Why Yoga, Flowers, and Flow are Essential to Your Business

As both a yoga teacher and a strategic support expert, there is a shocking amount of overlap in the lessons I teach to my students and the advice and services I offer my clients.

And applying these yoga philosophies and practices to the support and strategy work I do with my clients, is one of my favorite things to do.

The term flow is pretty widely used in the yoga world. And this concept is one of my guiding principles in the work I do helping conscious entrepreneurs and side hustlers with strategy, systems and support.

What is flow?

Like many words, flow can have a number of different meanings. One of my favorite definitions comes from the psychologist, professor and author, Mihaly Csikszentmiyahli.

He describes flow as “being completely involved in an activity for its own sake. The ego falls away. Time flies. Every action, movement, and thought follows inevitably from the previous one, like playing jazz. Your whole being is involved, and you're using your skills to the utmost.”

Just as a yogi finds flow from pose to pose, finding flow in your business will ease your operations, grow your sales, and expand your reach. Your business will blossom with the same grace as a tulip on a spring morning.

How do I find flow in my business?

Honestly, it doesn't have to be that hard, but it does take some grunt work. When all the  pieces of your business are aligned and your foundation is solid, then – and only then – will you truly be able to experience a flow state in your business.

Recently, I mentioned to my early-bird yoga students this: you simply cannot bloom unless you are first grounded.

A flower’s petals are beautiful and awe-inspiring, especially considering its humble beginnings as a tiny seed. Before the flower blossoms, though, that seed first has to be fed, nurtured and roots established.

Then it slowly starts to grow and peek through the dirt. Only after growing tall and sprouting a few leaves is the flower ready to burst through and show its beauty to the world.

Believe it or not, your business is no different than this flower. No matter what you want to grow – be it a yoga practice or your business – you must first be grounded before you can truly soar.

What does being grounded really mean?

Simply put, being grounded means having a solid foundation. You can’t learn to do a handstand if you can’t hold a high plank. Likewise, it’s nearly impossible to sustain consistent sales without good systems in place.

It might seem a little counter-intuitive but often times stepping back for a bit is the key to growth. When you take some time to ground and do a little business self-care you're able to get where you want to go faster than if you try to power through without a strong foundation.

Here are 4 practices to strengthen your foundation so you can find your flow:

• Dive into your systems.

  Dig into what’s working, what’s not, and perhaps what’s non-existent! Taking a hard look at what’s “under the hood” will be a much more effective strategy than ignoring it and applying band-aid after band-aid. Chances are, there’s an easier, more efficient way to get your systems to work for you. And systems are the key to flow.

• Inspect your sales flow.

  Identify the path you want to take your potential clients on. You can repeat this process for as many products or programs or services as you wish, but start with one in mind. What do you want your lead to do once they give you their email address? Grab some paper and draw it out. Then set up some funnels, and watch the magic happen.

• Enlist support.

  In order for you to feel grounded, like you have a solid business foundation, you’re likely going to need some help. Just like flowers need some water, sunshine and nutrients to thrive and grow, you will need some assistance, too. If you really want to blossom, delegate and outsource it.

• Find flow in your body. 

  Stepping away from your business altogether for a bit can provide insane clarity. When you’re too deep into the day-to-day trying to find a solution, you can develop tunnel vision. Get outside, find some movement or roll out your mat. Finding physical flow in your body helps open up your business mind to new possibilities and perspectives you may not have otherwise considered.

If you're running around feeling a bit unsettled about your body, your business, your life, stop, take a moment to hit the pause button and allow yourself to reset and ground. Once your foundation is there, you will indeed bloom brightly, just like a new tulip in spring.

I'd love to know: Where do you have flow in your business? Where do you need to do a little grounding first?

Brittany is the CEO of Foundation & Flow where she provides CEO Sidekick Services to conscious entrepreneurs and side-hustlers in the form of business support, strategy and execution. She specializes in sales funnels, Infusionsoft, and figuring out how to make your big idea a reality. Her passion is helping others find flow in their business, body and life. You can find her at foundationandflow.com and yogalifespark.com.