Mindful Life, Mindful Work – Jonathan Reynolds

I had the good fortune of working with Jonathan recently around some career issues I was facing and was truly delighted by my experience with him. Jonathan is everything I think a good business coach should be: smart, compassionate, intuitive, highly experienced, creative, and able to dance in the moment with whatever I brought to the call. His extensive background in mindfulness, psychotherapy, and business acumen supported me equally in clarifying and addressing the multifaceted career questions and concerns I was sitting with. As a result, I left each call feeling inspired, invigorated, and actionable with clear next steps to address the growth and refinement of my business model and goals. I recommend Jonathan wholeheartedly as a business coach to anyone who is looking for someone deeply skilled, wise, and warm. It’s clear to me that Jonathan cares deeply about his clients and his personal and professional success is a testament to the skills he possesses as a business coach.

Jonathan listens deeply — you feel his groundedness right away — and he responds thoughtfully. There is never any doubt that you have been heard.
He draws from a broad background of study and training — psychology, philosophy, mindfulness, leadership — which gives him many perspectives on a problem, situation, or challenge.
He is able to distill a lot of information into simple and succinct insights.
He is patient and compassionate: he understands that growth can be challenging, uncomfortable, even disorienting. He does not recoil from anger, frustration, disappointment.
I’ve learned a lot, and gained a lot from our work together. I highly recommend him.

12 years ago I started attending Jonathon’s mindfulness classes. Each month I would bring another friend with me, or buy them his CD.
A few years ago during a tough transition (job loss, injury and relocation) I sought him out again.
This year as we prepare to have a child, I contacted Jonathan again. He coached me through how to step up my game at my work, in my career.
He is organized; he guides me through the process of what to say, who to say it to, and HOW to say it.
He is grounded, able to listen to what I am trying to say, not just what I am talking about.
He even has great ideas, akin to business consulting, when prompted.
For those of you realize the power of coaching, you know you need a coach who has pushed through what you want to push through. He has pushed through a lot, and succeeded; he has helped guide me through it too.

I worked with Jonathan recently during a pivotal career transition. He worked with me to provide guidance and focus throughout the difficult process.
While it was only for a short time, I found our conversations very helpful. He has encouraged me to take the risk I know I needed to take to determine the next chapter of my career.

I had the opportunity recently to work with Jonathan in his role as a life coach. Although our time working together was relatively short, it was invaluable to me and a real eye opener that I have the power and control over all aspects of my life choices, whether it be physical, mental, emotional or spiritual. What fascinated me was that he only suggested a relatively simple tweak to how I planned and looked at my daily life and it has made a huge difference to me and has and continues to be beneficial.

My initial experience with Jonathan was as a student in his Yin yoga class almost 8 years ago. I only attended one class but I was guided into the deepest yoga practice I have had before or since then. Over a year later, I reached out to him for support for my marriage while my husband and I were navigating a very difficult financial situation while raising two small children. We felt that Jonathan’s guidance allowed us to maintain connection in a time when we were not sure if we would be able to stay in the relationship. Over 5 years later, we reached out to him again while experiencing normal life situations that led my husband and me to wonder if we could reach deeper emotional intimacy within our marriage by connecting more profoundly in everyday life. We have worked with Jonathan for about a year and he has helped to guide and support us as we continue to grow as a couple and individually. His perspective is a powerful tool that has allowed us to become more connected as well as more deeply grounded in who we are. I now work with Jonathan individually, in addition to our relationship work. My personal, professional and spiritual awareness has grown with our work together and I feel deep gratitude that I have benefited so much from our work together which has allowed me to experience my life more fully and begin to wake up to how I choose to live each day. This work has improved my relationships with my children, parents, siblings, spouse, coworkers and most importantly, with myself.

After 20 years of government service, raising kids and keeping a household and marriage together, I found myself fatigued and uncertain of my capacity to serve in new and more demanding roles on my career horizon. With tremendous clarity and humor Jonathan has guided me along the next phase of my journey, on the path to greater awareness and self-​realization. His coaching created space for me to bring together the seemingly disparate parts of my personal and professional life so they could be revealed and experienced in ways I could not imagine. Then, with much compassion and wisdom, he opened up opportunities for truth, integration, and greater ease to emerge. As a direct result of Jonathan’s coaching, I am prepared to enter into the next phase of my career with more grace and the knowing that I have what it takes:)

Jonathan Reynolds is truly a yogi. He is the first teacher with whom I’ve worked who integrates meditation, stillness, poetry, chanting, and asanas into practice. As a true teacher, he openly and comfortably acknowledges the student part of being a teacher. In other words, no ego.
I’ve had experience with vinyasa and yin so knew that I wanted to work with him on that basis but after a week of retreat with him, I knew that I could sustain a personal practice. This is an incredible turning point. Thank you, Jonathan! Namaste.

Jonathan has inspired me to commit to practicing not only yin yoga regularly (which has become my favorite kind of yoga by now) but also mindfulness and awareness in many aspects of my life. He was the teacher that showed up in my life when I needed to experience that the real teacher and truth are always a part of me and there for me whenever I truly seek them. I like the way he weaves the principles of wisdom and compassion (towards others and ourselves) into his teachings of yin yoga and the donation based meditations that I really miss since he left Portland last fall.

I am so grateful to have found Jonathan at the Niroga Center in Berkeley. I joined with the monthly membership and had never done Yin Yoga before but I have been practicing Vipassana meditation for several years and so the deeper, more meditative aspect of this practice was very attractive to me. By the second class, in the second yoga position, I found myself crying about the death of a friend who had transitioned from this life FOUR years ago as if it had happened just yesterday. I know I have a lot of buried emotion around difficult experiences I’ve had in life but reaching these strong emotions, releasing them and really healing has been the challenge. When the tears came so surprisingly during my second yoga session with Jonathan, I knew I had found a very gifted teacher. His gentle nature, compassion, deep wisdom and spiritual guidance create a safe, nurturing space for our practice allowing for profound personal transformation to happen. We are so lucky to have his teachings, If you get the opportunity to work with him in whatever capacity that may be, don’t miss it. He will help you reach the peace and freedom you are seeking.

Jonathan Reynolds was the first yoga teacher to truly inspire me and set me on my path of mindful yoga practice. I first took Jonathan’s class when he taught donation based yoga at yoga mob in SF many years ago. He artfully and gracefully weaved the spiritual practice of yoga into the asana practice. He helped me to pay «attention» to each moment as it unfolded. His calming and engaging presence helped me to become more present to myself and others around me. He is amazing soul who truly cares about his students’ growth. I took 2 of his yin classes in SF before he left for Portland and it was again a wonderful practice. He has a way of opening you up to who you are and where you are in each moment. I am truly grateful that I met Jonathan and had him teach me the different limbs of yoga.

Jonathan was my first yoga and meditation teacher. Not only was I becoming flexible in body in his class but also flexible in mind. His class and perspective on the world helped me break through personal barriers that were limiting me. He helps you go deeper in a humorous and insightful way. I truly recommend his teaching, I feel I have advanced in new ways as a result of his training.

Jonathan’s teachings are inspired and inspiring. A better source for instruction or counseling would be difficult to come by. I am exceedingly grateful for him!

Jonathan’s Meditation Vinyasa class helped awaken me to yoga, and yoga forever changed my life. His insight and guidance and the power of his classes is something I keep with me today. Though I am no longer able to see Jonathan regularly due to distance, I keep his teachings with me and of the dozens of teachers with whom I’ve practiced, I recommend none more highly than Jonathan Reynolds.

When I first read about yin yoga, I knew it would be a good match for me. Unlike most forms of yoga that really work muscles, yin yoga involves deeper, longer stretches of the body’s connective tissues. As Jonathan explains on his website, «practicing the postures in this way allows one a deeper relationship with the subtle aspects of practice.» I find this to be true. For various reasons, the gentle nature of yin yoga (floor-​based and meditative practice) works well for me, and I have been really impressed with the way Jonathan teaches it. He is kind, thoughtful and very knowledgeable. I highly recommend him and the Berkeley Yoga Center studio.