The art of thinking (The 16 celestial arts)

We all think, but some think, better than others. What is the secret in that art?

First of all, they are able to minimize their waste. Look at your house and you will see lots of waste, but basically they come from three different sources: 1) rests of what you have used, 2) environment (dust, for instance), 3) things you have acquired but which do not contribute to your household. Out of the three, the third one is the most dangerous. One lady in Brazil had about 700 tons of things, including rubbish, in her yard... Now, just imagine how much do you have within? How many situations, people, problems and other things that happened many years ago are still in your memory? They are still defining how you should live. They are still in your thoughts...

A person with the art of thinking will be able to discard anything that is not valuable for the self or for others. He or she will be able to have thoughts that are full of value.

The second thing is in relation to the quality of those thoughts. OK, perhaps you don't accumulate useless things, but what you have, is that of good quality? You will consider quality as a set of criteria such as life duration or resistance. In relation to thoughts, their quality depends on the level of the awareness you had it.

Many thoughts just pop in our minds, like pop-corn, with no visible cause. Their quality is normally related to the awareness of the moment; for instance, if you are really relaxed, it is possible that thought brings you the solution for your financial problems. But if you are about to be operated and you are stressed due to that, it is quite possible your thoughts will be dark, with lots of images of people dying in hospitals.

Other thoughts have a very clear cause and you can manage your awareness in that case. If you are very relaxed, but you need to be concerned with what your daughter is telling you it is possible that you will talk yourself into paying more attention to what she is saying. On the other hand, if you are about to be operated and you read about people who have died on the table, you can talk to yourself in a positive and encouraging way.

At both situations, quality of thought is more elevated if it is a positive, encouraging, caring one. The one who masters the art of thinking will be careful to cultivate her or his awareness so that thoughts with that quality emerge.

To master that art, the best think is learning meditation, as it helps you to monitor your thoughts and create those, which give you a sense of well-being. In a powerful meditation state, you can easily create a masterpiece in your mind.

Did you survive until now?

Yes, you have reached February 2014. Amazing, is it not? Time flies very quickly in life, a new year celebration happens, many new year resolutions come too... and then, they are almost all forgotten.

Yes, life pace is quick, nobody has time to go and check and recheck what they are doing, so our resolutions, promises and commitments stay where we have created them...

But if you are still alive, and I am sure you are, then you have time right now to check your resolutions and to restart that process you start when you have made them.

Why don't we commit to what we propose? Why is it so easy to slip back towards old patterns and habits? After all, there is no doubt we do want to change and we want to be better...

There are two ways of seeing this situation. The first is quite biological: when we have habits, the patterns are literally there in our brains. That means we cannot change them, because they are part of our own body. The only way is to create another pattern and that can take a few years. This is why some people after suffering an accident that affects their brains are able to change patterns, habits and even personalities: their brain has changed.

The second reason is spiritual. Within the brain, awareness lives. We use our brain and body to express that energy, something we ourselves are. Habits and patterns come from that energy. If you work on your own self and if you change the way you see the world around you, naturally your patterns and habits will change from that consciousness.

In that case, the first step is the realization something you do is wrong or what it should be done instead, which brings opposite feelings like regret and bliss. At the same time, it starts to give you enough strength to implement a change in your life. That takes you to a second stage when you are able to start a change.

You will need lots of strength to change a pattern. Meditation, reflection and contemplation are normally the means to "recharge" the self in that process.

The good thing is that wonderful experience of being your own master and being able to really change the self at your will. And, of course, to fulfill your new year resolution...

The art of speech (The 16 celestial arts)

When I was a child, due to circumstances in my life, I was brought up by my grandmother. She was a Spanish woman, living from the age of 9 in Brazil, but still her Portuguese was never good which affected the development of my own way of speaking. In Brazil, these things are very serious and discrimination is harsh if someone does not speak at least a standard Portuguese.

A friend of mine helped me to fill the gap and soon I was speaking like a prince! I would become a real fanatic by the language which should be called Brazilian, since our Portuguese is very different (and more beautiful) than the original...

But, life has its traps and here I am, far from my own original and beloved language, which I enjoy by listening to songs and talking a few hours a year. More irony: the profession I have chosen is one where speech is a must.

As a business consultant, coach or author, I need to know how to express myself coherently and powerfully. I need to convince people in the audience, or clarify important concepts for them.

I am not arrogant; I know I don't really master Spanish. In fact, I am used to say that I speak three languages... all of them badly!

But, the art of speech is not about how perfectly you are able to communicate. It is not about beautiful words and the way you use them. It is not a contest...

It is the art of expressing whatever is happening inside you. Isn't it a wonderful thing? We have a whole world happening inside, a gigantic quantity of feelings, emotions, thoughts, experiences being processed, past and future desires... The art of speech is that fine art when you are able to channel that inner treasure. Besides that, you are able to contribute something to your audience, enriching them with your experience.

A tip: don't get caught into the words. Let the soul expresses itself freely. It doesn't matter if you are going to give a talk on global economy, how to take care of dogs or something very intimate to a friend - in all these cases, soul's energy will make the message much more powerful as words won't be just words but they will be a piece of your world.

The art of enjoying work and leisure (The 16 celestial arts)

Here I am... while writing this blog I watch people coming back from vacation.

Most of my friends post their great experiences by travelling and knowing different things around the world. But there is one funny thing about this coming back.

You know I live in Bogota and jokingly I say it is the only city I know the weather is psychological. That is right: if people are happy and full of joy, sun is shining; if people are grumpy, clouds, rains and even hail can happen. I live here for 20 years and I seldom saw a cloudy holiday... but when people start to work: clouds, rains, thunders...

Let's be honest: normal people don't like to work. Yes, people like to earn money or to use their skills. Some people find pleasure in helping others or cooking. But then we took all of that and we framed it with a label: WORK.

Work has become an antagonist in our lives.

• "Why are you so afraid?" "Well, you know, both my parents used to work all the time..."
• "Honey, I need to talk to you." "I just came back from work, give me a break, please..."
• "You can't stay like that, come on, call Jim right now and open your heart!" "No way, he is working, if I do that he will be so upset..."

I feel one of the beautiful things about being spiritual is the wholeness of your own self; you really can't dismember yourself into pieces and try to live happily with that. You are you, no matter if you are working, touring, cooking for your kids, enjoying the company of someone you love or meditating. You are you.

The art of enjoying work and leisure is the art of smiling, being happy no matter what, stay peaceful despite the situations and really enjoying life completely. When you allow yourself to be your own self, to be beyond any limitations, then you will be able to tolerate and live with all limitations. They will turn into good friends in your self-progress as human being.

And work won't be something hard and difficult that you don't like, but a part you want to play as it is part of your role in this world drama.