#PracticeWhatYouTeach: Start with Why..

I got to take a little Pilates road trip this weekend and it was so great!! There is nothing better than getting to connect with other Pilates teachers, getting to visit a different Pilates studio and of course getting to be a student and get some learning time in!  I was going to write about all of my takeaways from the weekend, but honestly I have so many that I think they might bore you unless you’re a Pilates, movement geek like me! So instead I decided to share just my favorite takeaway in a little more detail!

It all started with the workshop presenter Chantill asking the group to take a few moments to write down 2 or 3 things you want your clients to walk away from their session with.  And then we shared.  It was pretty inspiring to listen to a room full of about 20 teachers share their vision for what they wanted their clients to walk away with.  As you can probably imagine, the answers were all unique to each person and as each person spoke you could feel the passion in their description.  Just a few of the things mentioned were:

• Having a positive movement experience
• Learning to trust their body and themselves
• Better body awareness and posture
• Less pain and more ease of movement
• Using movement to improve their quality of life

As we all finished, Chantill made an observation:  Nobody mentioned they wanted their client to properly do Pilates, or even mentioned Pilates…  hmmmm…. At the end of the day everyone’s goals had to do with improving the lives of their clients and how their clients felt after their session.  Of course Pilates is a tool that we all use to do that but when we looked at everyone’s why of teaching Pilates- it was much bigger than Pilates.

Chantill’s workshop was titled Pilates Rules and Why to Break Them.  She needed to start the session getting teachers comfortable about knowing what their goals were in teaching and giving them a good reason to be willing and open to question how they they teach.  Mission accomplished with this exercise!

As a teacher this exercise was a powerful reminder of why I do what I do and the importance of keeping that why front and center when I’m teaching as well as in other aspects in my life.  Whether I’m practicing Pilates, being a mom or running my business this concept of remembering my why and what I want to accomplish is pretty important.    It reminded me that there are lots of different ways to accomplish any one thing and one of the best things you can do is be open to the way that works the best on any given day for any given situation.

Want to learn more about Chantill and all of her amazing learning opportunities for Pilates teachers?  Check her out here!!   Like the Skillful Teaching Facebook page here!

And if you are in the Chicago area or visiting check out the beautiful Village Pilates Studio in Oak Park.  It’s a beautiful studio and everyone was super friendly and nice!!