Feedback always seemed necessary.

It was ingrained that seeking outside opinions and criticism was the only way to improve. As a new teacher and as a mentor to others, feedback used to be the way.

I’ve been bopping into new communities this season. It can be tricky to sense how things have landed with others. There is plenty of admiration and gratitude for the tools I offer. People confirm that they’ve been brought back into their hearts. But in the spirit of a toxic feedback culture still quietly alive in me - these sentiments of nourished hearts isn’t enough.

I asked a wise sweet friend for a dissection of recent workshops I shared. I asked for tough love. Because to me, feedback and betterment is only about looking at what’s wrong. Feedback is identifying the problems. This is the ‘old’ yoga world in which I was raised.

She looked directly into my soul (lol) and asked “Well how do YOU feel?”.

That’s it. She fed it right back to me. And I felt steady. Confident. Caring. Open. The best feedback is already within. The truest. The wisest. It’s a long exhale.

I open my eyes and my heart a bit bigger and a bit brighter. Another day. Another breath. Mastering the art of guiding others back home to their hearts. Still unlearning how some forms of feedback take me away from my own. My home. My heart.

This heart. Supported by many. I am already enough. Enough already. Steady enough already. Caring enough already. She gives me this feedback when I listen. The feedback I seek is here already.