Look. We need to get into it.

To ask all the questions, to unearth all the possibilities, to sit with some uncomfortable answers.

So I asked Leslie Kaminoff to come on, and we did just that.

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

*” Fundamentally it is a governance issue” is my favorite quote about the IAYT issue that is on this entire podcast series. Because they do have a governance issue, and it is important that we talk about it.

To reiterate: a 501c3 organization in the United States exists to serve a public function, and a 501c6 org is a business or trade organization that exists to serve its members. The IAYT is currently the former, not the latter.

*Medicalizing yoga and yoga therapy comes with a whole host of complications. And this series on the podcast will cover some of those complications as we go forward into talking about licensure, the medicalization of yoga, and more.

*Yoga is relationships. This is a quote from this episode of the podcast that I have already used a dozen times since Leslie and I recorded this podcast together a few weeks ago. Because it is so true. We are in relationship with ourselves, our students, our colleagues, and our organizations. It is important that we chose to build the best versions of those relationships that we can so we can all thrive, and also so that yoga and the yoga industry can thrive in this modern world.

*If you missed it, if there is an offer to write a rebuttal of someone wishes to write a position paper about moving towards licensure in the yoga therapy space. Please someone take Leslie up on this so I can read both your paper and his response. I love this kind of stuff.

*Yoga has long taken place within the outskirts of culture. I have said this a lot, but we came of age in the counter-culture movement of the 90s, and a lot of us really liked it that way. I include myself in this group. I don’t know if the 19 year old version of myself that started yoga would have found her way into today’s modern yoga spaces. I think about that a lot actually, especially in the context of all those gifts that a consistent yoga practice has given me over the last 27 years. Leslie refers to this with his assertion that yoga has existed very often between the cracks of general culture.

Comforting or not, that is the reality of what we have been. And I am interested to see if we keep that trend going forward into the future.

RESOURCES

Working In Yoga Website

Working In Yoga Newsletter

Leslie’s Website

Find Taylor Casey

Once upon a time we had organizations that worked for us, the professionals of the yoga industry.

Or did we?

On this new series we explore the recent work of one of our orgs, the International Association of Yoga Therapists as well as some other organizations in our space.

Sorry Yoga Alliance, you are sitting this one out.

Take a listen to the intro and then get ready for some serious industry legends and pros to tell you what they think about our recent organizational moves.

RESOURCES

RESOURCES

Working In Yoga Website

Working In Yoga Newsletter

Find Taylor Casey

Yoga Alliance Scope of Practice

International Association of Yoga Therapists Scope of Practice

This one is a personal conversation between friends.

Shannon and I have a hard conversation together, and talk about how you can have conversations with friends too.

This is one of my favorite conversations ever, and I can’t wait for you to hear it.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

*There are a lot of ways to have a hard conversation. But don’t take for granted the powerful act of having hard conversations with your friends. Friends are folks with whom you prioritize your connection over self-serving things. People you are friendly with, don’t hold the same weight.

For example: you can be friends with your cousin. But the relationship you should have with your boss is “Friendly”

*Hard conversations, and social justice conversations, belong in yoga. There is a lot of discourse in our industry around this, and amazing folks like Anjali Rao have been on the podcast talking about this very thing. But consider also this: if yoga can be a process of knowing yourself and knowing others, then hard conversations are a part of that.

*Consent in conversations is an absolute must. Everyone needs to be consensual for conversations to flourish–and pushing other people into conversations, or expecting everyone to respond to things that are top of your mind isn’t appropriate. These conversations can be had in yoga spaces, but only when everyone is an enthusiastic yes. We all have more fun when that happens.

*Change happens in the quiet. I know I have said that before, but it is worth repeating. If you want change to happen don’t just show up shouting. Show up to write the permit, arrange the transport, and apply for the grant.

*What is your relationship with social media? As I said, I use social media exclusively for business. I have primarily yoga conversations on quite literally all of my channels. But maybe you use social media differently. Please make sure you are conscientious about it, and don’t feel pressured to perform on social if that isn’t how you show up.

RESOURCES

Working In Yoga Website

Working In Yoga Newsletter

Shannon’s Website

Find Taylor Casey