How Do You Be?

Following a meditation retreat a few years ago I decided that I want to focus less on what I wanted to DO and more on how I wanted to BE.

No sooner did I decide on this shift than I realized that it isn’t as easy as it seems.

It can be so tempting, rewarding even, to put my energy into what I want to accomplish and achieve. But to bring a chosen state of being to my actions? To prioritize HOW I want to be as I do all the things I do? That takes conscious effort. And attention.

I remember my teacher once saying something like anyone can work like a bull, but to work with sweetness and clarity, well, that’s something else entirely. To bring the best of ourselves to what we do requires a particular kind of skill. It’s the work of the yogi, don’t you think?

My experience is that there really is no substitute for taking the time and effort to nurture the inner stance we bring to our actions.

It’s that shift of being that makes the whole difference, that turns what we do into the best possible expression of who we are.