About

Quotes

“Nelson Mandela’s leadership actions are classic examples of how to convert challenges into opportunities… he let go of anger and blame. He rejected victimhood. He promoted accountability, collaboration, and initiative, and this produced renewed confidence on the part of many, inside and outside the country.” The Leader of the Future 2: Visions, Strategies, and Practices for the New Era, Rosabeth Moss Kanter

Polls

What is your favorite yoga pose?

	Warrior
	Child
	Downward Dog

Blooming Newsletter

About

About Hollie

Hi!

My name is Hollie Hirst and I live to serve! I grew up running in the cornfields, hard wod forests and cow pastures of central Indiana. I spent my childhood climbing trees, singing and dancing, canoeing, riding horses, water skiing, wading in creeks and working in the family business.

My introduction to yoga asana was in the early 1980’s. My dance teacher had done some exploring of yoga and thus brought some of the practices back to the studio with her and shared them with us. Shortly after this introduction I began reading Yoga Journal and doing some exploring of my own. After being introduced to the transcendentalist writers, in a high school English and Literature class, I began my exploring meditation in order to support me in overcoming my troubles with insomnia.

It was in high school that I also began writing. I my first published pieces were poetry, in my high school literary magazine. I have recently had my writings on insights garnered from meditation and yoga published in Boulder Women’s Magazine and Elephant Journal online..

In recent years, as I have deepened my yoga practice I have come to realize that as a child, dance was my yoga because when I was in the studio dancing I was in the studio dancing. My mind was not wandering, I was not worrying about the past or stressing over the future. I was in the studio, in the moment, nowhere else.

After a few years of practical life experience I returned to Indiana and enrolled in Indiana University. Being a creature of diverse interests my studies were diverse, ranging from comparative religion, cultural studies, journalism, psychology, sociology, literature, political science, environmental biology, etc. In 1992 I studied for a semester in Costa Rica where I s tudied international relations, Latin American Literature, Spanish and the like. I earned a BGS with a concentration in Human and Behavioral Sciences.

After earning my BGS I continued on with post-graduate studies, in 2007 I earned a graduate level certificate in Organizational Management and Development with Fielding Graduate University. During this time I was also a volunteer Rape Crisis Hotline counselor for Moving to End Sexual Assault (MESA)

It was in Boulder that I decided to revisit the passions of my youth and my love of creative movement. After reconnecting with my yoga practice I realized that yoga is where all of my strengths come together into a meaningful whole, thus I decided to study for my yoga teacher certification, which I earned in July of 2008.

Since then I have taught yoga at Boulder Quest Center (where I studied To Shin-Do from 2007 to 2010), but my most meaningful work is teaching asana, pranayama, and mindfulness meditation to survivors of trauma and violence. From 2008 to 2011 I was a volunteer legal advocate for the organization, Safehouse Progressive Alliance for Nonviolence (SPAN). I also taught yoga at the women's shelter during that time. In addition was also a member of the Domestic Abuse Response Team (DART) from 2010 to 2011. (Please do not hesitate to contact SPAN for references.)

It is my intent to continue to work with survivors of trauma, sharing the healing powers of yoga and mindfulness, especially with those struggling with post-traumatic stress. Because of my own experiences I bring a great deal of empathy, compassion, and formal knowledge to my clients. In May of 2010 I attended an intensive training through Bessel van der Kolk's The Trauma Center in Boston and earned my certification in Trauma Sensitive Yoga.

Trauma sensitive yoga certification

Download my resume here.

In addition in 2011 I received my Reiki Level One certification.

What is Yoga Therapy?

Yoga therapy is the use of yogic techniques to support people in their healing, whether physical or psychological. Yoga therapy can help those dealing with issues as diverse as physical injuries, insomnia, stress and trauma.

According to an article in World of Psychology, “yoga-therapy…allow(s) yoga to empower people while priming them to access their deepest emotions”

However, yoga therapy can also refer to using yoga as a physical therapy to overcome chronic stress, physical pain and misalignments.

Yoga therapy is, as of yet, an unregulated endeavor. Currently there is debate and discussion in the Yoga Therapy community as to regulation. For more see the International Association of Yoga Therapist’s website.

The type of yoga therapy I concentrate on is the more psychological manifestation. However, I have worked with many clients with physical issues and have been successful in meeting their needs.

The qualifications, strengths, experience and skills that support me in my practice are as follows:

I am a registered yoga instructor and have completed more than 300 hours of yoga training, including 60 hours of training in yoga for underserved populations with Satellite Yoga and 40 hours of intensive training in trauma sensitive yoga at ‘The Trauma Center’.

My undergraduate degree is liberal arts with a concentration in Human and Behavioral Sciences. I have a strong academic background in psychology, sociology, cultural studies and comparative religions.

I have earned a graduate level certificate in Organizational Management and Development. These studies concentrated on group processes, self as leader of change, leadership in multi-cultural environments, flat/horizontal organizations, chaos theory and the like. These studies inform my practice in that I am a strong believer in equality and my academic endeavors have helped me to discover how to create communities in which everyone is valued.

I am a survivor of multiple trauma’s. Thus I have access to insights and experiences that only ‘someone who has been there’ could have access too.

My meditation practice began over 20 years ago and includes Mindfulness, Dzogchen, Ton-Glen, and Mantra.

I was a volunteer legal advocate, Domestic Abuse Response Team (DART) member, and yoga instructor at SPAN from October 2008 to June 2011. In addition I was also a volunteer rape crisis hotline counselor with MESA.

Mission, Vision & Goals

Mission:

Blooming Lota Yoga’s mission is to support individuals and groups, nationally and internationally, in personal, spiritual and economic goals.

Yoga and mindfulness practices have been linked to increase ability to manage stress, anxiety, and physical suffering. It is my mission to ensure that everyone has access to the benefits of yoga, especially underserved populations.

Vision:

I believe that all beings can be released from suffering. If we come together as communities with this goal in mind we can create a more peaceful world.

I think Lama Surya Das said it best,

“ Mindful of the Buddha nature that resides within each of us, I see the individuals who come before me as being like stars. I try to help them gather and focus their light so that it can shine forth not only for themselves, but for the world, which sorely needs to wake up from delusion.

I truly believe that if we treat each student as a kind of revered tulku (a reincarnated lama and Bodhisattva), as a genuine prodigy, our society will be vastly transformed for the better.

I believe it is in our power to cause such a miraculous, widespread change, and that it is incumbent on us to try.” (232-233, Buddha Is as Buddha Does )

I have been inspired by Lama Surya Das’s vision of transforming the world for the better by acknowledging and uncovering the goodness and wisdom in all beings.

Goals:

My goals include: using my academic, intellectual, emotional, and assorted personal strengths to create an atmosphere of trust where individuals can support each other in their growth.

My personal experiences with trauma provide me with a deeper understanding of the power of yoga and movement in regards to moving trauma through the body. Working with others who are grappling with issues surrounding trauma helps to bring meaning to my own experiences.

As Lama Surya Das states, “Liberating others liberates oneself, healing others heals oneself, and transforming others transforms oneself.”

Buddha Is as Buddha Does (234)

Because of my personal experiences, I am skilled at helping clients to identify strengths that assisted them in surviving the trauma they experienced, and in encouraging the client to gently explore and release coping patterns that no longer serve them.

Creating meaningful work and being a part of supportive communities are two of my core goals.

Blooming Lota Yoga Goals

My goals include: using my academic, intellectual, emotional and various other personal strengths to create an atmosphere of trust where individuals can support each other in their growth.

My personal experiences with trauma give me an understanding of the power of yoga and movement with moving trauma through the body. Working with others who are struggling with issues surrounding trauma and stress helps to give meaning to my own experiences.

As Lama Surya Das states, “Liberating others liberates oneself, healing others heals oneself, and transforming others transforms oneself.”

Buddha Is as Buddha Does (234)

Because of my experiences I am especially skilled at helping clients to identify strengths that assisted them in their survival of the trauma, and in encouraging the client to gently explore and release coping patterns that no longer serve the client.

Creating meaningful work and being a part of supportive communities are two of my core goals.

Authentic Leadership

Photo By Hollie

“Authenticity requires a lifelong commitment to self-discovery and self-observation… When a leader approaches the question, “How authentic am I?” It is often helpful to ask another question first:

“Where is my leadership coming from?”

Do our actions originate from deep within ourselves, or are they coming from a more superficial place? Is our leadership arising from our Character, the essence of who we are? Or is it coming only from our Persona, the external personality we have created to cope with life circumstances?” (Cashman, 42)

Often, when I mention authentic leadership to people they ask, “Authentic leadership, as opposed to….?”

I explain: Authentic leadership, opposed to inauthentic leadership. While working on my graduate level certification in Organizational Management and Development (OMD) I worked on teams that included both types of leaders and was direct witness to the effects of both.

Have you ever known a person who is an inspiration to many people they encounter? They are warm, compassionate, supportive, and courageously honest in their relationships. They are open to suggestions, value diversity of opinions and the input of others. They are secure enough in themselves to give credit where credit is due. These are authentic leaders.

Many authentic leaders do not hold official leadership titles because they are not ego attached to powerful positions, yet others willingly follow their lead. They are the people who inspire the phrase, “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.” Here is a link to an article in Harvard Business review about the importance of a mindfulness practice and authentic leadership.

In other cases a leader might have a more official titles, and yet they tend to alienate others. They are controlling rather than supportive, they are rigid and highly concerned with their image and thus will not take responsibility if they make a mistake. They are often so concerned with winning that they will take credit for the work or ideas of others. These are in-authentic leaders. And their influence can often wreak havoc on an otherwise productive team.

In authentic leadership coaching we will use meditation, yoga asana, and traditional coaching techniques to observe the mind, explore the client’s special talents and skills, gently grow toward wholeness, and toward “appreciating our gifts while unfolding underdeveloped or hidden sides of ourselves.” (Cashman, 34)

Reverence:

Cashman, Kevin (1998). Leadership from the Inside Out. TCLG. Minneapolis.

Follow these links for more info: