The Transformative
Power of Practice
by Fran sussman
W
ould you like to be the kind of person who handles your day with
grace? Who navigates adversity with admirable aplomb? Who has resil-
ience in the worst of circumstances, and optimism to share through the
best? One way to develop these qualities is by developing a practice.
What is a practice? The form doesn’t matter as much as the commitment. It
can be yoga, sitting or walking meditation, breath work or prayer. The essence
of it is to make time, every day, and follow through – no matter what. Make the
time to set aside preoccupations with the past and future, worries and wishes, and
Stress Reduction. Everyone needs time
simply be in the present moment.
to “drop anchor” each day, a time to
withdraw, if only for a few moments,
overcoming excuses to daily Practice
from the hectic, demanding, stress-
inducing lives we all lead. Practice is
I Don’t Have Time. Everyone has five minutes they can sculpt out of their day.
“sacred time,” time to put the rest of life
Even three minutes will make a difference. Set a minimum effort and stick with it.
on hold while restoring a sense of well-
If you are doing yoga, it can be five Surya Namaskaras (sun salutations). If you are
being and groundedness. Even a few
doing meditation, prayer, or breath work, set a time and then set a timer. Com-
minutes will leave us ready to return to
mit to doing that minimum amount, and if you can do more, great, but do your
our day, energized and restored.
minimum, every day.
Health Benefits. Both yoga and medi-
I Can’t Concentrate. Practice is just that – practice. It’s not called “perfection.”
tation are increasingly being linked to
One of its gifts is the opportunity to kindly, without judgment or recrimination,
numerous health benefits, including
bring yourself back, as many times as you need, to your intent. Everyone’s mind
lower stress hormones, reducing heart
wanders; every situation has distractions. Your intent is to let all of that go, to
disease, lower blood pressure, lower
whatever extent you can, for the time that you allot. Sometimes that means letting
cholesterol, improved insulin sensitivity
it go hundreds of times, but that’s okay. Even after years of practice, there are days
and slowing the effects of aging.
when it flows easily, and days when you struggle to remain focused. Each time
you notice your mind has wandered, be grateful for having noticed and bring
Developing Self-Esteem. When we
yourself back again.
follow through with our commitments,
we feel better about ourselves. We
I am Resisting. Resistance comes in many forms: I’m too busy, too tired, too
learn, deeply, that we are trustworthy.
cranky, too stressed, too sick, too....whatever. Trust that it will be beneficial to
This helps us in all of our relationships:
practice, no matter what you are feeling about it ahead of time. Just as there will
with ourselves, with other people, with
always be distractions, there will always be an excuse. Develop a sense of humor
food and exercise and all the issues
about our infinite creativity in coming up with excuses, and don’t buy into yours,
with which we frequently struggle.
no matter what form it takes today. Acknowledge it, and then practice anyhow.
Learning to “show up” daily for prac-
tice, even if it’s only a few minutes a
the benefits of daily Practice
day, sets an important blueprint for
Will Power. Strength of mind is like strength of body. It takes discipline, persever-
being able to show up for ourselves in
ance and repetition to develop. Researchers believe that will power gets stronger
every area of our lives.
the more we exercise it. By developing it with small tasks and commitments, we
strengthen ourselves for larger challenges.
Fran Sussman’s personal practices are
Lovingkindness Meditation and Ashtan-
Self-Knowledge and Awareness. If we are doing the same practice every day,
ga Yoga. She has been a holistic health
the only element that changes is...ourselves. Regular practice holds a mirror up
practitioner based in Orange County,
for us to see our strengths and weaknesses, and the way our sense of self and life
NY, since 1993. Visit FranSussman.com
changes day to day.
or call 496-0385.
Strength of mind is like strength of body.
It takes discipline, perseverance and repetition to develop.
natural awakenings March 2010
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