Name: Victoria Russell
Location: Oakland, CA
Relationship to music: Listener
Industry: Yoga teacher 1.5 years at Leela Yoga in Alameda, life coach 2 years.
5songpjct: Sorry I Facebook stalked you a little bit before this interview. I see that in your profile that you are a yoga teacher and life coach. What do you provide to your clients as a life coach and what are the common misconceptions people have about life coaches?
Victoria: Let me answer the misconceptions piece first: that we are walking Pinterest boards, that we only deal with easy, flowery issues, that people don’t get anything from coaches that they can’t get from a good vacation and self-help books. As a life coach, sometimes clients come to me to figure out their career paths–other times I help them deal with whether or not they want to stay in a relationship, or deal with a difficult medical diagnosis. I use a three-pronged approach to coaching– mental, physical, and spiritual wellness–to help clients reach their goals.
5songpjct: Is yoga part of your life coaching sessions?
Victoria: They can be separate, but they are often combined. Say someone comes in for a private yoga session and they are not looking for advice or coaching, but when I do a one on one session with someone, we end up talking about life. That may lead me to different posture or sequence based on what they tell me is going on in their life. I am not necessarily coaching them through a decision making process during a yoga session. Now on the other hand if they do come to me for life coaching, I may add yoga as a prescription to an overall wellness plan or whatever we dealing with at that time.
5songpjct: I think that one of the things that is hard about yoga is that you are asked to be in the present and that is so hard for people. Helpful, but hard.
Victoria: It is so hard. When I do my restorative yoga class, it is much harder for some people to sit in a pose for ten minutes than it is to do a vinyasa flow class for example. It is hard because they are just sitting there with their thoughts and it very confronting for people to do that.
5songpjct: What advice would you give to people who are struggling through this uncertain time?
Victoria: Resilience is not something that everyone is raised with. Some cultures come by it more organically for socio-economic reasons. First, I would say identify something within you that no one can take away from you. Maybe it’s a love of music or dance, or cooking, or life-coaching! Find something that gives you joy and pursue it no matter what. If you have something you are passionate about, it will give you energy and vitality in these turbulent times.
5songpjct: What is your theme for this week’s five songs?
Victoria: The Enduring Spirit of Love.
Assignment for April 1, 2018
It is Sunday, if you are new to Five Song Project, Sunday is the day you get a preview of the songs that we will talk about this week. These are available on the playlist for this blog on Spotify and are songs 60-64 or you can launch YouTube by clicking the song title. Again this blog is not responsible for the ad content.
[1] Robyn. “Indestructible.” Body Talk, Konichiwa, 2010
[2] Groove Theory. “Tell Me.” Groove Theory, Epic, 1994
[3] Sarah McLachlan. “Fumbling Towards Ecstacy.” Fumbling Towards Ecstacy, Nettwerk, 1993
[4] Linda Eder. “Gold.” Gold, RCA, 2002
[5] Trisha Yearwood. “The Song Remembers When.” The Song Remembers When, MCA, 1993
COMING UP… A club hit gets stripped down