The Power of Practice

When I first attended Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health back in 1990, the instructor of my yoga class invited everyone to commit to doing their yoga practice for 30 days after returning home. I thought to myself that is going to be easy. Then I thought again and again and had lots of reasons why not to commit. Some of them were: I have to be on my mat and do the yoga postures for 30 days straight and how is that possible. How am I going to do that? It will interfere with work, my kids and my social life. Will I have time to eat? How will my house get cleaned? What if I fail? It will be a waste of time. How can being on my yoga mat for 30 minutes a day for 30 days do anything, much less transform my life as suggested by the instructor?

I decided to make a commitment to 30 days. The first 3 to 4 days were just fine. Then my mind told me that this really was not making a difference. I decided to keep at it anyway.
Then came day 10 and there was no major changes going on. I had a cold on the 12th day and really thought I would skip a day, but I was reminded about my commitment from a friend. So a cold, dripping nose, aching body and all, I got on the mat and practiced my yoga. I was now to my 16th day and there were still no major changes. I thought to myself, I have been wasting a lot of time and could be spending it doing something else. Then on the 19th day, a friend who was a chiropractor stopped me while I was working out at the local YMCA and he asked if something had happened to me. I asked, “What do you mean?” He said, “you look much more centered and relaxed than I have ever seen you before, you seem to be standing much straighter and you seem more confident.” I told him that I had been practicing yoga everyday for the last 19 days and then he understood. I continued to my 30th day and by then, I had noticed major changes in my mind, my heart and my body. I had transformed. I was truly a different person.

I continue to practice my yoga, but not on a daily basis. I wonder sometimes if I should make another 30 day commitment. The lesson I learned from this experience is the value of practice. Practice in and of itself is transformative. I have used this lesson in other areas of my life, from starting a business, to studying for an exam, to meditation, to loosing weight and to learning a new skill. I realize that practice is and of itself transformative. I have come to learn that I have to be willing to go through long periods of practice with no visible results. I call them the plateaus. Then one day, I transform.

I see this also in my executive coaching clients. We can go weeks and never see any measurable results, and then one day, all of sudden, there is transformation. I encourage everyone to commit to a practice. Do it today.