Teacher Training Insights: Empowered to being a yes! By Florence Sieu
- -I stumbled upon Lumi in December 2015. A month later, I was going to the studio almost every day. Another two months down the line, I wanted to train as a yoga teacher with Elina and Ari, and signed up as quickly as I could to their next available teacher training, which was October 2016. I think it was the first time in my life when making a decision has been so easy and more importantly, has felt so right. When I enrolled in the training, it wasn’t even close to starting yet suddenly, my life – or at least part of it – made more sense. Ah, that feeling you have when you know you are doing the right thing…priceless!
I had only ever heard positive (read: extremely positive) feedback from teachers who trained at Lumi so I was naturally expecting the training to be amazing overall, but wasn’t too sure what to expect content wise. Well, amazing doesn’t even start to describe the 200 hours and I only have the space of a blog post so I want to share what I think was one of the highlights of the training.
“Challenge yourself, be a yes!” is what we often hear during Lumi classes. It starts on the mat, you challenge yourself physically to hold a pose for another few breaths, or to try a new asana you still can’t quite manage to get to. When things get difficult, you start hearing this voice inside you – the monkey mind – that tells you to stop, that you have done enough, or that you are too exhausted. You then, are the only decision maker: let the voice take over, or listen to it but carry on anyway. This precise moment of choice is what has been a true learning point for me during the training. Elina and Ari put good emphasis on identifying the monkey mind that is self-limiting and makes you stay within your comfort zone. We are taught to listen to the noises the monkey mind create in new, uncomfortable, and challenging situations, but not to act on it nor to believe it. We are taught to stick to the facts and not to make the monkey’s thoughts the truth. And this very moment when you learn to give more power to your inner “yes” and to your dreams and ambitions, that’s when the turning point happens. We empower the shift of focus to take place and therefore create space for something new by breaking the barrier of comfort or pushing them back. This starts as a teacher, on the mat and slowly but surely, being a yes goes beyond the yoga class and the physical form of exercise. It becomes an attitude, a lifestyle, a conscious choice we can make in our everyday life. And that’s one of the million reasons why the teacher training with Elina and Ari is so powerful. Because
YES we are trained in the best conditions and by amazing people;
YES we work hard physically and eventually become stronger;
YES you suddenly have an extended family that gives you an incredible sense of belonging and so much support;
YES Lumi becomes your second home.
But the most important impact for me was that we were given a chance of a new take on how we see life and how we live our daily life. Not just on our mat and as a teacher. Embarking upon this wonderful journey with Lumi has only brought new bright lights into my life, so without a hesitation – empower the yes in you!