The Pain is Worth It
This summer I took up yoga. Wanting more activity beyond walking, and having tried yoga before, I decided to try a new yoga class.
I loved it. And I hated it. During the first class, I wept almost the whole time, which made me feel foolish with all those lithe, experienced yoga-ettes in the room. More about that in a minute.
Now I'm not a jock, so doing exercise, especially exercise that demands that you s-l-o-w d-o-w-n and notice every subtle thing, is really tough for me. And movement that requires silence is maddening for this very verbal person. But after the third or fourth class, I found my body responding, as if it had truly learned some of the movements and was remembering them. I noticed after each class I was "quietly sore" but when the soreness faded, it seemed to leave behind a new strength. I have a long way to go before I feel really comfortable doing yoga, but I'm actually getting there. The pain has been worth it.
Why the tears? (My teacher tells me this is a very common thing.) Because at first it felt so unnatural. Because I felt like a klutz. Because the teacher was so kind and taught me from the first minute that this is not a competition, and her kindness touched me. Because some yoga poses "open" areas of tension within the body, releasing it with great relief. But it was mostly because I couldn't be an expert the first time I did it.
Just like yoga is tough for someone like me, a job search is tough for many others. Very tough. The rules are different than ever before, for almost every job search. You feel like a klutz, like you'll never "get it", like something far less than an expert.
But think of it like the kind of scale you see on lawyers' logos: on one side, there's the the pain of being without a job or in a job you don't like. On the other side, there's the pain of doing something new, like networking outside your comfort zone.
Which is worse?
If you're like most job candidates, the worse of the two is the pain of being without a job/being in a job you hate. So push yourself into trying something new in your search, because it may very well lead to your next job, thus shortening your search and its attendant agony. So a little temporary pain is worth it.
Oh, and about the yoga: I'm sticking with it and miss it when I go a few days without doing it. I no longer need to feel like an expert at this very new thing: bumbling around is something I've accepted as necessary. That realization alone has taught me much.
I loved it. And I hated it. During the first class, I wept almost the whole time, which made me feel foolish with all those lithe, experienced yoga-ettes in the room. More about that in a minute.
Now I'm not a jock, so doing exercise, especially exercise that demands that you s-l-o-w d-o-w-n and notice every subtle thing, is really tough for me. And movement that requires silence is maddening for this very verbal person. But after the third or fourth class, I found my body responding, as if it had truly learned some of the movements and was remembering them. I noticed after each class I was "quietly sore" but when the soreness faded, it seemed to leave behind a new strength. I have a long way to go before I feel really comfortable doing yoga, but I'm actually getting there. The pain has been worth it.
Why the tears? (My teacher tells me this is a very common thing.) Because at first it felt so unnatural. Because I felt like a klutz. Because the teacher was so kind and taught me from the first minute that this is not a competition, and her kindness touched me. Because some yoga poses "open" areas of tension within the body, releasing it with great relief. But it was mostly because I couldn't be an expert the first time I did it.
Just like yoga is tough for someone like me, a job search is tough for many others. Very tough. The rules are different than ever before, for almost every job search. You feel like a klutz, like you'll never "get it", like something far less than an expert.
But think of it like the kind of scale you see on lawyers' logos: on one side, there's the the pain of being without a job or in a job you don't like. On the other side, there's the pain of doing something new, like networking outside your comfort zone.
Which is worse?
If you're like most job candidates, the worse of the two is the pain of being without a job/being in a job you hate. So push yourself into trying something new in your search, because it may very well lead to your next job, thus shortening your search and its attendant agony. So a little temporary pain is worth it.
Oh, and about the yoga: I'm sticking with it and miss it when I go a few days without doing it. I no longer need to feel like an expert at this very new thing: bumbling around is something I've accepted as necessary. That realization alone has taught me much.
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