Why I... practise mindfulness
"Life is not a rehearsal. Be prepared and invest in building your dream, otherwise you’ll end up working for someone else – building theirs."
I read medical biochemistry at university and wanted to be a scientist. I was brought up to think like a scientist but, on graduating, I realised I didn’t want a career out of science. It was very worrying and confusing.
Then I met this wise man who asked me what my purpose was. At 21, I didn’t think I had one – but he made me a life-changing offer: “If I can show you a job where you can influence and help a person, a family or business to be the best they can be because they channel every decision through you, their trusted adviser, would you take that job?”
Imagine my disappointment when he told me he was talking about a financial adviser. I hated money. I didn’t see what the job had to do with helping people. But I realised it can, it deals with constant ongoing change.
Early in my career, a lot of the ‘financial advice’ I was employed to give was not advice at all – but sales. I was getting used to responding to people by looking for a sale ahead of really listening to their needs.
I had been brought up with Buddhism, which teaches you to listen on experiential level, not a surface level, and it dawned on me I should be using this technique with clients.
Now, I completely detach from everything other than aiming to achieve a deep understanding of the person and what matters to them. The only way to be in such a state of control is to be highly aware of your thoughts. You simply observe without response. With time you see reality, not some imaginary concoction leading to opportunism.
Life can be a conveyor belt: you get up, go to work, do a series of tasks, come home and then go to sleep. The process repeats itself until, one day, you look back and wonder what it could have been like. Do you want to be a pawn in a system...or create a system that works for you and your family?
There are three types of people: most look back on their lives and say: “It’s been average”. Some, however, might make repetitive mistakes, they seem programmed to fail. A third type – a small minority – seem to get better and better. They have ‘alpha’ about them. I know that my purpose is to help everyone become this type.
The future is an outcome of the present. In between the two, a series of activities need to take place. If we need to take action, what makes us take a decision to act is our thoughts. If we can control our thoughts, we can control our destiny. We become what we think. Mindfulness clarifies your thinking, making right thought achievable.
A life of purpose reveals the purpose of life. This is a core Buddhist principle. Most jobs are not in line with our core values. Be brave and never fear going it alone.
Life is not a rehearsal. Be prepared and invest in building your dream, otherwise you’ll end up working for someone else – building theirs.