Who Will Cry When You Die\?: Life Lessons From The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari pdfdrive com

52.
Create a Pure Environment
One of the timeless truths of successful living can be stated simply: your
thoughts form your world. What you focus on in your life grows, what you think
about expands and what you dwell on determines your destiny. Life is a self-
fulfilling prophecy—it gives you just about what you expect from it. As Helen
Keller said, “No pessimist ever discovered the secrets of the stars, or sailed to an
uncharted land, or opened a new heaven to the human spirit.” Given this
principle, the first step to becoming a happier, more serene person is to manage
your thoughts and purify your thinking. One of the best ways to begin this inner
work is to improve the quality of your personal environment.
After a speech I gave to a large gathering in San Francisco, an elderly
woman slowly walked up to me and held my hand, as people in their golden
years often do. Looking straight into my eyes she said, “Mr. Sharma, I’ve
listened to your insights for living a better life for the past hour and I agree with
everything you’ve said. For many years I have understood that our surroundings
shape our moods, our thoughts and our dreams. And so, in every room of my
little house, I have a bouquet of freshly cut flowers. I am not a wealthy woman.
But this is one luxury I would never do without.” This woman knew that a first-
class environment is an investment, not an expense.
Take a good, hard look at your environment. Your thoughts are shaped by
the people you associate with, by the books you read, by the words you speak
and by your daily physical surroundings. Are you spending your time at work
with negative people? If so, they will eventually make you negative and cynical.
Are you watching violent TV shows and mindless videos at home? If so, your
mind will grow restless and noisy. Is the space you work in bright, colorful and
inspiring? Over the coming weeks, take steps to make the environment you work
and live in a better one. You will quickly detect improvements in the way you
think, feel and act.

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