The Conductor as Yogi: From Summer Re-Set to Life Practice

“We are what we repeatedly do.”

Attributed to Will Durant, on the ideas of Aristotle

 It is a bit of a fantasy to think summer will be free from professional responsibilities and busy schedules.  We still have young children, aging parents, summer camps and classes, travel planning, or conducting engagements.

But summer is, in many ways, different.  For most of us, the days are longer, the weather is more inviting, and how we spend our time is more in our hands, less in “theirs” (whoever that is).  We may feel more energetic or willing to try something new.  We may rest or be in silence more.  The schedule that we adhere to the other 9 months of the year is released and we have the opportunity to break some habits or patterns that our summer eyes see as not in our best interest. Like the computer that needs to re-boot, we benefit from a time of shutting down in order to re-set towards something better.

Something better—that is the key to a really successful re-set.

A re-set can simply return us to our former self—or it can move us forward after a period of pause, a jolt of awareness, and the belief that our best life is still in front of us.

We can amplify the effects of our summer re-set if we bring the good from this season forward into fall, turning our re-set into a pre-set for positive habits and growth to continue.  The yoga practitioner takes what they learn on the mat and develops it over time into a way of being, a “practice.”  In a similar way, we can become aware of our summer choices—more movement or time in nature, good nutrition, some healthy detachment from our jobs, deeper introspection on our soul work, more in-person human connection—and infuse this into our life practice, rather than returning to old habits and uninspired norms, come fall.

We can commit to breaking this pattern:  “summer is when I am balanced and healthy but the rest of the year, not so much”  . . .  Is this a wise life ratio?  And does it reinforce our personal agency, our ability to discern our needs and make changes, or does it reveal our mindless compliance, letting the world-at-large direct our path?

What can you bring forward from summer that will grow you towards your better self—that part of you below the surface, nudging again and again, that you have ignored or put on the back burner one too many times?  How can you improve the shape of your life practice, intelligent habits that you repeatedly do?

My summer break from writing this blog allows me to carve out time for other projects.  But the trap is thinking I can’t continue those projects when the new academic year begins because my life will be too busy and “not my own.”  So this summer, I plan to develop a consistent practice that can continue (with realistic adaptations) throughout the year, thereby becoming a habit, not a summer activity.  Rather than segmenting my life, I can experience the wholeness that is the intent of yoga, the “yoking” or unifying of all parts of ourselves to help us discover our unique, authentic voice and to live with more fluidity, inspiration, and grounding, despite the busyness and mind chatter all around us.  What will it be for you?

My gratitude to you for following this blog and my best wishes for a summer that, however quietly, marks a path forward to who you are but have not yet discovered.  Breathe Well and Be Well!

Dr. Ramona Wis is the Mimi Rolland Endowed Professor in the Fine Arts, Professor of Music, and Director of Choral Activities at North Central College in Naperville, Illinois and the author of The Conductor as Leader:  Principles of Leadership Applied to Life on the Podium (and video course through Forward Motion, https://www.fwdmotion.org/sp-ramonawis-conductorasleader ).  Dr. Wis is a 500-hour CYT (Certified Yoga Teacher) and a certified Brain Longevity® Specialist, a research-based certification on yoga and integrative medicine for brain health and healthy aging. Reach her at: or ramonawis.com.