One time I was teaching in Idaho and the class was full of beginners. I noticed two older men in the back of the room, struggling with every move they made. I gave them my best despite their lack of promise and treated them with kindness.

That night, I learned that one of the men was chairman of the board of directors of one of the largest corporations in the world. He had appreciated my kindness and efforts, and later he arranged for me to lecture his executives, managers, and staff on mind, integrity, and the workplace. As teachers, we are constantly surrounded by people struggling to do what we can do with relative ease. Our superior abilities can lead us into ego traps and we begin to be less respectful of others.

To counteract this trend, I constantly remind myself that my classes are filled with professional chefs, concert pianists, ballet dancers, marathon runners, expert swimmers, mothers of five, CEOs, doctors, massage therapists… Yes, I can. I do yoga well and I can teach yoga well, but each of them has qualities and abilities that I will never have. If we keep in mind that each student is much more than the clumsy body we see before us, our ego will be humbled and our innate goodness will flourish. Kindness is respect, and respect is kindness.

This does not mean that we coddle the student, or that we do what the student wants. Kindness means helping the student make rapid progress with as little harm as possible. Maximum progress, with the minimum time and hardness.

Aadil Paljivala 2008