Step 2: Beginner's Guide Continued

Hey Babe, You know what I love about working with the body? There's no place to hide. Everything about us is laid bare each time we return to the mat. Perhaps this is why so many of us hide our bodies in shame, we are afraid of what people might see. Or worse, what we might see in ourselves. It is for this same reason that we delay our path toward self-transformation. Instead we flatter ourselves into believing, "I'm okay." "I don't need help." "My needs are not really that important." The only person you are fooling with this story is yourself. In reality, there is no place to hide. It's written all over you. It's time to return to the work... Last week I introduced you to my beginner's guide to self-transformation. The morning after sending that email I was overwhelmed by feedback, but one message stood out. "Lindsey, WTF?! It's like you are in my mind. I know there are so many areas in my life that I want to change but have no idea where to start anymore. I keep starting things and never see them through to the end. I've started to think there is something wrong with me, like maybe my life is just supposed to suck. It never occurred to me that there was a right or wrong place to start on my journey. Can you tell me more about this?" Last week I introduced you to Step 1 in my beginner's guide to self-transformation - I now release. I reminded you that starting the work of self-transformation with a specific endpoint in mind was "as fruitless as trying to hold back the dawn." So many first-time transformers (I totally just made that up... #firsttimetransformers) will begin this work with an intention of losing weight, changing a relationship, getting a new career or bigger house, only to realize that the work they need to do in this lifetime is far less tangible that what can be perceived with the eyes. It is for this reason that so many of us have stories of false-starts or failed attempts at change. We didn't know that every meaningful journey must begin from a place of acceptance of what is.

I now release the need to obsess about things that I cannot change so that here and now I can begin changing the things that I can.

Once you accept this truth, once you let it marinate deep within you, then it is time for Step 2. LINDSEY'S BEGINNER GUIDE TO SELF-TRANSFORMATION CONTINUED STEP 2: I NOW AFFIRM I NOW AFFIRM. Are you in a cage of your own design? Is it a mental, physical, or spiritual cage? Are your shackles reinforced by habits that no longer serve you, a body-self you are disconnected from, and/or people that drag you down? You've forgotten that you are no more, or less, important than any other part of the Universe. The Universe owes you nothing. The Universe denies you nothing. You are more FREE to do or be than you've ever believed possible. Repeat after me, "I now affirm that I nurture my own growth and development." Stop hiding. You are no more, or less, important than anyone or anything. But you've given yourself to other people's dreams, or expectations, because it has served you in some way - safety, love, protection - . Affirm that you are clear and conscious of these motives. Affirm that your happiness does not depend upon pleasing others. Affirm that you are ready to own your own feelings and desires. Affirm that you can let go of people, jobs, and habits that no longer serve you. Affirm that you are lovable for who you are, so that you can lay down your pride and come to your practice with humility and openness in your heart. Stay tuned for next week. STEP 3: RADICAL AUTHENTICITY xoxo, Lindsey "We are each a work in progress!"