Interview with Duncan peak

What was the inspiration for starting Power Living? 

 

I was inspired to make Yoga less mystical and more accessible to people like 

me who love to be still, practice asana and work on character development 

but are not really interested in the 'religious' side or the guru worship side of 

yoga. 

 

Yoga helped me transcend a lot of stories i was telling myself, being a victim 

etc and offered a way to explore myself without judgement resulting in greater 

self awareness and joy. I wanted to share that with the everyday person in a 

way i knew they would be able to receive it rather than be scared or confused 

by the mysticism. 

 

"Teach yoga not as it applies to yourself but as it applies to the other" Shri 

Krishna Macharya

 

That quote always stayed with me, i thought Power Living was a way to teach 

yoga as it applied to the general person.

 

 

Can you let us know what makes a ‘Modern Day Yogi’?

 

I think its simple, anyone who wants to expand their awareness of 

themselves, be accountable for their internal state rather than blaming others. 

Someone who is health conscious, has an interest in stilling their mind and 

removing layers of stories they tell themselves that don't serve them.

 

I suppose i don't see the discipline around or time these days it takes to 

practice yoga in such a traditional way. Maybe as a householder stage of 

life?  Modern Day Yogi is really what i see people. Can practice - being 

healthy, conscious, developing compassion and runs business and do the 

housework etc. 

 

 

How can someone who practices yoga regularly make lasting change in their 

lives?

 

I think it's about positive daily rituals. The vasana's (tendencies) that are often 

negative, will always come up, its not really something we are going to finish 

but rather a practice that removes patterns and replaces them with more 

positive patterns so that suffering can be reduced and a deeper feeling of 

connection to life can be felt.

 

A lasting change is a new pattern that you go to under stress, its instinctive, it 

needs to be rewired but i believe this needs to be done by daily positive 

rituals. That may be meditation, asana, journaling etc anything that keeps you 

in a state of consciousness that stops you reconfirming the old vasana's that 

cause so much suffering.

 

 

What is a typical day in Duncan’s Life? 

 

My life is a lot of travel, up to 30 weeks a year so I'm not sure if there is a 

typical day. When I'm at home i wake up 6am or 7am, walk to the beach, 

meditate, swim or surf and then a little asana or some physical workout. I then 

do a bit of 'CEO' style work, emails etc and try to get creative in the afternoon 

with videos or other projects I'm working on that i enjoy.

 

In the evenings i usually just have quiet time chilling with my partner, cooking 

and sometimes a movie or read a book. Life is pretty simple these days. 

 

 

What the role of Social Media is in a ‘Modern Yogi’s Life?

 

I really resisted social media for so long but it became so obvious about 3 

years ago that it was now the modern day database. As a business owner i 

had to embrace it so i sought counsel from people who saw the creative side 

of it and tried to evolve myself into seeing the creative way of running social 

media rather than a chore or judging it as bad because of the obvious 'fame' 

focus it has.

 

I think we have to be careful with social media though as its so much about 

approval and reputation, which are quite contradictions to character 

development and ways to evolve and experience a state of yoga. 

 

I think many people struggle with it in the yoga industry because its so 'fake' in 

one way. But its also a great platform to connect with people, so its a double 

edge sword.

 

So the role of a modern day yogi is really to find a good relationship to it that 

is creative but not drawn in by the 'tendencies towards fame and reputation. 

It's sort of shocking how dominate in marketing as a yogi it has become so 

quickly but it also helps evolve yoga to people who maybe wouldn't have tried 

it? I have love/hate relationship to it but I'm very clear it is part of a modern 

day yoga business. Over 30% of our sales for courses comes from social 

media. Since I've started bringing it into my weekly focus I've been able to 

touch people from all over the world & see them travel from Europe, America, 

Africa etc to do my courses. Without social media i would never have had this 

opportunity.

 

I think we need to let Yoga evolve in the main stream world and just be honest 

with how its happening. I get the downsides of it but it is an awesome platform 

to practice NOT seeking approval or comparing yourself with others and use it 

as a creative endeavour. 

 

Or if you don't like it, don't get involved with it but right/wrong thinking about it 

really isn't going to serve you. See it for what it is - another form of a database 

and way of connecting with a wider audience.

 

If your serious about building a following as a yoga teacher and want to travel 

etc its just something you have to now embrace, it wasn't like that when i 

started and yep, things were so much simpler.