Who else is guilty of mixing up their left from right while instructing? It's good practice to mirror our classes so people can follow along, but you also need to verbally instruct the other side and it can become confusing!
During my final practical assessment to become a yoga instructor, sure enough, I mixed up my left from right. And almost failed because of this...I was asked to reassess again the next day, ensuring I remembered my left from right!
My yogi BFF, Stef, who I met during my training was as much outside-of-the-box as I was. We were known as the rebels of the group. Not for any bad reason, it was just we were a little more outspoken, we pushed boundaries, asked a lot of questions and ended most days with a Bintang and dancing the night away at one of the local bars. We had a great time...
Towards the end of our training, Stef and I vowed to get a tattoo together, and a free one at that. Deus Ex Machina in Canggu has Tacos and TattsTuesday, so you buy a taco and a beer, then you get in line for a free tattoo. The catch was that you needed to be there by around 5pm, to make sure you get a spot because they fill up fast. So my little buddy snuck out of our final theory workshop, put our names down on the list and told me to be at Deus at 7pm for our free tatts.
Fast-forward a few hours later, we're sitting at Deus trying to decide what to have inked on our skin. I decided if I get one on my wrist, I thought I'd never forget my left from right again (how naive). So I chose an arrow to represent that the only time an arrow is pulled back is to be catapulted forward. I felt the meaning represented my way of life, plus it would help me remember directions. The artist drew a rough sketch, without a second thought, I had it permanently marked on my skin.
To be honest, I had instant regret. I should have thought a little more about the design of my permanent piece of art. However, it served its purpose and I have a great memory behind it (I am now in the process of having it removed, sorry Stef, I still love you).
I had my reassessment the next morning, needless to say, I passed because I nailed my left from right, but it was the only time it helped me remember my left from right... So if you're an instructor and you mix up your left and right too, I don't recommend you getting a tattoo to help. It's not a foolproof method.