I thought it could be useful to breakdown how the yoga path typically goes. So here it is, in 3 handy stages!

It's all well and good pronouncing that self-acceptance and self-love are the answers to everything, but how can we break it down so that we can actually do it?

​One of the most interesting things about being a human, I think, is experiencing the different layers of self-awareness that are possible. In case you don't find this interesting, or are not familiar with the layers, I've made this blog post cake-related. Which might help. 

​You might be wondering why I would want to comment on Trump and Brexit in a blog that's geared towards self-study and self-love? Because I see them as being very much related. Deeply related. 

​I've been working in project management for the past eight years or so, and over that time I've been very interested and delighted to find that my morning yoga practice is the best thing for it. 

Normal perception of typical lifestyles would have us believe that the best ways to relax and unwind are to have a drink, or zone out and watch TV or youtube, or go to sleep, etc. But drinking and TV/internet zoning-out are distractions. They are what they are. And a lot of the time sleep is not even relaxing or restful. If the mind is stressed out, as many of ours are, the quality of our sleep reflects that.
But there is another way, and it works much better!

The body has its own language, and it always tells the truth. It can't lie! So it's really useful to learn how to listen closely to it.
​
While the language of the mind uses words and images, the language of the body uses sensations and feelings. There is a load of activity happening in the body at every moment: breath moving in and out, heart beating, blood flowing, digestive system processing, etc. We can train ourselves with techniques of Yoga to tune in with those sensations, and after a while we can feel the very subtle movements. That's when things get really interesting. But even the more surface level stuff is hugely useful to observe too. In fact, for practical application of self-love and self-care, the surface level stuff is probably the most useful for figuring out our day-to-day needs.

​I've made some big and unexpected discoveries over the past few years, through my own self-study, and it seems like it’s time to share them. I didn't expect to find that self-study and self-love would be the antidotes to my problems, but they were and they are.  And I don't find too many people around who practice them consistently, probably because they are skills and they take serious effort to get going. But they are the big shiny opposite of the silly scary world we find ourselves in today. So I'm starting this blog now, and a 6-month self-study course in September. I'm hoping to create a little community of people who are interested in committing seriously to their own development over the long-term. And I'm wondering if we could make a new type of soldier. A self-study soldier, equipped with the internal skills to manage life better, and to investigate their own potential.
Let's see what happens!