When I decided to create Honor Yoga, I knew that the most important aspect of this new business was that I build it based on the values of yoga. Of course, as in any business, making money and being successful would be one pillar of the work we did, but one of the other pillars would revolve around People: Lifting them up and helping them reach their goals.
I feel very strongly about this, in part because of the way I translate the word “yoga.” You may know that Sanskrit, from which the word “yoga” comes, can be translated in different ways, such as “yoke” or “union. However, the Bhagavad Gita says that “yoga is union, love, the sources of all things…” In this meaning, yoga is more of a feeling and spirit that we all share.
To me, and to others who write and study and teach, “yoga” translates to “oneness.” The word “oneness” allows us to acknowledge that we are all united in spirit. What we do affects others and what others do affects us. Instead of being alone, we are together.
A lot of people want to start a business because they want to work for themselves. While that is something I applaud, it is important to know that working for yourself doesn’t mean that you work by yourself. And, even if one of your goals is to employ a lot of people, you will be more successful as a boss and as leader if you help your team become leaders themselves.
Supporting others in their dreams to become owners and leaders is one reason I like the franchise business. It seems very yogic to me, as the franchise creates a sense of union among all the studio owners and myself; we are partners rather than part of a hierarchy. We are part of the Oneness.
