I can’t say enough positive things about my time this week at Lotus Soul Gym. Coming into the week I had no real previous knowledge of the practice of yoga, not to say that I am a guru now after only one week, but I guess I absorbed enough to appear as if I knew what I was talking about when teaching my first ever class yesterday. (apparently I am a hard instructor)

I think that anyone would benefit from practicing Yoga and it is something that I will be keeping up after having learned more about the practice. I recommend that everyone try it at least once and if you are lucky enough to be an Edmontonian, you have some amazing people and a more than welcoming, safe environment to do so down at Lotus Soul Gym.

This is Erin, she came in on Thursday night for a Yoga class and had made this sign for me. It was so kind of her. Erin, you rock!

One thing about this project is that I am continually meeting incredible people, establishing relationships, developing a sense of familiarity and then it is time to move on. Although it is sad, I know that these people I meet and the experiences I have will always be a part of me, and I look forward with excitement to what is yet to come.

-Sean

I feel as if I have been studying for a big exam this week and the day has finally arrived.

It is interesting because I am little nervous about teaching the class, yet very excited to be presented with the challenge. I told the kids in the facilitation on Wednesday that this project has taught me to see each new challenge as just another opportunity to learn and grow, so I guess I better take my own advice and keep that in mind.

For those of you that had been wondering, the outfit that Lulu Lemon set me up with on Tuesday is actually not the tight spandex that some of you may have been thinking…

If you are in the Edmonton area, you can see how my debut goes by watching the News Hour on CityTV at 6:30pm sometime the week of April 16th.

Wish me luck!

-Sean

Yesterday I accompanied Robert Manolson, a career development professional, to help facilitate a Communication/Leadership session for about 16 youth, aged 12-15 years. I spoke to them about my project, various things that I have learned throughout the experience, defining success with terms such as meaningful contribution, passion, courage, and how each new challenge we are presented with is just another opportunity to learn.

It was awesome talking to kids about life skills that I feel are so important, and to hear them taking positive things away from the experience, made it so worthwhile. It is an important message and it will definitely be something that I will be doing in the future. One of the kids actually wanted my autograph afterwards which was really cute, so I signed my name a long with a reminder note: “Keep it real!”

Only one day left before I teach my first yoga class. There will also be a camera crew in as well just for some added pressure!

-Sean

I think I mentioned yesterday that by Friday I was probably going to be pretty sore. Well, it is now Wednesday morning and guess what? I am sore. Justifiably so though as I participated in four different sessions yesterday, five and a half hours of yoga in total!

I am sitting in on as many classes as I can and will be co-teaching a class on the Friday. Am I nervous? Yeah, and that would explain the five and a half hours of yoga training I participated in yesterday. I had a teacher who would say, “if you are going to do something, might as well do it right!” This is also why it was necessary I visit Lulu Lemon on Whyte Ave in Edmonton who generously donated some clothing so I would at least look the part. Everyone working there is so nice and we had lots of fun picking out the outfit.

I am meeting great people each day and working with some amazing individuals (come and meet them!) who breath life into me when I am finding it difficult to stay on top of everything with the project. Seeing people excited about what I am doing, wanting to get involved and help out in some way is quite empowering and it continually reminds me of the unique opportunity I have to positively influence the lives of many.

If you are in the Edmonton area, be sure to drop by the studio and say hello!

-Sean

The first day of my crash course to becoming a Yoga Instructor went very well. I haven’t done much yoga practice in my time and was quickly reminded that it is quite challenging and that I am definitely going to be sore by the time Friday comes around.

I wonder how many people arrive to work on the first day with a suitcase full of clothes, their computer, and day pack all in hand? Well that was me yesterday. Just another typical Monday morning; time to make the transition into a new working environment, new challenges, new co-workers, new housing arrangement, all over again.

I was asked recently what skills I find to be the most consistently necessary through my jobs so far. I think that I would have to say ‘Transitional Skills.’ More on that in a post later this week, yet first I want to tell you about an amazing talk I had with Henri Ferguson, an incredible man and Yoga Instructor at Lotus Soul Gym, the Yoga Studio in Edmonton, Alberta where I am working for Week Seven. Continue reading this post >>

Week Seven gets underway today here in Edmonton, Alberta and I will be working at the city’s newest Yoga Studio, Lotus Soul Gym.

Throughout the week I will learn all the aspects of the business and will be sitting in on as many yoga classes (and teachers) as possible and then by the end of the week I will get to join one the instructors in teaching a class!

I am really excited to start the week as yoga is something that I have wanted to learn more about and will also get to see the workings of a newly formed small business.

If you live in the area, be sure to drop by and say hello!

-Sean

I am down in Calgary for the long weekend visiting a friend of mine I met in Quebec a few summers back. It is nice to spend some time ‘relaxing’ after having such a busy week up in Edmonton.

I will be back in Edmonton for Week Seven, then I think I will be heading to Calgary or perhaps into Saskatchewan to work on a grain farm. Actually who am I kidding, things seem to change daily with One Week Job, so who really knows where I will be the following week.

Here is an interview I did on CBC Newsworld this week. It was quite funny as I was just talking to the camera in an empty news room, I could only hear the news anchor through my ear piece and there is a slight delay because it was via satellite.

Alan is the Head Coach and the Brand Champion! of CareerJoyâ„¢, a Canadian career coaching company. “He is one of Canada’s foremost experts on all things relating to careers with more than 14 years of experience coaching people through successful career changes.” Sounds like I could use somebody like this around!

I did a podcast (Listen here) regarding One Week Job with Alan about a week ago and we discussed the possibility of doing something more together. Alan was willing to get involved with the project as a sponsor and also offer up his expertise.

I will be speaking with Alan a few times each month about how the project is going, where I am at in my journey, what I am learning, and provide his thoughts and advice. These talks (podcasts) will be recorded and then posted to oneweekjob.com.

If you are having difficulty deciding on a career or looking to change an unhappy work place situation, be sure to check out Alan’s site!

-Sean

It has been a crazy week here in Edmonton, I have probably done about 15 interviews in the past three days. I even got to change jobs with the weather lady and gave the 7-day forecast for CityTV’s News at 6, perhaps it could make for an interesting One Week Job?

I am learning a lot about the flower industry, which I suppose was expected considering I knew nothing coming in. I can now arrange and wrap a bouquet of flowers and even tell you the difference between a fuji mom, asiatic lily, and a gerber daisy. I left the store today for about an hour and when I returned I found out that an arrangement of roses that I had made on my first day was sold. Needless to say, it was a proud moment!

I think that I will be spending one more week here in Edmonton, then off to Calgary. If you live in Calgary and have any job offers for me or just want to meet up, send me an email or give me a call!

See you soon,

-Sean