FINDING FREEDOM IN THE NINE-TO-FIVE RAT RACE

Have you ever felt yourself a rat upon a wheel running in no particular direction to make ends meet, all the while wishing for a better tomorrow? I know we’ve all felt it – doing a dead-end job, living in a dead-end town, being in a dead-end relationship. There is an aura of doing this because you’re meant to, you’re expected to, but is this really how we’re meant to be living life?

I muse on this a lot. I have spent the latter part of my teens and early twenties searching for what it is that I really want to do. Undertaking my first yoga training at 24 was the first step towards finding some, any, clarity in this world. Almost a year into my yoga career, I am still very much still a student, soaking up the world around me with my new yoga eyes. I would love to pack up and leave everything, to travel and teach and not care about the bills or rent. But the older I’m getting, the more this fantasy is fading – is there a way to avoid the rat race we who live in the West call ‘life’?

I call this the transition period. The period between doing what you love and funding the ability to do so.

As I take bigger steps in my making-ends-meet job, I wonder if it is distracting me from my long-term goals. I often take on the guilt that hours I spend there are hours I have spent not building this yoga empire and I feel I am letting myself down. But there is a perspective shift that needs to happen with these things – right now is a time for learning, for absorbing, for making mistakes and for pushing myself. Baby steps need to happen, experience needs to be gained and everything is happening for a reason.

For me, I am leaning into the unknown. I am fearful, but I am also aware that no matter what happens, I am me, and nothing can take that away from me. My goals don’t disappear just because I spend some time doing something else.

Below are my tips for ensuring that the guilt doesn’t take you over. Yoga says to focus on yoga to be enlightened. But yoga also says to love the process, every step of the way.

Create a plan

I can’t do anything if my mind is in a puddle. I would say second to yoga, planning is my passion. I have always got multiple lists and diaries going, very often denoting my every minute of every day. It’s a little obsessive but it helps me organise my priorities, my time, and my life. Be sure that you have short-term plans about your day-to-day, but have long-term plans for your month-to-month, year-to-year.

I like to bullet journal and have plans on my laptop. I always have a little book with me to put ideas in, so when I am doing something that isn’t my goal, I can still jot ideas down for later.

Stick to the plan

Just because you need to make money for the plan, doesn’t mean you should forget about the plan. To avoid the aforementioned guilt, you need to stick to the plan. It’s not a matter of writing a plan and filling it away. You need to have it everywhere – on your walls, on your phone, in all your friends’ minds. Tell everyone about the plan – keep yourself accountable.

The beauty of a long-term plan is that it gives you guidance on where you want to be. Opportunities might arise as you go, and they may aid your long-term plans. Ensure you have direction, but never be afraid to change the plan along the way if you can see a real benefit.

Dabble in your goals each day

I might work a nine-hour day and be dead tired, but I always try to find even 10 minutes to lay on my mat, to read a blog, have a conversation about yoga. Some days I can dedicate more time, but even on the days where time is limited, I always try to pay respect to the practice I love so much.

A way I try to keep myself accountable is Instagram. A post each day means that I have done one pose, I have written something, I have paused for a moment. Another way is that I have vowed to keep teaching no matter what – a minimum of one class a week.

Learn from your mistakes

Here is a hard fact – you won’t always get it right. Even writing that, I felt my face crunch up. It’s the hardest pill to swallow.

Even if you make a mistake (and you will), know it is all in the name of learning. Mistakes are good, embrace them.

Know it isn’t forever

Sometimes the nine-to-five might feel like it’s draining your soul, but know it isn’t forever. There are days where I work 9 hours, teach two hours, spend time with my partner and cook dinner and get very little sleep. In a way, I’m mostly grateful for those days. I learn more on those days. But they are exhausting. Just know days like that won’t be forever, this is your transition period.

Be true to yourself

This is the most honest of all the points. No matter what you do, no matter where you work or what your commitments are, always be sure to be true to yourself. Never do something you disagree with. If you feel icky on the inside, know you can say no. There is doing something because you have to, and hating something that you can replace. Ensure you’re treating yourself with respect and putting yourself first.

Self-care is so important during this time – find time for yourself, to be kind to yourself. A bath, a breathing exercise, a cuddle from your partner or pet, an extra hour of sleep. Self-care is the most important thing in the world – never feel guilty for putting yourself first.

Do you have other things you do to help through this transition period? Let me know in the comments. After all, we’re in this together.

Namaste,

Ax