From performer to Peloton instructor, Sam Yo can now add published author to his résumé.
At the WWD Beauty CEO Summit, he saw the finished copies of his book, The Monk’s Mindset, which came out on May 18, for the very first time.
“What’s surreal about this is some of the stories in this book are from my journals from 25 years ago, when I was sitting alone in a hut in the humidity of Thailand writing,” Yo said. “And now, I’m doing a book reveal onstage in front of 400 people in Palm Beach.”
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Yo, in conversation with Jenny B. Fine, executive editor, beauty, WWD and editor in chief of Beauty Inc, had much to share on he’s found focus, intention and purpose in his life, and began the conversation with breathwork. “What we should be doing is a full breath. It triggers the nervous system to tell it it’s safe, so wherever you’e sitting, just sit up, relax your jaw and relax your face,” Yo said.
He went on to detail his international upbringing, having grown up in London with Thai parents. While he traveled frequently between the two countries, he never felt like he fully belonged in either. “I was chasing belonging through achievement. I thought success would be my self worth, and that would make me feel a part of something,” Yo said. “What I learned is that belonging doesn’t come from performance. Belonging comes from self acceptance.”
The beginner’s mind, as he calls it, has become central to his own way of moving through the world. “Our expertise can quietly close us off, and sometimes the more success we get, the less curious we get,” Yo said. “One of the core principles of the beginner’s mindset is curiosity, it’s humility, it’s patience. When you have those things, you stay teachable.”
To discover that clarity within himself, Yo left a successful career in the theater to enter a Buddhist monastery in Thailand for nine months. “I only had five things when I left the monastery. I had choice of everything again and I realized that connection matters more than consumption, and people generally don’t buy things because they need more things, they buy things because they become emotionally connected to something,” he said.
Yo was drawn to Peloton after the monastery because he was seeking ways to be of service to others both physically and emotionally. He also learned a thing or two about motivating others. “Motivation is extremely unreliable, because motivation is always changing,” Yo said. “What I’ve learned is people move when they’re emotionally connected, they don’t just come for fitness, they come for energy, they come to be energized, and they come for emotional release.”
Outside of the monastery or off the bike, Yo recommended finding small moments of mindfulness throughout the day. “Peace isn’t about escaping pressure, peace is staying grounded inside pressure, and the way you can do that is by implementing small moments within your day to come back to yourself,” Yo said, noting that he calls those “Monk Mindset Moments” in the book.
As an example, he cited holding a cup of coffee or mug of tea in the morning. “Feel the warmth, and associate it with something you’re grateful for. It could be your job, you get to meet amazing people, it could be your children, it could be the fact that you showed up today,” Yo said. “You can build on that and have these moments when you come back to yourself in the chaotic world that we currently live in.”