We’re still talking about our recent discussion of Paulo Coelho’s inspiring book, The Alchemist. Check out Kathy Baker’s wonderful guide and reflect on your own journey while you read and re-read the book.
Be sure to read Mabeth Hudson’s beautiful post about the book on her blog, “Nesting in Wonder.”
Living into the Lessons of The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
By Kathy Baker
While planning our last vacation, one of the first things we did was get out a map and plan our route. Whether it was online maps or old-fashioned paper maps – they all helped guide us to our destination. As I was looking at the maps spread across our dining room table, I thought, “wouldn’t it be great if there was a map of life” that could guide you along your life’s journey?
A personal motivation map giving you those life lessons that one typically learns way too late in life. Does such a “map of life” exist? It was then that I stumbled upon a tattered copy of The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho in the bottom of my closet.
Paulo Coelho, in his wildly popular book (65 million copies sold in 67 languages), tells the story of a shepherd boy and his quest to live his dream. Along the way, the boy meets an alchemist who has the power to inspire personal transformation. This Alchemist gives the boy a number of life’s lessons – lessons that are as fresh and applicable today as they were hundreds of years ago. The lessons by themselves are interesting, but it’s only when they are applied, that the power of personal transformation can be unleashed.
1. It’s the simple things in life that are the most extraordinary.
I believe this to be true and have experienced this with my own family. When I think of the times where we laughed the most or had the most fun – it was when we were doing the simplest things. Swimming in a pool, combing a beach for shells, playing a board game, or sharing a delicious meal – all simple things making up the best times we’ve had as a family.
What were some of the happiest memories from your past? What were you doing?
2. Support your children in pursuit of their dreams.
In the beginning of the story, the shepherd boy (named Santiago) tells his father he wants to travel and see the world. The father explains he wants his son to stay in the village and become a priest. But Santiago persists – being a priest is not his dream. What does his father do? He gives Santiago the small amount of money he had been saving for the boy and wished him well.
How many of us had parents who have – in not-so-subtle-ways – influenced us to take careers that were not in-line with our dreams? Be honest now, did you pick your current career because you’re passionate about the work or were you trying to make your parents proud? How do you feel about your career now?
As a parent, it’s difficult to accept when your child wants to take a path other than the one you had hoped and planned for them. But, it’s ok. It’s like the old saying, “give them roots and give them wings.” Give them a solid foundation of love, but give them the freedom to follow their dreams.
What were some of your dreams as a child?
3. There is nothing to hold you back, except yourself.
There is only one question to ask yourself here:
What would you do if you were not afraid?
Think about it.
4. There is only one way to learn, and that is through action.
Trying to learn without doing is like trying to lose weight by watching someone else exercise. It’s just not going to work. We are all fundamentally hands-on learners.
What would you like to learn? What next action step can you take?
5. Trust your gut (or learn to recognize omens, and follow them.)
Many times our subconscious has already made a decision before we have caught up and made the same decision. Sometimes we don’t make the same decision and then “something doesn’t feel right,” or there is a persistent nagging that bothers us.
Malcolm Gladwell wrote extensively about this phenomenon in his book, Blink: The Power of Thinking without Thinking. Trust your gut—it may be more accurate than you think.
6. Follow your dreams.
There are many of us who dream our dreams without ever actually realizing any of them. For whatever reason, we get locked in a “dream state” and never take action. We analyze too much and in our imagination our dreams turn into giant mountains that seem impossible to climb. As a result, we never learned that foreign language we’ve always wanted to learn, or travelled, or started that business, or written that book. Just think of the many bestsellers that would have been, but were never written…
The time is now, to awake from dreamland, to live the life we want and to achieve the extraordinary potential within us all.
What are some dreams you would like to realize now?
7. Know what you want.
Set goals and make plans to achieve them. It’s like saying “a goal that is never written down is nothing but a New Year’s resolution”—and we all know what happens to New Year’s resolutions.
8. Make a decision and dive in with massive action.
The river of life will take you to places that you have never imagined. Once you make a decision, take action. You’ll be surprised to find where it leads.
9. Move on—always look forward.
It’s ok to look back every now and then, but don’t live in the past. You can visit “pity city” for a short time, but then you have to leave it all behind and walk on.
10. You will encounter obstacles and take detours while realizing your dreams.
As you strive to achieve your dreams, you can count on some setbacks and disappointments along the way. Don’t get discouraged; the road to your dreams may not be an easy one. Think of these challenges as tests of persistence and courage that life throws at you during your quest. They were necessary and were meant to help you grow as a person.
11. Don’t fear the unknown.
As long as you are resourceful and have a few skills, you will be able to provide for yourself (and your family). Have confidence in yourself at all times.
12. Learn to understand the universal language—the language without words.
There is so much more said by a person than just words alone. You can read the expression on someone’s face, sense their body language, or hear the tone in their voice—these things are all part of the unspoken language. The more conscious we become at noticing them, the better we become at interpreting them.
(Stachura, Vic. “12 Powerful Life Lessons.” Cited May 16, 2012. Online: http://thinksimplenow.com/motivation/12-powerful-life-lessons.)
