Have you brought who you really are - at the center of your core - into your career?
Bring your whole self to work. For me, these six words developed a whole new meaning when I graduated from yoga teacher training a week ago today.
People who know me know that I smile, a lot. I resisted this natural trait at work for decades, in fear that people would take my kindness for weakness and that it may stunt my career growth. Resisting smiling was futile, though, and eventually I let go of trying to control it. I realized that allowing myself to be who I truly am did not make me succeptible to haters or keep me from upward mobility in my career. Contrary, it revealed my character and sprinkled a little bit of my spirit onto every touchpoint.
Smiling has helped me build trusting relationships with sources as a news reporter and genuine relationships with leaders as a communications director. My amazing colleagues have become friends who support and champion my growth in meeting rooms and also on the mat as a yoga instructor.
Yoga encourages me to soften through challenges on the mat so that I can conquer the difficult stuff that will inevitably meet me off the mat. Yoga allows me to notice when I'm so consumed with a project at work that I'm cheating myself of taking complete breaths. Yoga leads me to let go of things that do not serve me, like judging myself against colleague blessings that weren't meant for me. Yoga has led me to overthink less.
At my core, I have built a career in external communications that aligns with the amazing opportunity to help others tap into their own inner communications through yoga. It all connects.
Have you brought who you really are - at the center of your core - into your career?