body connections that can be ultimately valuable to the
practice of leadership provided by yoga whether a leader takes
it on as a practice or not. Yoga is access to creating more space.
You will notice that this book is different from your average
leadership or yoga book. First of all, it’s shorter. We intended it
to be concise and therefore appealing to the busy leaders for
whom it’s written. Second of all, we’ve bottom-lined it for
you…we’ve stripped it of the usual anecdotes and stories and
real life examples. This is intentional. Instead of stories, we
give you practices and metaphors. You will author your own
narrative as you ponder and apply the concepts we share here.
Our examples are not relevant, for you will create your own, or
you will recognize yourself and others you know as we
describe the intersection of leadership and yoga. Therefore, this
is not a business book, not a leadership book, not a yoga book,
rather it is more a roadmap and guidebook, providing you
with a framework upon which to build your own design. In it,
you’ll find concepts to ponder as well as actions you can take,
so you can navigate in whatever manner suits you best.
When leaders in this current Culture of Stress, bred from
enhanced technologies, global competition and unpredictable
market conditions, learn to embody practices from yogic
traditions, there can be an immediate shift in awareness that
leads to an enhanced sense of well-being.
Take breathing, for example.
Breathing is a fundamental of all yogic practice, and as such is
tied to every action: a forward bend is associated with an
exhalation, just as a strong standing position or back-bend is
driven and inspired by the inhalation.
But more to our point, your ability to take a full breath is
imperative for emotional stability and physiological balance,
homeostasis and physical health, as well as alert mental
functioning for problem solving, creativity and clear
communication between your self and others.
This is EASY: Breathe in through the nose, out through the
nose. Begin to feel the breath moving through your nostrils and
throat, feel the chest expand. Breathe into the lower lungs, then
let the breath rise toward the collar bones. Relax your belly and
let it become round as you breathe in, and feel it contract when
you breathe out.
This WILL take practice, and you WILL GET THIS and it will
make all the difference in how you feel and what you do:
Breath creates the space for keen awareness.
It makes it possible for us to respond in the moment, rather than react based on past experience.
It IS the difference between reacting and responding.
THIS, is yoga.
