(upbeat music)
- Yeah, I think that there's all the normal stuff,
right that we could get from a book on even being
a salesperson or something.
There's a tremendous amount
of material out there about how to connect,
but I think in the mindfulness teaching world
there's an added things.
So let's talk about the added thing.
'Cause that's what's special to this work
and or specific to this work and not to others.
And that is there can be a lot of projection
and transference type stuff going on.
And so for example,
I very strongly had the experience early
on of people putting me in a
in a guru role or in a very high spiritual role
and some people as teachers get really attracted
to that it's there's such a reflected glory.
That's coming at you from people's ideas
of what you might be,
and that can be really seductive
and super motivating for teachers
and what I would say is that even
though that can seem nice and maybe really attractive
to you it's horrible for your class.
And I would recommend doing anything required
to pop that bubble.
And so especially if it's a spiritual group,
I will curse and be very irreverent
or do whatever it takes till
they stop projecting on me like that.
And that yeah exactly.
Pick my nose, whatever.
And at first you might not notice
when this kind of projection is happening,
but if people seem kind of like they're not treating
you like a normal person in any way that you just
have to do something to break that spell.
And what you'll find is that,
Oh! They might not kind of worship you as much anymore
but on the other hand,
connection has been established.
'Cause in that previous way of looking up
there, the connection was not happening.
And so to me that's like a special thing
that doesn't happen probably very much in other fields.
I mean it does, but not nearly as much.
And so I really strongly recommend
that you're sensitive when people
are projecting in that way,
probably you working in the church community,
you might get some of that too I'm not sure,
but you get really sensitive
to it like make sure you know if it's happening
because often what's going on is it's happening
a little bit subtly and you kinda like it.
So one kind of likes it.
So it can sort of slip under the radar
and it's actually causing separation
between you and the students.
So you get more sensitive to it so it's on the radar.
And it doesn't take much to break
the projection honestly,
just kind of break that wall.
And then suddenly you'll find
that there's a tremendous opening possible
and actually a better heart connection
and people feel more comfortable and so on.
So to me that's the biggest thing.