Veterans Yoga Project is on a mission to support recovery and resilience among our veterans, families, and our communities. Daniel Libby, Ph.D., R.Y.T., founder and executive director of the Veterans Yoga Project says, the mission, in his case, takes precedent over the entity. Why does he say this?

How do you answer the question: “What is more important: Your entity or its mission?” Does it make a difference whether the entity is a for-profit business or non-profit organization? Tune in to our conversation to discover why revisiting your mission and its connection with your entity can make a difference in how you grow your business.

How often do we go after our vision and then are surprised with all it entails? You can hear Daniel’s surprise as he describes founding the Veterans Yoga Project and how he acquired new leadership skills. 

Daniel’s original vision is the only thing that has stayed the same. The results of a survey of 170 treatment centers identified greater needs they now address at the Veterans Yoga Project. Identifying gaps in the marketplace is where innovation is sparked and where entrepreneurial leadership begins. How has the landscape changed in providing yoga to veterans? How does Daniel’s journey mimic or differ from your journey with your business? How are you adapting and adjusting to a changing landscape as you fill gaps in the marketplace?

The government recently started implementing yoga offerings for veterans as a whole health initiative. Yeh! Daniel’s vision is catching on. This has created another opportunity for serving veterans which will shift where funding is invested. Daniel has ideas for adjusting their business model to support veterans through all stages of recovery. The services they provide have expanded and so have the challenges in running the entity. Which brings us full circle with our first podcast conversation. The opposite of leadership is ‘burnout.’ Yoga strategies for self-regulation ‘in the moment’ is part of self-mastery (the power to control one’s actions, impulses, or emotions). Consciously processing stress as you experience it ‘in the moment’ is a condition you create that leads to success.

Daniel says, “If you haven’t served in the military, Veterans Yoga Project is an opportunity for you to give to those who have served.” Consider how you can get involved. Daniel has embraced the phrase, “slow is smooth, smooth is fast.”

[shadowbox] More about mindfulness and yoga. Jon Kabat-Zinn, in Wherever You Go There You Are, defines mindfulness “as an ancient Buddhist practice which has profound relevance for our present-day lives. This relevance has nothing to do with Buddhism per se or with becoming a Buddhist, but it has everything to do with waking up and living in harmony with oneself and with the world. It has to do with examining who we are, with questioning our view of the world and our place in it, and with cultivating some appreciation for the fullness of each moment we are alive.” (1994, p.3)

B.K.S. Iyengar, the author of Light on Yoga (1976) which is considered the Bible of Modern Yoga, writes, “Yoga is a timeless pragmatic science evolved over thousands of years dealing with the physical, moral, mental and spiritual well-being of man as a whole.” The qualities demanded from an aspirant are discipline, faith, tenacity, and perseverance to practice regularly without interruptions.

The practice of Yoga predates written history; the specific time is unknown. Archeologists have found stone carvings with yoga pose figures in the Indus Valley dating back 5,000 years or more. A common misconception is that Yoga is rooted in Hinduism. Hinduism’s religious structures evolved much later and incorporated various practices of Yoga. Other religions throughout the world have also incorporated practices and ideas related to Yoga. The first book to systematize this practice was the classic treatise the Yoga Sutras (or Aphorisms) of Patanjali dating from 200 BC.

I have integrated yoga in my entrepreneurial leadership and mentoring labs because yoga and mindfulness practices fit with mentoring, one of the oldest forms of human development. Rapid experimentation and financial risk taking is part of the entrepreneurial landscape. We need, as entrepreneurial leaders to be able to recover quickly, remain agile, and make ongoing course corrections as the market shifts.

We need proven practices to calm our mind, tame the external distractions, drama, and financial pressures, and breathe through the emotions by breathing in and out to capture the internal rhythms of our body. Calm our nervous system. Release the stagnant energy that no longer can serve us and breathe in fresh air to revitalize our internal system, replenish our energy, and energize your ability to think clearly and creatively. [/shadowbox]

Mentoring Tips

After listening to our conversation:

• Sit quietly for 3-minutes. Notice the inhale and the exhale of your breath. Close your eyes and seal your lips. Keep coming back to your breath while letting thoughts flow by.
• Check out or pay for a woman veteran to attend the September 21-25, 2018: Rest Restore & Reintegrate Healing Retreat (for women veterans only, who are recovering from PTS(D) and other trauma-related challenges) Healing Retreats
• Check out November 2018 Veterans Gratitude Week
• JOIN a September 2018 WeMentor E.L.M. LAB
• If you haven’t, subscribe to this podcast. Subscribe Here

What is more important your entity or its mission? Episode 137  Veterans Yoga Project