Since I started developing for the web back in 1996, I’ve been witness to one of the biggest time sucks known to man…

…Email, and the steady and ever increasing mountain of crap that somehow finds its way into my inbox (and more recently into my pocket, thanks to the iPhone).

I’ve had one primary email address for over 10 years on my own hosted domain and I use SpamArrest to tone down the noise and frequency, but it’s never enough.

Several years ago, I decided to go Cold Turkey on email. I set up everything important to me via an RSS reader and told everyone I came in contact with NOT to email me.

You wanna know something, it worked! Despite my fears and reservations, the world continued to exist, as sure as the sun will rise tomorrow (even without an email inbox.)

It was refreshing, like a thousand pound weight lifted from my shoulders. And for the handful of people in my life who I actually needed to digitally communicate with in some form of threaded conversation (aka, staff/employees, contractors and clients), I simply set up a Basecamp project where I could check in on the feeds dashboard to keep tabs on any inbound communications.

Sure, from time to time I would occasionally dive into the black whole known as my inbox to click on an email confirmation link, but seriously, for the better part of three years, my life was email free.

Then recently, due to some new projects I’ve been working on with YogaHub, I was required to set up a new email and begin the thing I loathed most, reading and responding to messages. I was able to keep up for a few months, but my old habits of neglect kicked in and that’s when I knew it was time for a better solution.

[enter: Merlin Mann] I caught wind of an email ninja (much in the likeness of Yoda), who claims to have devised a system called “Inbox Zero”. At first I thought it was lunacy! How could one ever truly attain inbox zero? It sounded like a myth, a legend, something whispered between the office halls or etched into the wall of a bathroom stall at Microsoft.

However, after listening to a talk he [Merlin] gave at the Google Plex, I was more than inspired. I felt a new form of excitement for the concepts of taming and tackling my inbox.

So today, I am making a public declaration to take a 90-Day challenge and begin checking my email again.

But first I must delete, purge or archive the 56,513 emails that have built up since February 20th, 2008. So here’s to developing new habits and mastering the art of “Processing” instead of avoiding my inbox.

How do you deal with email? Does it consume your entire work day? Do you have any tips or advice you could share? I’d love to hear your feedback and I’ll check in with a follow-up post to share my lessons and progress.

For those of you who don’t know what MBSR is (and that included me, just a few hours ago), it stands for Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction, which is a program that was developed by Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn in the late seventies, and has since become a bit of a phenomenon.

MBSR is, as the title indicates, a stress-reduction program based on the principles of mindfulness, and it is practiced all over the world with individuals in all kinds of settings. It is a program that is backed up by evidence from clinical trials and other scientific research (for the details on all of this, I suggest you check out the MBSR website on the University of Massachusetts Medical School homepage) and the model for the structure and implementation of the MBSR program is what Edi Pasalis was drawing on in her workshop to demonstrate the possibilities for right livelihood amongst yoga and other wellness professionals.

Basically, what Edi was presenting to us was the possibility, as teachers, for us to start to think about proven ways to generate more income per hour. The success of the MBSR program, she told us, comes down to four basic things:

1. It’s a packaged program. This means it’s standardized. This means it can be taught over and over, in many different scenarios, without the added drag of continual development (like the kind we have to do when we jump from workshop topic to workshop topic in our offerings as teachers).

2. It requires home practice. This was an interesting point, and one I hadn’t heard before – that encouraging students to do home practice as part of what we are teaching, changes and increases in value the relationship of teacher to student. Meaning, if a student’s practice is evolving outside of the classroom, as well as in, we as teachers begin to take on a deeper role in that student’s journey as a practitioner.

3. It is a professional program. Which means it is taught by professional and accredited people. Which means students might take it a bit more seriously. Which means, you guessed it…money in the bank.

4. It is an evidence-based program – it is proven. Do I even need to explain this one? People want to participate in things that have been proven to work. Period.

Okay, great…so, why do we care?

Well, we care (or should care) because this presents a pretty clear model for how to think about what it is we are offering, or not offering, as teachers. At the end of the workshop, Edi had us all do some meditation and journaling about this questions: how is it that we might start to implement parts of this model into our own work? How can we create something which is repeatable? Which encourages home practice? How can we truly become a yoga “professional”? How can we create more legitimacy from outside sources for the work we are doing?

And I’m not going to share my answers to these questions, but I will say I found them to be very thought-provoking. The whole workshop was so clear and focused, and these questions forced me to consider some things I had never considered before. And because of that, I also found some answers, which I never would have discovered had it not been for the clarity and simplicity of the questions.

If you’re a yoga teacher or any kind of wellness professional, I highly recommend checking out Edi’s workshop. She was clear and engaging and the information is really valuable, if for no other reason than to get you thinking about what it is you’re offering, professionally, how it’s working for you and, if it’s NOT working for you, how you might get it to start. (And make a few more dollars in the process…)

Well, alright, enlightenment might be a tall order for a single conference…but a girl can dream, can’t she? Sigh…

However, I’m not writing just to lament the long road to total god-realization…I’m writing because I happen to have an inside track on some of the serious wisdom that is going to be on display in just a few short days, and I wanted to share with you, oh chosen ones, a couple more reasons why you should be very excited for conference-time. So, sit back, take a look, and prepare to get your pre-event buzz on!

2 MORE REASONS TO GET (super) EXCITED FOR CONFERENCE-TIME:

1. Megan McDonough. That’s right, you’ve seen her name all over the YogaHub website. You knew she was one of the producers of the conference, but did you also know that she’s awesome?

She. Is. Awesome.

Megan is going to be giving a workshop during the conference called Living with Ease – and if that title alone doesn’t get you revved up, if the promise of sweeter, deeper, more easeful day-to-day existence isn’t enough to sell you – then what if I told you that Megan is a totally grounded chick with a great belly laugh? Still not enough? How about if I told you that she is going to give a workshop that is truly interactive, and interactive in a way that will require you to use your intelligence and your wit – and maybe, just maybe, to totally surprise yourself with your own insights? Getting a little more curious?

Because I am super fancy and have super fancy press-access to the 2011 Virtual World Yoga Conference, I managed to get a sneak peek into Megan’s workshop. And let me tell you, she has some things to say that are going to make you feel both gooey with comfort (I am allowed to relax!) and also all a-quiver with inspiration (I did some of her exercises…and the ballpoint pen on my desk has never seemed so beautiful). She is a graceful teacher with insights to share that are immediate and applicable to actual life – yes, your actual day-to-day sitting/standing/doing things life. What she has to teach you is about finding ease right here, in the body and life and heart that you are currently living in.

Check out her session…you won’t regret it!

2. Jyotish Novak. Um…how do I…I sort of feel like I should just write OM, over and over again, in an attempt to convey the calm, insightful wonder that is Jyotish Novak.

But instead I will just say this…If you are either: A. meditating already but suspect you might be doing it wrong; B. meditating already (you hope correctly) but could use some inspiration to keep coming back to your seat; C. endlessly attempting (and failing) to keep a regular meditation practice; or D. not a meditator, but feel like you ought to be one…then this workshop is for YOU!

As a member of category “C” (above), I have been to oodles (and I mean oodles) of “how to meditate” classes, workshops and seminars, and while I have found many of them useful, I’ve always left feeling…well, just as confused about meditation as I was going in. Not so with Jyotish Novak.

I mean, seriously, where has this guy been all my life?! The techniques presented in his workshop How to Relax, Concentrate and Interiorize in Meditation are SO clear and still SO open…I learned things from this man in a single hour that are going to revolutionize my meditate-ing life. I have never been presented with such succinct and approachable instruction when it comes to developing and maintaining a meditation practice as I have from Jyotish. So, if you are looking to start or deepen your practice, or if you’re one of us guilty yogis who KNOWS you’re supposed to be meditating but can’t seem to find your groove with sitting still…you have got to check out Jyotish. He will make you excited to get your meditation on!

Check him out at the conference and see if he doesn’t just make you want to say OM, OM, and OM.

However, getting ready for YogaHub’s first Teleseminar Series was not – I repeat – not easy on my mind, body, or spirit. I was rattled for several days. I felt myself going through all sorts of emotions and feeling physically nauseated. And my spirit…well, where on earth was it?

Fear, fear, fear. Of what? Well, it wasn’t just a matter of picking up the telephone and making a call. It was, “Will the conference line have issues?”; “Will the technology we set up work?”; “Am I able to work three computer screens at the same time?”; “Am I going to put my foot in my mouth and stumble all over the place?” Blah, blah, blah.

Okay, I confess that it was also the beginning of my Moon cycle, but still, this was ridiculous! I felt like a teenager getting ready for a first date.

Hmmm, what a minute, let’s consider that perspective. Maybe it wasn’t fear – maybe it was excitement!

Well, this is an “Ah Ha” moment.

Yes, I’ve chosen to call it nervous excitement generated by this next big step forward for YogaHub.

Okay, I feel much better now. Thanks for helping me clear this up.

Tags: fear, excitement, teleseminar, Megan McDonough, conference, live event, calm down, nerves

]]> http://www.yogahub.com/blog/calm-down-nerves/feed/ 0 http://www.yogahub.com/blog/twitter/ http://www.yogahub.com/blog/twitter/#comments Mon, 14 Sep 2009 15:31:44 +0000 Christina Souza Ma http://www.yogahub.com/blog/twitter/ Okay, do you remember one of my previous blogs about social networking?

I couldn’t believe that I didn’t know what to do in MyYogaHub. I didn’t know how to use it even though it was a tool we had built for the community.

I was frazzled!

I was petrified!

I really did have a good laugh and am still laughing about it now. I wanted to turn off YogaHub and run in the other direction when my team told me that I could now begin to communicate directly with the community we built. The only catch was my communication had to be through a tool I had never used.

“AAAAHHHHHH. You mean I have to learn another tool to do this?” No – not just one, but several.

I mentioned that I’d heard about social networking but never participated in it. And now I am being told that it is time. Time to learn it. Time to Do It!

Well, instead of running the other way – because I knew that once I did that, I would not turn back – I took it on!So I’m in My YogaHub now and am also in Twitter.

Come join me in either – or both if you dare – and let’s get to know one another.

I still have to remember to breathe while I’m learning how to navigate each, but I’m taking it one step – or rather one click – at a time.

Tags: social networking, twitter, facebook, my yogahub, blog

]]> http://www.yogahub.com/blog/twitter/feed/ 0 http://www.yogahub.com/blog/social-networking/ http://www.yogahub.com/blog/social-networking/#comments Wed, 19 Aug 2009 15:23:59 +0000 Christina Souza Ma http://www.yogahub.com/blog/social-networking/ I had such a good laugh out loud today as I was perusing through our new upgraded YogaHub Site. This site has been my vision for so many years and we have the most incredible team of individuals striving for its success.

Well, my goodness! Did I ever, ever feel totally embarrassed!

Would you believe that I did not even know how to make friends in MyYogaHub social networking space?!

Where have I been all this time? Focusing on keeping all the other components balanced and flowing, that’s where. Focusing on breathing through tense moments of transitions, cyberspace glitches, and on and so on….

Well let me tell you, I have lots to learn about what I have been thoroughly immersed in. Just the simplest things have slipped my mind.

There is a Buddhist saying, “You are thirsty though you are swimming in water all around you.” Yup – that about sums it up for how I feel at this moment.

Tags: social networking, online community, facebook, twitter, MySpace, MyYogaHub, MYH, buddhist

]]> http://www.yogahub.com/blog/social-networking/feed/ 2 http://www.yogahub.com/blog/taxing-yoga/ http://www.yogahub.com/blog/taxing-yoga/#comments Wed, 12 Nov 2008 14:34:28 +0000 Paloma Chavez http://www.yogahub.com/blog/taxing-yoga/ Do you own a yoga studio? If so, how would you feel if you were told you’d have to start charging a sales tax? Yes, that’s right – the tax man cometh!

Charging their clients a sales tax is the dilemma that yoga studios and teachers in the state of Washington are currently facing. Recently, the Department of Revenue in that state notified the owners of yoga studios that they would have to start charging a sales tax. Why? Because it was decided that yoga is considered a form of exercise and therefore, under the law, it is subject to sales tax.

Just think how you’d feel if that happened in your state!

Owners and teachers of yoga studios in Washington have not taken this unpopular decision lightly and the policy is currently under fierce debate. Some teachers have tried to enlighten officials by explaining that although physical fitness is taught, the focus of yoga is on meditation and the calming of mind and spirit. There is also a discrepancy between yoga classes being taught in fitness centers that tend to concentrate on yoga as a fitness regime and independent yoga studios that focus on meditation and spiritual awareness.

Some yoga studios have already reluctantly begun to implement this new 9% sales tax. However, this has opened another can of worms because the owners and teachers of the studios are concerned that they may be subject to paying back taxes, which could end up being thousands of dollars. To add to the frustration, some studios have already been required to pay back taxes, while other studios have received a tax refund. In order to come to find a common ground resolution to this debate, Washington’s Department of Revenue is planning to meet with local yoga representatives on November 19th.

Let’s hope they find a solution before the idea catches on in other states!

So what would you do if you were suddenly told that you had to charge a sales tax under the law?

You can read the full article here to find out more about this ongoing debate: www.king5.com.

Tags: yoga exercise, yoga studio and tax, sales tax on yoga, yoga in Washington state

]]> http://www.yogahub.com/blog/taxing-yoga/feed/ 2 http://www.yogahub.com/blog/yoga-business-with-township-code/ http://www.yogahub.com/blog/yoga-business-with-township-code/#comments Mon, 03 Nov 2008 15:16:17 +0000 Paloma Chavez http://www.yogahub.com/blog/yoga-business-with-township-code/ Who doesn’t want a local yoga studio in their neighborhood? Easy to get to and close to other daily conveniences, a local studio could also encourage more people to experience the benefits of yoga. But what happens when a yoga studio is not considered an acceptable retail service under the township’s code?

That is exactly what the Township Committee of the Cranford, New Jersey community has been debating over the past few weeks.

Recently, a local yoga teacher expressed interest in opening a studio within an area of local businesses. However, it was discovered that the area was not zoned for this type of business and a change in the township code would be required in order to allow a yoga studio to be set up on a retail site.

In an article published in the Cranford Chronicle, Leslie Murray interviewed Township Attorney Carl Woodward, who elaborated on the situation. “The reality is that stand alone yoga studios would not be permitted, but if they were part of a gymnasium then it would be allowed.” Woodward went on to say, however, that the Township Committee does have the authority to pass an ordinance to amend the code.

Commissioner Michael Plick is in favor of allowing the yoga studio to open its doors, and has suggested that a complete revision of the specific section of the township code would be beneficial to the community in the long term. Mayor Bob Puhak has also pointed out that there have been certain discrepancies between what types of services the code permits and what the township actually allows.

The Township Committee has scheduled a process for the discussion to continue. A first reading of the ordinance has been approved and it will be followed by a public hearing of the proposed amendment, with the final reading of the amendment to take place on November 25th.

To access the full article in the Cranford Chronicle, click on the following website: www.nj.com/cranford.

Tags: local yoga studio, township’s code, Cranford Chronicle, business of yoga

]]> http://www.yogahub.com/blog/yoga-business-with-township-code/feed/ 0 http://www.yogahub.com/blog/reflect-on-the-process/ http://www.yogahub.com/blog/reflect-on-the-process/#comments Wed, 10 Sep 2008 15:05:47 +0000 yoginimegan http://www.yogahub.com/blog/reflect-on-the-process/ It’s easy to take mindless action, to keep moving the wheel forward. However, this tendency for motion serves us best when it is tempered with reflection.

Without the need to take action, can we just notice what is?

I love that you have taken action towards your goal. Let’s take this last day of the 21-day Challenge to reflect on the process…

Pick a quiet spot, take a few deep cleansing breaths and center yourself.

Read these questions out loud and write your answers in your journal.

1. What did you notice about yourself during the challenge?

2. What do you notice about yourself now?

3. What did you do differently these past 21 days?

4. What resistance did you encounter?

5. How did you work with that resistance?

6. How would you like to work with resistance in the future?

7. What are you satisfied with?

8. What are you dissatisfied with?

9. Did you accomplish your goal?

10. What were you hoping to accomplish that you didn’t?

11. How did you care for yourself during the challenge?

12. If there was one thing you learned from the challenge to bring into your everyday business life, what would it be?

13. What do you need now that the challenge is complete?

I hope you have found these past 21 days as challenging and exciting as I have. Thank you for the opportunity to serve in this way. It has been an honor.

In yoga,

Megan
MindfulMarketing.net

Take the Challenge:

• 21-Day Yoga Marketing Challenge (overview)
• Day 20: Actions Add to the Bottom Line
• Day 21: Reflection Time

Tags: Megan McDonough, training the trainer program, yoga business, business marketing consultant, 21-day yoga marketing challenge

]]> http://www.yogahub.com/blog/reflect-on-the-process/feed/ 0 http://www.yogahub.com/blog/return-on-investment/ http://www.yogahub.com/blog/return-on-investment/#comments Tue, 09 Sep 2008 15:16:40 +0000 yoginimegan http://www.yogahub.com/blog/return-on-investment/ Yesterday, you read about inquiry as a means of side-stepping those dastardly “to-do’s” that try and detour you from your main goal. There’s more to say about them…

The magical appearance of additional tasks and divergent paths is not at all unusual as you move towards a goal. I see it in my own work and also with the students in the Training the Trainer course. When yoga teachers are getting ready to expand into the corporate market, a multitude of steps arise, and it’s easy to get confused on what step to take first.Here’s how to filter out the unnecessary and focus on the priority action. It begins with a rather capitalistic outlook: what action will give you the best return on investment (ROI)?

For example, my advice to the Training the Trainer participants is to start working on getting training jobs right away – whether or not the website needs updating, or a new name is needed, or even if confidence is lacking. The sooner they jump in, the faster the payback of the course will be, and the more confidence they will build to accomplish other actions. Momentum builds momentum. To get training jobs, you need to submit proposals. Submitting proposals, therefore, is your number one goal.

Whether it’s a proposal for a community lecture at a public library or a presentation at a local business, you need to focus on it for the largest and fastest return on investment.

Yes, you’ll need an updated website at some point, or new business cards, or even a new name. All those things come with expanding your business. Take first things first, question the obstacles, and remember to pick actions that best serve you, your clients, and your bottom line.

When you have a big project that has a multitude of steps – like expanding a yoga business into the corporate market – keep an ongoing outline on your computer. As items pop up in your mind, add them to the outline in the appropriate place. When you look at the tasks like this, it’s easy to come back to the action you are working on now, as well as see the next action step to take.

As we head towards the finish line on this 21-day Challenge, remember that you can repeat the process again and again!

Take the Challenge:

• 21-Day Yoga Marketing Challenge (overview)
• Day 19: Question Obstacles
• Day 20: Actions Add to the Bottom Line
• Day 21: Reflection Time

Tags: Megan McDonough, training the trainer program, yoga business, business marketing consultant, 21-day yoga marketing challenge

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