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You cannot live a lie and have peace. You cannot live a lie and have joy.
I recently had the pleasure of meeting author and healer Deborah King and of reading her book Truth Heals, where the preceding quote caught my eye. Ive been pondering that quote because it goes to the root of so many of our frustrations and tribulations. Let me explain by sharing my own story:
My roots are humble. I grew up in a fairly poor household and was the kid whose mom always dressed him funny. Today, Im self-employed. I own a home, two cars, and a motorcycle. My four year old son has more toys than I ever did. I pulled myself up by my shoelaces and am a success by most measures.
Or am I?
When I was six, I really wanted a toy microscope. My mother agreed to buy it but later withdrew the offer because we needed food. She broke her promise to me and boy was I angry! I confronted her and she repeated that she just couldnt afford it. I finally gave up only to have her hand me the microscope. Holding it in my hands, all I could think of was my parents going hungry just so I could have my stupid toy. Talk about guilt!
Right then, I vowed never to feel that way or deprive myself again. I began assuaging that little boys guilt the moment I began earning money. I bought new cars, houses, computers, DVDs, and more, as much as I could afford and then some. The microscope and guilt faded from conscious memory over time and didnt surface until I was 35.
My mother was stunned when I shared this story. Turns out she did want to buy it but groceries took priority. Then she got a little bonus in her paycheck and immediately bought the microscope. She acted out of love and caring, which I interpreted as anything but. Result? A good part of my life revolved around coping with fear of scarcity and denying my guilt for the better part of three decades. A huge weight lifted from my shoulders the moment I understood what Id been doing and why and was replaced by the weight of realizing that I am now paying principal plus interest for my 30-year bender, all over a simple childhood misunderstanding.
I spent a good portion of my finite life energy attempting to right a wrong that never existed in the first place. On and on the pattern went, buying things to both overwrite the guilt of previous purchases and prove that I could have my cake and eat it too.
My question to you today is simple: What is your ultimate purpose in this life and is your business serving that purpose? If not, then you are in the wrong business. I will go so far as to venture the guess that a good deal of any chronic problems or difficulty you may be facing could stem from some fundamental disconnect between what youre doing and what youre on this planet to do. Put another way, your troubles may exist because of a gap between who you are and who youre supposed to be. All that glitters is not gold. Just because something seems shiny and wonderful doesnt make it so. Spraying gold paint on lead is nothing more than an illusion that adds neither value nor substance.
Your business must serve your needs, not the other way around. My longtime readers know that as my mantra. My clients know that I let few assertions or statements of fact slip past sans questioning. Forgetting business for a moment, the ultimate truth is that your life, your precious and limited time on this planet, must be used to fulfill whatever purpose you were born to fulfill.
I am neither saying nor suggesting that youre living a lie or that you are on the wrong path. I am suggesting that you stop every now and again to double-check yourself and get in touch with your inner truth. This is very important because we live in a society that encourages us to hide our dirty laundry and avoid dealing with what was by always seeking the latest and greatest. By contrast, an aboriginal tribe gathers around its sick to let them share whatever truths that person has bottled up within them. They know what weve forgotten and what Deborah reminds us: truth can and will set you free.
If your business is serving your innermost truth, then you are prosperous beyond measure. If not, then it doesnt matter how many zeros you have in your bank account because chances are the biggest zero of them all is inside you.
I recently had the pleasure of meeting author and healer Deborah King and of reading her book Truth Heals, where the preceding quote caught my eye. Ive been pondering that quote because it goes to the root of so many of our frustrations and tribulations. Let me explain by sharing my own story:
My roots are humble. I grew up in a fairly poor household and was the kid whose mom always dressed him funny. Today, Im self-employed. I own a home, two cars, and a motorcycle. My four year old son has more toys than I ever did. I pulled myself up by my shoelaces and am a success by most measures.
Or am I?
When I was six, I really wanted a toy microscope. My mother agreed to buy it but later withdrew the offer because we needed food. She broke her promise to me and boy was I angry! I confronted her and she repeated that she just couldnt afford it. I finally gave up only to have her hand me the microscope. Holding it in my hands, all I could think of was my parents going hungry just so I could have my stupid toy. Talk about guilt!
Right then, I vowed never to feel that way or deprive myself again. I began assuaging that little boys guilt the moment I began earning money. I bought new cars, houses, computers, DVDs, and more, as much as I could afford and then some. The microscope and guilt faded from conscious memory over time and didnt surface until I was 35.
My mother was stunned when I shared this story. Turns out she did want to buy it but groceries took priority. Then she got a little bonus in her paycheck and immediately bought the microscope. She acted out of love and caring, which I interpreted as anything but. Result? A good part of my life revolved around coping with fear of scarcity and denying my guilt for the better part of three decades. A huge weight lifted from my shoulders the moment I understood what Id been doing and why and was replaced by the weight of realizing that I am now paying principal plus interest for my 30-year bender, all over a simple childhood misunderstanding.
I spent a good portion of my finite life energy attempting to right a wrong that never existed in the first place. On and on the pattern went, buying things to both overwrite the guilt of previous purchases and prove that I could have my cake and eat it too.
My question to you today is simple: What is your ultimate purpose in this life and is your business serving that purpose? If not, then you are in the wrong business. I will go so far as to venture the guess that a good deal of any chronic problems or difficulty you may be facing could stem from some fundamental disconnect between what youre doing and what youre on this planet to do. Put another way, your troubles may exist because of a gap between who you are and who youre supposed to be. All that glitters is not gold. Just because something seems shiny and wonderful doesnt make it so. Spraying gold paint on lead is nothing more than an illusion that adds neither value nor substance.
Your business must serve your needs, not the other way around. My longtime readers know that as my mantra. My clients know that I let few assertions or statements of fact slip past sans questioning. Forgetting business for a moment, the ultimate truth is that your life, your precious and limited time on this planet, must be used to fulfill whatever purpose you were born to fulfill.
I am neither saying nor suggesting that youre living a lie or that you are on the wrong path. I am suggesting that you stop every now and again to double-check yourself and get in touch with your inner truth. This is very important because we live in a society that encourages us to hide our dirty laundry and avoid dealing with what was by always seeking the latest and greatest. By contrast, an aboriginal tribe gathers around its sick to let them share whatever truths that person has bottled up within them. They know what weve forgotten and what Deborah reminds us: truth can and will set you free.
If your business is serving your innermost truth, then you are prosperous beyond measure. If not, then it doesnt matter how many zeros you have in your bank account because chances are the biggest zero of them all is inside you.