Anne Naylor

Wealth School: How Listening Can Enrich You

"It takes courage for people to listen to their own goodness and act on it."
-- Pablo Casals

Do you ever lose sight of your own goodness? Were you ever encouraged when growing up to focus more on your faults and weaknesses, and less on your strengths and qualities? The sounds of criticism can become a habit that we adopt for ourselves and in time, they grow deafening. Literally.

The words "learn" and "heart" both have ears in them. Loving and learning go well together and thrive in lifetimes rich with curiosity and wonder -- at every age. Rather like breathing in and breathing out, there are times for action, and times to listen, to receive further guidance and direction, to be restored.

I remind myself from time to time to be aware of God's gentle hand, guiding me in the spaces between the spaces. What does this mean? As someone who likes to feel in control, which I am not, I can overexercise my driving nature to be doing and achieving, and fail to be the wise observer.

Taking time out to switch off and listen inwardly to the stillness is an extraordinary investment of my time which pays great dividends. How? it involves being willing to do absolutely nothing, until moved to do the next something. A 10-minute nap, or even a couple of minutes stretched out gives me fresh impetus to do what I know needs to be done next. No pressure, just flow.

I have been a seeker and I still am.
But I stopped asking the books and the stars.
I started listening to the teachings of my Soul.
-- Rumi

Observation and listening save time and effort. The wisdom you need is very present within you. Always. You may save yourself a lot of stress and strain by taking a little time out to be still.

Last weekend, I went to the opening of a new gallery/artists center opened by a friend with two colleagues. In response to my recent article Wealth School: Lessons in Trust and Truth
she decided to give in her notice to her more permanent employment and to follow her heartfelt dream -- to paint full time. When I saw her in the gallery, she was more vibrant, enthused and full of joy than I ever remember her. And this is a person who is naturally exuberant at any time I remember.

With a fellow artist, she talked about the new Nowism Movement in art. I did not pursue this at the time. However, my sense is that you do not have to be a painter to be a NOWist. I love that idea. How does it work?

The way I am learning to work Nowism is to pay attention to my inner guidance and direction in the moment. To listen carefully and become more sensitive to honoring what is true for me. This is not a linear, logical process. Quite the opposite.

So here is a challenge for you. When you stop reading this article, pause and reflect a moment. What is the very best next thing for you to do? Listen. Do not censor what you hear. Is it: Get a drink of water to refresh, or stand up and stretch, or water the plants, or replace that light bulb you have been meaning to change for days? Whatever it is, do it.

If you would like to become a better listener, see what you can do to remove clutter and distraction from your life. You know, things like the piles of magazines that you are probably never going to read, though you think you might or should, one day. Do you honestly have too much on the go, and need to drop some commitments that really do not now have any juice for you? Simplify, simplify. Even if it is to clear clothes from your closet you know you will never wear again. It is amazing how dead energy is draining -- and how liberating it is to lighten up.

If you would like more wealth (however you might define it) in your life, make space for it.

Notice that you have two ears and one mouth. Perhaps that reminds us to listen twice as much as we speak. The ear is shaped a bit like a question mark. Asking a question to receive guidance about any aspect of your life is a great idea. But make sure you remember to listen for the answers. The answers may come directly from within you, or from any other source such as a conversation with a friend, a news item on TV, a comment from a passing stranger, through a dream, during meditation.

Our world is so amazingly rich in resources we may never discover until we start to pay attention, to live fully in the present moment. Pay attention to your goodness, the love that you are, that is waiting for you to discover it more fully. You were born with love. Love never leaves you.

How has listening served to enrich you in the past? I would love to know.

If I can assist you with any questions about wealth, get in touch. I am open to learn all I can about wealth - as it is in our time. Please leave a comment below.