Kriya Yoga: 3 Steps to Achieving Your Goals

“If you want to remain calm and peaceful as you go through life, you have to have high intention and low attachment. You do everything you can to create your desired outcomes, and then you let it go. Sometimes you don’t get the intended result by the date that you want. That is life. You just keep moving in the direction of your goal until you get there. Sometimes the universe has other plans, and often they are better than the ones you had in mind.” – Jack Canfield.

We all have dreams, visions, goals, and desires. We’re all worthy of happiness, love, and success. Yet, what stops many of us from living our fullest and most fulfilling lives is often some form of fear. And so often our fear of something is much more powerful than the thing itself.

Let me introduce you to a profound and practical process from the yoga tradition, called Kriya Yoga. This has nothing to do with poses. This three-part method gives us the tools to take ownership of our lives and our dreams. These three steps are meant to be practiced simultaneously and consistently. They will then enable us to move through fear, live with high intention, low attachment, and take new actions, which will produce unique outcomes.

Step 1: Have a High Intention

Get clear on your intention, purpose, and vision for your life. The power of clarity immediately helps us eliminate distractions, which always include fear and old stories. In this step, we are placing our mind, emotions, and choices on what we want, and more importantly, on who we are becoming on the inside, first. In this step, we are taking new and refined actions that move us toward our vision. Having a high intention links us with living a more meaningful life and to our higher Self. Not every action will result in the fruit we want, but if we are practicing all three of these steps, we will learn and grow from every decision we make.

Action:

1. Sit quietly and ask, “what do I really want?” Get clear on what you want. If this feels overwhelming, start by asking, “what do I want today?” Clarify what makes you happy and what gives your life meaning.
2. Then, take one new action each day that moves you toward that. Build up to five new actions each day. Get in the habit of asking yourself, “Is the choice I am about to make aligned with the life I want to create?”

Step 2: Look Within, Where the Truth Lies

We won’t be for everyone in this world. Not everyone will like us. But the most important question is: do we love who we are? Approval addiction is so toxic. It’s an addiction born out of fear. And like most fears, the fear of not being liked is worse than the reality of it. By being who we truly are and living our lives honestly, we will find the right people, and they will find us. Write your own story. Be the hero in the book of your life.

Action: 

Look within daily and learn to listen to that quiet, all-knowing inner voice. Create daily habits that support you connecting with your truth and your inner guidance system. Love yourself enough to look within before you look out. Make yourself your first priority each day.

Step 3: Have Low Attachment

Attachment, through the lens of yoga, is one of the root causes of human suffering, born out of fear.  When we cling to our view of the way things “should” be or how they “should” happen, we often give up and develop a felt sense of unworthiness. We compare our experience with other people’s outcomes.

But this is our life, our vision, and our results. It’s important to remember that we’ll spend more time on the journey than at the destination. So when we hold a high intention but simultaneously have low attachment to it (how it must look and happen), the ride is much more fulfilling! When we are living with an open mind and a willingness to learn and grow from every experience, we are continually gaining lessons and wisdom just because we are on the journey! So expect the best, be open to more, and be willing to let go of how it must look!

Action:

Surrender the struggle. There are a lot of factors in life you won’t be able to manage or control. But you can always grow, learn, and stay willing to take a new action, make a new choice, and connect to your inner truth.

I love the serenity prayer, “God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.” Say this prayer daily. Write it down and carry it with you.

Note the word “wisdom” in the prayer—wisdom to know the difference. Viveka is a key teaching in yoga. It means discernment. Through experience, you will gain wisdom. You’ll master the ability to discern or choose your reality and live with great meaning, joy, and fulfillment.

Reprinted with permission from Joy Stone Coaching.com

Joy Stone is an experienced Mindset and Spiritual Life Coach, Speaker, and Educator. Joy’s special style of coaching uniquely blends essential & life-empowering teachings from eastern and western psychology & philosophy. She is the founder of Soul Subscription, An Online Soul-Centered Group Coaching Experience. Her emphasis is on teaching people the empowering practice of self-care and personal responsibly.

She received her positive psychology education under Harvard Professor, Tal Ben-Shahar, Wholebeing Institute, and her yoga teaching certification under the Anusara style — a therapeutic application of yoga psychology and practice.