We have just a couple weeks left in my spring session of the 7 Weeks to Radical Self-Trust group coaching program, which means we’re nearing the point where each participant will be completing a final project.
It’s called the Personal Syllabus.
I would imagine that many of you are deeply familiar with the idea of a syllabus as a document to be shared with students to get a sense of what will be happening in a particular course.
In the 7 Weeks to Radical Self-Trust program, I offer this project as a way to offer some structure to continued learning that may need to take place after the program is over.
Since a lot of my coaching clients are academics or higher education professionals, a syllabus offers a familiar structure to move forward after our time together. It becomes a map for their continued learning journey.
And, given the current state of things, it occurred to me that others might be seeking such a map to help structure their days around something enjoyable, energizing, or fun.
Sound interesting? Here’s how it works:
First, choose an area where you want to deepen your knowledge or experience. This could include internal explorations of yourself, or an external exploration of a topic that is interesting to you right now.
In the past, people have chosen things like gardening, hand lettering, or one of the six cultivation methods of radical self-trust that they want to dive deeper on.
Once you have your topic, you draft the following:
- A short description of the area you want to explore (i.e. your course description)
- A list of what you hope to learn through the exploration (i.e. your learning objectives)
- A reading and/or resources list that you will use to deepen your knowledge
- Potential “assignments” that will help you to check in on your progress
- A rough schedule of your exploration (it can take as long as you need)
I recently did this for my exploration of yoga and here’s what some of these things looked like for me:
Description: Through this syllabus, I’d like to lay the foundation to develop a life practice of yoga. This exploration will include readings, watching demonstrations, practicing various poses and sequences, and completing reflective writing assignments. Eventually, I will incorporate participating in face-to-face classes and/or yoga retreats.
What I hope to learn:
- A range of yoga poses, how they can be integrated into different sequences, and how to complete them with purpose and integrity
- A bit about the history of yoga and the roots of the practice for spiritual and personal guidance
- Some methods for using yoga as a kind of guided meditation
- Some ideas for incorporating yoga and embodiment into my coaching practice
Readings and resources:
- Donna Farhi’s Bringing Yoga to Life
- Yoga with Adriene YouTube videos
- Following various Instagram accounts of yoga practitioners
Assignments:
- Practice yoga daily, primarily through a morning session and then at various points throughout the day as desired
- Read Donna Farhi’s Bringing Yoga to Lifeand take notes on applications for and connections to personal development and coaching work
- Keep a “yoga journal” to document poses practiced, what I’m learning about yoga, what I’m learning about myself, and what is going well or not so well in this journey
Rough schedule (and subject to change as I wish):
- April 2020 — complete Yoga with Adriene’s Foundations of Yoga video series (24 done and 17 left to go!)
- May 2020 — complete Yoga with Adriene’s 30 Days of Yoga “Home” series
- June 2020 — complete Yoga with Adriene’s “30 Days of Yoga” series & work on basic inversions (mainly Crow pose)
- July 2020 — complete Yoga with Adriene’s 30 Days of Yoga “Dedicate” series & be able to do an unassisted Crow pose by the end of the month
- August 2020 — complete Yoga with Adriene’s 30 Days of Yoga “Yoga Camp” series & begin to work on back bends this month (Bow, Camel, & Cobra poses)
- September 2020 — complete Yoga with Adriene’s 30 Days of Yoga “Revolution” series & celebrate six months of yoga practice!
- October 2020 — complete Yoga with Adriene’s 30 Days of Yoga “True” series & begin practicing more advanced inversions (i.e. headstands and handstands)
- November 2020 — engage in daily Yoga with Adriene videos of my choice (there are lots of one-offs to choose from!) & continue practicing inversions
- December 2020 — begin to design my own yoga flows based on what I feel like each day & be able to do an unassisted handstand by the end of the calendar year
- January 2020 — design my own yoga flows based on what I feel like each day and/or complete any new 30-day series that are released and look interesting
- February 2020 — design my own yoga flows based on what I feel like each day and/or complete any new 30-day series that are released and look interesting
- March 2020 — design my own yoga flows based on what I feel like each day and/or complete any new 30-day series that are released and look interesting
- April 2020 — design my own yoga flows based on what I feel like each day & celebrate 1 year of yoga practice!
I’d love to hear if you decide to create a personal syllabus and what you plan to focus on for your own exploration.
