Dear Friends and Colleagues,

Welcome to the May issue of the True Livelihood Newsletter! We were thrilled with the overwhelming response to the first issue and it is with great enthusiasm that I write to you again!

The theme of last month’s newsletter was Rekindling the Flame - keeping hope alive for ourselves while working to keep the flame lit for the people we serve. This month’s theme piggybacks on that idea – Thinking Abundance in Difficult Times. With the prolific incidence of company lay-offs and the continual increase of unemployment in nearly every sector of North American business, the questions arises: How do we respond to the fear and concern of today’s job seeker that there is more and more competition for fewer and fewer job openings? Those fears and concerns are rooted in a “scarcity consciousness”. This month’s newsletter counters those fears and concerns by addressing this question: How do we enable ourselves to see the limitless possibilities and opportunities that exist for each of us, in any community, at any point in time?

In previous publications I have shared the following classic teaching of the lady who was sitting on her porch as a stranger passed by. “Good morning,” he greeted her as he tipped his hat. “What a beautiful day! I am new in town and quite excited about my prospects. I understand this town is just brimming with possibility for someone like me.” The woman responded gaily, “I see a future so bright coming your way that it hurts my eyes to even look at you! Welcome to our fine city!” And he walked on. Just moments later another young man passed by her porch. “Good morning,” he said as he tipped his hat. “Boy it’s hot today. And the mosquitoes are biting too! I am new in town and very worried because I understand there are lots of people here competing in a very limited job market.” The woman responded in a concerned tone, “I’m afraid you’re right, young man. I see a troubled future ahead for you. Don’t forget where I live, if you ever need a bit of charity. Good lu ck!” And he walked on. A moment later the woman’s husband opened the screen door and commented to his wife, “Pick a lane, dear. There you are telling one young man that everything is coming up roses and in the next breath you’re all pity and gloom.” His wife, in all her wisdom, responded, “That’s because, my dear, I am absolutely certain that each of those young men will find exactly what they expect to find!”

The woman in the story bespeaks a basic truth: cynicism is a self-fulfilling prophecy. Everything seen through the eyes of fear proves itself true. In like manner, optimism is also a self-fulfilling prophecy. The world seen through the eyes of hope proves itself equally true. We may think that everything we experience is to some extent a reflection of our minds – like looking through a kind of mirror which receives accurate impressions of reality. But the human mind, with all of its attitudes and perceptions, is the principal element of creation – the creator of the reality we see. It should give us pause to realize the extent to which we author the story of our lives each day and each moment, not just in the choices we make and the actions we take, but in the way we think. Like the two newcomers in the story, whether we experience scarcity or abundance has more to do with us than it does the outside world.

There is so much about our culture and our upbringing that is reflective of our minds’ bent toward the scarcity mentality, none more so than in the area of employment. The scarcity mentality professes that there is not enough to go around and that we had better fight to get our small piece of the pie. From this perspective, we are all in competition with each other; it is a dog eat dog world - survival of the fittest.

Anyone who has attended my job development training knows that I am of the strong belief that there is more opportunity for any given member of any community than they could possibly take advantage of in only one lifetime! Our job is to live our lives fully and to hire ourselves the right employer, to put our gifts to work in our own unique way. From this perspective, our world is affected by our choices and actions, by the opportunities we create or do not create. I am not competing with anyone because there is only one me, and the same is true for everyone else. By consciously choosing to look for the “as of yet unidentified opportunities in the invisible job market”, one sees an abundant community ripe with opportunities.

I am not denying or ignoring the harsh realities we are facing in the economy. I am not pretending that massive budget cuts are not taking place in every nook and cranny of government funded programs. What I am suggesting, however, is that in light of these realities it would behoove us to focus our attention and energies where doors will open rather than where they have closed. Here are a few things I think we need to remember during these difficult and challenging times in our economy:

1. While there may be a limited number of advertised job openings at any one time, there is has never been a lack of problems to be solved or benefits to be enjoyed by any community of people. Rather than ask who is hiring someone to do what you want to do, it might be helpful to ask instead, “Who does not hire people to do what I do; but should?” By proposing and creating your own opportunity to an employer you can be assured of two things - there is no competition and you can name your own price. (For more on this method, refer to the concept of Employment Proposals in my book, “Beyond Traditional Job Development: The Art of Creating Opportunity”.)

2. To strengthen your belief in the idea of “job creation”, remember that every single job that exists in the world today at some point in time did not exist. Every job is the result of job creation – of someone’s desire to solve a problem or add a benefit to an existing situation that no one before them had seen. A difficult economy does not mean a lack of opportunities; it means the growth of different opportunities. (For example, when people have less disposable income they travel less and look for vacation opportunities closer to home. How can local businesses that typically cater to travelers, more effectively cater to people in their own community as a customer market?)

3. None of us need “many opportunities” since we can only take advantage of one opportunity at a time anyway. We need to focus on the possibilities that exist before us without worrying about the possibilities that exist for the world. Focusing on things like the unemployment rate simply saps our energy. (As I say in training, the only unemployment rate we need to worry about is our own! When you are unemployed it is one hundred percent, when you are employed it is zero!) Similarly, I remember hearing one gentleman who had acquired a disability comment that, in seeking new employment, there were now only 9000 things he could do – instead of the 12,000 things he could do before his accident!

4. The more you embrace your own personal purposes, passion and natural gifts, the greater the confidence you will have in developing or creating the opportunity that is right for you. Since there is only one you – with your own individual mix of talents, interests and desires, what you have to offer the world and to an employer is absolutely unique. Articulating and communicating what you uniquely have to offer each organization or business is a better place to invest your time and energy than worrying about who your competition might be.

5. Like the earth growing what is planted in it, we always draw to us that which we have planted in our minds. The perspective we hold can put us in a positive state of mind or a negative one, in scarcity or abundance, in darkness or in light. Our ordinary habits of thought can be helpful and serve us well, or they can be hurtful and weaken our mental resources. It is critically important that we focus on what is possible rather than on what is difficult, challenging or impossible!

I doubt there is a single person reading this who, like me, does not find him/herself swaying from the hopeful feelings that arise from thoughts of abundance to feelings of worry and despair that arise from thoughts of scarcity and lack. Yet, in those moments, I am reminded of the Native American story of the child who confided in his grandfather, the elder, that he heard the voices of two competing wolves within him. One wolf was full of fear and anger and saw only the bad and ugly in the world. The other wolf was full of hope and love and saw the good and beautiful in the world. The child asked, “Which of these wolves, dear Grandfather, will win?” The elder lovingly responded, “The one you feed, my child. The one you feed.”

I offer ideas in the “Putting It Into Practice” section of this newsletter on how to feed the wolf of hope and love, the one who reminds us that we live in an abundant and generous universe, the one that reminds us that we are gifted beyond imagination and our true job is to give those gifts away, at every opportunity! I encourage you, dear readers, to embrace and inhabit these ideas, first, in relation to yourself. Let’s walk the talk and model for the people around us what it looks like to harness the powers of imagination - to tame and befriend the voice of fear while listening and responding to the deeper voice of hope, the voice of our calling.

In the East Indian term meaning “the spirit in me honors the spirit in you” – Namaste!

- Denise Bissonnette

© Denise Bissonnette, May 2003 (If not used for commercial purposes, this article may be reproduced, all or in part, providing it is credited to "Denise Bissonnette, Diversity World - www.diversityworld.com." If included in a newsletter or other publication, we would appreciate receiving a copy.)

About Denise...
 

In my search for a poem that related well to the topic of thinking abundance in difficult times, I settled on one of my own from my newest book, “The Wholehearted Journey: Bringing Qualities of Soul to Everyday Life and Work.” The poem is entitled, “On Second Thought” and speaks to the idea that the first thought that comes to mind in any given situation isn’t always the most effective or fruitful thought that our minds are capable of producing. By allowing ourselves to think a “second thought” we allow ourselves the gift of perspective. One of the few of my poems which rhymes, this piece is a bit too lengthy to include in this small box so we are inviting you to link to a site where it appears in its entirety. Enjoy!

Click here to read "On Second Thought"...
 

- Resolve to find, by the end of each day, three pieces of evidence to affirm your belief in abundance, prosperity and beauty. Even when that belief is lacking, when you sincerely commit to seeing through those eyes, the world will provide ample evidence to revitalize and reconfirm your confidence in these qualities. Remember, it will do so with the eyes of fear as well. Choose carefully each morning which glasses you put on.

- Assign each of your job seekers to keep a “Job Possibilities Journal” in which they have to be on the lookout for unidentified opportunities in the invisible job market. If running a job club or a workshop, begin each meeting with having each person share one idea or possibility from their journal. You should be keeping the same log and begin by sharing one of your own.

- Look at the jobs that exist in your community and stop to consider the circumstances from which that opportunity first arose. As a customer, consider the needs you have which are not being met in the places where you do business and think about the job creation possibilities that could result from those needs.

- Everyone shines when times are good! It is in these more difficult and challenging times that we are given the opportunity to show our true colors. Find a way to use some of your untapped potential or talents where they are greatly needed without the thought of recompense. Encourage the same from your job seekers. This is a great time to create volunteer or work experience opportunities because organizations lack the resources to fund positions. This is a prime time for getting one’s foot in the door!

Written by Matthew Fox (HarperCollins, New York, 1994)

I don’t know about you, but I treat books like personal journals. I circle stuff, I write in the margins, I underline key phrases and put stars next to passages I adore. To me the reading of a good book is a very personal experience because I feel myself being transformed in the reading of it and the book itself becomes a treasure. Between the rich text of the author and my copious notes and scribbling in the white spaces, the book becomes a hardcopy of a conversation between the author and me. There are books in my personal library that I would never consider parting with because that conversation was so rich, true or special in some way. These books are treasures I want to leave to people I love at the end of my life because they touched or transformed me so deeply. The Reinvention of Work by Matthew Fox is one such book.

In this brilliant work, Fox draws on the rich legacy of great mystical teachings including the work of Hildegard of Bingen, Thomas Aquinas, Thomas Merton, Meistar Eckhart, and Rainer Marie Rilke and joins them with contemporary thought of modern economists and philosophers such as E.F. Schumacher and Wendell Berry to create a glorious vision of livelihood and the meaning that work can have in our lives. Fox writes about the spirituality of work and offers us a blueprint for bringing life and livelihood together in a way that celebrates the human spirit.

This book is not to be read fast and furiously, it is more like a slow-going feast in which you want to savor each word. If you have not yet read it, I highly recommend that you allow this controversial author and radical priest to turn your concept of livelihood on its head. First published in 1994, the issues and challenges that Fox addresses head on are as relevant and timely today as they were in the mid nineties. Have a pen handy – if your experience of this book is anything like mine, you will leave your own mark on every page!

The question that I posed to readers in April’s issue of this newsletter was: “How do you respond to the concerns of job seekers as they see more and more people join the ranks of the unemployed with continued company lay offs?"

The first three letters below are in direct response to that question. I have also included a fourth letter we received which speaks to the issue of keeping hope alive and our flames rekindled in the midst of all difficult times. Thank you, dear readers, for your responses!

*****

Dear Denise,

To the individual who is overwhelmed by reading that (s)he has been joined by thousands of others who have been recently laid off. There are two choices to make.

The first and easiest is to cultivate the feeling of being overwhelmed until it completely consumes and immobilizes you. Remember if you tell yourself long enough that the situation is hopeless you will believe it. All your actions and reactions will be based on a condition that has grown to a certainty. The prospect is not very appealing and the rewards for this approach are little to none. Thinking this way reminds me of an apprentice carpenter, who lost his hammer and who tried to build a house by using his fist as a hammer instead borrowing, buying, renting one or seeking someone who could help him. The materials for the house were sound but the tool chosen to do the work was not.

The second and far better choice is to face the reality of the situation and do something about it. Visit your local one stop job center. Talk to the pros there. Find out what translatable skills you have that employers are looking for, retrain if necessary, and equip yourself with the proper tools to move forward.

Finally listen to your own inner-self and take the time to give yourself credit for what you have achieved. The second choice will take probably take a lot of work and time but it is an investment in something that is very important, your future.

- Tim Polk, Job Placement Mgr., Welfare Reform, Downriver Community Conference, Southgate, MI

*****

Hi Denise.

Thank you for this newsletter. You are so right about needing to keep our hope alive. I appreciate your contribution towards this for all of us. I suggest that when someone is feeling overwhelmed by the unemployment figures to recall the fact that many of their competitors will be looking at those stats too and will just give up and never try for the jobs she or he wants. Also, this person is presumably in a program and dealing with a professional employment counsellor. Few of her competitors will have that advantage. Naturally, I would point out their unique strengths and abilities and network of contacts that none of her competitors has. Throw in a story or two about individuals who faced apparently insurmountable odds and triumphed in the end and things should be back into a more hopeful perspective. Hope this helps.

- Jos Sharp, EIP Coordinator, Tradeworks Training Society, British Columbia, Canada

*****

Dear Denise,

I just got a call yesterday from a client worrying about this very thing. He said, "All those people unemployed means there's more competition for me." I told him that that was objectively true. The competition WILL BE stiffer. But I suggested that that reality provided him an opportunity to get even clearer about what it is he has to offer and what he wants. It's understandable. People get scared. This rough and tumble economy feeds on people's sense of scarcity. There isn't enough to go around. There isn't enough for ME. So, people start flailing. I talked to this gentleman about recommitting himself to what it is he says he wants to do. Of course, depending on his immediate financial needs, he may have to take a temporary job outside his chosen field but, remember, it is only temporary.

We always have a choice: to live with a sense of scarcity or to live with a sense of abundance. I believe that the universe creates opportunities for us, even in the hardest of times, when we are living true to ourselves, unafraid to proclaim who we are and ask for what we want.

- Cathy Krizik, Career Counselor, Santa Cruz, CA

*****

Hello,

My name is Thomas Brito and I am a Job Specialist for the County of Fresno in Fresno, California working for the Human Services System (HSS) assisting those on state and federal assistance. Prior to joining HSS, I was with the Probation Dept. also with the County of Fresno working with individuals on felony probation & on parole, both youth and adults. I want to thank you for your newsletter and I would like to respond in regard to "Rekindling the Flame". I agree that we as the flame bearers can become overwhelmed with the politics, bureaucracy, paperwork, policy changes, interpretations of regulations and current economic issues. However we must remember why we selected our careers in this field. When we see the faces of those we assist, when they overcome barriers, find employment and make other achievements, does this not bring smiles to our faces and a sense of fulfillment? Is this not why we chose this career? We can't allow the burdens of life and circumst ances to hinder the lives of those we chose to serve. We do need to take time out for ourselves. We do realize that doing so is at times easier said than done. I would just like to encourage my co-patriots in the Employment & Training field to hold on and not give up because everyone has not been blessed with the gift to be a blessing to others.

- T. Brito, Job Specialist, Human Services System, County of Fresno, Fresno, CA

The theme of next month’s newsletter is “Surviving and Moving Through Transition”. What is your most helpful advice or what suggestions you would have for individuals (yourself included) when in the midst of a difficult transition (job-related or otherwise)?

Email your thoughts on "Surviving and Moving Through Transition"
 

May 1, Carmel, CA - Workability II Conference

May 7, Killington, VT - Vermont Association for Persons in Supported Employment

May 9, Boston, MA - Rekindle the Flame

June 25 & 26, Oshawa, ON - Conference of the Durham Region Unemployed Help Center and Durham Region Employment Network

July 20, San Diego, CA - Association for Persons in Supported Employment, National Conference

Click here for Details and Complete Appearance Schedule
 

Please visit our store and browse through our selection of books and resources for job developers, career counselors and others with similar responsibilities. You may be particularly interested in Denise's New book (pictured here) "The Wholehearted Journey".

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