Today I'd like to share with you a post I wrote for my "home base" of yoga, on the six steps of applying the practice of meditation to my work, and especially my career as a writer. <<click image to read more>>
Surviving Trade Fairs – 10 Tips for Going The Distance
Spring has sprung and for many it means packing the carry-on for the marathon that is multi-day trade fairs. Between the jetlag, relentless meetings, tastings, and long hospitality nights, your body can take the brunt. <<click image to read more>>
How to Make Space for Meditation
Making Space is a tiny little book, written by Thich Nhat Hanh.
It somehow manages to be both full-to-the-brim powerful and gently encouraging, all at the same time.
Its message is about creating a home meditation practice, and I'd like to share five highlights with you here today. <<click image to read more>>
Don’t Just Do Something – Stand There a Minute!
Rise and shine!
Every morning we step out of bed ready for the new day and the opportunities ahead, but how do we approach each and every moment from a grounded, solid, centered place so we can be more mindful in our daily lives? <<click on the image to read more>>
30 Seconds is All It Takes
How many of you have heard of Kevin Zraly's 30-second practice?
I have no idea if Kevin himself would call it a "practice," but it feels like a practice and it's a neat thing to know about in any case. <<click the image to read more>>
The Eight Limbs – Yoga Beyond the Physical Poses
Kumbhakasana, dhanurasana, malasana and the crowd favorite, shavasana.
If you’ve ever taken a yoga class, you have likely heard these poses or positions called by teachers as you have moved your body and breath through class. But yoga goes so far beyond the physical practice represented in much of mainstream America. <<click image to read more>>
Drink While You Pour
Drink while you pour.
It’s another of my favorite takeaways from my teacher, at home in Atlanta, that also happens to resonate at the personal level for those of us in the wine business. <<click the image to read more>>
Rest On The Road - 3 Poses to Sleep and Wake Up while Traveling
I find that keeping the body mobile when traveling for work one of the toughest parts. Constant flights, taxis, hunching over laptops and the onslaught of emails and phone calls can leave you physically exhausted. <<click image for more>>
The Practice of Gratitude
Earlier this week I spoke to a women's networking group, here in Atlanta, about how women succeed in male-dominated industries, using my experience as an entrepreneur in both wine and technology as the basis for the conversation. <<click image to read more>>
When We Cling to “Certainty”
In modern society and an uncertain world, we tend to cling to what we know. Our materials possessions, homes, cars, our relationships with lovers, family, colleagues and friends, carefully curating our lives to be exactly as we want or think it should be. But in yoga we learn impermanence; not to grasp, to stay present and open so we can experience the present moment with open eyes and ears. Easier said than done in our busy lives! <<click image to read more>>
3 Reasons to Meditate
Earlier this week I introduced you to the whirling dervishes.
That's how I think about the flurry of thoughts racing through my mind every time -- every single time -- that I sit down to meditate. There's no escaping them, so I suggest that we make friends with them instead. << click on the image to read more>>
Why We Retreat - Stepping Back to Move Forward
By nature, the human self is constantly in a state of doing, creating, managing, and evolving. But we must also make space for our spiritual selves, where we can silence the mind’s busyness, find space to return to our true selves, and connect back to what our spirit and soul truly craves. <<click image to read more>>
Can't Slow Down Your Thoughts? It's Normal!
The most common objection I hear to meditating is that "I don't have enough time," something we looked at on Day Four in this series.
The second most common objection is, "I can't slow my thoughts down," and that's what I'd like to explore today. <<click image to read more>>
Are you REALLY Breathing?
Now you’re here, take a deep breath, and e-x-h-a-l-e…
See!
Don’t you feel better?
<<click image to read more>>
Wake Up and Sit
When?
When, exactly, does anyone have time to meditate?
That's probably the biggest question, and the biggest obstacle, that I hear expressed when it comes to meditating. Or not meditating, as the case may be. <<click image to read more>>
Living and Drinking Alone - 3 Tips To Help Avoid Excess
I’ve lived alone for more than 15 years and it’s often a challenge to manage how much I drink when I open a bottle of wine. You know that feeling, when you come home from a long day and think, “just a glass”, then before you know it, the bottle is staring back at you near empty and you wonder how the heck you got there... (click the image to read more)
Change Your Breath. Change Your Life.
"If you can change your breath, you can change your life."
That's one of the most essential learnings I've taken to heart from my teacher, at home in Atlanta, and it was on my mind as I prepared my notes for our WOTVS session. Breathwork was the focus of Beck's side of the presentation, and it's the foundation of... well, everything.
Day 1: The Article That Started It All
Coming away from the 2017 Women of the Vine & Spirits Global Summit, I was inspired that we could openly discuss the challenges we face as women, around gender equality, glass ceilings, and career negotiation, but also frustrated that no-one talked about alcohol itself. What it does, how we relate to it, and how we can navigate an industry intrinsically soaked in it. So I wrote an opinion piece for Meininger’s International Wine Business in the hopes to start a conversation. <<click image to read more>>
Welcome
We're glad you're here.
Whether you joined us in person at this year's WOTVS symposium -- one week ago -- or you've found us in another way, thank you for being here.
Let's keep practicing, together.
Every day for the next 30 days we'll send you a note, highlighting a breathwork practice or meditation focus or another wellness tip to deepen our mindfulness practice as we navigate this shared and challenging world of wine.
We hope it helps. Please also let us know what you think would be useful. We're listening.
Namaste,
Rebecca and Cathy