58 • PART I: A MODEL FOR SELF-REGULATION AND ENGAGEMENT
walk to school (low level of pain), yet the student manifests large amounts of resistance, he
or she can experience a great amount of suffering while walking to school. Conversely, the
student may experience substantial pain (e.g., not getting accepted to the college of one’s
choice or having an alcoholic parent) yet allow what has happened, or is happening, to be,
and acknowledge it for what it is. In this case, despite the hardship, the student will experi-
ence manageable discomfort (Cook-Cottone, 2015; Shapiro & Carlson, 2009).
It is believed that the practices of mindfulness and yoga help students develop compas-
sion for self toward others (e.g., Saksena & Sharma, 2016). Self-compassion is: (a) the ability
to be kind and understanding toward oneself during instances of pain and failure rather than
being harshly self-critical, (b) seeing one’s experiences as part of the bigger human experi-
ence and not isolating, and (c) holding painful thoughts and feelings in mindful awareness
rather than over-identifying with them (Neff, 2003). Being able to self-regulate and grow
mindfully requires skill in both compassion and self-compassion. Mindfulness and yoga
practices give students many opportunities to experience errors and failure, engage in com-
passion and self-compassion, and get back to good effort.
Principle 11: Kindness: “I am kind to myself and others”
In yoga tradition, kindness is considered one of a pair of practices—loving-kindness. Loving-
kindness helps develop the capacity for empathy and connection (Cook-Cottone, 2015).
Loving-kindness involves attending to self and others with a quiet and open heart (Cook-
Cottone, 2015; Wallace, 2011). Siegel (2010) defines loving-kindness as the feeling of compas-
sionate concern for, genuine interest in, and engagement with another. Kindness is distinct
from compassion (Cook-Cottone, 2015). For example, Hanson and Mendius (2009) note, “If
compassion is the wish that beings not suffer, kindness is the wish that they be happy”
(p. 157). In her principles for teaching yoga in schools, Lisa Flynn of Yoga 4 Classrooms asks
teachers and students to surround themselves with kindness by practicing gentleness and
peacefulness in thoughts and actions (Flynn, 2013). Kindness can be expressed in self-talk,
words used to communicate with others, and actions.
Principle 12: Possibility: “I work toward the possibility of
effectiveness and growth in my life”
In 2013, my research team went to Nairobi, Kenya, to study the Africa Yoga Project. We
used a method called concept mapping, a mixed-method approach using brainstorming,
survey data collection, multidimensional scaling, and hierarchical cluster analysis. Among
our many findings was this: Those who were teaching and practicing with the Africa Yoga
Project reported that yoga helped them see possibility on their mats and in their lives (Klein,
Cook-Cottone, & Giambrone, 2015). Mindfulness and yoga offer students opportunity, in
active practice, to play with possibility in a safe and supportive environment. One of my
most cherished experiences is seeing a young yoga student achieve a pose that he or she has
been working on. I love that look in the student’s eyes that says, “If I can do this, what else
is possible?”
Mindful Grit and Mindful Growing
The principles of embodied growth and learning capture the essence of mindful grit and mind-
ful growing. Mindful grit is a new term that builds on Duckworth’s (2016) work that defines
grit as passion and perseverance. Mindful grit holds space for positive embodiment and