How to discover your next right thing

I am an avid podcast listener and among my must listens is We Can Do Hard Things with Glennon Doyle.  The twice weekly podcast makes me think, engage, and act.  Glennon closes each week with a task – the next right thing.

I’m taking hold of The Next Right Thing as our July mantra in the Be You Yoga Hub. Yoga and movement practices create space to consider the next right thing. 

We are on shaky ground (and have been for a while).  The divide within the hearts and minds of our world, our nation, our state, our community, our household, and even within ourselves is often vast.  June’s headlines alone were enough to make anyone want to hide under the covers.

There were days over the past month that I really struggled to find the light.  I felt enveloped in darkness.  In that period, I chatted with a friend who said darkness is their best teacher.  Two days later I heard a spiritual leader say there is work to be considered and derived in the darkness.  The next day I came across a heart wrenchingly beautiful dance performance that was inspired by darkness.  All these incidents were reminders that the next right thing is within grasp, even in the darkness.

And yet…

And so…

I implore you to do the next right thing.  Here’s a few suggestions for how to do that:

  • Set aside 5 minutes each day for contemplation.  I do this first thing in the morning, but it’s your choice.  Try some of the suggestions below and then land on a routine that works for you and stick with:

    • Meditate

    • Journal

    • Deep breathing

    • Read a spiritual verse

    • Take a walk around the block

  • Move your body – especially when you feel stuck.  Make yourself a promise to get up and move for 10 minutes prior to making any grand pronouncement or change.  The darkness is tricky.  Let the energies shift as you step towards your next right thing.  Here’s some movement suggestions:

    • Play a Be You Yoga Hub on demand class.  Commit to the first 10 minutes.

    • Make your contemplation walk (or jog) 10+ minutes.  Two things at once!

    • Fire up the core.  Try each exercise below for 30 seconds each.  Repeat the circuit 2-4 times top to bottom.

      • plank hold

      • superhero (locust on belly)

      • bridge pulse

      • bicycle crunches

      • situps

  • Take a media inventory and set limits for yourself.  Are you spending too much time on social media, cable news talk, reddit, bravo, etc? 

    • Take a media cleanse.  Stay off all media for a designated time 24, 48, 72 hours or more.  Notice what you missed (or not).  That’ll help you decide next steps:

    • Use the unfollow button liberally

    • Set your smart phone to impose daily limits on certain apps (or groups).

I go back to these three steps each time I find myself stuck.  For me it takes the movement first and then I tackle contemplation and media inventory.

I’m quite sensitive and empathetic – qualities you want in your yoga teacher - but often not the best for our hard charging world.  So as the latest breaking news slams me I listen (often with tears on my face) until I have most of the details. 

And then I pause, usually for 1-2 days as I institute contemplation, movement, and media cleansing.  Then I’m ready for the next right thing.

My next right thing is to keep writing down my stories.  To keep teaching yoga classes that move and inspire.  To do at least one hard and one easy thing every single day.  To make and support art.  To be a mother that shows her children the pain and the joy in our world.

Take a few days.  Go through the simple steps above and check back in.  What is your next right thing?

Betsy Poosright thing, yoga, inspiration, next right thing