3months Agile Consulting Blog

Postures are probably the most well-known aspect of yoga. But there is much more to the postures than meets the eye - it is more than making a shape in space. It is what’s going inside this shape that is important. The foundation of this is the structural equilibrium established by subtle muscular adjustments. It is alignment that gives posture the grace, stability and ease that characterize Asana.

Alignment gives stability

In your organization Asana for once translates into alignment within your business - getting buy-in from the different parts of your business. Establishing a focus and common goals is a first step. In yoga the basic purpose of alignment is to harmonize the body (or in this case the organization) by harmonizing opposing lines of force (conflicting interests in your organization). It teaches us that through consistent repetition, tension is eventually eased and these lines of forces establish deeper and deeper structural harmony and integrity. However, to attempt these idealized notions of perfection (ideal processes and behaviors) on the specific realities of distorted body structures (current conflicting interests) is counterproductive: It not only more deeply entrenches habitual tension but also most likely create new ones. If we work with and from our actual limitations we will find ourselves approaching so-called perfection effortlessly and inevitably. So work with what you have and consider the current state of your organization! Achieve alignment through constant repetition and reinforcement of messages around alignment.

Another aspect of alignment lies in the subtle fine-tuning of the methodology and techniques of your choice. In yoga every fine adjustment can change your body structure. Rotate your arms outwards in Adho Mukha Svanasana (downward facing dog pose) and it will feel very differently - more effortless - even though the change is barely noticeable to an observer. Sandy recently told me a story about one of her clients who was very reluctant to prioritize the backlog. Only after several extensive discussions she managed to get to the root of her client’s issue. In their understanding prioritization was associated with automatically giving up on low-priority items (maybe past experiences?). When calling the same exercise Ranking the client was perfectly happy to do that and could see the benefits. A grand example of Agile Asana :)!

The Agile Yoga

1. The Agile Yoga
2. The Agile Drushti
3. Intermezzo - The art of retrospectives
4. The Agile Asana
5. The Agile Vinyasa (coming soon)
6. The Agile Bandhas (coming soon)
7. The Agile Pranayama (coming soon)

This entry was posted on Monday, October 1st, 2007 at 11:10 am and is filed under agile. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.