We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Cory Sampson a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Cory, we’re thrilled to have you sharing your thoughts and lessons with our community. So, for folks who are at a stage in their life or career where they are trying to be more resilient, can you share where you get your resilience from?
My resilience starts with my will to be better than i was yesterday. We have a choice when we wake each day to get better or worse. Whether that means pushing my edge or taking the rest necessary to recover and continue the marathon of life at my best. This yoga practice has taught me that it’s ok to stand in the face of adversity and take a breath. In my first Yoga Teacher Training, Catherine Cook-Cottone shared a quote with us by Viktor Frankl, “Between stimulus and response there is space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.” Our breath is that space. My resilience lies in the ability to take an inhale, an exhale and give reverence to the pause between the two.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
I started doing yoga in college when I hurt myself in the weight room. I realized when I was forced to be still that I was always occupied. Whether it was with school, work or my social life at all hours of the day and night I was rarely alone. When i began this yoga practice It was to get more flexible so that I wouldn’t hurt myself again. As I continued, I recognized my mat as a place of escape. Nothing could bother me; I didn’t have to think about anything else but right here, right now. Things shifted for me when i discovered that I could face my problems on my mat and could let go. From that moment I knew I could never stop doing yoga. I received a scholarship to my first yoga teacher training referred by Cheryl Strauss and I’ve been sharing this practice ever since.
At this moment in my life, my focus is inspiring people to pursue their passions and fall in love with their purpose. I am in the process of leading yoga teacher trainings and building my brand around Yoga is Art being that our mats are a canvas and our bodies are the medium we use to create. Many Art forms focus on the look and while Yoga postures can look cool and diverse, I believe that the feeling is what really hooks the practitioner. I tell all of my students that it’s not about what it looks like but how it feels. I am collaborating with the Buffalo AKG and other artists to create and experience where we can tie multiple art forms together and exhibit how art can unify different worlds of creativity.
Our bodies are important at all ages and I believe that teaching to all demographics is necessary to cultivate wellness through breath, movement and mindfulness. Teaching children’s yoga, in prisons, at yoga studios like vibe yoga lab and power yoga buffalo and newly added to my schedule in an art studio with Her Sacred Way, I have created and will continue to build spaces where all people are welcome to move, breath and take exactly what they need from this unifying practice we call yoga.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
Three qualities, skills and areas of knowledge that were and still are very impactful on my journey are mindfulness, self-regulation and an optimistic way of thinking. – Mindfulness in the sense of being aware of the present moment and accepting what is. My advice for approaching mindfulness as a beginner is to lean into what is. The feelings that we experience are sensations of the body and communication to the self. If we pause and listen, we tend to learn a lot about the situation and even more about ourselves.
– Self Regulation is a great skill I gained because of yoga. Breathing through uncomfortable situations and being able to down regulate is something I am grateful for. I like to tell my students that you can’t take child’s pose in the grocery store, but you can breathe. I would suggest a movement practice that offers strenuous activity so one can pay attention to their rise in heart rate and how their deep, slow, inhales and exhales bring them back to equilibrium. I was a person that could blow up and because I know how to breathe and accept in the moment, I’ve become much better at detaching from things that I can’t control and letting them be as they are.
– An optimistic way of thinking is somewhat of an oddity in today’s time and I am happy to be the catalyst to change that. How we choose to see life is how it will be. I like to see the glass as half full and that I don’t “have to” but I “get to”. When we do what feels right to us intuitively and follow our hearts, we can move from a place of authenticity. Getting out of our head and into our bodies is the best way to learn ourselves. I recently heard a quote, “you can only be authentic to the degree that you know yourself”. This hit home for me because as I move through my yoga journey, I learn more about myself a bit more every time i get on my mat. Authenticity shines when we lead with our hearts. I suggest doing what your heart feels is right and recognizing that the mind is easily conditioned. When we can see ourselves as unique beings created with a purpose that only we can fulfill, it gives us more will to show up in a positive way. Comparison is the thief of joy so be you, only you can do that.
All the wisdom you’ve shared today is sincerely appreciated. Before we go, can you tell us about the main challenge you are currently facing?
My number one obstacle that I am currently facing is going digital with my yoga practice and speaking about it. I have no problem speaking. Publicly, it’s just the process and making the time to do so. I the new year i am committing to myself and recording a few flows a month so that I can expand my reach to all the people that I can’t impact whether it be due to their time constraints or location. I feel so introverted and I’m particularly with how I share my attention so it’s important that I schedule this in to reach people when they are ready to receive it and not base it solely on when I’m available.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: Cpt.Torch
- Facebook: Cory Sampson
- Linkedin: Cory Sampson
- Twitter: CptTorch
Image Credits
Derek Rocco Jeremy Miklas
