Aligning Your Business With Your Personal Truth

Today I am celebrating my first big no, and I feel so good! Let me explain…

Like many, I am a huge people pleaser. I say yes to everything because I am afraid of disappointing people and also afraid of missing out. Lately, I’ve been challenging myself to say no to obligations that don’t align with my personal truth. Even if those obligations can make me money, or build my business. I don’t want to sell myself out and I certainly don’t want to wear myself out with optional obligations that don’t serve me.

Now, I’m not just talking about saying no to picking up an extra shift. Or saying no to subbing a yoga class for a fellow teacher. I’m talking about saying no to big business ventures even if those ventures can help me network while providing some extra income.

So what exactly did I say no to?

Last week I had a business reach out to me to teach some yoga classes for them. This business wanted to see how well the classes took off and would reevaluate if they wanted to continue with the classes by the end of the month. Seems simple enough, and it really was.

Here’s where I was conflicted. I was recommended to teach these classes by a colleague, that’s how this business received my contact information. So naturally I wanted to show my appreciation by accepting the offer. On top of that I was being offered a decent amount of money to do what I love, so why not take the opportunity? I thought to myself, ok, I can do this for a month and reevaluate to see if I personally wanted to continue with this project as well.

Already though, I knew that I wouldn’t want a long-term commitment. Adding a few yoga classes to my monthly schedule is no big deal, but to add them on permanently is a very different story. I’ve also taught similar types of classes before and didn’t really enjoy them. In fact, I didn’t even look forward to teaching those classes because the type of classes didn’t really vibe with me. Still, I met with the business that reached out to me. I didn’t want to ruin a perfectly good opportunity or possible connection by immediately declining.

After the meeting though, I didn’t feel super comfortable or confident moving forward. I ended up talking with a few different people in charge of event coordinating and felt ill-prepared to discuss the details of the classes. I could tell they were not super confident in hiring me, which made me less confident in my abilities as an instructor. Overall, I left the meeting more flustered than excited. For me, that’s a tell-tale sign that an opportunity probably isn’t a good fit.

So what did I do?

The people pleaser in me had sounded so promising and excited in our meeting. Yet the whole time my gut was trying to tell me to just say no right then and there. In fact, my gut had told me to say no right after I saw the initial email. It’s always worth looking into these opportunities though because you never truly know what can happen. So I didn’t regret going to the meeting. I did and still do, regret not saying no sooner.

I debated on emailing them back that night, but I wasn’t sure what my response would be. Do I say yes even though I know I’m not going to enjoy teaching these classes? Or do I politely decline? I felt bad saying no. Honestly, I could always use the extra income. On top of that, I had just met with these people for an hour. I felt like declining the offer would have been a huge waste of both of our time. So I waited it out and gave myself the weekend to formulate my thoughts.

Still, I said no because it didn’t align with my personal truth.

I love teaching yoga, I really, really do! It is incredible that I get to share the knowledge of this practice, and help transform peoples lives in the process. Teaching yoga is truly a gift and I am always amazed at how blessed I am to receive an income by doing something I am so passionate about.

There’s a fine line, however, between teaching and receiving an income, and teaching to receive and income. I blog and work at Lululemon so I don’t have to rely on teaching yoga for money. When I look at yoga teaching as a job, it becomes less fun, and way less special to me. That doesn’t mean that I don’t want to eventually teach full time again. I know that sometime in the future I will be strictly blogging and teaching, instead of balancing another job.

For now, though, I work at Lulu so I can truly pick and choose what teaching opportunities I want to say yes to. Some of the places I have taught at in the past, I didn’t vibe with. I’ve had teachers, studios and gyms, try to micromanage me by telling me what I could and could not say, provide me with set flows for my classes, and ultimately tell me how to do my job so they could receive the benefits of my success. I allowed this to happen too because the money was good.

When I finally stepped away from those places I felt lost. I had let these places dictate my voice as a yoga teacher. Which in turn, let these places take away my authenticity as a yoga teacher. I could seriously go on forever about finding your voice, staying authentic and recognizing your strengths as a teacher. Chances are I will dedicate another post to this exact topic because it is so important for teachers to teach from a space of authenticity!

In order to avoid a huge ramble though, I’ll sum it up with this. When we choose to align ourselves with opportunities that resonate with our personal truth, we will be more fruitful in the end. Consequently, saying no to opportunities that do not resonate with us, leaves room for even better opportunities to take place. If I had said yes to this opportunity, I could have made a decent amount of money in a short period of time. However, I would have been missing out on other opportunities that would bring me so much more than money!

I know I would not have gotten as much joy out of teaching these classes than I normally do. If I taught for the money, then I would not be aligning myself with my truth. Teaching yoga is not a monetary act for me. If I make it monetary then my authenticity goes out the window and my students can feel it. I would not be as effective as a yoga teacher and in turn, I would not be as successful.

The same principle applies to other aspects of life as well, not just business. Overall, pursuing opportunities that you are truly stoked about, tells the universe, God, your higher self, whatever it is that you believe in, that you want more of the same opportunities. When you step off that path and take an opportunity you know you don’t align with, it leaves room for more of those same type of opportunities to weasel their way into your life. If you know what you want, pursue it. That’s the only way to continue moving forward in the right direction for you. Don’t be afraid to say no. Embrace your power of choice, and use this power to draw the opportunities in your life worth pursuing.

Love and light,

Sarah