The Purpose Of Human Life, Even For Perceived Failures

I think this world may be something like a maze and we are the rats in the maze. What we need to do is find our way out of the maze and sometimes we get a little tired of hitting dead ends and that's what puts us in a state of depression or frustration or simply not wanting to live.

The concept I have for the purpose of life is that we have to find a way out of the maze and that maze is of course the thoughts and emotions we feel based on all the wrong turns that we made in the maze during our life.

If we can actually find a way out of the maze, that will change everything, and that to me is the whole purpose of our existence. To find our way out of this maze is not just for our own sake, but the sake of all the other rats in the maze called humans.

I think that depression is when we see life as all about 'me' but when I remove myself from the story, and if I become irrelevant, and my life is just to get out of the maze for the sake of every rat on the planet so we can all find our way out, then it makes life worth living.

Maybe it is like the 100th monkey effect. When enough monkeys solve a puzzle, all of a sudden all the other monkeys can do it also.

Now the question is, what happens when all the rats get out of the maze, or even if only a few get out. Will that mean the experiment is over? Then what happens?

There are many ancient sayings; 'As above, so below." or 'The microcosm in the macrocosm'. 'The child will emulate the parent.' The Sufi say; 'He who knows himself knows God.' There are many such sayings all telling us that basically, to know our creator, whatever you perceive that to be, we only need to deeply understand ourself. And we do run rats through mazes to learn many scientific discoveries, so why wouldn't our creator be doing that as well?

If this is true, we are presented with a very complex next question which is, each person is so different from Hitler to Gandhi, so how could I know God by knowing me? I as an individual am so limited and God must be unlimited.

A possible answer to this is that each individual is far more complex than the limitations of the ego personality that we currently live. That is to say, you may be evil but you have good in you, and likewise, no matter how good you are, you have evil potential in you as well.

Thus we can conclude that if enough humans or rats can solve the maze by accepting whatever they are as the individual and devoting their life to change, hopefully we will just work on change for the better and not become criminals, but for the bad to become more good, and in that conversion we actually progress through the maze, and finding our way out, can lead others through. Then when enough of us little rats make it through, the experiment ends.

If this is what our life on this rock floating in space is all about, then no matter how bad a person is, they play a vital part in the liberation of all humanity. In fact, the ones who have been so called bad may play a greater part of more value in their reformation as they will have a wider and more varied amount of experience to help overcome the pitfalls and traps of the maze, helping others to avoid the quicksand and open manholes.

http://ezinearticles.com/?The-Purpose-Of-Human-Life,-Even-For-Perceived-Failures&id=9339147

How to Be More Compassionate at Work

How compassion can short-circuit stressors in the workplace.

Have you ever dreaded going into work because the people around you were in a negative spiral of energy? We are emotional beings and we can’t help but be affected by the varying moods and interactions we have with others. Life is always changing and this constant change can create difficult thoughts and emotions, which can flow into the workplace. The silver lining is that if we can meet suffering at work with concern and care, compassion naturally arises. Work environments that cultivate compassion create a much more positive and productive place to work.

We can experience a variety of difficulties at work. Organizational actions may trigger suffering like job loss and downsizing. It was found in a study that downsizing unsettles people who lose their jobs and distresses survivors who are concerned about their colleagues’ losses, along with their own job security (Mishra et al. 2009). Suffering at work may arise from events in an individual’s personal life, including marital or relationship difficulties, a child’s special needs, divorce, or loss of a family member.

When distressed employees received acts of compassion like emotional support, time off from work, or flowers, they demonstrated more positive emotions such as joy and contentment, and had greater commitment toward their workplace organization.

Compassion is an interpersonal process involving the ability to notice, feel, or perceive another person’s pain and to be with or take action to alleviate that person’s suffering. Over the last 6 years, Jane Dutton at the University of Michigan has studied an array of organizational settings (hospitals, universities, and businesses like Macys and Cisco). She found that when distressed employees received acts of compassion like emotional support, time off from work, or flowers, they demonstrated more positive emotions such as joy and contentment, and had greater commitment toward their workplace organization. These results existed regardless of whether employees received compassion directly or merely witnessed it.

As a consultant supporting workplaces to be healthy and mindful, I teach and encourage compassion for oneself and others in the workplace. When mindfulness (paying attention to the present moment) and compassion are present, they support greater stress resiliency. Stress inevitably spills into the workplace and this often contributes to less productivity and higher health care costs, but with a dose of compassion, we can bounce back from the ups and downs of life with strength and greater ease. Below are some tips that I have encouraged and research also supports.

Compassion in Action At Work

• Take greater notice of your fellow employees’ psychological well-being. For example: If an employee has experienced a loss, such as a divorce or death in the family, someone should contact that employee within 24-48 hours and offer help. Melwani et al. (2012) demonstrated that people who act compassionately are perceived more strongly as leaders and that perceived intelligence (i.e., how clever and knowledgeable the person is) bridges the relationship between compassion and leadership.

• Encourage and display more positive contact among employees. In many workplaces where I consult, there are meeting spaces that can be utilized for informal groups and gatherings. Planned groups can be encouraged weekly or monthly and allow for more opportunities to notice when someone needs help or support and then to offer it.

• Invite more authenticity and open communication in the workplace. If we can keep the communication lines open with respect and kindness, we allow for time to talk about what may need attention and/or empathic connection.

• Take on the perspective of the other person. In other words, this person is “just like me.” This is also known as “cognitive empathy,” or simply knowing how the other person feels and what they might be thinking. This type of empathy can help in negotiating or motivating people to give their best effort.

• Start with self-compassion. In order to truly have compassion for others, we must have compassion for ourselves.

Self-Compassion Practice

Recall a time in the last few days when you experienced some difficulty. Invite compassion towards yourself with these simple phrases.

As you breathe in and out, repeat these phrases as many times as needed. If it is challenging to offer compassion towards yourself, imagine someone who has love for you saying the words below:

May I, you be free from sorrow and pain

May I, you find ease in this struggle

May I, you find peace and healing

May I, you find openness of heart

In the Blooming Lotus online course, we practice mindfulness and well being in daily life. The focus for September is compassion and we would love to have you practice with us.

What if you went to work in a place where you felt trust, compassion, and enthusiasm? Practice more compassion towards yourself and others and let me know how it goes.

http://www.mindful.org/how-to-be-more-compassionate-at-work/