If we’ve learned anything over the last year, we’ve seen first hand how, when humans get out of the way, Nature can flourish. Did you notice how, when given the chance to slow down, the Earth began to regenerate and heal? You can do the same.
Ayurveda is the ancient sister science of Yoga. In Sanskrit, Ayurveda means “life knowledge.” Ayurveda teaches us how to connect with the natural world in order to live a happier, healthier life. While most people think about food and digestion when they think about Ayurveda, it can also be a helpful tool for overall wellness — including work/life balance. You can harness the energies of Nature to help you find success in your career and business!
Ayurveda describes three constitutional energies (doshas) present all around us:
Kapha – the Reflective Energy
Pitta – the Active Energy
Vata – the Creative Energy
It is no surprise, then, that each of these doshas can naturally support our professional practices. Here are a few ways these three energies can manifest themselves.
Time of Day
Certain times of day correspond to each of the doshas and can, therefore, support us in different projects and activities.
6am-10am, 6pm-10pm: KAPHA TIME
During Kapha time, the energy is slower and more downward moving. Ayurveda encourages us to wake before Kapha time and then use those early morning hours to start our day slowly and intentionally.
Use this time to do things like follow an easy morning routine. Try things like:
Make yourself a warm cup of citrus water (lemon or lime)
Take a short walk around the block to clear your mind
Do quiet work that requires diligence, like data collection
10am-2pm, 10pm-2am: PITTA TIME
Pitta is fast, outward moving energy. You will have the most motivation during Pitta time — use it to your advantage! Ever notice that you get anxiety about your to-do list in the middle of the night? That’s probably because you’re awake during Pitta time!
Take all your meetings from 10am-2pm
Work on a project that requires more motivation or grit
Eat your biggest meal! Your digestive system is most active at noon
2pm-6pm, 2am-6am: VATA TIME
Vata is quick, upward moving energy. Vata is extremely creative so use this time to work on things that require an outside-the-box mentality.
Try things like:
Create your social media graphics
Content batching
Brainstorming or mind-mapping new business ideas
Natural Development Cycles
We all have natural cycles of creation, execution, and reflection — whether we’re working on a corporate marketing team or creating a sales strategy for our own business. You can lean into the doshas to help you make this process more fluid, too!
When starting something new, lean into the creative energy of Vata to get your juices flowing and to move through stagnation. Have a dance party to loosen up and tap into your creativity! If that doesn’t feel good, try listening to classical music while you’re working on a new idea.
Once you’ve decided on a plan, harness Pitta to get it off the ground! Use time blocking to find time to focus on what needs to get done next. Pitta people get.it.done. Know someone like that on your team? I bet they’d be the perfect person to lead your next project.
When you’ve reached the end of a launch, use the energy of Kapha to reflect and rest. Sip on a yummy cup of tea and journal about the experience so that you can learn what to do and not do next time. Ask your team to reflect and bring their thoughts to a recap meeting.
In all the training I’ve participated in and led about Ayurveda, it is fascinating to me that so many people say they already naturally lean into these energies. So many of us have never heard of Ayurveda, yet we instinctively choose to live our lives in harmony with its practices. Have you ever done anything like this naturally without realizing it was linked to Ayurveda?
