How many times have you heard that 'practice makes perfect'? How many times has someone said that to you to cheer you up? How many times have you said it to someone else to encourage them? What if... that's fundamentally inaccurate?
What if that perspective just keeps you thinking of the outcome as the most important part of the equation? What if that keeps you from making the most out of the full effort? What if instead, like I like to say in this corner of the world, practice makes *possible*?
Last week, we talked about practice as the skill of viewing any change, challenge, and opportunity as something greater than the outcome. For example, by viewing change as a practice in adapting, you remove the pressure of having to navigate it 'perfectly' and add the benefit of repurposing what you learn now in the future.
What might change for you if the true skill to build, strengthen, and cultivate in the long run is the capacity to understand *practice* as a powerful outcome in and of itself?
This distinction matters for 6 reasons to start with:
1. You can develop the capacity to practice the behaviours that allow you to show up the way you want to today, while also setting you up with the skill needed to get to where you want to go.
2. You can focus on the process of getting to where you need/want to go without missing the learnings you can gather along the way.
3. You can repurpose the nervous system flexibility that you gain from practicing behaviours in one area of your life to serve you in another area of your life or to serve your community.
4. You can gather enough information that tells your nervous system that the discomfort inherent to practicing consistency or navigating uncertainty, for example, is not a threat to your well-being. This will make practice more available to you over time, which will be required for you to develop mastery over your mind, your actions, and your craft(s).
5. You can show up as a beginner, which is integral to meeting yourself where you're at. This in and of itself is the foundation of meeting your community, your work, your health, your opportunities, and your challenges through a growth-mindset.
6. You can practice hanging in the tension of change long enough to get you to what becomes possible on the other side. That might be moving, starting or ending a relationship, starting a business, advocating for causes you care about, or promoting a change in your workplace culture, for example.
One of the gifts that Yogic wisdom offers is viewing the many aspects of Yoga as a practice. Through this philosophy, you gift yourself the opportunity to meet the present over and over again from a place of curiosity and loving kindness. What might become available to you in your personal and professional lives if you gifted yourself the skill of taking a practice-approach to your goals, dreams, relationships, and behaviours?
For Executive Coaching support on cultivating a growth-mindset through practice, book a Discovery Call with me today!