How I became a Buddhist and what this has to do with your business

BuddhismWe were on holiday in India. I was 11.

Us, and an expansive sea of students sitting before the Dalai Lama who was giving a teaching in Ladakh.

I remember thinking I’d never seen so many people. And the quiet. The calm. The uniformity in everyone just sitting there.
It was unbelievable.
Literally.
We managed to get a bird’s eye view and the scene of all these students sitting before this one man, the silence despite the numbers was awe-inspiring. I felt embarrassed to be there. It felt too sacred somehow. I felt we were imposing. And yet I knew how important this moment was.

Buddhism became a part of my future

From that day, Buddhism was on my radar. On and off, not in a big way, just there. I was also brought up in Asia for many years so Buddha statues were a common sight for me. Seeds were planted.

The first Buddhist book I read, in my early 20s, was ‘The Art of Happiness’ by the Dalai Lama. This was one of those life changing books. It planted another seed.

Living in Sydney in my late 20s Buddhist friends of mine invited me along to one of their meetings. No longer could this inner, spiritual part of my journey be put off.

Soon after this I moved to Copenhagen with a deeply broken heart and, for the first time in my life, not knowing where I was headed or what I wanted. I knew it was time for me to put my actions where my thoughts had been all these years. I found the Buddhist centers, got in touch and went to the one that seemed to be the best fit. A couple of months later I took refuge (the commitment to officially become a practicing Buddhist with the goal of attaining Buddhahood…working on it ;)).
I didn’t quite know what lay ahead. I didn’t feel ‘worthy’ to be a part of this community. And yet, yet I knew this was for me. I had full trust in the unknown that reached way beyond any fears or insecurities I had.

What my spiritual journey has to do with your business…

Have you ever dreamt of something, of someone you’d become or something you’d do for so long that it’s part of you even though you’re not living it yet?

For me that was Buddhism and my business is a tool along this path to creating a life of greater freedom, inner and outer, and bringing this out in the world through the way that I live and work.

Whatever your reasons for having your own business, when your business is your passion you know that it has to work. Going back to a 9-5 isn’t an option for you. Even if you feel you’re fumbling your way through because your business just it’s there yet, somehow, you know this is it.

There comes a time when enough is enough. A time when you know you need to do something about this. A time when you need to create the vision you have, not stay with a second hand version of it.

There comes a time when you know you need someone to show you the way, to turn your messy business into one that runs, feels and looks like a business that fully serves your life and what you want to bring out in the world (like for me with Buddhism, I wanted out of guesstimating and into full implementation with an expert guiding me).

This is about taking responsibility to make things happen. It comes from knowing that it can only come from you. No one else can make this happen for you. Either you take and listen to someone’s advice, or you go your way. No right or wrong, Either way you’ll get a result. It depends what result you want.

If you know you want support in growing your business and you want to find out more about how I can help you, apply here for your Discovery session.

Caroline Cain

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