From Rock to Diamond: The Alchemy of Mind and Spirit
By: SoFeya SahRa Joseph
Many years ago, when I coached competitive figure skating, I was obsessed with understanding why some athletes became champions while others failed despite having similar or even superior physical abilities. I would watch skaters practice complex maneuvers with consistent precision, only to crumble under pressure at competitions, year after year. These athletes would return, work even harder on their technique, yet despair after another disappointing performance. On the other hand, some consistently performed at their best under pressure. Something wasn’t adding up.
Work ethic, habits, and technique were not the only factors determining success. “Talent” was often used to describe the ‘lucky winners,’ while “psychology” was blamed for those with ‘faulty minds.’ However, I couldn’t rely on “luck” to coach only “talented” students. I needed to find a way to elevate the performance of my ‘faulty-minded’ students. Traditional sports psychology tools were not meeting the demands of my sport. Mental training requires long, unnatural, ineffective preparation in a high-paced, high-pressure, competitive environment. I had to find a better way.
The search for ‘another way’ led me to discover The Mind Wheel, an ancient yogic teaching that explains how our mind works. This simple diagram effectively shows how an event enters our mind (1), is processed through subconscious filters of our beliefs (2), and produces a thought (3). A thought elicits an emotion (4), which in turn invokes a desire (5), followed by an action (6). The action then creates a consequence (7) and leads to another event (0), and the cycle repeats.
Most people get stuck in this wheel for years, even lifetimes, habitually responding to a stimulus in the same way over and over. Cognitive Behavioral Psychologists refer to these mind processes as patterns, thought forms, or core beliefs and offer various therapy techniques for behavior change that may take years to instill with only mild relief. Eastern esoteric gurus promise that one can break the cycle if one develops will and discipline, such as required in yoga and meditation practice.
But they also warn of the challenge…