Because yogas are disciplines, like going to school, doing homework and taking tests, or going to work and performing job responsibilities, you need to have a structure. That structure incudes 1) what you want to do, in this case, what recommendation(s) from your interview you want to test; 2) You need to have some way of keeping track of your application. IDL uses the SMARTER formula (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-based, Evaluate, Reward) to operationalize your chosen recommendation. This is in order to answer the question, “How will I – or anyone else – know that my interviewing and application really produced healing, balancing, or transformation?” 3) You need an accountability structure, just as you did in school and for your work. There were expectations and commitments that you made and that you needed to keep. The problem with self-directed study, like learning IDL, is that it requires much more self-discipline and motivation because it lacks the structure and consequences of school and work. Therefore, you need to create for yourself a structure that compensates for that absence to pull you through periods of distraction, demands of other priorities and people in your life, and natural periods of flagging interest or motivation.
This is why IDL has tests after slide presentations and has you team up with a study partner. You hold each other accountable for following through with your application and action plan. You share with your partner who you interviewed, what recommendation you want to work with, your SMARTER plan, and then check in with them via email, WhatsApp, or video conference at least once a week for mutual accountability, support, and problem-solving.
The following table is designed to track your application of interview recommendations. The button accesses a PDF that you can copy to make your own table.
| Character | Recom-mend– –ation | How Measur-ing? | Desired Outcome | Realistic? | When Evaluat-ing? | When/ How Reward-ing? |