Do You Bring Productivity Goals Into Your Yoga Practice?

Yoganidrasana – Yoga Sleep Pose - anyone?

Last week, during one of our recent mindfulness and compassion sessions with my group of teacher trainees, a dear student shared something that has been lingering with me all week. While completing an awareness task we had set, she realised she was instructing herself to “BE CALM.” But it wasn’t an invitation—it was a command. A demand. She was trying to perform being calm rather than actually being calm.

Her insight struck a familiar chord. Many of us, especially those immersed in the modern yoga world, bring productivity mindsets—rooted in achievement, success, and outcomes—into a space meant for presence and acceptance. We try to do calm. We try to achieve stillness. We strive to be “better yogis.” But in doing so, we often lose sight of what the practice is really asking of us.

Yoga, as it has developed in many Western spaces, has absorbed some of the capitalist ideals that dominate our culture: always moving forward, always progressing, always becoming more. Set a goal, do the goal. And yet, the real wisdom of yoga often lives in the opposite direction—in the art of non-striving.

So, what does non-striving actually mean?

It isn’t necessarily about doing less or lacking commitment. Instead, non-striving is a quality of being—allowing, observing, and softening. It’s the handstand not done. It’s choosing child’s pose when your energy is low. It’s letting go of the urge to fix, push, or perfect. It’s recognising your frustration, not with shame or resistance, but with curiosity and compassion.

Non-striving asks us to accept our experience as it is, moment by moment. That may mean being with tight hips, a racing mind, or a difficult emotion without needing to label it good or bad, or rush to change it. It means returning to the breath—not to control it, but to listen to it. It means noticing the ego’s desire to “achieve” calm, balance, or enlightenment—and gently choosing presence instead.

Of course, some resistance is necessary. It gets us to the mat. But resistance also reveals our attachments. When we notice what we’re resisting—whether that’s stillness, discomfort, or not knowing—we become more conscious. And from there, transformation becomes possible.

As both teachers and students, we often fall into “shoulds”: I should be more flexible. I should feel peaceful. I should be able to sit longer. These expectations can quietly take over our practice. But yoga is not about becoming someone else. It’s about seeing clearly who we already are.

Here are some gentle reminders for practicing non-striving:

• Set intentions, not goals.

• Recognise when achievement is ego-driven.

• Let go of comparison; stay in your own lane.

• Accept your current state, however it shows up.

• Honour the process over the result.

• Remember: a quiet moment in shavasana is just as “advanced” as an inversion.

• Ask yourself: What do I need right now?

  
  

  

  Shavasana - Corpse Pose

Ultimately, yoga is a path of revelation—not acquisition. The more we chase outcomes, the further we drift from the moment. But when we stop striving, we find space. And in that space, we may discover a deeper peace than any achievement can offer.