Embracing Change –
What I Learned from an Aikido Master!
(Aikido is a modern Japanese martial art that uses the opponent's movement.)
by P.K. Odle, The Feng Shui Advantage®
"Change is the ONLY constant, so if you do not create change, the change will create you." Heraclitus, a pre-Socratic Greek philosopher, best known for his doctrine extolling that change is central to the Universe, also said: "Everything flows, nothing stands still."
The key to your success is often your ability to adapt to change and, as Mahatma Gandhi said: "Be the change you want to see in the World!"
Yes, it is up to each of us to choose to embrace change. As pop-artist Andy Warhol said: "They always say time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself."
Unfortunately, for many, "The key to change… is letting go of fear." Any sort of change, whether it is changing a point-of-view or a way of doing things, be it social, professional, personal, or political, frighten people so much that they miss an opportunity to make a change for the better.
Changing your perspective regarding Change –
In the late 1980s, I attended a lecture that gave me an amazing new perspective regarding changes that are inevitable in life. It was a pivotal point in my life that I remember as clearly as if it happened yesterday. As part of his talk, Aikido Master Thomas Crum, co-founder of The Windstar Foundation and author of The Magic of Conflict, directed us through the following exercise.
- EXERCISE PART I... First, everyone chose a partner and decided who would be 'A' vs. 'B' for the entire exercise. All Subject 'B' participants were next asked to close their eyes, while all the 'As' changed 5 things about their appearance in one minute. After a minute, the 'Bs' were instructed to find the changes in their 'A' partner's appearance.
- EXERCISE PART II... In the next round, 'Bs' were again asked to close their eyes. The 'As' were again instructed to change 5 things about their appearance. Yes, change 5 more things. Almost everyone was bewildered because the majority of 'Bs' thought it would be their turn to change their appearance, and most 'As' were struggling even to find one more thing to change about their appearance. Crum said, "this is only an exercise, so do the best you can," but everyone was relieved when he called time and asked the 'Bs' to describe the final changes to 'A's' appearance.
- EXERCISE PART III... Thankfully, we were able to take our seats for this next part. The 'As' were asked to raise their hands if they had REMOVED something to change their appearance. Of course, all the 'As' proudly raised their hands. 'As' that also MOVED something around to change their appearance, were asked to keep their hands raised. The majority of 'As' kept their hand up. Far fewer 'As' kept their hands raised when asked if they had ADDED something to change their appearance, like putting on their coat (it was a cold winter night, so everyone had a coat).
- Crum then explained how the exercise showed how many people are conditioned to think of change as GIVING-UP something or to SHIFT thing around. While how few approached change as an opportunity to GAIN or IMPROVE something. From that moment on, I shifted my way of looking at change from that point forward.
Within a few months of that turning-point, I first heard the sentence: "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." It almost sounds like an old Chinese proverb and is often attributed to both Ben Franklin and Albert Einstein. In actuality, this famous quote is from the novel Sudden Death by Rita Mae Brown (1983).
Although the above quote isn't an ancient Chinese proverb, the oldest and longest continuously read Chinese book, The I Ching (today spelled Yi Jing), teaches that THE UNIVERSE IS CYCLICAL BY NATURE AND IS IN A CONSTANT STATE OF CHANGE. The Yi Jing is the root of both the Chinese sciences of Feng Shui and Acupuncture, which share a 5,000-year history of improving people's lives.
At this time of global changes,
Classical Feng Shui uses time-tested calculations to determine where and when elemental remedies are required based on Time & Space: current cyclical influences, the year the building was constructed, and the precise compass orientation of the building/unit. Today, the majority of do-it-yourself Feng Shui books disregard the cyclical nature of Classical Feng Shui, even though the cyclical influences explain why your circumstances vary from year to year within the same home/office with the same occupants and the same décor.
Since your health is your most important asset your entire life, it's the most important aspect in Feng Shui. Next is a harmonious relationship, which is why I love hearing from my clients who've gone from 'Lonely Pillow Syndrome' to married bliss. Or how parent/child relationships have improved, including how many children's grades have gotten better. That's not to say hearing how a client's income has increased isn't equally exciting, especially like the client whose company went from $700,000 per year to over 5 million this year.
Through my 23 years of consulting, several clients have told me how they wished they hadn't delayed having a Feng Shui evaluation of their home/office just because they were afraid of the changes that might be necessary. Those same clients, as well as many others, have found that investing in a Feng Shui consultation and making the required changes was a turning point for their health, relationships, and finances. Even skeptical spouses admit that now they make sure all their remedies are in order and take care of ordering their Annual Update, to avoid negative circumstances before they occur. Change is inevitable, especially when it comes to the Feng Shui of your home and office.
"The doors we open and close each day decide the lives we live." When author and early American homesteader, Flora Whittemore, made that statement, I'm certain she didn't know that you have 15° door positions that bring you more Prosperity or Consume your money according to your date of birth. I teach my clients how to locate those directions, along with all their other Feng Shui Personal Directions anywhere in the world, during all Feng Shui Advantage consultations and/or with the purchase of a one-of-kind Lifetime Keys Personal Directions Self-Mastery Toolbox.
Every day is the first day of the rest of your life. In other words, your thoughts and actions today determine your future. I'm offering you an opportunity to embrace change by scheduling your Feng Shui Advantage consultation today.
© 2020 P.K. Odle. All rights reserved.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
P.K. Odle is a Master Feng Shui consultant and the Executive Director of the world-renowned American Feng Shui Institute®, where she has taught since 1998. She is the creator of The Feng Shui Advantage's "Lifetime Keys Personal Directions Self-Mastery Toolbox." To learn more about using the ancient Chinese science of Yi Jing Feng Shui to Improve your Health, Relationships and Finances through 16 weeks of FREE TIPS subscribe to her award-winning eNewsletter, The Feng Shui Advantage MONTHLY, at http://www.FengShuiAdvantage.com. The next issue could change your life!
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