I have been thinking about the number of people I know who have been laid off from work and are struggling to find meaningful employment. We want something that fits our passions and joys - something that really makes us want to get up and get out there each day.
But what if 're looking too hard? What if there is work all around us.. but it's up to us to make it meaningful?
I'm all about finding your ideal job that perfectly matches your gifts and strengths. This is the ideal situation. But what if that job isn't out there right now? What if you can't make enough money at your passion to pay the bills? What then?
The funny thing is that there are dangers to making your job the compilation of your passions. We love the idea of taking what you love to do and spending all day working at it and making money - "being paid to do what you love" - it's the big dream. But this puts tremendous pressure on your passions. Suddenly you can't do the things that you love to do with the same carefree joy and creativity because you always have to be considering "Will they buy it?", "Is it consumable to the public?", "Is it good enough?", etc. Often, the focus of putting food on the table completely squelches the creative process that we enjoy about it in the first place.
So what do we do? Do we just get any old job and make the best of it?
Perhaps the answer is YES.
We often focus on the external aspects of our lives and work. We look at the people around us, where we live, where we work, who our relatives are, what our education is, how much money we have, etc. But what if the most interesting thing going on is actually deep inside of us? What if it is the inner journey that is the most exciting regardless of what is going on on the outside?
What if we brought our personality, joy and sense of abundance to ANY job that we had. What if those things were what we were growing and working on each moment of our day? Suddenly it wouldn't matter whether we were driving a taxi cab, teaching grade 6, or being a rocket scientist. We would still be bringing OURSELVES to each moment of the job. We would still be finding joy (or not) in each new experience.
Regardless of where we work, our experience is simply OUR experience. The actual job has very little to do with how much we enjoy it. Whether we want to enjoy it is what defines our experience of it. It's all up to us.
This is the problem with always trying to find the PERFECT job. Underlying this goal is the belief that "once we find the perfect job, we will be happy." This statement is just as false as "Once I find the right man, I will be happy" and "Once I have a child, I will be happy", or the infamous "Once I lose 30 pounds, I will be happy." None of these statements are true. And their belief will lead you down a perpetual road of always longing for things to be different.
Being happy is a state of being. Being happy is a choice.
I'm always entertained by the stories of sages who work at menial jobs. They always have a sparkle of youth and joy in their eyes - like they know something that we don't - like they are a little entertained by the idea that we think that we will find happiness somewhere outside of ourselves - that we think that what we do for a living matters SO MUCH...
Being happy doesn't come from finding the perfect job. It comes from choosing to be entertained by whatever life throws at us. Could be drama, could be hard work, could be a low paycheque. Or it could be learning, growth, and great friendships.
What we do with it is entirely up to us. :)
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Intuition
What is intuition anyway?
Intuition is a new way to navigate through this world.
We have been trained that we can use our brains and intellect to find our ideal path - that we can study the options, find the optimal one and be confident in the desired outcome. We do this in how we act in marriage, raising kids, work, and every aspect of our lives. Our brains rule. We trust the "facts", the numbers, and the analysis.
The problem is that the real world isn't like that. We cannot guarantee our outcomes no matter how much research and intelligence that we apply to the problem
The Scientific Side
(feel free to skip this section if the idea makes your eyes roll back in your head)
Modern sciences distinguish between linear and non-linear systems. A bridge or a car tend to be linear systems - we know all of the pieces, how they work, how they interact and what the purposes are of each piece and function. We can analyse the situation, dissect it, figure it out, and find the ideal solution. It's all very possible, reasonable and intelligent.
Non-linear systems are things like weather and ecosystems. We can observe what we can. But in reality, there are so many variables - some we can observe and others that we haven't even seen yet - that we can't begin to predict what would happen at any time (this is actually quite a lengthy discussion that I thoroughly enjoy having that might get added to this website one day).
Using logic and intelligence with non-linear systems doesn't work because we don't know or understand all of the variables and the causal agents.
Human beings are non-linear systems.
Explanation for Mortals:
Our physical bodies are so phenomenally complex, that we can't pretend to understand how they all work, let alone the infinitely complex interplay between all of the moving parts. Then there is our mind filled with ideas, ideals, thoughts, fears, emotions, dreams, wonder, and so much more. How do they all interact? Then there is spirit? How does that work and how does it affect all of these other things.
Then let's look at our relationships - marriage, children, parents, siblings, friends, co-workers, & neighbours (close and far). There's our jobs, finances, life-long dreams, challenges,...
How can we possibly know the effect that any decision that we make could have on ALL of these things?
The truth is that we can't. The ripple effect of all of our decisions is infinite and impossible to know. This is where intuition comes in.
Our Actual Navigation System:
We weren't meant to navigate using our brains. The reality is that the smarter we are, the more impossible it is to use our brains to make decisions because we can see both sides. The dafter we are, the easier it is. But once you can see both sides, how do you make a choice.
We have to navigate through an inner guidance system. Some call it intuition, divine guidance, gut instincts, the "little voice", our Highest Self, Inner Wisdom, and the whispers of our soul. I call it all of these things.
In order to trust this inner wisdom, you must believe that it comes from something that understand the "whole". Science says that we consciously use less than 5% of our brain. Perhaps that inner guidance system has access to 100%. Spiritually, maybe it is directly hooked into a general consciousness that understands the big picture. Or maybe it's our direct link to God - and the whisperings are our answered prayers - guidance from the "Big Guy/Gal".
Regardless of what we imagine it is or where it comes from, I went through an experience that I wrote about in my book "What If You Could Skip the Cancer?" which required me to turn off my brain and follow that inner voice. I had to listen to guidance from somewhere else - somewhere other than where I'd been listening up until that point. The result was a miraculous healing and the beginning of a new way of seeing the world and navigating through it.
I can tell you of a thousand seredipitous events, continuous miracles appearing in my life - in big ways and very small ways. When I live this way, I never know what's coming, and life is amazingly entertaining!!
The only way to know this is to try it. My experience won't help anyone unless it inspires them to try it on their own.
This is why I love teaching about intuition. It's such a juicy way to live. I love counselling individuals and teaching it to groups. It is a cornerstone of yoga and meditation because it is intrinsically part of how humans are naturally meant to operate in a peaceful, calm, and joyful way.
(I am in the midst of revamping my website. I will posting various things like this that will go on my site one day soon.)
Intuition is a new way to navigate through this world.
We have been trained that we can use our brains and intellect to find our ideal path - that we can study the options, find the optimal one and be confident in the desired outcome. We do this in how we act in marriage, raising kids, work, and every aspect of our lives. Our brains rule. We trust the "facts", the numbers, and the analysis.
The problem is that the real world isn't like that. We cannot guarantee our outcomes no matter how much research and intelligence that we apply to the problem
The Scientific Side
(feel free to skip this section if the idea makes your eyes roll back in your head)
Modern sciences distinguish between linear and non-linear systems. A bridge or a car tend to be linear systems - we know all of the pieces, how they work, how they interact and what the purposes are of each piece and function. We can analyse the situation, dissect it, figure it out, and find the ideal solution. It's all very possible, reasonable and intelligent.
Non-linear systems are things like weather and ecosystems. We can observe what we can. But in reality, there are so many variables - some we can observe and others that we haven't even seen yet - that we can't begin to predict what would happen at any time (this is actually quite a lengthy discussion that I thoroughly enjoy having that might get added to this website one day).
Using logic and intelligence with non-linear systems doesn't work because we don't know or understand all of the variables and the causal agents.
Human beings are non-linear systems.
Explanation for Mortals:
Our physical bodies are so phenomenally complex, that we can't pretend to understand how they all work, let alone the infinitely complex interplay between all of the moving parts. Then there is our mind filled with ideas, ideals, thoughts, fears, emotions, dreams, wonder, and so much more. How do they all interact? Then there is spirit? How does that work and how does it affect all of these other things.
Then let's look at our relationships - marriage, children, parents, siblings, friends, co-workers, & neighbours (close and far). There's our jobs, finances, life-long dreams, challenges,...
How can we possibly know the effect that any decision that we make could have on ALL of these things?
The truth is that we can't. The ripple effect of all of our decisions is infinite and impossible to know. This is where intuition comes in.
Our Actual Navigation System:
We weren't meant to navigate using our brains. The reality is that the smarter we are, the more impossible it is to use our brains to make decisions because we can see both sides. The dafter we are, the easier it is. But once you can see both sides, how do you make a choice.
We have to navigate through an inner guidance system. Some call it intuition, divine guidance, gut instincts, the "little voice", our Highest Self, Inner Wisdom, and the whispers of our soul. I call it all of these things.
In order to trust this inner wisdom, you must believe that it comes from something that understand the "whole". Science says that we consciously use less than 5% of our brain. Perhaps that inner guidance system has access to 100%. Spiritually, maybe it is directly hooked into a general consciousness that understands the big picture. Or maybe it's our direct link to God - and the whisperings are our answered prayers - guidance from the "Big Guy/Gal".
Regardless of what we imagine it is or where it comes from, I went through an experience that I wrote about in my book "What If You Could Skip the Cancer?" which required me to turn off my brain and follow that inner voice. I had to listen to guidance from somewhere else - somewhere other than where I'd been listening up until that point. The result was a miraculous healing and the beginning of a new way of seeing the world and navigating through it.
I can tell you of a thousand seredipitous events, continuous miracles appearing in my life - in big ways and very small ways. When I live this way, I never know what's coming, and life is amazingly entertaining!!
The only way to know this is to try it. My experience won't help anyone unless it inspires them to try it on their own.
This is why I love teaching about intuition. It's such a juicy way to live. I love counselling individuals and teaching it to groups. It is a cornerstone of yoga and meditation because it is intrinsically part of how humans are naturally meant to operate in a peaceful, calm, and joyful way.
(I am in the midst of revamping my website. I will posting various things like this that will go on my site one day soon.)
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