Confucius.
Some time ago, a friend invited me to attend a Buddhist service on a Sunday morning. I had never been to a Buddhist temple and I was curious, so I eagerly went along. What struck me most about the service that morning, which lasted just over an hour, was the silence. With the exception of about ten minutes, given over to prayer and a few words from a monk, there was nothing but individual contemplation... and stillness.
As I was leaving, I saw the following notice taped on the window next to the front door:
Six Right Livelihood Guidelines
Consume Mindfully.
Eat with awareness and gratitude.
Pause before buying and see if breathing is enough.
Pay attention to the effects of the media you consume.
Pause. Breathe. Listen.
When you feel compelled to speak in a meeting or a conversation, pause.
Breathe before entering your home, or a place of work, or school.
Listen to the people you encounter. They are buddhas.
Practice Gratitude.
Notice what you have.
Be equally grateful for opportunities and challenges.
Share joy, not negativity.
Cultivate Compassion and Loving Kindness.
Notice where help is needed and be quick to help.
Consider others' perspectives deeply.
Work for peace at all levels.
Discover Wisdom.
Cultivate a 'don't know' mind.
Find connection between Buddhist teaching and your life.
Be open to what arises in every moment.
Accept Constant Change.
... posted by the entrance to a Zen Buddhist Temple on College Street in Toronto.
Read the words again... slowly and this time, out loud.
Hmmm...
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Drew is a personal life/leadership coach, mentor, speaker and author. His passions is writing, speaking and coaching - working with clients seeking to take their lives to the next level and helping those who are in transition and thinking about making big life/career changes. www.drewsimmie.com
If you would like to set up a meeting with Drew or have him speak to your orgnization, he can be reached at 1.416.927.9065 or by email at drew@drewsimmie.com. Follow him on twitter@thekite, facebook and LinkedIn.
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( 3 / 10 ) Click a star 1-5, left to right, to rate.Once in awhile you have to take a break and visit yourself. Audrey Giorgl.
So often it seems that we live out our lives in chains, not truly realizing that we are our own jailers. Whether at work or in our personal lives, the barriers many face and the difficulties that confront them often seem overwhelming and insurmountable.That’s especially true today. The last two years have been difficult for everyone. They have wrought challenges on many levels. At such times it’s a good idea to remind yourself of all that you have accomplished and all the pluses in your life. There are many. Make a list. Write them down.
It’s all too easy to lose sight of your talents and all you have to be grateful for – what you can still do in the future, if only you will stop for awhile and remember that you’re bigger than you see yourself.
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Drew is a personal life/leadership coach, mentor, speaker and author. His passions is writing, speaking and coaching - working with clients seeking to take their lives to the next level and helping those who are in transition and thinking about making big life/career changes. www.drewsimmie.com
If you would like to set up a meeting with Drew or have him speak to your orgnization, he can be reached at 1.416.927.9065 or by email at drew@drewsimmie.com. Follow him on twitter@thekite, facebook and LinkedIn.
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( 3.3 / 14 ) Click a star 1-5, left to right, to rate.There are literally thousands of self help books in the market, some of them very helpful, thoughtful and certainly worth studying. Others… not so much.
One of the best one I have read – and always recommend to my clients - is a book entitled The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron.
Essentially, it’s a book about how to uncrate your creativity. Developing your ability to connect with and trust the messages emanating from the right side of your brain is paramount to your success in today’s information age.
A way to do that, suggests the author, is to write what she terms "your morning pages." Take 3 blank sheets of 8 ½ X 11 pager, and each morning, before you open your computer or turn on the TV or the radio, sit down and fill these three pages with whatever thoughts come to your mind. Streaming your thoughts is an ideal exercise and a great way to get the creative process started.
There’s much more, of course, to this and many other helpful ideas, but if you’re trying to bump up your creative side, you’ll love this book.
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Drew is a personal life/leadership coach, mentor, speaker and author. His passions is writing, speaking and coaching - encouraging his clients to look for the best within themselves and coaching those who are in transition and thinking about making big life/career changes. www.drewsimmie.com
If you would like to set up a meeting with Drew or have him speak to your orgnization, he can be reached at 1.416.927.9065 or by email at drew@drewsimmie.com. Follow him on twitter@thekite, facebook and LinkedIn.
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( 3.5 / 14 ) Click a star 1-5, left to right, to rate.Her accent immediately caught my ear. “Where are you from? I asked, as she gave me back the change from my pizza and a coke.
“Bukhara, Uzbekistan,” she replied. “Do you know it? Do you know where that is?”
”The Silk Road,” I replied.
She beamed back at me in appreciation, so pleased that someone in her newly adopted city knew of her country and where she was from. It’s not easy being an immigrant.
Bukhara is an old city situated on The Silk Road, an ancient trade route linking Asia with Europe, the Middle East and Africa. In its day, the city was a centre of scholarship, culture and religion hundreds of years before North American was even a glint in Columbus's eye. In fact, the area around the city has existed for over five millennia. Get a feel for the city. The sight of the blue domed mosque will instantly transport you into the city.
Goods and services first started flowing through that region in the year 206 BCE when the Han Dynasty opened up a route to export silk from China.
Back then, of course, it wasn’t only goods and services. On the backs of the horses and camels and in the holds of ships came a steady stream of different peoples, each bringing with them their ideas, customs, fashions and religions – mixing and mingling, intermarrying, learning, growing and expanding their horizons.
Just like today. Only now technology has scrunched time and distance. The flow of ideas and information is infinitely faster than it was the first time around. Now if only we can keep up to it...
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Drew is a personal life/leadership coach, mentor, speaker and author. He coaches people seeking to more their lives/businesses forward, and those who are in transition,thinking about making big life/career changes. www.drewsimmie.com
If you would like to set up a meeting with Drew or have him speak to your orgnization, he can be reached at 1.416.927.9065 or by email at drew@drewsimmie.com. Follow him on twitter@thekite, facebook and LinkedIn.
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( 3.2 / 12 ) Click a star 1-5, left to right, to rate.You never know how far you can go until you go for it. T.S. Elliott
Bundled into following your dream and finding what you believe is your purpose, is an overwhelming belief in yourself.
It’s this belief that will support and sustain as you go out there each day to make your dream a reality. Dreaming a dream is one thing – making it happen takes a little longer – sometimes a lot longer. We all know the story about so and so who became an overnight success…. after slaving in obscurity for years.
It’s not uncommon for people, after they have struggled for 3-4-5 years and more to say, “If I had known what was involved, I might not have done it.” But they don’t mean it. Not really.
It’s not the dream – it’s who you become on the way to attaining it. No matter how long it takes you.
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Drew is a personal life/leadership coach, mentor, speaker and author. He coaches people seeking to more forward, or who are in transition,thinking about making big life/career changes. www.drewsimmie.com
If you would like to set up a meeting with Drew or have him speak to your orgnization, he can be reached at 1.416.927.9065 or by email at drew@drewsimmie.com. Follow him on twitter@thekite, facebook and LinkedIn.
Rate this article:
( 3.3 / 12 ) Click a star 1-5, left to right, to rate.Next
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