Every Friday night, I have a date with my yoga mat at my favorite yoga class. It’s a great way to relieve the stress from the work week and start fresh and rejuvenated for the weekend. I’ve been doing yoga on and off for about six years, but my Friday night class has been a regular part of my routine for the last two years. Unless I’m sick or out of town, I’m adamant about not missing class.

My teacher, James, is a really intellectual yogi and always applies a theme, concept, or framework to the class that I often carry with me off the mat and into my daily life. For example, James has been recently utilizing the phrase, “no ambition,” which has become my personal mantra. Despite the literal translation, “no ambition” doesn’t mean lacking ambition. It means taking your ambition one step at a time and arriving at your “goal” at your own pace, in concert with your body and spirit.

In yoga class, I often apply the concept of “no ambition” when James states that we’re going to do a handstand. The idea of being inverted has always frightened me–as a kid, I avoided slinging my legs over the monkey bars and hanging upside down like the rest of my friends. When James first suggested a modified pose–where you plant your hands firmly on the ground and walk your feet up the wall like an inverted “L”–I gave him a look like “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

But, at the subsequent class, operating with no ambition and just having a fun time moving my body in a new way, I completely surprised myself by pressing my feet, level with my hips, on the wall behind me. I was thrilled to discover that I could do something that I assumed would be too difficult. And, I was one step closer to achieving a handstand and feeling comfortable with the sensation of my feet off the ground.

This notion of “no ambition” is something I’m incorporating into my work life. As a young professional, it’s easy to focus on quickly moving up to the next level in my career, especially when I know of other talented young women, barely 30, with “director” in their title. It feels like my own pace must be hastened by the accomplishments of my peers.

Similar to yoga class, where I’m taught to not pay attention to what my classmates are doing on their mats, I’m trying to focus inwards on my own rhythm and career path. In this way, I hope to experience the delights of letting a process unfold naturally instead of rushing into a position that I’m not yet ready to assume. As a result, I’m more mindful of the new things I learn every day about my own strengths, limitations, and passions…and how to approach my goals in a more patient and thoughtful way.