The Power of a Pivot...

Unique Perspectives: The Power of a Pivot...

By Kim Stevens

The Power of a Pivot.

I’m reading The Pivot Year by Brianna Wiest. It was introduced to me by my yoga instructor Jamie. Every now and then, she’d read a passage from the book as we settled into practice. I loved those moments… quiet, thought-provoking, and gentle. The kind that sneak up on you and stay with you all day.

The one line that made me buy the book was this:

“Rather than spending more of your time trying to work through your conceptual self, move out of your head and touch your life.”

I know, right?!

That line urges us to stop trying to figure everything out. To stop living in loops of analysis. To touch life again. To return to the real, the raw, the right-now.

It’s no surprise that I love the idea of a pivot, and the actual definition of it too. In basketball, a pivot is when the player keeps one foot grounded while turning their body in a new direction. I really like that image.

Because the beauty of a pivot is that you don’t have to abandon everything. You don’t have to move across the country, blow up your life, or start from scratch (unless you want to). A pivot invites you to stay rooted… but reoriented. It’s a shift. A turn. A sacred redirection.

Last week, I was at the shore. It was a beautiful day. And at one point I stood still and just pivoted — physically — just 90 degrees. And my view changed completely. The sky opened up in a different way. The light caught the water differently. I hadn’t moved from my spot, but the world around me looked entirely new.

That’s what a pivot does.

It changes your perspective. It opens up possibility. It reminds you that you’re never stuck…  just one decision away from a new direction.

Lately, I’ve been feeling like I’m in a pivot year of my own. Not because something dramatic has happened, but because something inside me is shifting. Quietly. Profoundly. Calling me to turn just enough to see differently, live differently, lead differently.

I love a pivot. I love the idea of pivoting. I love the pivotal moments that change us from the inside out…  the ones that look small from the outside, but feel enormous within.

So here’s to the pivot. To turning without running. To staying rooted while choosing a new view. To moments that invite us to move out of our heads and touch our lives.