trying...everything...

I had a conversation with a yogi friend of mine recently about what it means to "try."  He has a student that he has been doing private lessons with who kept falling out of tree pose in class. Each time, my friend would ask what are you going to do to stay in the pose?  The student responded, "I'll try again." 

This poses a great question. How many times do you keep trying the same thing only for the same results? While there are several interpretations of "insanity," here is one that could apply in situations like these:

The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.

What else could the student have done differently? For starters, he could have asked the teacher for pointers. How many times have you simply just not sought guidance when you felt stuck in a situation? He could have adjusted where he placed his lifted leg to provide more stability in the pose. How many times have you thought you had to abide by the rules to play? He could have gone to a nearby wall for support. How many times have you let your ego get in the way of achieving your goals?

If something is not working in your life what do you do about it? People will tell you to keep trying, right? But there comes a point where we need to step back and take a look at how we've been trying. If we keep falling out of tree pose we need to make adjustments to get into it.

You want a promotion at work? Ask for feedback. You want to learn to play the guitar? Take lessons. Less talking about what you want and more action towards finding the path to your goals. Stop waiting for things to happen. Next time you say "I've tried," list out all the ways you did. Solutions are out there waiting... you just have to discover them. You can literally have anything you want. You just have to be curious and creative in how you get it.

What adjustments can you make in your life, today, to start living into the life you deserve to have?