Dharma & Purpose: 3 powerful dynamics

By Gwen

There is an old Indian Sanskrit term, “Dharma”, which means, “one’s calling” or “one’s purpose”. When you are in Dharma, and therefore, living your life purpose, three powerful dynamics occur.

First, there is a sense of happiness, bliss, and fulfillment. You are exactly what your physical, emotional, and spiritual DNA has programmed you to be. It is much like a pair of perfectly fitted shoes: they only fit you perfectly and it is heavenly when you wear them. You smile, giggle, and laugh more in Dharma, and you worry less as well. So ask yourself:

What is it that I do (or have done) that brings me the most bliss and pleasure?

Second, when you are in Dharma you will extend yourself for the good of humankind. Life purpose gives life more purpose…all of life. When you live on purpose you have an infinite amount of talent and energy that has a positive effect on all those that you touch. Ask yourself another question:

What service have I done for others that

has brought them and myself joy and happiness?

Third, you find yourself blissfully submerged in your purpose. Time flies by and you are in a constant process of discovering the deeper elements of your Dharma. You do not have to commit because you are living commitment. Your being and your doing are in perfect alignment with each other. Last question to ask yourself:

What is it that I do, or have done, that I

loose all track of time in, & yet could do it forever?

Some people are never asked to discover their life purpose so they go through life with little direction or fulfillment, and end up living an unfulfilled life, often full of fear and dependency.

Want more? Take some time to think about this, as well as doing some “experimenting”. Take notes on yourself and share them with your coach and those in your support system. See what you come up with.

You deserve the peace, passion, and purpose that you’ve been looking for!!

~Ken Donaldson

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Dharma is one of my all time favorite words.  And even better than the word itself is the feeling it brings when you know you are living yours.   It took me  25 years of active soul searching to finally find mine and now that I’ve found it I recognize it was there all along, I just wasn’t able to see it!  It’s like a comfortable pair of jeans, it feels sooo right!  However, we spend so much time in the search that we aren’t even able to see it when it shows itself to us.   We all have blind spots, those times when our conscious and subconscious minds aren’t communicating.  Those times when we think, “Oh, that’s way too easy and fun to be important.  EVERYONE can do that!  It’s no big deal.   I can’t earn a living doing THAT!”  But, that is exactly what you will be the most successful, productive and happy doing!   I’m finding that with each boomer woman I work with I’m better able to discover and ”see” their dharma and help them to see it too!   If you are tired of living someone else’s life and you’re ready to discover YOUR own dharma, please send me an email gwen@discoveryourdharma.com and let’s have a FREE 30 minute conversation — NO OBLLIGATIONS — to see if I can help you!    I’m excited for you to get started living your life purpose!

Gwen

Ask and It Is Given: The Law of Attraction

By Gwen

THE LAW OF ATTRACTION

“Every thought vibrates, every thought radiates a signal, and every thought attracts a matching signal back. We call that process the Law of Attraction. The Law of Attraction says: That which is like unto itself is drawn. And so, you might see the powerful Law of Attraction as a sort of Universal Manager that sees to it that all thoughts that match one another line up.”

“It is our desire that you become one who is happy with that

which you are and with that which you have—while at the

same time being eager for more. That is the optimal

creative vantage point: To stand on the brink of what

 is coming, feeling eager, optimistic anticipation—with no

feelings of impatience, doubt, or unworthiness hindering

the receiving of it—that is the Science of

Deliberate Creation at its best.”

~ Esther and Jerry Hicks

That’s the best definition of The Law of Attraction I’ve read.

(Like I said, this book is pretty much The Bible for The Law of Attraction.

In the book, Esther and Jerry compare The Law of Attraction to tuning a radio. You want to listen to something on 102.7FM? You don’t expect to hear it if your radio’s set to 98.7 do you? Of course not. The radio waves of one frequency can only be received by a matching tuner, right?

Same thing in the “real” world.

If you want to receive love and abundance in your life, you need to set your tuner to the same vibrational frequency as love and abundance, no?

To put it bluntly: If you’re a jerk, do you expect to receive an overwhelming abundance of love in your life? It’s IMPOSSIBLE. You’re putting out all kinds of “jerk” energy and that’s pretty much what you’ll get back.

I would definitely agree. So pick your radio station consciously (love songs, perhaps , and make sure you’ve got yourself tuned in to hear the wonderful music.

“D” stands for Dharma

By Gwen

“D” stands for the law of demand and supply.  Whatever service we are here to give, there is a demand for it.  Ask yoruself  ”How may I serve?” and “How can I help?”  The answers are within you. When you find those answers, you will also see and know that there is a demand for your service.

“D” also stands for dharma. Each of us has a dharma, a purpose in life. When we are in dharma, we enjoy and love our work.

Deepak Chopra

Creating Affluence

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My gratitude goes out to Deepak Chopra.  It was in his book, The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success: A Practical Guide to the Fulfillment of Your Dreams where I originally found the definition of dharma, for which my business was founded.   His book Creating Affluence: The A-Z Steps to a Richer Life was given to me by my first real estate client, a friend, over 10 years ago.  I completely appreciate the lessons that I’ve gained from having Deepak in my life!

Gwen

QUESTIONS TO HELP YOU FIND YOUR CALLING IN LIFE

By Gwen

One’s calling in life, says the author and minister Frederick Buechner, is “that place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.” To find your calling in an encore career, ask yourself: What need in the world will ignite the passions in my heart, tap my natural gifts, educational background and skills, and bring new vitality to all of life?

You might start by finding a quiet spot and pondering three not-so-simple questions:

Who am I?   Try to distill what you have discovered about yourself during your many years of work and uncover the attributes that have been elusive or oftentimes buried for years. According to E.E. Cummings, “To be nobody but yourself in a world that is doing its best day and night to make you everybody else, means to fight one of the hardest battles any human being can fight.” To discover a new purpose in life will require that you live more authentically, not bending to the outside forces around you. You will be challenged to go to the center of who you really are.

How do I function best?   How are you wired and in what circumstances do you function best? What natural talents and learned skills do you have to contribute? You may know many of your abilities, but other gifts may yet to be discovered. You need to carefully assess your natural talents, favorite skills and the fields of knowledge toward which you have gravitated most of your life. What have you been praised for doing well? What experiences have you had that ignited a passion?

What am I here for?   Take as an article of faith that you were put here for a purpose and that you have been given the gifts you need to achieve your mission. What is your summum bonum – the place where you can give the greatest good? Finding that place may not be easy or clear or concise, as it is a work in progress. In the beginning, you may uncover only a vague pointing in a direction that will seize your heart. The important thing is to take action, and in the midst of your experiences, as the Quakers say, “a way will open.”

A providential force beyond your control is always going before you and opening new doors to walk through. It may take two or three years of shedding old paradigms and habits before you discover your heartfelt passions and new pathways become clear. As you take steps of faith, remember the journey is an integral part of the mission, and both the passion in your heart and the needs of the world are proteanly dynamic.

This time of revelation and self-discovery provides a great opportunity to probe the “world’s deep hunger.” Take a journey to uncover the many needs in our world today and search out the places where you might fit in. You may find a group already addressing a need that is tugging at your heart and an organization in which you could be a vital participant. Or you may uncover a unique solution to a problem to which you are being called to start your own organization.

Today, we have one of the most powerful search tools in history to find every imaginable group at work in the world. With the Internet, everyone should be able to find a place where his or her years of wisdom, experience and giftedness would be of great value. Encore.org offers many opportunities to connect with others who share your geographical location or your passions.

We live in perilous times: a period in which the very underpinnings of our society are crumbling. Our very ground of being is shifting beneath our feet. Yet those with a mind set on finding their passion for living and with eyes upon the “world’s deep hunger” stand on a solid foundation. Rather than being distracted by material concerns, they are focused on caring and giving to the needs in the world around them. They are called to serve.

Posted 01/25/2009 – 4:36pm by Sam Shafer Are you ready?  Sam Shafer, a parish priest, now works to help participants identify their gifts, uncover their passions and find their callings. This piece is adapted from a six-week course he conducts for churches, community groups and other organizations. He lives in Oakland, Calif.

FREE Job Training & Placement for Older Workers

By Gwen

Program helps unemployed and low-income workers who are 55+

Working with a grant from the U.S. Department of Labor, AARP is co-funding an employment program that helps job seekers over age 55 to find employment.
The program provides job training and job placement, and is available free to people who qualify.

What is the AARP Job Training and Job Placement Program?
This job training and job placement program is called the AARP Foundation Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP).

SCSEP helps people 55+ become more successful at finding a job by:
•Improving job skills
•Gaining work experience
•Increasing their self-confidence
How Does SCSEP Work?
First, SCSEP staff assesses each applicant’s need to determine eligibility. Based on each person’s needs, free services include:
•Assessment of existing job skills and interests
•Assistance with setting job goals
•An individual employment plan
•Help with locating job training for new skills
•Resume assistance
•Job interview tips
•Information about job clubs and workshops
•Job leads, and follow-ups to check progress
•Worker’s compensation insurance
•A yearly physical exam
•A free one-year membership in AARP
What Are the Criteria to Join SCSEP?
To qualify for the SCSEP job training and job placement program, applicants must be:
•Unemployed
•Age 55 or older
•Must live in a county that is served by an AARP SCSEP office
•Income must be below 125% of the federal poverty level. AARP recommends that you check with your local SCSEP office because not all income is counted.
How to Apply for this Job Training and Job Placement Program
1.The first step is to find out if you live in an eligible county. In order to be part of this program, you must live in a county that is served by an AARP SCSEP office.
If there is no AARP SCSEP office serving the county in which you live, you will be directed to find a SCSEP office through another sponsor.
2.The next step is to contact the local SCSEP office by phone or in person. A staff member will ask you questions to determine if you are eligible for job training and job placement services.
If you receive benefits like SSI/SSD and Medicaid, or assistance with food stamps or public housing, acceptance into this program may affect your benefits. A SCSEP staff member will help you determine how your current benefits may be affected.

For more information on the AARP Foundation SCSEP program for job training and job placement, see the AARP Web site for Low Income Job Seekers.

By Sharon O’Brien, About.com

Boomers Can Influence Story of Their Generation

By Dharma

The question of the boomers’ legacy is very much up for grabs right now.

In “The Boys of Pointe du Hoc,” about the most heroic rangers on D-Day, Douglas Brinkley argues very convincingly that Reagan’s 1984 visit to Normandy actually began the whole “Greatest Generation” thing. It hadn’t existed before, and understanding the story and the current yearning in the country was part of Reagan’s political/cinematic genius. So he largely “invented” the greatest generation mythology that day, with Peggy Noonan’s help.

Tom Brokaw followed a few years later, named it in a catchy and appealing way, and we have lived with that story ever since.

If it is true that the story of the greatest generation was written between 1984 and 1995, then we are coming into the time when the story of the boomer generation might be written. And how that story turns out will be determined by several things including what we “need” as a country and people at the moment, what the generation actually does (if anything), who writes the story and the motive of the writer.

We can influence the story of the boomer generation in a big way, but we can’t make it up in the absence of the right societal political setting, and we can’t make it up in absence of real and important action and leadership from those in the generation.

July 27, 2009 – John Gomperts, Civic Ventures

RETIREMENT REVOLUTION: Transforming the way we think about retirement & aging

By Dharma

Baby Boomers are transforming the way we think about retirement and aging. Retirement in America is undergoing a revolutionary transformation. When our grandparents and parents retired, they could usually count on a handsome company pension, as well as Society Security and other benefits. Today, few workers in the private sector will enjoy a company pension. And today, Social Security and Medicare face growing funding issues. Americans are being told—every day and in increasing numbers—that they will have the sole responsibility for producing income for themselves for a much longer span of retirement time.

Retirement Revolution, hosted by broadcast journalist Paula Zahn, is a two-part documentary that explores the many challenges and opportunities faced by the 78 million Baby Boomers who are now heading into retirement.

Our new generation of “old people” fulfill a unique and important role in society.
As the first wave of Baby Boomers turns 65, they are changing America’s ideas about what it means to grow old and what it means to retire. With sixty-five fast becoming the new “middle age,” retirement may mean a new career instead of the golf course.

Retirement Revolution offers practical considerations that can help ensure a retirement on one’s own terms, even in a risky world in which Medicare and private pensions are facing real problems. With everyday stories placed in the context of experts’ perspectives on retirement and aging, Retirement Revolution alleviates anxieties, inspires confidence, and demonstrates the pressing need for change where the ways of the past simply won’t be enough.

“Retirement” today often means the beginning of a new career.
The documentary explores numerous revolutionary discoveries: how even late starters can save enough to supplement their Social Security income; how to turn home equity into old-age income; how to ensure a secure old age with new retirement investment products like annuities that begin at age 85; the joys of encore careers begun after age 50; how Social Security can be secured for another 50 years; and the remarkable compassion and help that the new “old people” are providing to the rest of society.

Explore the Retirement Revolution microsite at www.wttw.com/retirementrevolution.

Retirement Revolution is a co-production of James L. Schlagheck and WTTW National Productions.

SECOND CAREERS: Millions of Older Workers Are Choosing to Do Well by Doing Good for Others

By Dharma

After my friend Anne left a successful career on Wall Street, she spent several years writing fiction. She completed two novels, then realized that the issues and problems in the real world had become more compelling than the stories she was making up.

“What was I doing writing fiction when I could be out there with real people, doing something meaningful?” she told me. “Cliché or not, I wanted to use my business skills and international experience to make an impact on the  world.”

As it turns out, she is in good company, according to a study released today  by the MetLife Foundation and Civic Ventures, a San Francisco-based think tank on boomers, work and aging. The 2008 Encore Career survey asked 3,500 Americans between the ages of 44 and 70 about their current and future work plans and preferences.

The results indicate that a majority of people in that age group want to use their skills and experience to help others. In fact, the report estimates that between 5 and 8 million Americans are already involved in what Marc Freedman, CEO of Civic Ventures, calls an “encore career”—meaningful work that combines earning an income with making a contribution to society. “I think of it as practical idealism,” he says.

What the Study Means

The results of the study may be early evidence of a trend. “For us, the major finding was the numbers,” says Freedman. “This is not just an abstract ideal.  Millions of people are already acting on this impulse.”

People like Ed Speedling, who became an advocate for the homeless after a career as a health care executive, or Beverly Ryder, who brought her years of corporate experience to a new role in public education. (These stories and others can be found on Civic Ventures’ networking site, www.encore.org.)

Freedman credits these “pioneers” with “blazing the path” for those behind them. And considering that there are 78 million baby boomers, that’s a lot of people to play “follow the leader.” According to the study, nearly half of those not already in encore careers have a strong desire to move into such jobs.

“If even a small fraction of baby boomers go into encore careers, it could have a transformative effect on industries that are so dependent on human resources to be effective,” says Freedman.

This is good news for education, health care, government and the nonprofit sectors, all of which already are experiencing critical labor shortages. A study by the Bridgespan Group—a Boston-based management consulting group for the nonprofit sector—reported that nonprofit organizations will need some 640,000 new senior leaders over the next 10 years, and that number could rise as high as 1.2 million.

Changing Public Policy

While Freedman acknowledges that those who want to pursue an “encore career” must take some of the responsibility to make that transition, he also thinks that society should meet people halfway. That’s going to require changes on many levels, he says. “We’ll probably see a dramatic increase in life coaching and workshops for more affluent people, but if we are going to tap the talent in other sectors of the boomer population, we need changes in public policy.”

In the first place, he suggests getting rid of penalties for working longer. Making affordable health care accessible could encourage active participation in encore careers, he says. Freedman also argues for the creation of new kinds of incentives, like IBM’s Transition to Teaching program, which prepares employees to take on a second career as a math or science teacher.

“And we need more online resources for people wanting to make this kind of shift,” says Freedman, who notes that most of the major job sites offer openings in other industries.

The study reports that people already in their encore career discovered that many problems that they had anticipated—like the lack of flexibility or the fear of being underappreciated—never materialized. Over 75 percent were satisfied with the salary and benefits, but the need to learn new skills and coping with a loss of seniority continued as concerns. Still, the feedback from those who have already embarked on an encore career was positive.  “The message seems to be ‘try it, you’ll like it,’ ” says Freedman.

That’s certainly true for my friend Anne, who’s now working in the nonprofit sector in the area of global poverty. “Right now, there’s nothing else I’d rather do,” she says.

Survey Results

The survey of 3,500 men and women was conducted by Peter D. Hart Research Associates, Inc. by telephone and on the Internet from February through April 2008.  The respondents were divided into three categories: those in encore careers, those interested in such careers and those not interested.  The complete study is available at www.civicventures.org.

Among the key findings related to those in encore careers:

•  The majority were between the ages of 51 and 62. More than half were women.

•  Most (52 percent) are engaged in professional or managerial careers, and an additional 28 percent in other white-collar occupations. Nearly one in five (18 percent) have blue-collar jobs.

•  The largest group (42 percent) lives in the suburbs; 30 percent live in urban areas and 28 percent in small towns and rural areas.

•  More than a third of those who chose encore careers did so for financial reasons and health benefits.

•  Most reported a high level of satisfaction (84 percent) and felt they were making a difference (94 percent).

By: Cathie Gandel | Source: AARP Bulletin Today | June 18, 2008

RIDE THE WAVE! Big Business & Boomer Women

By Dharma

OKAY, Now Here’s The Next Big ThingWE are probably going to be the next big thing – women baby boomer entrepreneurs! By 2010, I predict that many of us will be like Colonel Sanders who made more in his second career after age 65.Women make really great entrepreneurs. We work for other people usually but when women take that risk to become business owners, look out! We can ride that wave, especially now with the Internet to help us.

Surfs up! Let’s get started! Learn to market your self and your business. Sign up now to learn more about Internet attraction marketing!

Make More “Retired” Than Hired!”

One of my mentors is Ann Sieg. She tells one of my very favorite stories about how she not only wanted to retire early but she wanted to make enough money in multi-level marketing (MLM) to retire her husband early too! And she did! But not the usual MLM way, the renegade way. She leveraged herself by working at home, building her MLM online.

Talk about a “Don’t Mess With Me” spirit with a big heart, that’s Sieg. She’s THE renegade network marketer.  She wrote the book!

Colonel Sanders Didn’t Have What We Have

Colonel Sanders didn’t have the Internet Web 2.0 advantage. We do. Learning things like how to Generating free leads using Squidoo for example, is something the colonel couldn’t do – there was no Squidoo!

Terri Stallcop  www.terristallcop.com

 

What are YOU dying to do?

By Dharma

There is no security in doing something for a living when you are dying inside while doing it. That is taking care of the body at the expense of the soul. And a withering soul cannot help but produce a withering body. So do not think you are “taking care of yourself” by killing your spirit to keep your body alive. How long will you put off what you are dying to do?  You will not have to think but a second to know exactly why you received this message today.

Neale Donald Walsch  www.nealedonaldwalsch.com