I remember when I was interning at a top international law firm four years ago, one of the partners told me that if he did not give advice for one day, then he would go mad. He was a natural born lawyer; he was just so passionate about giving advice to his clients and certainly excelled at his job.
Strangely, I did not feel that way. I felt suffocated sitting in front of a desk the whole day and always staring at the windows looking into the sky, daydreaming about my next adventure, where I should go next…or dropping down all my crazy ideas -new ventures, writing et cetera when I should be spending time researching on a case or some legislations I did not care about, or looking at the clock and see when I can get off work so I can do some yoga.
I was physically there, but my mind was always thousands of miles away. That was when I realised I had to make a change and get out of there ASAP.
I do, however, feel strongly that if I do not practise or teach yoga almost every day, or not writing a poem or two now and then or not travelling enough, then I would go mad! For the law firm partner, being a lawyer and giving advice is what makes him tick. For me, it is offering yoga, meditation, writing and travelling, the balance of all these things!
I believe it is paramount to discover what makes you tick as a human being. If you want to live a happy life in this short physical existence, then you have got to do what makes you feel alive(although we are all spiritual beings living a human existence, unfortunately, our human existence is being trapped into a short physical lifespan).
Once you know what makes you tick (trust me, deep down we all know what we love to do), then it is also equally important to take actions, to be courageous and to always follow your soul’s calling, whatever it might be.
A student came to my yoga class last week and told me she really wanted to leave her corporate job she hates and becoming a yoga teacher, but she was worried about not meeting ends meet. My advice is that do not worry and go for it! If yoga teachers cannot meet ends meet, then you will not see so many of them out there!
Yes, it may be a bit challenging at the beginning when you just start up (like anything really). However, if you are willing to work hard and be relatively creative, then you can definitely manifest money as well as doing what you love. For instance, you do not just have to teach at studios, you can teach a corporate class, doing outdoor donation classes (believe it or not, people are so generous and often I get more money from donation than teaching at a studio), doing workshops and retreats et cetera. Also, you can always have something on the side given the flexibility of the working hours!
Teaching yoga probably will not make you a millionaire, but meeting ends meet is easy, depending on what lifestyle you want (not rich and miserable I hope)! However, saying that, I do know quite a lot of experienced and creative yogis and healers travelling the world for workshops and retreats and manifesting a handsome amount of money! Of course, it takes some time, energy and creativity to build up the experience to get to that level, so it is always better to start early, start now!
‘The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.’
-Chinese proverb
It all comes down to our belief system. If you believe you can do it, then you are right. If you believe you cannot do it, you are also right. So make sure you set your belief system right and overcoming your limiting beliefs.
Guess what, the worst case scenario is just going back to the corporate job you dislike! So switching career from a corporate environment to a job I love almost seems like a zero risk business for me! But of course, I work hard to make sure I do not have to go back to a corporate job, EVER, again! Working at an office is just not for me, period.
I love teaching yoga and offering healing so much that I could even do it for free. For me, it is not about the money. Every day I look forward to going for work and feeling cheerful and happy. It really does not seem like a job to me. Although it sounds like I am offering something, honestly I think I get much more out of it. Teaching yoga makes my soul feel happy, fulfilled and satisfied (and so is writing, sharing and travelling). What is more important than happiness?
Always do what makes your soul happy! Do what makes your soul sings!
‘Let yourself be silently drawn by the strange pull of what you really love. It will not lead you astray.’
-Rumi
Originally published at medium.com