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Remove the silver covering over your eyes

Remove the silver covering over your eyes

Living in today’s metropolitan world of cellular phones, mobile computers and other high-tech gadgets is not just hectic but very impersonal. We make money and then invest our time and effort in making more money. Does it end? Not usually because we are never satisfied. How many times have we convinced ourselves that if only we had some more money, life would be so sweet? But then, after receiving a substantial raise, we realize that it wasn’t enough and that we need more?

What Should You Do?

I have read many books on life such as Robin Sharma’s Monk says this and the monk says that, and they all seem to say that money is not necessary. But it is. Can you do without cash and a lot of it? I know I can’t.

So, I went to the neighbourhood Rabbi and asked for advice that will help me find my true way in life.

The rabbi nodded and took me to the window. “What do you see?” he asked me.

Promptly, I answered, “I can see people walking to and fro and a blind man is begging for alms at the left corner.”

The Rabbi nodded and guided me to a big mirror. “Now look and tell me what you see?”

“I can see myself,” I man answered.

The Rabbi smiled. “Now you can’t see anyone else. The mirror and the window are both created from the same raw material: glass, but because on one of them they have applied a thin layer of silver, when you look at it all you can see is your own reflection.”

The Rabbi placed his arm on my shoulders. “Compare yourself to those two pieces of glass. Without the silver layer, you saw the other people and felt compassion for them. When you are covered with silver, you see only yourself.”

I looked at the Rabbi and stared. “I don’t understand.”

The Rabbi continued. “You will become someone only if have the courage to remove the silver covering over your eyes in order to again see and love others.” He patted me on my back and sent me on my way.

I have thought of what he said and come to the conclusion that he had a point. Yes. We need money and we should not aim to lead a moneyless existence; its pointless and will only cause us and our families many heartbreaks in the future.

Instead, I suggest that we should follow the advice the Rabbi gave me. When we approach life through a silver covering, all we are able to see is ourselves. But discard that covering, and you will be able to see and feel everyone else.

In life, we are allowed to and should be able to look at both kinds of mirrors, but we should remember that a mirror reflects only us; a window is the door to compassion, health and true wealth. In other words, seek wealth by all means, but don’t let it dissuade you from life, people, children and the poor and needy.

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New perspective on things

New perspective on things

New thoughts can come from taking a new perspective on things. One way to do that is to challenge the assumptions that exist. For example, is love really a feeling of desire or attachment? This is a common assumption, but what if we challenge this?

New Thoughts on Love

Desire and attachment can be strong feelings, and they are often called love in certain contexts. However, attachment can be for bad reasons too, right? Desire too can come from less than noble places. What is an alternative definition of love?

How about a recognition of value? Seeing the inherent value in a person, like the beauty you see in a painting or hear in a melody. You do not need to be attached or even desirous of beauty to enjoy it. You just have to recognize it. The enjoyment that you take in another’s existence then could be a definition of love. At least the emotion.

Love is more than an emotion though. How much love does a mother have for her children if she feels fond towards them, but doesn’t feed them? Love in this context has to include action, doesn’t it?

This points up the real problem with defining concepts like love. There are seven or eight or perhaps a hundred things we want to communicate. They are each different, yet we have just one word for them. Maybe rather than re-defining love we need to create a dozen new words. Now there’s an area for some new thoughts.

Random New Thoughts

Another way to have new thoughts is to just look for new ideas to replace old ones. Then you expand on the new idea, to see what value you might find in it. Here are some examples of new thoughts, without expanding on them (help yourself).

– Why do we encourage uniformed people to vote? Maybe it’s better to encourage people NOT to vote, unless they are willing to educate themselves on the issues.

– Is multi-tasking really a sign of efficiency? Maybe the fact that we need to be so busy just to get what we want shows that our actions aren’t effective enough.

– Why can’t we pay less for a surgeon who kills more people on the operating table? Why not recognize that there are better and worse doctors, have that information available, and pay accordingly?

– How about wonder instead of faith? Faith is just believing without reason. Wonder is to marvel at the world and accept that we don’t have reasons or explanations for everything.

Finally, what if our level of creativity, and ability to have new thoughts isn’t just something that is set at birth. What if it is a systematic process, one that may not be recognized by those who use it, but can be identified and copied? All of us can train ourselves to have creative new thoughts.

Getting Motivated

Getting Motivated

If you haven’t learned the ins and outs of motivation, getting and staying motivated can feel like an uphill battle.

Fortunately, there are many tried-and-tested techniques for not just temporarily boosting your momentum but — for permanently transforming it.

In this guide to regaining and generating motivation, you’ll discover Lifehack’s ultimate formula for creating, maintaining motivation and learn about how to get motivated. You’ll also learn how to take back control of your life and prepare yourself to tackle your dreams. With motivation on your side, you’ll set short and long-term goals that will set you up for success.

If you’re ready to learn everything you’ll ever need to know about motivation, let’s begin.

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5 Things to Do to make a Change in Your Life

5 Things to Do to make a Change in Your Life

The one constant thing in our life is change.

1. Find Meaning

Your meaning in life gives you purpose and sets the direction of how you want to live your life. Without meaning, you will spend the rest of your life wandering aimlessly with no direction, focus, or purpose.

2. Let Go of Regrets

Regrets will only hold you back in life. If you spend all your time thinking about the past, you will miss the present and the future.

3. Accept Yourself

Photo by Jeremy Bishop on Unsplash

4. Live in the Moment

Our desire to have happiness in our lives is a desire of a future state, not of the present. We become so consumed with all our problems in the present that we miss the precious beauty of the moment.

5. Experience the Joy of Learning

Each time you learn something new, you gain more knowledge, and with more knowledge comes more confidence.