Everything is in transition

I’ve been moving through a major life transition, and as I am coming out of the other side I have been reminded of some deep truths::

Nothing is permanent.

It is possible to use a yoga practice to learn to be fully awake

and totally present for the moments of transition in our lives.

Everything is in transition, all the time.

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There are many small moments of transition in the course of a day. Being awake for these moments allows us to fully inhabit our lives. I have a regular daily practice of checking in with my body, mind, emotions, and inner wisdom to guide me through the daily transitions in a skillful and happy way. Paying attention to myself, my habits, and my needs in this way lead to to a bigger, life-size transition just last month. {Missed that story?? Catch up here!}

I am now hard at work to rebuild my private yoga practice in a new city, and I want to take you on this journey with me! I already have six regular private sessions and two regular group classes each week in my new Washington, DC teaching schedule. Next time on the blog {April 7th} I am going to walk you through all the steps I took to connect with each one of those clients!

This teaching schedule is a great start, but it is not enough work to support myself for the long term. I am hoping to have 16 weekly classes and clients by September 1st. I am going to walk you through everything I plan to do over the next few months to rebuild my private practice!

First though, I need to catch you up!!

This past month has been an absolute whirlwind.

The week of February 23rd…I taught my last week of regular classes in NYC.

While I wasn’t saying goodbye FOREVER to my students, I was making a huge shift in the way my day to day life would look and that meant I would no longer be my students’ regular teacher.  My students opened up deeply with gratitude about the way our work had affected their life. It was beautiful and emotional. I shared with my students the deep gratitude I felt for the way they let me into their lives. It was a real act of trust and courage, and the only reason I am the teacher I am is because my students let me teach them. Teaching so many students so consistently for so long gave me the practice I needed to become the teacher I am. I will be forever grateful to my NYC students for that.

I said this same kind of half-goodbye to my best girlfriends, and favorite yoga teachers.  It wasn’t goodbye forever, as I’ll be in NYC often for visits, but it is a massive shift in the way those relationships will look and feel.

It was very emotional for me. I felt sad, I felt really grateful, I felt so excited for the new life I was moving into, and mostly… I was so so tired. Through all this emotional upheaval, I still had to do my job. I still had to teach sessions that were useful and interesting, I still had to show up on time {and get out the door in a timely manner}, and manage the intensity of doing all of this in New York City.

I drove home to DC on Thursday night and collapsed in exhaustion right by my front door. From a heap by my door, I ordered Thai food to be delivered, only to walk into the kitchen 30 minutes later to realize there were plenty of healthy dinner options there, had I only made it all the way in to my house before ordering take out. ;-p

The week of March 2nd…I taught my teacher training {The Science of the Private Lesson™} at my home studio in Washington, DC.

If I had consciously planned this transition a little better I would have scheduled my last week in NYC the week prior, so I could have a few days to recover from the intensity of so many goodbyes. I should have thought more closely about what I would need emotionally and physically to recover from such a wild few months. I did not. I just saw this week open in the calendar, and put something in there. {Over-Schedulers Anonymous anyone??} Ah, but I survived. I so love teaching this training, it is truly my life’s calling, and I had the most fantastic and tiny group of teachers studying with me. I took very sweet, intentional care of myself outside of the training, and gave the participants everything I had. It woke me right up and was fabulous!

The week of March 9th…I escaped with my boyfriend to a quiet retreat in the Outer Banks in North Carolina.

I love the beach in winter. It was so empty and romantic! This was a quiet time for me to reflect on the simplicity I was seeking in the days going forward. After we came home, my parents came to town to help me celebrate my birthday. It was so fun, and busy of course!

The week of March 15th…felt like the first week of the rest of my life.

Now, I am consciously creating a whole new life for myself. I am trying to move into it with intention and awareness, and that feels both exciting and scary. As I said, I already have six regular private sessions and two regular group classes each week in my Washington, DC teaching schedule. I taught them this week, and then sat in front of my computer brainstorming how I would create a new teaching practice for myself. {I also slept and exercised and cooked and did my morning practice without rushing. It was amazing. 🙂 }

Coming up on the blog next month we are going to look at what has and hasn’t worked in finding new private clients so far. I’ll walk you, step by step, through my action plan!

Is there anything in particular you want to hear from me and my journey? Leave a comment and let me know!

14 Responses to “Everything is in transition”

  1. Irene

    as I am in a major life transition as well, I can so relate to what you’re writing. Thanks for the inspiration Francesca and for sharing your ups and downs, your successes and your learnings!

    Reply
    • Francesca Cervero

      Yes, of course Irene! I am more than happy to share my story if it is of service. <3

      Reply
  2. Kelley

    I am very much looking forward to learning how you go about “starting” over…thank you for all you share!

    Reply
    • Francesca Cervero

      Great Kelley! I’m excited to share what I am learning as well… 🙂

      Reply
  3. chandra

    Thank you for your thoughts and inspiration. I have my 9-5 job which is beginning to bore me to tears. I do have two private students but dream of having more. Love to read about how you create more in your life.
    Namaste.

    Reply
  4. Danielle

    Your insight is honest and refreshing. Thank you for sharing this. I myself may be moving in the next year and I am beginning to prepare my students (people suffering a variety of mental illnesses) because I know that they have become very dependent on me, which is frightening. I have nudged them to start a home practice, and sometimes in the group classes I say, “ok, now you have 20 minutes to do anything you want, what your body is asking for, postures, breathing, or savasana..” , really trying to empower them to be able to explore yoga without me.

    Reply
    • Francesca Cervero

      That is so smart of you Danielle! Might you be able to help your students connect with a new teacher? You could have the teacher come observe you teaching to learn more about your style, as well as facilitate a relationship between your students and the new teacher. That is what I did with my clients in NYC and it worked really well! Sending love…

      Reply
  5. Samantha

    Thank you so much for sharing your transition, Francesca! I would love to see how you are networking and asking for referrals. Thanks for all that you do and keep on keepin’ on!

    Reply
    • Francesca Cervero

      Absolutely Samantha! Will do. Thanks so much for being a part of our community here…xo

      Reply
  6. Victoria

    I just LOVE your transparency Francesca and hope to emulate some of your success as I transition from teaching in Glasgow, Scotland to running a new studio in a small town in Central Scotland. Not quite NYC to Washington, DC but similar!

    Reply
  7. Lauren

    Thank you for sharing your journey! I am constantly learning how to better navigate my personal and professional life through your blog. Hope to one day be your official student in a teacher training.

    Reply
    • Francesca Cervero

      That is so wonderful to hear Lauren! I can’t wait to have you as an official student in my teacher training! <3

      Reply

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