There are moments in life when the stories you’ve been repeating for years stop making sense.

Sometimes the shift happens quietly; sometimes it arrives with surprising clarity. For me, this one started with four long presses on my phone screen a couple of weeks ago.

Instagram: deleted.

LinkedIn: deleted.

Facebook: deleted.

TikTok: deleted.

Not a dramatic digital detox. just a gentle but deliberate step back. If I want to scroll now, I have to choose it on my laptop. No more reflex reach, no more background noise disguised as “staying connected.”

And as soon as the apps disappeared, something else surfaced: a story I’d been carrying for far too long.

The Story I Didn’t Know I Was Telling

For years, I’d convinced myself that being on social media was essential to grow as a yoga teacher and coach.

That story kept me checking, comparing, scrolling, and often feeling more drained than inspired.

So I took my own medicine and used one of my favourite coaching questions on myself:

Where’s the evidence?

Where’s the evidence that constant digital connection fuels meaningful growth?

Where’s the evidence that my teaching, my business, or my creativity actually depend on the algorithm?

Looking back over the last year, the truth was clear:

• new classes

• workshop invitations

• coaching clients

• people finding their way to my offerings

• genuine community moments

Not one of them originated from social media.

Everything that mattered came from presence, conversations, recommendations and real human connection.

Seeing the Stories We Bring to the Mat

This got me thinking about the stories people bring into the yoga room, stories that sit quietly in the background, shaping how they move, breathe, and see themselves.

Stories like:

“I’m not flexible enough.”

“Everyone else will be more advanced.”

“I should be further along.”

“If I’m not hurting, it’s not working.”

These stories feel personal, but they’re universal. And like most stories, they’re often untested, accepted as gospel without question.

Yoga philosophy calls this svadhyaya (self-study) the gentle but courageous art of looking inward and asking: Is this true?

A Simple Practice for Shifting the Narrative

If a particular story is lingering for you, and you’re not quite sure it’s serving you, try this short reflective exercise:

1. Write the story down in one sentence.

Name it. Don’t tidy it up.

2. Ask: “Where’s the evidence that this is absolutely true?”

Not theoretically. In your lived experience.

3. Then ask: “What else is true?”

This is where the story can soften.

You might land on something like:

“I’m someone who shows up, even when it’s hard.”

“I’m learning to listen to my body.”

“I’m stronger and more adaptable than I realised.”

The point isn’t to erase the old story.

It’s to make space for a more accurate, empowering one.

The Quiet Power of Paying Attention

Deleting those apps didn’t magically solve anything.

What it did was create space, enough space to hear myself again, to reconnect with what actually supports my energy and teaching.

Sometimes the slightest shift in behaviour reveals a deeper shift in awareness.

Sometimes the story you’ve been carrying begins to loosen.

And sometimes, without force or drama, life invites you into a clearer, truer version of yourself.

That’s the practice.