I have been a speaker, teacher, and social visionary in the realm of personal development and yoga for 30 years. I’ve had the good fortune to travel and visit with remarkable people all over the planet, and over and over again I’m always struck by the realization that when it comes to making a difference with what matters most in our humanity, no one does anything alone.
This book is no exception. I’m grateful to all of the extraordinary people who made this journey possible for me. There’s no such thing as a book separate from all the people and experiences that gave shape and influence to the life and thinking of the author, and this stands very true for me.
I acknowledge the teachers who have been a source of power on my journey. I’ve learned that those who have blessed me need to be the first for me to bless and recognize out loud. I have infinite gratitude to all those whose life and work have powerfully impacted my perceptions, my life, and my leading of this work, especially Walt and Magaña Baptiste, B.K.S. Iyengar, Krishnamacharya, and Bikram Choudhury for their emphasis on the discipline and power of using physical yoga practices to transform one’s experience of the world and apply it in his or her life.
I have enormous appreciation for Roy Masters and S. N. Goenka for guiding me with compassion and unapologetic rigor through the practice of meditation, which ultimately gave me access to an embodied learning and the living out of the practices in this book.
John Bradshaw, Fernando Flores, former NFL coach John Gruden, Landmark Education, Peter Block, Ron Bynum, Chip Wilson, Susanne Conrad, Jenna Buffaloe, and Kip Flock—the thoughts and sentences I speak and write have all been shaped by their contribution in some way. I don’t know if I have a thought or idea that is truly and originally my own, so I happily take my seat as a secondary source for some aspects of their work where my own transformation was expanded. Due to them, I live with a spark of possibility and engaged in an expansive future.
I deeply appreciate the many, many people who have participated in Baptiste training programs, workshops, and classes and made this work a part of their transformational journey. Your commitment, questions, challenges, insights, input, and breakthroughs have elevated me and taught me to appreciate what it is to be fully human.
This book exists as a result of the enthusiastic urging of my publisher, Hay House: Louise Hay, Reid Tracy, and their amazing team. Hay House is a publishing company that lives out the empowering ideas contained in what it publishes. I am grateful to Reid Tracy, who has been a patient and supportive guide for the focus of this book very early on in its formation and through its various re-creations.
I thank Debra Goldstein, my all-time favorite writer and wordsmith of choice, for her dedication to impeccability. Her commitment to excellence was demonstrated over and over as she worked to organize, generate, and give shape to the manuscript through many iterations of my writing. Debra is a master of her craft, and I am grateful for our working partnership.
I thank Ned Leavitt, my trusted literary agent, who has depth of heart, intelligence, and wise perspective. I thank Ken Browning, my trusted manager and agent, for always getting it done and empowering the next level of who I am and what I’m up to.
I thank the Baptiste Institute staff, Baptiste Certified teachers, and the Baptiste Affiliated Yoga Schools who dynamically share and practice in this work and methodology.
I thank Mark Aronchick, Jim Meade, David Ruben, and Dr. Ronald Podel for real mentoring at critical points in my life that have contributed very much to my education and depth of experience. I thank Leah Cullis, who supported me on many paths that were timely for me to walk. I thank Amelia Gailey for her support and for being herself.
I thank my parents for gifting me with a presence on this earth. All my blessings are a reflection of their love for one another and for me. I love you both forever.
To the extent that I got things right, I thank all of these individuals. To the extent I missed the mark—that rests entirely with me.
— Baron Baptiste, Park City, Utah, December 2012