“You must assume responsibility for being here. You must make every act count, since you are going to be here for only a short while. Treat every act as if it were your last act on earth.”

~Don Juan to his student Carlos Casteneda.

A dear friend sent me this quote recently, after I left my lululemon athletica ambassadorship.

I left for a lot of the same reasons you’ve already read about in similar blog posts. Put simply, I left because the corporate values, beliefs and practices do not align with my values or belief system. We have a different definition of the word, “integrity.”

This decision, for me, was about listening to my heart.

I’d like to dive into the process that helps any one individual live their truth and make decisions and choices that are best for them.

A lot of times it’s challenging with so many influences or circumstances—we don’t want to hurt someones feelings, we may lose a relationship, maybe our job is at stake or maybe we fear losing popularity, status or promotion in some way. In my experience, the process is the same whether you’re breaking up with your boyfriend/girlfriend, moving, changing studios/jobs, adopting a pet or yes, leaving ambassadorship.

We hear in yoga classes, “connect to your true nature.” What does that mean? What is our “authentic self?”

Call it your truth, call it God, the Divine, your heart, call it your spirit. Call it what you will, it’s that voice inside that we tend to ignore because our heads can be too overactive and noisy and our head can justify anything we do, even when we know in our heart, it’s against who we are.

When we go against our truth, it can feel stressful, icky or just a general sense that something isn’t sitting quite right with us. There may be a pull, or a tug, or a conflicting thought, and we may think about it once in awhile or it may consume our thinking. We may choose to “sit on it” for a bit, as not to make any emotional or rash decisions.

Sooner or later, we get clear. We have a choice to make and then we must act. Usually things feel lighter after that.

Meditation and yoga practice can be effective in this process. Every time we sit down to meditate or we get on our mat, we connect to who we really are. We have an opportunity to gain some clarity.

Our job as yogis, is to be able to distinguish between what is true or real and what isn’t. As this becomes a more prominent practice in our lives, we can make decisions that are conducive to staying truthful to ourselves.

So, this isn’t a call to boycott lululemon, or to start a revolution, and I don’t care what you wear. I do encourage you to follow your heart, often. That looks different to each individual, and it’s not our place to judge.

We are living this one short and precious life. Happiness is an inside job and the decisions we make are important. Choosing to move from a place of love, rather than a place of fear, will only lead us to a more happy and fulfilled life. This is straight-across-the-board stuff that applies to everyone, without exception.

Shanti.

Want 15 free additional reads weekly, just our best?

Get our weekly newsletter.

Assistant Editor: Holly Horne/Editor: Catherine Monkman

Photo: lululemon athletica, Wikimedia