for More Creativity

Structuring your time and your resources will reduce the possibility for role creep or overwhelm whether you are applying these tips in a YHC Mentor role or in your own business. They are a boon to the flow of your week and feeling like a rockstar!

1. Use your bookmarks and get your browser aligned with your priorities
2. Use an online scheduling tool
3. Carve out time for office hours

Schedule Regular Time to Get Organized

Carve out 10 minutes today to update your bookmarks and tag the most important documents and guides you are using for your work. Then put a note in your calendar to update your bookmarks once a quarter with your new priorities and goals, because as we know, priorities and projects shift. Get on it – you will be so psyched you did, and will save much time down the road.

Share in the comments below your number one tip to structure YOUR time.

I met my husband while travelling in Europe in 1996. After this we were pen pals for four years until we finally arranged to meet up and explore our relationship by finding our way through the creeks and canyons of Arizona. We’ve been exploring and adventuring together ever since. It was a big leap from the pen to the reality of life together.

The Marriage Adventure

We married four years after our Arizona adventures. While we were eager to approach our union differently than our parents and the others role modeling marriage around us, it took two years to realize we didn’t have the tools.

Marriage was hard for us.

The first two years were full of hardship and lots and lots of tears. We invested in weekly therapy for three months. Our therapist kindly graduated us and said, “You don’t need me anymore, it’s time to go do the work!” We bought a wood-fired hot tub and continued our therapy, soaking beneath the stars. This worked for a while.
Six months later, I went to a yoga gathering and met a philosophy and meditation teacher I really resonated with. I came home to discuss my interest in a year-long meditation intensive. It was an expensive investment, but the three-three day weekend retreats were only a 90-minute drive from our home. Everything seemed to point in the direction of “DO THIS,” except the price tag.

The idea of investing so much in a meditation intensive seemed like a stretch to my husband. He was hesitant about my investment, especially since it seemed like another thing that would pull me away. He was right. After a few days of hot tub debates and conversation, I realized I needed to invite him on this adventure with me!

The Best Therapy We Could Invest In

What a brilliant idea! Oh wait, it would double the price! Ha! Even so I knew it would be good for us to step into a deeper relationship with our practice together. It was exactly what we needed.

A week later, we committed to the year-long program and immersed ourselves in a twice daily practice. We saved money other places and prioritized our inner life. We reorganized the space in our home and committed to sit twice a day. Many days we sat together in the darkness of the early morning. It was the best therapy we could have ever invested in, and there was zero talking.

We invested in ourselves and in the cultivation of building a relationship with our inner world.

What we received was self-love, greater joy, ownership and accountability of our feelings, deeper connection, and a confidence in our desires and who we were. We became pioneers of our own inner lives, and to this day we emerge from the inner journey each time with a new sense of ourselves and our life together.

Falling in Love with ME

Within six months of meditating twice a day, I fell in love with ME.

Our marital challenges untangled in the most graceful, beautiful way. No more talk therapy was needed. We had new tools we could employ anywhere and anytime. I saw myself with so much more clarity, rawness, fullness, and beauty. Every time I sat with myself, it made being in the relative world (and in my marriage) that much more full of ease, full of vibrancy; so much more FULL.

Meditation saved my marriage

I honestly don’t know if we could have sustained our marriage without it. The practice also opened the doorway for our son Miles to enter the world. So as you might guess, I am grateful every day for the opportunity to sit with myself, and I have my husband and my son as physical reminders of the benefits of the practice and just how precious the practice is.

Some days it’s blissful, and some days it’s down right hard. Even though my daily practice looks different now that I’m a mama, it still holds the power and the deep connection I yearn for in this life.

Keep sitting, you never know what benefits it might bring you.

Both decisions have impacted the course of my life in profound and surprising ways.

I could have bought a new (used) car instead of the meditation immersion. I needed one. I was driving a 1998 Toyota Pickup truck (aka Sweet Pea). She she needed love. She didn’t have a speedometer, the tailgate was held up with a stick and I couldn’t lock it. It was time to consider letting go of her and getting something more reliable, at least that was the story I told myself. After weighing out pros and cons I realized I could drive that truck for a while longer, I mean come on, it’s a Toyota and the perfect camping truck (besides the fact that I couldn’t lock it) and I’m certainly no primadona.

The ROI of a Meditation Practice

The return on investment (ROI) from a daily meditation practice was clearly self love. The ripple effect was a healthy marriage and beautiful son. So, I guess you could say I made my money back tenfold and if I knew then, what I know today I would have paid 10x the amount of the course.

I chose self love, over a Subaru and would later choose slaying my limiting beliefs over the status quo.

As a longtime member of the Yogahealer community I knew something was coming down the pipe. I had participated in a handful of the Yoga Lifestyle Coaching pilot calls, where Cate was testing the content and was intrigued with the concepts and curriculum. Once the first version of YHC was open for enrollment, I signed up for a phone conversation with Cate to see if it was a fit.

Sold theoretically in the first ten minutes, even though I didn’t know the investment for the course yet.

My strategy session with Cate took place. I remember vividly writing down notes and numbers and tapping into a world of potential that I had lost in the current makeup of my life.  I had been in an academic administrative role for a long time and yearned to transition, but had no plan or vision on how to do it. The previous fall I had closed my yoga studio. I was still teaching 6 public classes a week, working full time and interested in transitioning to something more aligned with my purpose and that brought more joy in my life, but I was scared.

Cate was full of thought provoking questions that sparked me to consider where I wanted to be 2 and 5 years from then. We sketched out possible scenarios of income if I pursued the path of a Yoga Health Coach. It felt realistic and promising.

The Power of the Exchange of Money

Then the moment came when we spoke tuition.  Let’s just be clear, when she told me the cost of the course I needed to take a
deep breath and write it down in my notes with (ahem) a few exclamation points! I had never spent that much money on myself and it was the clearest I’d been in a while when I told her I would need some time to consider it. After having invested in my meditation practice in such a way, I knew the power of the exchange of money, that nothing is free and the more uncomfortable it was, the more I would get out of it.

She gave me five days to decide.

My mind raced with the the classic list of pros and cons.

As I sat with the idea, it was clear my heart was giving the investment a clear “YES”, but my mind was stopping the show. I went home to my husband to get his support. The cool thing for me is I didn’t need his financial support. I was in a good paying job and my side hustle as a yoga teacher brought in enough money for me to reinvest in myself and my professional development, but this was bigger.

Later I would learn that I needed my husband to be onboard with me moving in this direction, because I would be planting the seeds for a major transition to lean in and leap away from my job.

The Pros and Cons of Investing in Yourself

Like any big decision two lists were created.

Reasons to take YHC and invest:

• Learn more about applying Ayurveda in everyday living.
• Support my family, my yoga students and my community at a deeper level.
• Grow and push my edge professionally and gain some business smarts.
• Work with Cate and the Yogahealer community was always transformative.
• I needed to become more business savvy.
• I desired change and needed a mentor and a community to make it happen.
• I could make back the tuition with my pilot courses.
• I had the money.
• I would learn so much and I LOVE learning.

Reasons to not take YHC and maintain the status quo:

• Affordability.
• Limiting thoughts like, “could I really pull this off?”
• Fear of what could come.
• More Fear.
• There isn’t anything “wrong” with what I’m doing now.
• An already full plate
• Other investments in the line up.
• Did I say fear?

Shifting Limiting Beliefs

I could easily have used the classic excuse of lack of affordability, play the fear card and maintain existence in the status quo. The truth was, I knew the potential for my personal ROI. The meditation immersion was a perfect example and it rocked my world in all life affirming ways and in that model I was never going to “make back” the money I invested and yet the ROI was so clearly a new level of happiness in my life and in my relationships. The money was there, I couldn’t use that as an excuse anymore.

I needed to be willing to prioritize my own personal and professional path.

It was a lot on my plate, but pushing this opportunity aside felt like making another excuse for not following my heart. I had done that too many times.

Five days went by. My husband and I were headed to the airport to visit family and I paid the invoice in FULL with my phone. I didn’t even call. I just paid. On our first group call, the question surfaced, “what is the one thing you want to work on during this program?” I answered, “I want to shift the limiting beliefs I have of myself and step into my true potential.”

I found myself motivated to make back my initial investment in the first year. It seems wild to share, but I made back that initial financial investment in the program x 3! I could hardly believe it when I ran the numbers at the end of the year, but it was TRUE! The crazy thing is, the ROI on this course has less to do with making the money back and more to do with recognizing the kind of person I am today because of it and honoring the person I’m becoming.

So much of my gratitude is anchored in the transformational experience, that is so much more profound and deep than any numbers. If you find yourself wavering or unsure about your next big investment in yourself, know the ROI might be more than paying yourself back on the financial end, but may just launch you in the direction of your dreams.

My husband and two year old son LOVE it. When the season shifts to cooler morning, they are asking for more warmth in terms of temperature and spice and this provides both. My son likes it added to his oatmeal or cereal and his Papa likes to create his own version of a homemade latte. They both LOVE it when they have it and feel nourished and warm to start the day. It’s become our household “go to” milk alternative.

Recently I was in the check-out lane at my local natural food store and happened to be loading up on hemp seeds that day. When it was my turn to check-out, the cashier said to me jokingly, “How is this when you smoke it, anyway?” I thought that was kind of funny given I hadn’t thought twice about the purchase in that way. I responded, “Ahhh, it will most likely just give you a headache” and we both followed up with a good laugh. Ingesting hemp seeds and hemp milk will NOT get you high.

It’s funny to me that this particular cashier equated the hemp seeds in that way. I suppose it’s only been in the last 10 years that we can purchase pre-made hemp milk products in the store. Things like hemp seeds are more commonly available in our mainstream grocery stores.  Over the years I’ve become less of a fan of the alternative milk options available in a box. When I read the list of ingredients, I return it to the shelf. I’ve experimented a lot with almond, oat and other alternatives in my kitchen, but I have to say, the hemp milk is my favorite for a few reasons.

Reasons to Love Hemp Mylk

• It’s easy and inexpensive to make at home.
• It tastes great.
• No straining necessary.
• It’s a “perfect protein” including 20 amino acids and 9 essential amino acids.
• A 3:1 balance of Omega 3 and Omega 6 fatty acids, which promote cardiovascular health.
• A rich source of phytonutrients.

Making Homemade Hemp Mylk

Place the following ingredients into a high powered blender and go for it.

• ¼ cup hemp seeds
• ½ teaspoon vanilla
• Pinch of salt
• 4-5 dates (soaked overnight is best)
• Approximately 3 cups hot water – depending on how thick you like it
• Other spices (cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, pippali)

Uses for Hemp Mylk

• Add it to your kids oatmeal, granola or cereal.
• Include it in your smoothie.
• Make a dandy blend, chai or coffee latte for a milky version of your morning cuppa.

Other uses of hemp seeds:

• Add to your morning smoothie for a creamy consistency.
• Sprinkle on top of salads for a nutty flavor.
• Add to salad dressings before blending for a creamy consistency.
• Put them in bars and baked goods.

We are really into hemp at my house right now.  Besides being easy to prepare, easy to make and easy to clean up, I love it because it is nutrient dense. It’s chalked full of nutrition I want in my body and in my son’s body. There are certain times of the year when having some cheese or cream is less of an issue, but I’ve really noticed it weighing on our systems during the transitions of the seasons. We all have less congestion, less mucus and snot and feel lighter overall when the seasons turn by avoiding dairy.

If you are interested in exploring homemade options for mylk, give this one a try. I’ve found this alternative to be a great, hearty morning beverage for all ages. While we don’t have hemp mylk every day, when we do it’s a hit. I do believe it “does a body good”.

Experience it for yourself and tell us what you think!

Have you been feeling some movement from deep inside to make a leap in your work? Maybe to a new position within the same organization? Or maybe into a whole new career?

It took time to build the confidence, systems and support to make my own leap. After almost twenty years with the same company, I was able to make the leap by establishing a clear pathway towards my love for yoga, aligning with nature’s rhythms and habit evolution. Here’s a summary of my journey and a few tips that may help you on yours.

I am a lifelong learner and someone who is always seeking new avenues for personal and professional development. While working full time, teaching yoga, and running a yoga studio, I began participating in the educational courses at Yogahealer.com. I began with my first Yogidetox in 2010 followed by the Living Ayurveda Course in 2011. This would launch my family and I on a multi-year journey towards greater health, vibrancy and connection. It would also project me personally and professionally towards a new level of confidence, a renewed clarity of my own desires and connect me to a supportive tribe, which would lead me towards the creation of my own business.

In 2014 I began the Yoga Health Coaching program. I had a 3 month old and was juggling being a new mom, embarking on a new learning path and working full time. I would kiss my son on the head as I left him with loving childcare in our home and find myself arriving at my office thinking, “Really? You’re going to leave that ball of LIGHT to come in here and do THIS?”  The first time I had this thought I broke down in tears between emails and phone calls. The second and third time it happened, it became more and more obvious I needed to do something about it.

But what was I going to do? I was terrified.

Some days the idea of leaving seemed so simple. It was a small reorienting of my life’s purpose, no big deal.  Right? In the relative domain, all I had to do was write a letter of resignation. Piece of cake. All of the details felt soooo BIG!! For weeks I found myself paralyzed with resistance. The pulsation of fear and possibility would move with a force that would somedays drive me to tears. I would later learn these two emotions, uncertainty and possibility are on the same energetic spectrum and have similar responses in the physical body.  They feel the same, it was how I was framing the feeling. What if I could reframe the feeling I had defined as fear or uncertainty in my body as a feeling of possibility or excitement? What if I could begin to build a relationship with both the uncertainty and the possibility in a way that would no longer be so paralyzing?

This launched me into a series of practices that would help build my confidence and reset my mind to taking the leap, write a letter of resignation and step into the next chapter of my life. Here are three practices that significantly helped me:

1. Build Awareness Around Uncertainty

Begin to recognize your own voice of uncertainty or fear. Spend a week writing down all the fears, fixed thoughts or limiting beliefs.  Start noticing how you are talking to yourself around making a shift.  The talk that surfaces when you begin to think of yourself in a new role, new chapter or new way of being.

2. Cultivate a Relationship with Possibility.

Start making a list of affirmations to replace the limiting thoughts. For each one of the limiting thoughts you have written down, tap into your Highest Self for the perspective from the place of possibility. You may find the limiting thoughts flow more naturally and turning your thoughts into affirmations of what’s to come, might be hard. You may need to sit quietly, bypassing your mind as you ask your Highest Self if the limiting thought is even true?

3. Replace Uncertainty with Possibility

When your mind starts playing the old story, actively replace it with the voice of possibility. Use this as an affirmation when the voice of fear presents itself and start to carve a growth mindset around the conversation, one that is in the field of potentiality and possibility.

Through this exact practice I realized I had an old belief that I needed a job with a benefits package and I wouldn’t be able to afford it as an entrepreneur. Given the organization I worked for was well-known in the community for having a great benefits package, why would I leave when it was so sought after? The funny thing was, when I began untangling my story around the benefits, I realized I didn’t actually “benefit” from all aspects of the so called benefits package. They were benefits to some people, but not me. The more I sat with my story, I tracked it back to advice I had been given when I graduated from college and going off on my own to “get a job with benefits.”

By revealing the old story of needing my work to have a great benefits package, I realized the real benefits were working in greater alignment with my purpose, having more time with my family and creating my own schedule. It was clear my outdated belief and story had become a true obstacle and it was holding me back from the life I desired.

I rewrote the story and aligned with my higher truth. I re-framed the physical sensations I had once associated with fear and uncertainty to “possibility” and “excitement”.

The gap between the two extremes lessened. My mindset shifted, I gained clarity in my vision for my future and I was able to take the leap with a renewed sense of myself. I now benefit from more time with my family, being in charge of my schedule and working daily in alignment with my higher purpose.

And most of all, I learned that the distance between uncertainty and fear was up to me, and wasn’t such a big leap after all.