Month: August 2012

teaching, yoga

Leap: I Gave My First Mini Yoga Therapeutics Teacher Training

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest

For the past year, I’ve focused much of my yoga teaching on therapeutics with most of my students having some form of physical or mental health challenge. It’s been such a gratifying experience to work with these students that I’ve thought a lot about how to leverage my skills to get these teachings to a wider audience. Two ideas have emerged: I could teach therapeutics to yoga teachers and I could teach the staff at hospitals, healthcare agencies, assisted living facilities, etc. to provide yoga to the people they work with.

This week, I took my first step with the first option and taught a mini yoga therapeutics class to a teacher from Italy who wants to teach therapeutic yoga in her home city of Torino. She reached out to me online during the Spring after finding my website and asked if I could teach her what I know about teaching therapeutic yoga. Her boyfriend came to New York City for a month-long cinematography course at NYU and she took the trip as well with the intent of enhancing her yoga teaching. She spent 9 hours of one-on-one time with me to learn therapeutics and then spent a half day for four weeks at the Sivananda Yoga Center. This was my first time teaching a teacher how to teach.

It’s a vastly different skill to teach teachers about teaching than it is to teach a traditional class. The depth of knowledge must be deeper because the teachers are going to ask very specific questions; their curiosity takes the content to a whole new level. You know exactly how you’re doing because they tell you. And with the desire to train the trainer, the responsibility is heavier as well. You need to keep the teachers safe and you also need to help them keep their students safe. The stakes are high but the potential for impact is high as well.

I’m really proud to say that she loved the training and that I thoroughly enjoyed the time spent teaching a teacher. She is bright, eager, and passionate about healing. I am so excited to hear how everything unfolds for her when she returns to Torino and starts to use this training with her students. I have a feeling this won’t be the last time I share this practice that I love so much with a teacher who cares about it as much as I do. Another door opens.

change, courage, creative process, meditation, time, yoga

Leap: Only Actions Create The Future

Christa Avampato

“Actions are the seed of fate. Deeds grow into destiny.” ~ Harry S Truman

There’s a pesky saying that travels around the yoga world from time to time. There’s a call to stop doing. The seed of this sentiment comes from a good place. There’s a lot of value in stillness, in quietude. When we get quiet, our mind’s eye sees more clearly. When the chatter subsides, we’re able to solve challenges with more confidence and insight. In peace, we gain direction.

This place of stillness can feel so good that we are reluctant to come back down. Wouldn’t it be lovely if we could just stay in that meditative state for a good long while? Yes, and no. The power of yoga and its many benefits make little difference on that 12 square feet of sticky surface. Their value comes to bear when we leave our mats, when we go out there into that great big world and actually do something with our clear minds and renewed sense of purpose. It’s good to stop doing for a bit, but eventually doing is what life is about. To have an impact, we have to take action with a clear sense of focus and direction.

Think of all of the historical figures whom you admire. My list is topped by people like Nelson Mandela and Mother Teresa. It’s filled with people who are writers, artists, musicians, innovators, inventors, and scientists. I admire them because of what they did. Their actions inspire me every day to show up in this world in the best way that I can so that I have a hand in crafting a world I want to live in.

I’m all for rest and relaxation, but I’m also all for making that rest and relaxation purposeful. Purpose is found in the actions we take with our hearts, minds, and spirits united. We can’t think, nor meditate or yoga, our way into a better and brighter future. Ultimately, we have to do something with the peace that comes from what we practice on our mats.

art, community, creativity, theatre, writing

Leap: The Art of Collaboration and My Interview for PBS Mediashift with Jim Nicola, Artistic Director of New York Theatre Workshop

Christa Avampato
Once the Musical, a New York Theatre Workshop production, won 8 Tony Awards this year.

I am thrilled to announce that an article I wrote based about the collaboration process at New York Theatre Workshop is now posted on the inspiring PBS site MediaShift. A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of interviewing Jim Nicola, Artistic Director of New York Theatre Workshop, who made me believe in the magic and power of theatre again. As you may know, I spent the early years of my professional career as a manager of Broadway shows and national tours. I’ve been out of the business since 2004 and until I interviewed Jim, I hadn’t missed the process. Now I’m reconsidering how I might slowly ease back into that wacky and wonderful world of professional theatre.

And with this publication I must thank the editor of MediaShift, Amanda Hirsch, for her continuous support of my writing. I am humbled and honored to now have the chance to work for her on a project that is near and dear to her heart. Amanda and I met because of this blog. She was moving to New York City from DC with her husband, Jordan, and she was searching for people writing about creative living in New York. My blog popped up in her search.

The internet has such a lovely way of tangling together fates and futures. I recently went back to that first introductory email that Amanda sent to me over 3 years ago. True to form, she closed the email with “keep writing.” I’m glad I followed her advice and encouragement.

Let me know what you think of the article on MediaShift!

time

Leap: What Is The Point of August?

Christa Avampato

Have you been thinking of packing it in for the remainder of the month and heading to the beach? Or at least wishing that were possible? Me, too.

Because of its heat and slow demeanor, I’ve often thought that the only good use of August is vacation. This year, I have a new perspective and motivation for this lackluster month. Some people say it’s all in the timing. (David Ives wrote an entire play celebrating this idea.) I think it’s actually all in the planning. With the minimal demands of August, use this time wisely to get yourself ready for a busy Fall that lies in wait just around the corner.

After Labor Day, people get back in the swing of things as we turn our attention to the homestretch of the year and possibly toward our plans for early next year. Though we may no longer be tied to a school calendar, the school year schedule is firmly cemented in our behavior. It’s a time for starting-up and to start strong, you need a plan of action.

Here are some ideas to make August as useful as possible:

1.) Make up a list of 5 people you’d like to work with. Take advantage of the back-to-school sales and buy some professional stationery that conveys your personality. You read that right – actual paper on which you will use a pen to create a hand-written note to each of these people. I am as big a fan of electronic communications as anyone but a hand-written card to your dream collaborators is a novel move that gets noticed. I’ve been doing this for years and it’s been an effective avenue for breaking the ice. Recently, I set up a very exciting connection that I’ll be telling you about in the next few weeks, all thanks to a hand-written note in which I enclosed my business card (also printed on paper.)

2.) Work on a fun project (or 2 or 3) for your portfolio. My friend and collaborator, Michael, is the Founder of Third Place Media. He has filled up his plate this month with fun projects that he enjoys, enhance his skills, and expand his portfolio. Quite an effective use of August time. I’m excited to see what September holds for him, and for the rest of us engaging in builds this summer.

3.) Rest and rejuvenate. What? Didn’t I just say August should be used to plan? I sure did, and that means making sure you are in tip-top shape for the Fall – mind, body, and spirit. And there are no shortage of ways to do this: read a book, learn something new, draw, paint, go for a run along the water on a sunny day, hang out with your pup in a beautiful park, whip up a new recipe thanks to all of the amazing produce now in season, got to an art show, listen to live music, see a play.

4.) Use this down time to seek out sources of inspiration and relaxation. The more relaxed and inspired you are, the more inspiring you’ll be to others and nothing attracts busy, helpful bees more than inspiring honey. Need ideas for inspiration. For ideas, see #3 above.

5.) Connect with old friends and make some new ones over tea, cocktails, or a meal at your favorite sidewalk cafe. Your network will take you everywhere you want to be.

Here’s to a productive August that makes for a successful Fall for all of us!

adventure, time

Leap: Don’t Let Time Slip By You

Christa Avampato
Big Ben, London. Image from Pinterest.

“To be human is to be aware of the passage of time; no concept lies closer to the core of our consciousness.” ~ Dan Falk

August 7th?! We have less than 5 months left in 2012.

Every year, time is picking up speed, or rather I am becoming even more acutely aware of its passing. Time has always been at the forefront of my mind for several reasons. My father and 3 of my 4 grandparents died when I was very young. When people responsible for my very existence left this plane, it made the reality of my own mortality a very palpable thing.

I’ve come up against my own mortality several times in my short life. In college, I was robbed at knife point in the subway station on the University of Pennsylvania campus. In 2009, I was almost trapped inside my apartment building after a fire broke out on the first floor. The only things that saved me were my unconscious intuition that something was very wrong with my kitchen floor heaving up and down (the fire was raging in the apartment below, unbeknownst to me at the time) and my will to live beyond age 33. In 2010, I was on a flight when my plane was struck my lightning. We made a frightening emergency landing in Syracuse, New York, and once we hit the tarmac, the wing of the plane promptly fell off.

How’s that for a series of wake-up calls? Universe to Christa – LIFE IS SHORT!

Once you realize your own sense of mortality, one of two things happen: you either go into a deep sense of denial or you realize that you better make the most out of every single moment because the next moment is not guaranteed. By some great miracle I was born without even a hint of the denial gene, so I had the latter reaction. Once you stare death in the face several times over, and live to tell about it, there isn’t much that’s going to scare you away from doing exactly what you want to do with your time.

This causes me to have a trait that people either love or hate – I call it as I see it and play it as it lies. I’m not saying I’m right, but I’m always honest and try very hard to remain true to that honesty while upholding the rights of all people to believe something different. I don’t beat around the bush in any area of my life. I believe in ripping off a band-aid when it’s outlived its purpose. I don’t have time to live any other way.

And you don’t either. No matter how long our lives are, in the grand scheme of things they’re very short. Whether you realize it or not, time is ticking away and your opportunity to have an impact goes right along with it. Time is a resource you can’t buy and once it’s used, it cannot be replenished. It’s the most precious thing you have; use it to the best of your ability. Make it matter.

creativity

Leap: You Need a Personal Mission Statement

Christa Avampato
“What’s your mission?” Image from Pinterest

Every organization, nonprofit and for-profit, has a mission statement. That mission statement succinctly tells the world what the organization does, what it cares about, and why it matters. Every decision, from the monumental to the mundane, draws its inspiration and motivation from that mission. It rallies people together into a cohesive community.

You need one, too. So how do you get one? First, look up. There’s something magical about gazing skyward that helps us to realize our true potential. With your gaze turned up, answer these questions:

1.) What’s the one sentence that underlies everything you do?
2.) What are the actions you take to support your mission?

Now tell the world about it!

Here is my mission statement at Chasing Down the Muse:

I work with people who are and want to be at the very top of their chosen fields.

As a product developer and business strategist, I collaborate with organizations and entrepreneurs to help them create products, services, events, capabilities, and programs that make the world a better place.

As a yoga and meditation teacher, I teach classes and workshops to individuals and groups to enhance performance and creativity, build efficiency and confidence, and reduce stress.

As a writer, I research and write stories to inspire, encourage, and support good people doing good work.

Though I live in New York City, I am not limited by geography and work with people across the globe, virtually and in-person.

Click here to see more information on my work.

courage, dreams, love

Leap: Small Consistent Acts of Courage and Love Make for a Better World

Christa Avampato

“In life, it is never the big battle, the big moment, the big speech, the big election. That does not change things. What changes things is every day, getting up and rendering small acts of service and love beyond that what’s expected of you or required of you.” ~ Cory Booker, Mayor of Newark and 2012 Stanford graduation speaker

You have the desire to do something big with your life. You have massive dreams and hopes for yourself and those you love. You want to rise to your potential, leave your own indelible mark on the world, and make a lasting contribution to humanity. I get it; I want to do the same.

Here’s the trick: your mark isn’t made by one single act. It’s not even made with 1,000 acts. It’s made every single day. The key to making your mark and accomplishing those big dreams has everything to do with consistency. Every time you go somewhere and do something with your whole heart, you transmit that love to everyone around you. Every time you demonstrate dedication and commitment to something that matters to you, we feel it and are inspired by it.

There are millions of ways to make a difference. There is no shortage of challenges and difficulties in the world that are crying out for smart solutions. And the sooner you identify your way to make a difference and give yourself over to it, the sooner this world will be a bit more like the world you want it to be. Your moment to begin is now. We’re all counting on you and rooting for you.

courage, dreams

Leap: All You Need Is 20 Seconds of Insane Courage

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest

“All it takes is 20 seconds of insane courage and great things will happen.” ~ Benjamin Mee

In the 7 weeks since I left my corporate job to step out on my own, many people have asked me what was the scariest piece of the multi-year process leading up to that moment. I distinctly remember messaging one of my co-worker friends and telling her that I was on my way to my VP’s office to give my notice. And then the blood started pumping. I had the letter in hand and told someone I was turning it in. Could I really do this? After all this planning, all this anticipation, all this waiting, could I pull the trigger when it mattered most?

I could and I did, with a steady voice, a full heart, and steeped in the knowledge that though this was scary, it was the right thing to do. It was the next step that would make all of the following steps possible. And the world needs those steps. All of them. It needs me, and all of us, at our best, and this was the way to be at my best.

In the 20 seconds it took to walk into my VP’s office and hand him my letter of resignation, my whole life changed. My whole view of the world changed. I was free to pursue work that fascinates me, lights me up, wakes me early in the morning, and then reluctantly releases its hold so I can go to sleep at night. It’s powerful and invigorating to design my own career and connect with people whom I admire. I’m learning something new every moment of every day.

I wish the same for all of you. I want you to know this peace and happiness and inspiration. Let me know how I can help because the world needs you at your best, too.

creativity, inspiration, meditation, yoga

Leap: Inspiration is Closer Than You Think

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest

I spent yesterday morning at United Cerebral Palsy of NY to observe their adapted karate program. I knew it would help me craft the adapted yoga program I’m working on for them. The experience gave me a chance to see another teacher in action as he trained teachers and to see the range of a class of students. I walked away from the sessions with piles of notes, a lot of ideas, and a big task ahead of me. How could this all come together?

I spent the day turning over different options in my mind as I ran errands, walked Phineas, interviewed for several writing roles, and taught yoga. I let the task ahead with UCP sit at the back of mind. Eventually I took pen to paper and blanketed it with a lot of mediocre ideas. And then something amazing happened.

I closed my eyes and asked for help. Everything went quiet. All the chatter fell away, my mind went completely still, and up out of that stillness rose the hint of an idea. I looked closer and found another piece of the idea. And then the gates opened. I scribbled out an entire system of how the program could play out for the students and teachers. To top it all off, I had a very clear image of me teaching the class – what I would say, how students would respond, and how I could adapt the knowledge I have to suit their needs.

I thought it would take weeks to put all of this information together and I was prepared to dedicate that time. However, the answer was there all along. I knew what I needed to do but I couldn’t hear the answer until I dedicated myself to listening for its call. The inspiration we seek isn’t outside; its inside. It’s there right now. Tap in.

change, commitment, determination, work, yoga

Leap: There is Always a Path of Less Resistance

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest

Have you ever felt like you’re drowning in tiny tasks that somehow grew out-of-control overnight?

That’s how I recently felt with Compass Yoga teacher scheduling. Almost a year ago, I started to get requests from more library branches that wanted a regular yoga class in their programming. They had heard about the wonderful classes at the Bloomingdale Branch and once the word spread to one branch, many others piled on.

Of course, I was thrilled by the requests and wanted to fill them all. At the time, I thought the best idea was to find a lot of teachers who would be willing to teach these free classes to get experience. In New York City, there is no shortage of new teachers who need and want experience. So that people wouldn’t feel too overwhelmed by a regular weekly class, I decided to put together rotating rosters of teachers who would share the load at each branch. I also thought this would give the students a variety of teaching styles to keep them engaged in the practice.

These are really nice ideas and they kind of worked, but I completely underestimated the challenges. First, I did a very good job of driving myself crazy as I coordinated the schedules of 17 (!) teachers and then often hunted for last-minute subs. Second, teachers wanted to feel more connected with the students on a regular basis and having a regular weekly class helped them schedule their own lives more efficiently. Third, students wanted to get to know a teacher better rather than seeing 3 or 4 different teachers per month.

I was well aware of the first challenge but didn’t know about the other two. As a result, I began to wonder if we’d have to scale back the library program altogether in an effort to restore my sanity. I wrestled with this idea for weeks, changing my mind every other day. Then a really interesting idea surfaced once I found out about the second and third challenges described above: each branch of the library could have a lead teacher. That teacher may not be able to teach every week and may need to sub out occasionally, but the relative consistency would help me tremendously and would be more helpful to the teachers and students.

In the end, we didn’t need to scale back the library program. We just needed to find a smarter way to manage it. And now with this simpler teacher scheduling structure, we can grow to more branches to help more people. Every challenge has a solution and many times it’s far simpler than we realize. Once we have the will to make something happen (or change), the way opens.