I love aliteration. I am not sure whether it is a cosmic influence from the number three (the universe is energy, matter or ether) or just the balance of having an odd number or the mathematical equality of a triangle but I am definitely attracted and inspired by it and today I thought of the three words which could form a triumvirate for living a life I love to live. Energy, enthusiasm and empathy.
Energy. It is impossible for us to escape energy. You are using it this very second as you read these words. There are many ways to measure energy in our bodies but for the purpose of this discussion let’s use blood. The rate of blood cell formation varies depending on the individual, but a typical production might average 200,000,000,000 red cells per day. And you thought you were not productive today…smile. The energy I am suggesting is our mind/body energy connection. Go for a walk. Take time out, walk around, enjoy your surroundings. Each day create and spend energy on living and enjoying life.
Enthusiasm. I was meeting with a client the other day and he was fidgeting. I asked him if he was bored and immediately apologized. He laughed out loud. He said he was not bored at all and in fact could not imagine anyone being bored around me because I was so enthusiastic about my work. He said it was the first time (he was in his late fifties) he had been in a financial meeting and was having fun. I felt so honoured. I try to make it interesting. I do love my work and here was someone who I had never met before, whose wife told me she worked a couple of weeks to get his agreement for the meeting and now he was enjoying my enthusiasm. I felt successful in that moment. It is the type of man and way I want to do business.
Empathy. I was out for dinner the other night with a friend and I was talking about being comfortable with both men and women crying in front of me. She smiled, recoiled slightly and then gave me an arms length shoulder pat to show how she deals with it. It is not the same for her. This is the difference between empathy and sympathy. When we are empathetic we are there for the other but not actually caught up in the same feeling. If you are sad and then I become sad then I am not present to help you express your sadness and that is true when we share the sadness but to be present when someone expresses deep emotion is a wonderful and meaningful human sentiment. And to have another present for me is one of the best gifts I can receive. Together we can do anything, just look around you and see the magnificient cultures and societies we have built.
And so today, regardless of the overcast weather I am experiencing I consciously choose to live my life with energy, enthusiasm and empathy. I will be aware of it, I will strive for it and I will create a life I love to live.
