Oppression makes the oppressed feel weak. Dominance depresses the spirit of the dominated.
Your way, your ideas, the way you see things: is this how you choose to lead? To weaken and depress?
Choose to use your influence to lift others up. Inspire, encourage and guide then step back to allow others to flourish.
LIVING THE TAO: Do you feel like you are constantly combatting others or in defense mode to move a situation forward? Do you wonder, why the other person behaves as s/he does? They are not in the dilemma alone. You are there as well. Have you examined your behavior?
In 2018 my focus was to intentionally live the Tao Te Ching. Now I continue into 2019 with my fifth reading. I share my daily interpretations hoping to inspire you to do the same.
Embrace your journey. Experience bliss. Live the Tao.
Original image by Sarah Richter.]]>
Too much control exercised over others diminishes their trust in their own brilliance. Better you manage the level of tension between what needs to be learned and what is already known. A wise teacher knows this.
If your aim is to help someone grow, create the space for their development, then step back. They may struggle in the beginning, but with space and measured guidance, they will thrive.
This is what is meant by, “teach without teaching.”
LIVING THE TAO: Are you responsible for the development of others? If you overshadow their ideas with your directives, be clear: you will dim their light. If you want them at their best, then teach without teaching.
In 2018 my focus was to intentionally live the Tao Te Ching. Now I continue into 2019 with my fifth reading. I share my daily interpretations hoping to inspire you to do the same.
Embrace your journey. Experience bliss. Live the Tao.
Original image by Marko Grothe.]]>
Rushing ahead because of impatience disrupts the natural flow of things and may slow progress. Instead, sit still and observe your reaction to being patient. Is there more for you to learn? And as you learn, notice how the natural flow of your desired intention happens for you.
This is, as they say, the universe conspiring in your favor.
Rushing ahead to beat your competition is a never-ending game that creates harm. Trying to grow from the outside is superficial and depleting. Growth from the inside nurtures your physical, mental and spiritual being.
Eventually, you lose ground when you compete with harmful intentions. Advancement comes when your growth originates from within. Ultimately, all involved will benefit.
LIVING THE TAO: The act of competing against what you cannot control is draining and has the potential to draw you away from your purpose. Stay true to who you are by focusing your growth inward.
In 2018 my focus was to intentionally live the Tao Te Ching. Now I continue into 2019 with my fifth reading. I share my daily interpretations hoping to inspire you to do the same.
Embrace your journey. Experience bliss. Live the Tao.
Original image on Pixabay.]]>
Position yourself to add to others for it is through humility and service that your authentic power is amplified.
If you are given the opportunity to lead, it is not by wielding your power to the detriment of others that you become great. Your greatness rises because you, with clear intention, delicately hold the care of others as you guide them toward their own greatness.
When you lead with your authentic power, no one is harmed because of you and no one is lessened. On the contrary, others are uplifted by your energy and grateful for your presence.
LIVING THE TAO: Leadership doesn’t begin with a title. It begins with you. How do the people you interact with engage with you? Are they grateful for your presence or trying to escape it? The answer to that question provides guidance for your next steps.
In 2018 my focus was to intentionally live the Tao Te Ching. Now I continue into 2019 with my fifth reading. I share my daily interpretations hoping to inspire you to do the same.
Embrace your journey. Experience bliss. Live the Tao.
Original image on Pixabay.]]>
Learn how not to know. That is, let go of knowing so you can grow. The old ways of thinking do not always serve you.
Thoughts uncluttered by decay make way for simplicity and expansion.
Hear your words. Are they too many?
Pay attention to your thoughts. Have they lived their days?
Detach from the way you believe things ought to be and release your mental burden. Then, aligning with your path becomes easier.
LIVING THE TAO: Really hear yourself in conversations. Are you justifying or proving? Do you beat others down with your way? Ultimately, you won’t get what you want. Practice today’s words. Resist your urge to prove and let go. Practice a little at a time. It does become easier…a little at a time.
In 2018 my focus was to intentionally live the Tao Te Ching. Now I continue into 2019 with my fifth reading. I share my daily interpretations hoping to inspire you to do the same.
Embrace your journey. Experience bliss. Live the Tao.
Original image by Ana Segota.]]>
The way you choose to be is emphasized when others bestow you with external power.
If you are compassionate, the world sees it more. Humble? Your humility is magnified. Centered? Others feel harmonious in your presence. But if you are vain, proud, conceited or egotistical, you inflict harm on those you are supposed to serve.
Greatness is not born from a title. Greatness originates from your inner being and who you choose to be.
A great leader can admit her mistakes. A great leader is a model of kindness. A great leader views an enemy as one that exist to teach her about herself.
Being rooted in the foundation of the truth of who you are and your true power within allows you to be a great leader, and your greatness becomes a model for the world.
LIVING THE TAO: Today’s Tao inspiration is timely in that it aligns with the day our nation celebrates a great leader—Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (though his actual birthday was a few days ago.) Reflect on your own leadership. Are you admired or abhorred? If others are not inspired by your presence, then consider evaluating how you lead.
In 2018 my focus was to intentionally live the Tao Te Ching. Now I continue into 2019 with my fifth reading. I share my daily interpretations hoping to inspire you to do the same.
Embrace your journey. Experience bliss. Live the Tao.
Original image by Bruce Ememerling.]]>
It is better to allow individuals to arrive at their truth. When you meddle and force, there is frustration and disempowerment. When you guide and support, there is growth in power. Those phenomena are for you both.
For you to allow in this way, you must be grounded in your own power. It takes the strength of a warrior to surrender to the Great Way of Life.
When left to itself without interference, the natural world adapts. Such is the case with those you lead: encourage and support them, then get out of the way for them to grow and thrive.
LIVING THE TAO: Is there a situation that you influence and believe you must do it all or nothing gets done? You aren’t serving yourself or others well. Both your growth and theirs are being stifled. Reflect on these ideas to determine how you can adjust for your sake and the sake of those your lead.
In 2018 my focus was to intentionally live the Tao Te Ching. Now I continue into 2019 with my fifth reading. I share my daily interpretations hoping to inspire you to do the same.
Embrace your journey. Experience bliss. Live the Tao.
Original image by Jesse Bowser.]]>
Calmness and composure are traits of a good leader.
Have vision yet be flexible.
Be firm and be tolerant.
Express compassion for yourself and other.
Lead with your heart, not with a stick.
Be present in this manner as a conscious leader to serve yours and the benefit of those you lead.
LIVING THE TAO: Whether you lead in your home or at work, it is your disposition (along with your intention) that influences your results. That said, how are you leading?
In 2018 my focus was to intentionally live the Tao Te Ching. Now I continue into 2019 with my fifth reading. I share my daily interpretations hoping to inspire you to do the same.
Embrace your journey. Experience bliss. Live the Tao.
Original image by James Picard.]]>
The actions of those you influence informs how you lead. Are they authentic and at ease or deceptive and depressed?
The need to control decreases the results of what you want to control for. So simply set your intention and allow the results to follow.
When you see people around you being compassionate to themselves and others, they choose to release control for Life to flow, and they are allowing their true nature to flourish, these are your fruits of your intentions. They are rooted in your conscious leadership.
LIVING THE TAO: Try doing what today’s inspiration recommends. Observe the behaviors of those you influence. Do they reflect the type of leader you want to be? If not, do not begin by trying to change others. Begin with changing yourself first.
In 2018 my focus was to intentionally live the Tao Te Ching. Now I continue into 2019 with my fifth reading. I share my daily interpretations hoping to inspire you to do the same.
Embrace your journey. Experience bliss. Live the Tao.
Original image by Banter Snaps.]]>
Trying to control people will reveal your lack of control. Trying to defeat by creating harm will bring harm to yourself. Making others feel less safe will make you less safe.
Therefore, master the art of leading in alignment with Life’s flow. Allow others to grow through your leading and you will all thrive.
LIVING THE TAO: It’s simple—people thrive when they are given the tools, space and support to do so. Whether leading at home, work on through volunteering, master the art of leading so that all involved can thrive.
In 2018 my focus was to intentionally live the Tao Te Ching. Now I continue into 2019 with my fifth reading. I share my daily interpretations hoping to inspire you to do the same.
Embrace your journey. Experience bliss. Live the Tao.
Original image by Dana Critchlow.]]>