Serendipity

I was fortunate enough to meet a wonderful author at his latest book reading in Kuala Lumpur. What fascinated me the most was his natural ability to just go with the flow! He would simply plan his trips abroad by booking an entry ticket to one city and an exit ticket from another city, on the other side of the country. The bit in the middle was completely unplanned! Wherever the road led him he would go. If he liked a place he would linger. If he met a stranger who spoke of a place he would follow them there. Nothing was forced or squeezed or rushed about his method of travel. Everything was “go with the flow”. Everything was done in complete faith alone. Of course the questions were asked: “Were you never in danger?”, “Did you ever run out of money?”, “Did you ever have nowhere to sleep?”. The answers were no, no and no. Unbelievable!! His book tells the tales of his journeys and all the serendipitous events that happen to him, leading him to self-discovery and solid friendships. The whole idea pulled a rubber band in me that snapped back when I remembered my brief flirt with leaving my plans to a higher being. Otherwise, I tend to be the complete opposite. I am a “to-do list” devotee and a partisan planner. I don’t board a plane without some preliminary research on my destination and pre-booked accommodation. I sat listening to him in awe!

There is, I believe, a real value to you if you are able to have both traits in your life. There is a place for planning, setting goals and working towards them. There is a place for holding and controlling all the threads in your life! There is too, a place for not doing, just being and going with the flow. Taking the unplanned occurrences  as opportunities and letting the threads go!

So what type of person are you?

Be curious about what it must be like to be the opposite?

Give it a try. For one day only, challenge yourself to either plan ahead or go with the flow.

Remember that doing either one for a prolonged time without deviation will not necessarily benefit you but having a bit of both definitely will. Even the author has to come back home from his travels and fit back into the structure of our modern world. He however, has a different compass, turning its dial in him. For even back in the rigid, modern world he can create his own inner freedom and find the space to share his “flow” with us; to share how to bring freedom home!

By Erika Zechner

www.blueprintfive.com

Author is: Tham Chee Wah

Book title: Invite Freedom Homehttp://www.thamcheewah.com

A passionate life.

Passion is……..

I was at a birthday party yesterday hosted by some wonderful friends of ours at their beautiful home. The afternoon was mellow and the mood of the group gathered there was relaxed. Striking up conversations with various friends of friends was enjoyable and full of laughs. A conversation with one member of the family took a deeper turn as the topic of “what to do next” with one’s life slithered into first place.  To offer some direction I asked the lady what it was she was passionate about and she answered: making money. Someone else interjected at this point that this was not a passion. “Making money cannot be a passion in life!” was their opinion. So readers what do you think? Can making money be the drive, the passion and the statement of your life? What do you say to this? Whatever you may think can or cannot be a passion is interesting but not as interesting as defining what your passions are. This is something that is unfortunately, not taught in schools as far as I am aware, but it ought to be. Everyone needs to know this for themselves. It is very important. So ask yourself today:

What is it that I am passionate about?

If I was rich and didn’t need to work, how would I choose to spend my time? Once I had done that what would I do next?

What activity causes me to lose all track of time? Time just seems to race by when I am ………………

Our passions are not to be confused with our addictions.

A dictionary definition of Passion is: a strong enthusiasm for something or an absorbing occupation, activity, or pursuit in which such interest is shown

A dictionary definition of Addiction is: the state of being enslaved to a habit or practice or to something that is psychologically or physically habit-forming, to such an extent that its cessation causes severe trauma.

Why is it important to define this more precisely? Without our passions who are we really? Passions define the side of ourselves that is free, the part of us that has joy and love for something. Passions are positive and fill us with endless amounts of energy.

 Wouldn’t it be great to have more of it in your life? This is how you can:

1.       Make a list of all the things that make you soar

2.       Are all the things on your list healthy and positive?

3.       Find ways to incorporate the positive and healthy passions in your daily life

4.       At the end of each day do a mental  recap of what was good about the day

5.       Keep repeating day after day after day……

Enjoy!