Words have always been really important to me. In high school I was such a nerd that I carried around in the front pouch of my backpack (which weighed nearly as much as I did because I insisted upon having all of my textbooks with me at all times) a pocket-sized electronic dictionary. I used it on a daily basis and sincerely could not understand why I got made fun of for doing so because I thought it was the coolest, most useful invention ever!
I still frequently look up the meanings of words that are rattling around in my head so as to really understand their meaning. The only difference is that now I do so on my upgraded, way cooler, socially acceptable pocket-sized electronic dictionary, also know as an iPhone.
I’ve been thinking about the word, confidence lately. So, here’s it’s definition:
con·fi·dence/ˈkänfədəns/nounfull trust; belief in the powers, trustworthiness, or reliability of a person or thing
I’ve read this definition several times and find myself wondering how in the world we can expect to have an ounce of true self-confidence if we are misaligned or disconnected from ourselves?
In order to put full trust in yourself, you’ve got to know yourself inside and out. In order to have belief in your powers, you ought to be clear about what the heck your powers are. In order to trust yourself, you need to have a clear channel of honest communication. And in order to consider yourself reliable, that channel must be well-traveled, which is to say you’ve got to have an excellent track record of consistently showing up for yourself. I think that before we can experience authentic and lasting self-confidence we’ve got to check these boxes. I believe doing so promises a peace and a knowing that supplies all the confidence we’ll ever need.
I find that yoga helps. Yoga is not about achieving; it is about observing and information gathering, experimenting and learning. We just so happen to be doing so through these physical poses which are designed to help us access various parts of ourselves. In our yoga asana practice, we can do ourselves a favor and shift the focus from, “Am I getting this pose right?” or “Will I fall out of it?” because to be quite honest, that thinking is kind of boring and a dead end that doesn’t give us much to work with. Instead we can notice what happens in our body and in our mind when we do experience a moment of strength and balance and when we don’t and fall over. There is so much more interesting, useful, and rich information to gather and work with there.
Please keep in mind, too, that sometimes the alignment and knowing comes through mindful movement, sometimes through stillness, and sometimes through a combination of the two. Experiment with both. And remember that you already have enough of everything you need within you, including confidence.
Krystal Barschig 