Category: Fulfilment

  • Comfort discourages heroism

    Heroes overcome obstacles. Whether it’s a passerby who risks danger to save others in a one-off incident, or a human rights campaigner working tirelessly over a lifetime, a hero doesn’t take the easy road. Most of us don’t aspire to be heroes; we leave that for exceptional human beings. We prefer to mind our own […]

  • Purpose and Work

    Marci Shimoff tells a story about three men on a building site. When asked what they’re doing, the first replies that he is laying bricks. The second replies that he is proud to be practising his trade as a bricklayer. The third replies that he is building a beautiful cathedral. This story demonstrates the different […]

  • A brighter future for the world

    As it becomes increasingly clear that the ways we have organised ourselves in the industrialised world have been bad for us as humans, as well as destructive for the planet, more and more people are thinking for themselves about what is truly important. And now that the internet can connect people across the globe, individuals […]

  • Rethinking the Hard Times

    December is a good time to reflect on the past year and to re-evaluate our life’s direction. As we set intentions for the coming year, we’re acknowledging the importance of making choices and plans in line with our values. However, life rarely proceeds according to our prearranged schedule. There will be external pressures and unforeseen […]

  • The Benefits of Not Complaining

    The average day provides a myriad of blessings to be grateful for, along with multiple niggles and challenges – all of which are opportunities to complain, if that is our focus. People who constantly complain are hard to be around and don’t attract warmth from others. The sad thing is that their focus on the […]

  • Being Happy With Who You Are

    In the book Presence, Otto Scharmer tells the story of coming home from school at age 16 to find his home in flames. His family had lived in that farmhouse for 200 years and all his belongings were inside, so as he stood there in shock, everything he identified with was going up in smoke. […]

  • Can you have too much happiness?

    George Bernard Shaw wrote: “a lifetime of happiness! No man could bear it: it would be hell on earth.” In contrast, the Dalai Lama said the purpose of life is to be happy. Who is right? I believe both are correct, but they are talking about different kinds of happiness. The simplest kind of happiness is […]

  • Workplace culture includes you!

    What makes the difference between a job you love and one you hate? Research has shown that while low salary and poor working conditions can lower your job satisfaction, the things that make you feel good about work are not the material things but the human factors. Recognition, responsibility and believing that you are doing […]

  • When the good go bad…

    How is it that so much harm is caused in the name of religion? How can people who do dreadful things look themselves in the mirror and think they are right? I believe it has something to do with language. Not just the way we use words to justify what we do, but the very […]

  • Fear of change creates a comfort trap

    Studies have shown that people who become paraplegics after an accident are only slightly less happy a year later than they were before the accident. By the same token, big lotto winners are back to their previous happiness level within a year. When something big happens, good or bad, people soon become accustomed to it. […]