Who Reads a Blog on Xmas Day?

Better question – who writes a blog on Xmas day?!

I do. Why? Well, why not?

The day is to celebrate the things that make life worthwhile: love, compassion, friendship, family, giving, receiving.

Xmas a great time to practise generosity of spirit.

Recently, I have been reading “The Diamond Cutter”, a book by the controversial first Westerner ever to complete the rigorous 20~30-year doctorate in Buddhist studies to become a Geshe in the Tibetan spiritual tradition. Geshe Michael Roach is now an outsider, cloaked in doubt by the elders of his calling, and yet his book is a powerful testimony to East meets West, business meets spiritualism.

I think one of the surprises for anyone who undertakes to start his or her own business, is the spiritual nature of the task. It is a transformational journey that defeats many people. Why?

Because the Identity you take into the business does not survive its success.

Put another way: who you are believing your Self to be when you start out, is not the person you come to know as you succeed.

I see it often in coaching my ATSuccess members: the real roadblock is not the obscurity of Alexander's discovery; the roadblock is giving up long cherished Identities about your Self. One of the wisdoms of business – and why it is a humbling profession to undertake – is that the market does not care about your Identity.

The market does not care about your opinion.

It will do what it does, and it becomes your job to understand, to listen, to give empathy – all the things that Xmas is supposed to be about!

Who would have thought that Xmas was the warm-up act for running your own business?

Well, it is.

As you end your day – whether it is still Xmas or not – know that the real seeds of success lie deep in your mind*:

When you are giving, you have what you need.

When you speak kindly, your students are loyal.

When you celebrate others’ successes, you cause satisfaction in your own work.

When you are creative, innovative and fun, your tools last longer.

When you humble yourself to others, your authority increases.

When you seek to conciliate, people around you are considerate.

When you are decisive in your decisions, it causes your practise to stabilize.

When you try to help others to win, you keep winning your Self.

When you take time to focus, you easily manage your challenges.

When you seek to understand, understanding flows to you.

You will find the right studio, by always helping others do the same.

When you are friendly to the competition, you are rarely betrayed.

When you celebrate your competition, you cause loyalty and fairness around you.

All of these things can happen when you change your mind.

And Xmas is a perfect time to practise it.

It isn’t time off, it’s time on!

MERRY XMAS !

P.S. I will be in London in February spreading my Xmas cheer – find out more here.

*NOTE: The cause and effect list above is not my opinion. It is drawn from Michael Roach’s book, which itself is drawn from a deep, voluminous body of material describing the cause and effects of actions. Also know in Buddhism as Karma.

Image credit – Pixabay