We recently connected with Yolanda Rodgers and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Yolanda , thanks for sharing your insights with our community today. Part of your success, no doubt, is due to your work ethic and so we’d love if you could open up about where you got your work ethic from?
Growing up I saw how my parents worked hard to provide a life for my siblings and I that they didn’t have. My dad worked to provide for us and my mom changed her career so that she could be at home in the afternoons when we were out of school. I saw my parents work hard for us to have the things that we needed as well as whatever we wanted. I was taught to work hard, work efficiently, and be dependable and responsible. I saw the benefits of working hard; not only could I have what I wanted and needed but I was recognized for my efforts which would provide me more and greater opportunities. My dad always worked his way up the ladders in whatever job he was with. My mom was always given opportunities to move up, she is still being given those opportunities today. It has always been my goal to work just as hard as my parents so my siblings would have me as an example of great work ethic and so I could make my parents proud.
Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
I began my yoga journey in 2020 while recovering from pneumonia. Before getting sick in November of 2019 I worked out consistently. Once I was over pneumonia I tried to begin my workouts again in February of 2020 but I couldn’t breathe; I didn’t know the long-term effects of pneumonia. I began going to halo therapy at a local yoga studio and within two weeks I was able to get back in the gym. I then took a couple of yoga classes at the studio and fell in love. Yoga helped me calm my mind, focus on my breathing, pace myself on the mat and in life, as well as a lot of other benefits. That summer I was given the opportunity to take a teacher training course and I knew I needed to because I wanted to give people the same benefits that I had received. I took my training further by becoming certified in Kemetic Yoga; this form of yoga originated in Egypt and focuses on the movement of energy throughout the body to connect you with your higher self and the divine. I now am the owner of Kemetic Reconnection and my goal is to reconnect us to our African roots through the movement of energy and deep meditation. I want to be the beginning of your healing journey.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
Three skills and qualities that have been impactful on my journey are offer grace, growth, and rest. I tell people all of the time to be patient with themselves, and offer yourself grace because you’re on a journey that you’ve never been on. You don’t know everything and some of the things you thought you knew you have to unlearn so offer yourself grace along the journey. Continue to grow along the journey, and continue to seek knowledge. Again we don’t know everything so in order to grow, continue to learn. And finally, rest! Rest is so important and something that people do not take seriously. I hate the saying, “I’ll sleep when I’m dead”, because if you don’t sleep now then you will literally not be here to enjoy the fruits of your labor. Rest now, give yourself a break now, wake up late, eat junk food, watch cartoons, sleep all day; rest.
Before we go, any advice you can share with people who are feeling overwhelmed?
When I am feeling overwhelmed I recognize that it is my inner child trying to impress the world and go above and beyond to be accepted. What I do in that moment is cater to the overworked child. I may grab my favorite snack, I watch my favorite shows, I meditate and journal. My advice is to understand where the overwhelming feeling comes from and offer that place some comfort and peace so that you can journey on with a calm mind.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: Kemetic_reconnection
- Twitter: Kemetic_Reconn
