What Can We Learn From a Yogi? – Insights from Ashtanga to Estate Planning

Last week, yoga master Sharath Jois, died at the age of 53 while hiking (not really great for the brand….). Jois’s grandfather was the founder of ashtanga yoga and Jois was his heir. Jois’s worldwide workshops were attended by thousands of disciples seeking a direct experience with the leader of the Ashtanga yoga tradition. This guy was a big deal in the yogi world.

Ashtanga Yoga Overview
Ashtanga yoga, rooted in Sanskrit and Hindu rituals, involves a demanding series of postures and dynamic movements and is widely viewed as one of the most accessible forms of exercise. On a personal note, I’ve been practicing (it’s not perfect!) Bikram yoga for almost 25 years, and I’ve taken a class or two in ashtanga yoga and found it to be a decent experience, but nothing’s like Bikram.

So, what can we learn from a master yogi’s transition?
We can put some yogic mindfulness in the way we view estate planning. Let’s light some incense, put on some soft music, sit in a comfortable seated position and begin.

• Breathing… Taking a deep breath and focusing on our goals.

• Setting an Intention (Estate Plan Intake): What do we want to achieve in estate plan? Some folks are attempting to avoid probate, others to minimize liability, some to protect beneficiaries from themselves or their creditors and others to avoid a conflict. It’s important to set objectives to devise a plan.

• Staying Focused (Estate Plan Drafting): As we work on collecting the information, drafting the plan, and reviewing the documents, staying focused is harder than it sounds. Keeping the intention in mind is helpful to keep distractions away from our estate plan. There’s no sense in getting bogged down with every decision all at once. Walking though the estate planning process step by step and not worrying about what everyone else is doing is going to be helpful. Focusing on what can be done and the goals helps staying the course. We can utilize Suze Orman or AARP as a resource, but no need to let them distract us from our intentions.

• Being Thankful (Estate Plan Execution): As we execute the estate plan, we’re almost finished. We get to ask, ‘Isn’t it wonderful to be in the position where we get to plan? How fortunate are we to be able to put an estate plan in place?” We can recall all of all the people that could have benefited from the knowledge and the ability to put a plan together and appreciate that we are fortunate to be here discussing these important topics.

• Attaining Peace of Mind (Estate Plan Funding): As we finalize the estate plan, we realize that we are nearing our estate planning journey that provides us with the comfort and knowledge that we did everything we could to realize our intentions. We also imagine that while nothing is really perfect, we are working one step at a time, towards a goal and that makes us pretty darn awesome!

So, there you have it. In honor of Sharath Jois, we put a little mindfulness into our estate plan model. Now we’re all estate planning yogis. Namaste!!