The Magic of Giving and Creating

Why are you working so hard? Are you working so hard because deep down you are afraid you couldn't make it? Do you perhaps want to escape from something? Do you really enjoy laboring as much as you claim you do? Are you working to be happy? Ask yourself these questions and just observe.

Many of us work hard to lead a happy life. We believe our work gives us meaning. But then, sometimes we experience an emptiness within. Some respond by defining new goals and by going after new things. Yet, all the activity and all the accumulated stuff can't fill the emptiness. So eventually it dawns on us that there must be a better way.

How can we get happiness anyway?  With the pain inside, we start a spiritual journey. We then understand that we had been looking for happiness in the wrong places. Happiness is not about acquiring more things; it is also not about proving to others and yourself that you are on the top of the world. To the contrary, happiness originates from a heart that cares. When you do something that you really love you can hear your heart sing. Have you ever experienced the trembling of excitement and joy when you really devote yourself to people or a project you care for. Not because you want something, not because you want to be somebody, but truly because you love what you are doing and love the people you are with.

You don’t really need to spend a penny for your happiness. You don't need to work hard to achieve anything.  All you need to do is just listen to your heart, connect with yourself and just say yes to the moment. The same happiness you can experience when you create something or reach out to others. Spend a heartfelt moment with someone and experience how both of you are transformed. Experience the magic of giving and doing when you connect with your Self. 

By Christian and Su Zhen

Let the Tao Help You Find the Job You Were Born to Do

At the beginning, mankind and the obligation of selfless service were created together."Through selfless service you will always be fruitful and find the fulfillment of your desires", this is the promise of your Creator.
Lord Krishna in Bhagavad Gita

How do you feel about your work?  Why do you work?  Do you work to make a living, or do work to express yourself? Do you work to prove yourself or do you work to join the world and share your unique gift with others?

We have found that your attitude towards your work already decides the outcome. If you work just to make a living, your attitude is more like work is something you need to tolerate so naturally you won’t enjoy it so much. As a matter of fact, you won't expect much and consequently will find little enjoyment in your occupation. You probably will not invest much of yourself into it and into the relationships at work and will quickly run out of patience when things don't work your way.

 If your attitude is to express yourself at work instead and use this opportunity to join the world and connect with people, you will transform your work and you find that your work and the people you connect with transform you in return. You are willing to learn, you devote yourself to your environment and the people, so you will open up to the whole process and your work will literally become a special place that way. That's how energy works, where your attention and your energy flows, magic happens.  You will succeed because your attitude manifests success. Your energy creates reality.

 Many people work just to make money.  They use money to measure how successful they are.  That is fine too if it is meaningful to you. Money is a proxy of success and status in our society and it helps you explore what exactly it is that you want to get out of life. But in the end understand that this stage in your life is just there to help you guide to the occupation that is truly meaningful to you. When you have truly found yourself, when you have finally embraced that occupation that shares your unique gift with the world, money will be the last thing you think about. It will flow naturally to you and just as your presence enriches the lives of others, you will have everything that matters to you in your life.

If you want to work to express yourself, you must know who you are and what you want. When you are split in your actions and your cravings - the stuff that you want to get out of your job and others - your effort and attention will only be half-hearted. It is ok to accept that stage but keep on realigning yourself and exploring what you can do differently. Know that the Tao works hard in the background to align your unique gift with your underlying desires. When you are on the top of your game, you get exactly the recognition you want just as your customers and your colleagues get exactly the service from you that they need. Align yourself completely with your environment and find that suddenly " work" becomes your life instead.  You express yourself through your work.

Getting to this point is not easy. Unfortunately our expectations, our conflicts with money, our conjectures of what others might think of us often come in the way. Sometimes we also don't trust that we have a gift that is special. The trick is to understand that the Tao has a plan for you already. Everything you do right now is a stepping stone towards sharing your gift with the world. Even if you have to work on something that you do not love wholeheartedly in the beginning stay with it until you find that open door for the occupation of your dreams. Colleagues and customers who annoy you may in fact have a learning opportunity in store for you that brings the gem out of hiding. "No master has ever fallen from the sky", a German proverb says. Step after step everything will become  clear to you. The love of your life is waiting for you patiently and when you have finally connected, you will feel fulfilled just as all the people are who are helped by you. Let the Tao help you find the job you were born to do.

By Christian and Su Zhen