How Do You Find Your True Life Purpose?

Many people, even very successful professionals, say they are unsure what they want to do or be in life. I understand! I've been there. In my life I've been a Wall Street stock broker, business owner, marketing professional and more.

But when I discovered Feng Shui, I knew that was part of my true life purpose: to help others achieve their goals and live a more fulfilling life. This manifests in many ways, including this blog and Feng Shui consultations.

When we are living our true life purpose, we are filled with peace. There are no questions of:

“Is this what I'm meant to do?”
“Why did my life turn out this way?”
“Why am I always longing for more?”
“Isn't there more to life than this?”

Doubts fade, as we live each day very clear about why we are here. Of course, even the spiritual masters stray occasional off their true path, but when your life purpose is clear, it's easy to get back on track by taking action that puts you back on your life path.

The first step to discovering your true life purpose is to begin seeking it. Be open to it. Embrace experiences and live with a mindset that all you want is out there, just waiting for you to claim it.

I have an exciting project in the works that will help you discover your true life purpose and then use Feng Shui to help you begin living it every day. Stay tuned...

Basic Feng Shui Cure #6 - Use Electrical Devices to Activate Sections of the Bagua for Increased Wealth and Fame

Note: This series explores the 9 basic Feng Shui cures.

When the ancient Chinese first began using Feng Shui, of course, there was no such thing as electricity. Modern Feng Shui masters had to find ways to account for these devices and their affects on the chi of a home, apartment or business.

Today, electrical devices including stereo sound systems, television sets, and, of course, lights, are employed as one of the nine basic Feng Shui cures. In general, electrical objects have a very active, lively chi, and are useful to brighten a space when more energy is needed.

No Place in the Bedroom
Electrically powered objects should be kept out of the bedroom -- and especially the master bedroom -- as they can create stress and detract from a good night's sleep and the peaceful, calming atmosphere of a bedroom.

If you require an electric or battery-powered alarm clock to wake up in the morning, point the clock so it is facing away from you. The lights may keep you awake at night, and, if you can't sleep, there's nothing worse than watching the minutes rush by as morning approaches. This only adds to insomnia.

Electrical Energy to Raise the Chi
In most areas of the home, electrical energy is positive, carrying uplifting chi that will activate that segment of the Ba Gua. An air conditioner in the wealth corner will have the same effect as a water feature -- improving the financial situation of the home's residents. A television in the fame corner is an effective way to become more well-known in your industry or vocation.   

Basic Feng Shui Cure #4: Use Moving Objects to Disperse Killing Chi

Note: This series explores the 9 basic Feng Shui cures.

Moving objects -- wind-powered or electrical -- can activate positive chi and also block the effects of killing chi.

What is Killing Chi?
Killing chi, or Sha, is chi that carries with it misfortune. It comes from architectural features like the corner of another building pointed directly at your home or apartment, the corner of a square post pointing at your front door, or from buildings with negative connotations and energy, such as funeral homes.

If your neighbor has a steeply slanted roof and the eave points directly at your home, this carries sha. Likewise with the end of a road at a t-intersection, or the end of a dead end. People who live in these houses often have misfortune.

Mobiles, Windmills, Whirligigs and Weather Vanes to Disperse Negative Chi
A weather vane pointed at the source of the sha will deflect the negative chi. Windmills will help disperse rushing chi -- positive or negative.

Indoors, mobiles can be used (in the same way as wind chimes) to disperse rushing chi down a long hallway or at the bottom of a staircase.

Moving Water Features
There's something relaxing yet revitalizing about a water fountain, geyser or waterfall. These features on a property or within a home activate positive chi and can attract financial wealth to a home's inhabitants.

Basic Feng Shui Cure #2: Objects that Make Sounds Offer Security and Wealth

Note: This series explores the 9 basic Feng Shui cures.

Wind chimes and bells are the second of nine Ysing Feng Shui cures.

Wind Chimes
Wind chimes can be used in a similar way as crystals, to disperse the flow of rushing chi. A wind chime hung on the eave of a home or terrace of an apartment can help improve finances for the residents, as well as providing a pleasant-sounding greeting to visitors and people returning home.

Wind chimes can also help alleviate depression and laziness, as explained in this post.

The best wind chimes will have a deep, pleasant tonal quality and will be made up of 5 individual tubes to represent the 5 elements of Feng Shui.

Shopkeeper's Bell
A shopkeeper's bell can provide a sense of security to people in a home or place of business. If the master bedroom is located on the top floor of a home, a shopkeeper's bell at the front door provides a greater sense of control to the home's inhabitants.

Similarly, if a master bedroom is located behind the swing of a door, a bell hung on the door can help prevent danger, surprise and misfortune.

A bell hung on the front door will also activate the segment of the Ba Gua in which the door is located, either the helpful people sector, knowledge and wisdom sector, or career sector.

3 Ways Your Entrance Could Be Hurting Your Health and Opportunities

How do you feel when you enter your home? Do you feel uplifted, yet relaxed at the sight of the first room you enter, or depressed, stifled and unmotivated?

Do you frequently welcome visitors who love “dropping by” your home? Or do people look uncomfortable when they enter and leave quickly?

How your home's entrance makes you and others feel could also reflect the effects your home's entrance has on your life, health, wealth, success and happiness.

Let's look at 3 ways your entrance could be blocking your path to success.

Dark, narrow foyer - Chokes chi, limiting opportunity. May cause respiratory problems or difficulty with childbirth. A skylight, bright light on the ceiling and painting the entry light colors will visually open the space. Hanging a mirror on the wall you see as you open the door will create a sense of depth.

Foyer wall too close to the door - Inhibits chi, causing residents to feel as if life is a constant struggle. To create a sense of depth and permit chi to flow more freely, hang a mirror on the wall.

Front door faces back door or window - Chi (as well as money and opportunity) rush through the house too quickly. To disperse the chi and permit positive energy to linger in your home, hang windchimes, a Feng Shui Crystal or plant between the two openings.

Is Water Near Your Home Making You Sick?

Water in the Wealth section of the ba'gua within your home or business can help bring you greater opportunities to increase your income. Water, as a moving form of life chi, typically represents positive fortune. But sometimes ponds and pools on your property may not be good Feng Shui and can even adversely affect your health.

Let's look at five common problems with water and some easy Feng Shui cures.

1. Water too close to the house: This can cause skin diseases or lung problems. Cure: Place a meandering path from house to pond or pool.

2. Pond too small or too large in relation to the home: Skin diseases or lung problems. Cure: Install a light or a rock garden near the water or plan a tree on the opposite side of the house from the body of water.

3. Body of water curves away from house: This can drain your finances. Cure: Install a spotlight shining up to the roof.

4. Swimming pool at a sharp angle to the house: Can cause illness and poverty. Cure: Install a fountain or plants between the pool and house to block the “poison arrow” created by the angle.

5. Stagnant water: Standing water breeds mosquitoes, which carry disease, and adds humidity to the air, which can cause respiratory ailments. Cure: Do not allow standing water near your home. Always filter pools. Watch out for places that water may collect (such as upturned garbage can lids or empty buckets).

Is Your Driveway Bringing You Good Fortune?

In Feng Shui, several rounded driveway shapes are considered to attract good luck and positive chi. These shapes include:

- semi-circular
- circular
- circular with a center island of grass or flowers
- circular with a square center

Some straight or rectangular shapes may carry misfortune.

For instance:

- A driveway that narrows toward the road may limit career or business opportunities.
Cure: Place a lamppost at the foot of the driveway to illuminate the front door or the top of the house.

- Steep slope, narrowing toward the foot of the driveway can also limit opportunities.
Cure: Two brick posts that flank the driveway's entrance will re-circulate chi and increase opportunities.

- A driveway that slopes down toward the house can cause problems with money, relationships, health or your career.
Cure: Created terraces of pavement along the driveway to soften the flow of chi as it rushes toward the house or aim a spotlight at the top of the roof.

- A driveway or walkway that is narrower than the front door stifles chi.
Cure: Make the walkway or driveway wider than the front door, since a wide front door is good for prosperity.

5 Fast Feng Shui Cures to Improve Your Fortune

Do you believe Feng Shui is difficult? Do you think it will take a lot of money to improve the flow of chi in your home to bring you greater health, wealth, fortune and happiness? Are you afraid your home is so bad, it would be easier (and less expensive) to move?

Feng Shui doesn't have to involve redecorating your entire space, knocking down walls or adding extensions to a home. There are simple things you can do today to improve the flow of chi and introduce more positive energy into your apartment or house. This is especially important in apartments, where tenants may not be able to make extensive modifications.

1. Replace burnt out light bulbs. - Light (natural or electric) is a powerful form of chi. Dead lightbulbs indicate neglect and can create negative energy. Replace burnt out bulbs with new ones to introduce positive chi into a room.

2. Fix broken doors. Small annoyances such as broken doorknobs, squeaky hinges and even broken doors can nag at us every day. Spend a few minutes on the weekend fixing these things and your life will feel as if it's moving more smoothly.

3. Hang a mirror to make a space feel more open. We often call mirrors the “aspirin of Feng Shui” as they can help with chi flow in nearly any space. If an area feels closed in or cramped, hanging a mirror will open the space -- and it costs even less than painting or installing a new light.

4. Add living plants and fresh flowers. Reconnect with nature by bringing nature indoors. Many times when I visit a clients home, it feels like winter. The chi is very low and everything is dead with no life or color representation. One of the most effective and cheapest ways to make a space feel like a home is by adding plants, flowers or fresh fruit. Try it and let me know how it feels.

5. Display fresh fruit and vegetables. The saying is that first you must have health then you can get wealth. Take time to invest in yourself by purchasing fresh fruits and vegetables and display them in a nice bowl that makes you feel abundant. This simple act impacts how you’re seen in the world and the opportunities that you receive.

The Best Numbers for a Home or Apartment in Feng Shui

Feng Shui consultants sometimes employ numerology -- the symbolism of numbers -- to help in assessing the chi of a home, apartment or place of business. My Feng Shui Name Grader uses algorithms based in numerology to determine if a particular name will be positive, negative or neutral.

What are the best numbers for a house or apartment in Feng Shui? And why?

The best numbers for a home or office are 1, 2, 3, 6, 8 and 9.

One signifies a new beginning or birth, always an auspicious event. The number 2 represents balance, as in yin and yang.

The number three in Feng Shui, just as in Western culture, possesses mystical powers: the three wishes of fairy tails, Christianity's Holy Trinity, and the geometry of a triangle. Six and 9, as multiples of 3, carry good fortune, too. Nine, additionally, represents the culmination of a cycle, things reaching a pinnacle. The Chinese word for nine, chou, sounds like the word for longevity. If you live in a home or apartment bearing the number nine, you can expect to stay there for a while.

The number 8, similar to the number 3, also carries fortunate energy. In Cantonese, the words “eight” and “prosperity” sound alike. Additionally, the ba gua possesses eight trigrams.

House Numbers to Avoid
In Feng Shui, the number four is considered unfortunate. It sounds very similar to the Chinese word for death. In Chinese architecture, four is avoided. Chinese architects sometimes “cut off” corners of buildings to create an eight-sided building, and buildings in China are sometimes missing the fourth floor just as, in the United States, some architects eliminate the 13th floor.

Contrary to Western culture, the number 7 is also considered unlucky in Feng Shui. Chinese memorial services for the dead traditionally take place every 7 days for 7 weeks.

Five is considered a neutral number.

How to Calculate Your House Number
If you have a single digit house or apartment number, it's easy to judge whether it will be auspicious or not. If a home has a 2, 3 or 4 digit number, you can look at each number individually, or you can add the numbers together, and then, add those numbers (if there are two or more digits) together to get a number between 1 and 9. That number will tell you whether the home or business will help attract good fortune for its residents.  

Fortunately, with 6 positive numbers and only two numbers believed to bring misfortune, it should be easy to find a home with a fortunate building number.

If you take time to assess the Feng Shui of a house before you buy,  you may want to take into consideration the number of the building.

3 Simple Ways to Feng Shui Your Front Door

We've often said that the entrance is one of the three most important areas of your home. But what about your front door, specifically? When you stand in your doorway, you should feel a sense of balance in the home from all directions. Here are three more Feng Shui factors to consider when you first enter your home.

1. The front door should open into the widest part of the room. If it doesn't, there are a number of cures you can employ. You can re-hinge the door so it does. If this is impractical, you can mirror the wall facing the door opening, so you can see the rest of the room from the doorway. You can add an automatic light that comes on when the door opens.

If a bedroom is located behind the direction of swing of a front door, this could lead to unrest for the people who sleep in that room. Hang a shopkeeper's bell on the door to avert physical danger and misfortune.

2. If your front door opens onto a long narrow corridor along the center line of your home, you may have financial problems caused by chi rushing rapidly in and out of the home. Hang windchimes or Clear, Faceted Swarovski Feng Shui Crystals along the corridor to slow the flow of chi. You can also use mirrors to give the illusion that the corridor is wider.

3. The best color for a door is green; this color will bring fortune and luck to the people inside the home or apartment.