As strange as it sounds, using Feng Shui to schedule your next haircut is almost as good as finding a fantastic stylist that you love and trust. A few months ago, I got my haircut using the information on Lillian Too’s website for choosing the best day to cut hair and it was truly the best haircut I’ve had in a year. Since I am growing out my hair, I don’t get it cut very often, so after four months, it was that time again. To my surprise, my stylist had an opening the same week that I called, and it fit my schedule perfectly. The thing that I neglected to do was to double-check that date on the Best Days website.
After my hair was cut and styled, something seemed off. Normally, I love the results because I really like my stylist. This time though, I looked at it and said, “I don’t like it”. I was almost as shocked that those words came out of my mouth as my stylists. She did her best to tame the bangs I hadn’t wanted, but they weren’t cooperating. She had cut it totally different than I had told her I wanted it. Basically, she questioned me halfway through, and so I just gave in and let her do what she wanted. It’s been two weeks and it’s finally grown out enough to style the way I like.
This all got me thinking and I realized that I had missed the important step of choosing an auspicious haircut day. Out of curiosity, I pulled up the website and scrolled to the section titled, “Good and Bad Days to Cut Hair.” When I looked at the date of my appointment on the calendar, I was not surprised to see the words BAD in bold type. In order to further test my theory, I messaged a friend who recently got a fresh cut from her longtime stylist and had also been disenchanted with the results. I looked up the date of her appointment and saw that she too had chosen a BAD date for that cut.
I don’t believe in coincidences, so I figured that there had to be some truth to this information; but to be certain, I took my little experiment one step further. I looked back to the last haircut that I loved and guess what? It was a GOOD day according to the Good Days calendar. Maybe she was just having a bad day or I was, but either way, I highly recommend you give it a look the next time you schedule a haircut. In the end, I decided to break up with my stylist and now that I found a new one that I trust, but I still schedule my appointments on “Good Days to Cut Hair.”
I would love to hear from your about your experience using this information. If you know someone who would be interested to know about haircuts and Feng Shui, feel free to share this post!
A few weeks ago, I received a call from a man working at a New York radio station called Business Talk Radio, offering to interview me live on the air about my favorite topic. I was cautiously optimistic and booked my time slot for the morning of Friday, September 18.
As the day approached, I was getting nervous, double checking that my phone ringer was on; making sure it was completely quiet in my apartment so there wouldn’t be any background noise. True to their word, my phone rang at 10am and a few seconds later, I was live on the air with a friendly host named Joey. The next 8 minutes and 49 seconds are a blur. Since I couldn’t listen to the show and be on the show, I didn’t get to hear it until a week later when the station sent me the link below. If you would like to hear it yourself, click the link below!
Big thanks to Business Talk Radio and the host with the most, Joey! Sorry Joey, I forgot to get your last name, but thank you so much for being curious about Feng Shui and a friendly voice on the other end of the line. I feel like we barely touched the surface of all that there is to know and share about Feng Shui, so I am about to start offering a variety of classes about using Feng Shui to create more abundance, better relationships and improved health for starters. I’ll be posting the classes, dates and ways to participate via my blog, website and several other social media platforms in the next few weeks.
If you would prefer to learn about Feng Shui with a personalized on-site consultation that offers specific solutions and cures for your home or business, message me at fengshuidesignconcepts@gmail.com or call me at 512-496-9232.
From that time when I got to talk live and in person on a 950 am radio show back in 2008 with two builders interested in Feng Shui. I was wearing my now defunct “I’ve Been Fung Schwayed” t-shirt which of course, no one could see, but I loved nonetheless.
Logynn B. Northrhip teaches people how to enhance the energy of their surroundings in a way that makes it fun to embrace and invite change. She uses the BTB style of Feng Shui which was deve…
“All things are vibrating energy fields in ceaseless motion” – Eckhart Tolle
In recent years, foreclosure has become more commonplace then ever before. Foreclosure is everywhere and probably coming to a neighborhood near you. There is one thing that foreclosures often have in common; they are in a state of disgrace. If they have been empty for long, they usually look dilapidated. When families are forced out of a home, it is not uncommon for them to destroy the property in retaliation. Foreclosed homes that stay empty too long, have a tendency to lower the property value of homes around them by virtue of their poor energy.
Ideally, an investor looking for a sweet deal will swoop in, pay cash, give it a makeover, and sell it for a fat profit. In fact, entire cable programs have grown up around this concept. There is just one problem with this scenario. If the structural problems and predecessor energy that contributed to the home’s demise are not addressed, there is a strong probability that the new owners will have the same or similar issues.
If the problem with a foreclosed home was simply ugly carpet or paint, then replacing those items would eliminate the pattern. However, ugly carpet does not in and of itself cause foreclosure. In order to understand structural foreclosure causes, we must look to some of the age-old Feng Shui rules for an explanation and creative solutions.
I am going to share a few Feng Shui design flaws that may contribute to a home’s potential to an unstable financial flow. Our homes are a mirror to our lives, so when one begins to deteriorate, it is probable that the other will follow.
The front door aligns perfectly with a back door – While this design is not enough to create foreclosure all by itself, it does often lead to money coming in and going out too quickly. Ideally, energy enters a home, meanders around and nourishes its surroundings. However, with this design, there is no meandering, thus, there is very little energy retainage. Now, let’s replace the word “energy” with money. They are synonymous.
The front door opens up to a set of stairs– There are many variables that impact this design with the main one being the distance between the stairs and the door. The closer the stairs are to the door, the worse it is. The type of stairs also matters. Stairs that have a landing, can cause less issues than the kind that cascade straight down.
A bathroom is located in one of the commanding areas – If you are familiar with a Feng Shui bagua, then you know that the commanding areas of any home are typically in the back of the house. These areas correspond with the bagua sections of Abundance, Fame and Relationships.
The nice thing about Feng Shui is that by working with the elements of Water, Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, as well as the colors and shapes that represent these elements, we can nullify negative architectural designs. By learning to rehabilitate homes that have been devastated by the ignorance of improper home design, and using the tools we have been given within the system of Feng Shui, we can create homes that are healed. As we heal our homes, we heal ourselves, and we create a planet that allows all life to thrive and prosper.
If you know someone that is facing foreclosure, share this article with them. I’d love to help them prevent that potential outcome. I can be reached at fengshuidesignconcepts@gmail.com, logynnbnorthrhip@gmail.com or at 512-496-9232.
Do you have a patio at your home or apartment? Are you curious how to make it a positive part of your home’s overall Feng Shui? Patios can be problematic if we don’t make the most of them. A patio in this particular discussion is one that has a covered roof above it. When the patio is covered it is often included as part of the roofline of your living structure, which means it is also part of the Feng Shui bagua of your home. Just because it is outside, does not mean that it is separate. Let me say it in another way, the patio is just as important as any other part of your home. Whatever you do, don’t disregard it.
If you are in a house, the covered patio is most likely in the back. If you live in a condo or apartment, it could be in the back, on the side or in the front. Without getting too technical, let me give you a few tips that will be helpful regardless of its location:
One of the things that will help the most when it comes to a patio, is to actually use it. Sounds logical right? However, you would be surprised at how many people shun that part of their home. One of my recent remote clients was exactly in that group. She flat out refused to put outdoor furniture on her patio even though in her case, it would have been very helpful for her relationships. She did do a few things that I suggested, but she was not willing to commit to going outside to enjoy the outdoors from her patio. So the first step is to use your patio.
Second, because it is outside and not something you will use as frequently as you indoor spaces, I suggest that you invite nature to use the patio when you can’t. Hanging a bird feeder on your patio is a great way to keep the chi active. If you don’t like seed feeders, try feeding the hummingbirds or leaving a little pile of acorns or peanuts for the squirrels. Animals represent the fire element, and their activity on your patio will keep the chi circulating, even when you are not there to use it.
Third, keep it clean. Many people treat their outdoor spaces as a storage area for overflowing garbage, a catch-all for kids toys, gardening tools, & unused flower pots, to name a few. Some other items that I have recently seen on my neighbor’s patios are rotting dog beds, broken furniture, brooms, and dirt-covered knick knacks of all sorts.
A patio can be a place to unwind at the end of a long day with a glass of wine or at the beginning of the day with your trusty pooch and a hot cup of coffee. If you can find a way to make your patio space colorful and inviting, you will be amazed at the benefits it will provide.
While not everyone is familiar with Feng Shui, I’d wager that everyone is familiar with clutter. This is true even if you don’t have clutter, because by virtue of not having it, you are actively working to avoid it. While Feng Shui has its roots in the Chinese culture dating back thousands of years, clutter is a fairly modern problem. Wikipedia defines clutter as a physical disorder: “A confusing, or disorderly, state or collection, and possible symptom of compulsive hoarding.” Compulsive hoarding is defined as “a pattern of behavior that is characterized by excessive acquisition and an inability or unwillingness to discard” (said acquisitions) – parenthesis mine.
I’ve always maintained that Feng Shui is a ancient tool of recovery with modern consequences. In other words, no matter how ancient Feng Shui is, its wisdom is still just as valid today as it was when it began. The thing to remember about Feng Shui is that everything matters, and placement is everything. The placement of your “stuff” may be there consciously or subconsciously, but the fact is that it is there and it means something, and if you can figure out what it means, you will have figured out the most interesting puzzle in the world.
Let’s take a macro view of the modern day dwelling. Regardless of its size, there is typically a bedroom, kitchen, bathroom and living room. Throw in a few closets and you’re all set. The majority of homes are square and they always have a door. To understand Feng Shui, one must become familiar with the Feng Shui Bagua. It is a grid, or as I like think of it, a tic-tac-toe board enclosed in a square. There are 9 squares and each square relates to some aspect of being human. This bagua square is used to identify which room is in each square, and what that means to you. That’s the macro view. The micro view is that the bagua can be overlayed on our land, our home, our rooms, our desk, and even our car.
Now, here is where Feng Shui and Clutter join forces. If Sally uses the Feng Shui Bagua to discover that her tiny apartment is always cluttered in the Helpful People section (bottom right) and in her Abundance section (top left), she might be able to conclude that she is unsure of her life purpose and this is therefore impacting her finances. Or it could mean something else to her. There are many potential reasons that those two areas are always cluttered for her. The goal is to look for patterns. Understanding yourself though your patterns will be easier when you apply a few Feng Shui pearls of wisdom. Feng Shui is one of the best tools I know of for discovering the ‘Why’ of things. Finally, the inquisitive 3-year old within all of us, will have an amazing way to understand the why’s of our world.
I am personally very sensitive to clutter. My big trigger is when my counters or my desk get overfilled with things. It literally feels like clouds of chaos within my body, and I start to shut down. Once I feel the sensations that clutter creates for me, I literally have to stop whatever else I am doing and clear it. Obviously, that is clutter in the extreme, but it always starts out small and before you know it, BAM, you’ve got a clutter explosion on your hands. It is easier to attack our clutter when it is small, than when it overwhelms.
I recently experienced this chaos when I moved from Texas to Colorado. Now, I’m a seasoned mover, in fact, in the past 31 years, I’ve moved 17 times. However, I was ill-prepared for the chaos and overwhelm that followed this move. It took weeks rather than days to empty boxes that had been stored in the attic and garage for years. I had several come to Jesus moments when I literally just wanted to throw everything away. Thankfully, that did not happen, but I did let go of a lot of things that just weren’t serving me anymore. And the best part is that even though they weren’t serving me, I donated them so that they might serve someone else.
In the beginning, I said that clutter is a typically modern problem, primarily it is one that began during the 20th Century. Prior to that, products were made to last, and didn’t need constant replacing. One television was enough for the entire family. Compare that to today’s modern household where every man, woman and child living under one roof has their own television. According to the Center on the Everyday Lives of Families, or CELF, we are living in “the most materially rich society in global history”. This type of acquisition has consequences, and we are just now starting to see its effect with the increase of hoarding in our society.
Clutter becomes clutter when it does not have a place to sit. Period. If you have a bunch of books and no bookshelf, you will have a pile of clutter. It also becomes clutter, when we have more than we can use. I have a client that has literally dedicated an entire wall in her bedroom to the shelves that display her shoe collection. She only has two feet, yet she has 50 pairs of shoes for them. Now, if she didn’t have a place to store all of her shoes, and instead had them in a pile in her closet, her tidy shoe collection would quickly become clutter.
Clutter really becomes a problem when our ability to let it go is disconnected. We all suffer from clutter at times. Life can be hectic and life is filled with a lot of stuff. Learning to let go of the things that aren’t serving us, is an asset in our homes and all aspects of our lives; including our thoughts, words and deeds. This means we release things that are outgrown, broken or unused. This creates room for new experiences, new dreams and new goals to be discovered.
Using Feng Shui as a tool to interpret your clutter is just fun and interesting, and might even tell you a little something about yourself that you didn’t know, or had forgotten. Just think of clutter as a metaphor. It is going to show you, with the help of Feng Shui, where you are stuck. Is it in relationships? Is it in your ability to create abundance? Is it at your job? Clutter is a symptom of something that is keeping you in a holding pattern. Feng Shui is the cure. Are you willing to dive in and discover how to be the very best version of yourself that you can be? If you are, reach out to me and let’s take a walk down this path together.
I’ve been helping people understand and use Feng Shui design concepts for over 15 years, and during all of these years, I have never had anyone intentionally use Feng Shui to remain single, until now. A few months ago, I ended a four-year relationship that had become somewhat toxic and simply wasn’t meeting my needs. After it ended, I was a little shell-shocked by its suddenness, even though I was the one who initiated it. That was when I realized that I needed to undo some things that I had done in my home, when a relationship was part of my life.
Love & relationships are one of the most popular reasons that people become interested in Feng Shui, but using it to undo a relationship was new to me. In my case, I wanted to create a space for healing; one that would allow me to re-align with my truest self, my needs and my desires. Considering that Mercury just went Retrograde on the 19th, this is the perfect time to reAssess and the perfect time to make changes. If you are unfamiliar with the dynamics of Mercury Retrograde, I can tell you that it is a time to reView, reEvaluate, reCharge & reCreate. It is not a time to start brand new ideas, businesses, or new relationships.
Since not everyone has an in-depth understanding of all the Feng Shui rules surrounding relationships, I’d like to share a more intuitive approach. If you find yourself in a position of un-coupling, I’d like to invite you to walk around your home and intuitively look around. You may also want to have a storage tote or two within reach. Does anything pop out as a reminder of your former love? Do you still have photographs of the two of you displayed or hanging on the wall? Go ahead and remove them. There is nothing worse after a breakup than constantly being bombarded with reminders of all the good times that you had with your lover. You aren’t going to burn them or anything, you are merely putting them in a safe space, as you would with any precious memory.
For me, this was particularly challenging because my former love was very handy with tools and he often made me hand-crafted gifts and mementos which were sprinkled everywhere around my home. I took some of them down, but some are just there forever, like a dragonfly caught in amber, to be admired and loved in spite of everything else.
Once I was satisfied with this step, I decided to intentionally look at the right hand corner of every single room in my home. This included the bathroom, the kitchen, the closets, everything. Since I use Feng Shui daily, I knew I wouldn’t find any trash cans, litter boxes or spiky cacti plants in these areas, but I did find several examples of artwork and decor with couples. In their place, I am searching for art that reflects my new relationship status.
I love to paint, and so after my relationship ended, I added a gorgeous accent wall in my bedroom, and moved the bed. With these changes in place, my room feels totally different than it had been, so the memories involving my former love have been dissolved a little. Now every time I walk into my bedroom, I am instantly happy.
If you were married to your former love, I’d like to suggest that you put away the champagne glasses that you used to toast your marriage, and maybe even relocate the fine china that you had displayed, but never used. If your bed has been in the same place for the entire length of your relationship, why not move it like I did. In fact, I have an even more radical idea, get a new mattress! When you consider how much time we usually spend in our beds with the one we love, the idea of a new mattress is very appealing. A fresh start can be the best start, and a new bed is always a good idea when a long relationship ends.
Since my goal is to RE-member my value and reconnect with the Divine Feminine that I am and always have been, I replaced the relationship “cures” that I had originally set up, with images, art and decor that help empower me as a woman. Luckily, I already have some really cool items that I simply moved around to anchor this desire. A few years ago, one of my yoga students gave me a figure of a woman sitting alone in meditation. I had originally placed her in my home’s Life Journey area because she represented my interest and use of meditation to know myself. During my intuition walk, I felt like a better place for her would be in one of my relationship areas. Now when I see her, I am reminded of my intention to reflect on my journey through my relationships and remember my value, desires and goals.
Another example might include replacing a love seat with a soft and inviting one-person chair. Think of all the awesome, cozy chairs that you see at coffee shops, and consider investing in one or moving an existing one into an area of your home that currently has a love seat. Do you ever notice that those single seat chairs are the most sought-after at your local coffee shop? There is a reason for that!
The examples are endless, and limited only by our ability to know what we want and create accordingly. Our most intelligent guide is how a thing makes us feel when we see it. Does it align with who you are or who you want to be? Does it make you feel happy and at peace? Or does it make you angry or full of fear and uncertainty? A little bit of Feng Shui and a whole lot of honesty and willingness to move forward are your best tools to healing and creating the life of your dreams. You simply need to trust your feelings and go from there. This too shall pass, and when it does, you will know exactly what you do and don’t need in order to create the next, best and highest version of you.
First off, let me apologize for the 1 1/2 year vacation I took from writing this blog. I guess you could say I’ve been making some changes to the way that I share my knowledge on Feng Shui, and I needed a little break from writing about it. At any rate, I am back and ready to write! P.S. You may have noticed that I also changed the name on the blog to my actual business name instead of Feng Shui Girl in the City. Once upon a time, I was trying to link my title to the success of the show Sex in the City, but nowadays, I just want to share my knowledge without all the hype!
Today, I had the entire afternoon with nothing scheduled. I’d been wanting to do my annual space clearing ritual for a few weeks, but it wasn’t until today that I felt like the time was right. One of the tools that I use to determine “rightness” is from the World of Feng Shui website. It offers a calendar with the most auspicious dates for marriage, but I use these dates for everything from space clearing, to buying a house and last but not least, for making big furniture-placement changes.
Another resource that I use for this ritual is from the Pensacola Paranormal Society. They have a wonderful space clearing prayer that I like to recite when I clear each area of my home. I have asked their permission in the past to share from their site, and I will make sure to give a full link to it as well.
If you have never done a space clearing, let me start by saying that there are many different ways to get it done. One of the most common is to burn sage; however, the method I am about to share is my personal favorite. It is an epsom salt space clearing, and I have had a lot of success with it. There are a few things that you will need in order to get started. First, you need a pyrex bowl. I got mine from Goodwill because I knew I was going to ruin it, and didn’t want to spend much on it. You will also need some sort of trivet or bricks to place under the Pyrex bowl. This will ensure that you do not burn a hole in your floor, so make sure you don’t skip this step. Other ingredients include plain epsom salt, 91% isopropyl alcohol, and a lighter or extended fire clicker.
Once you have your auspicious day, another way to add benefit to the process is to do it between the times of 11 – 1 in the a.m. or the p.m. The way I would describe this is to say that it is something of a doorway or a time when there are less energetic disruptions. When I am moving furniture or doing anything else Feng Shui related, I try to do it during this free zone, although that isn’t always possible. It just so happened that for this space clearing, I was able to honor this part of the recipe.
If you have a two-story home, you will want to start downstairs and work your way upstairs. This time, I decided to simplify the process. Instead of doing the salt burn in all nine (9) areas of the bagua, downstairs and up, I mentally divided each floor into four (4) areas. This entire process took me over 3 hours, so you can imagine how long it would take to do it 9 times on the bottom floor and 9 times on the top. Now that we have all the little details covered, here’s the way to begin:
Say your prayer for protection and intention. Here is the one I used from the Pensacola Paranormal Society.
“Mother, Father, God, I command that all negative energy and energy that is not condusive to my well-being be removed through this process. If there are any attached spirits to this home, I evoke Archangel Michael to use his sword to remove them and their tie to this place. I ask for your protection and guidance in the process. Thank you, it is done, it is done, it is done!”(pensacolaparanormalsociety.com/heavy_cleansing.php)
Once you have said your prayer, you are ready to go. Put a layer of the epsom salt in the fireproof bowl, cover it completely, but don’t drown it, with the alcohol, and light it up. Just for fun, I decided to time the duration of the flames and photograph the results. Some areas seemed to take much longer, and some were done in less than 15 min. The amount of black residue on top of the salt at the end of the burn is supposed to represent the amount of negative energy present that has been burned away. It would seem that certain areas of my home had way more negative energy than others! The good news is that after this process, my entire home feels purified and energetically clean.
Example of a lot of negativity burned out Example of very little negativity caught in the salt
One other thing that I did this time around, was to stare into the flames and focus on each life area with a specific intention. Alternatively, you can think about the things that aren’t working in your life and give them to the flames to be transformed. The part that I love the most, is the photographs. The images that emerge within the flames are sometimes a little spooky, but always interesting. It reminds me of cloud-watching and how a single cloud can look different depending on the person watching it.
After the first burn has stopped completely, move your bowl and trivet to the next area, add another layer of salt and alcohol, say your prayer, and light that layer. I suggest that you have one bowl for the bottom floor and one bowl for the top floor. After you have completed all four areas downstairs, and the bowl has cooled, you will need to flush the salt mixture into the toilet. This can be a little bit daunting because it will be as hard as a brick. Just add a small amount of water, stab it with a fork to break it up, and flush a little at a time into the toilet until it is all gone.
I’ve heard it said that when the flames leap very high and seem to be dancing, that it is a clear sign that there is spirit energy on the site. I do not claim to know this for certain, and I could not find anything on the internet to corroborate this, but I wanted to mention it just to be thorough.
What do you see?
I recommend that this type of space clearing be done at least once a year, or anytime that you feel the energy getting stagnant. If you have a lot of visitors in your home, keep in mind that you may need to clear your spaces more frequently. This would also be a great tool for realtors or for someone who is selling their own home, as well as if someone has died in the home. If you have a question or comment that I didn’t address here, please email me at fungschwaygirl@yahoo.com.
When making design & decor changes in the name of Feng Shui, there is one thing that you need to include, and that is the Three Secrets. The Three Secrets are part of the Black Hat Tibetan Buddhism Style of Feng Shui as taught by Professor Lin Yun. (http://www.yunlintemple.org) Using them will give all of your Feng Shui solutions that little something extra because it is a tool that harnesses the energy of your thoughts, words and actions in order to anchor the changes you are making.
The Three Secrets involve a mind, body and speech secret. Through the mind, you will visualize the result that you are seeking as you change the purpose of the items in your surroundings. You are giving each item a job, and you simply use your mind to communicate this. Through the body, you will use the ousting mudra to remove anything negative and retain all that is positive in the space that you are adjusting. “The meaning of ‘mudra’, which is a Sanskrit word, is ‘closure’ or ‘seal’. Mudra hand positions are physical gestures that have an effect on the energy flow of the body. The ancient practice of yoga links the hand mudras to the changing spiritual and mental aspects of a person.” (www.yogawiz.com) If you are from Texas or a Texas Longhorns fan, this one is easy. Think of showing your Texas Longhorns support, and then flicking your middle & ring fingers outward. That is the ousting mudra! Through your words, you will chant the speech secret which is a mantra known as the Six True Words:
Om Ma Ni Pad Me Hum ~ Hail The Jewel in the Lotus
My teacher, Professor Lin Yun, preferred not to translate certain mantras. However, most people want to know what it is that they are saying when they repeat a mantra. I did a little research, and I really like the following translation:
“Om”, symbolizes one’s impure body, speech and mind, and also the pure noble body, speech and mind of a Buddha. Buddhism claims that an impure body, speech and mind can be transformed into pure ones of a Buddha, who were once impure and later by removing their negative attributes, achieved enlightenment on this path.
“Ma Ni”, the jewel, symbolizes factors of method, compassion and love, the altruistic intention to become enlightened. “Just as a jewel is capable of removing poverty, so the altruistic mind of enlightenment is capable of removing the poverty, or difficulties, and of solitary peace.” Similarly, just as a jewel fulfills the wishes of sentient beings, so the altruistic intention to become enlightened fulfills the wishes of sentient beings.
“Pad Me”, means lotus and symbolizes wisdom. Growing out of mud, but not being stained by mud, the lotus indicates the quality of wisdom, which keeps you out of contradiction.
“Hum”, means inseparability; symbolizing purity and can be achieved by the unity of method and wisdom.” (www.balilivingimports.com)
Professor Lin once gave us an example of how powerful it is to use the Three Secrets Reinforcement technique. He said that if there were two identical homes that placed the exact same solution into their home, and one person used this technique and one did not, it would be like have a 110% effectiveness vs. a 10% effectiveness. It’s kindof a no-brainer if you ask me!
‘Helpful People’ sounds like an ancillary benefit to Feng Shui until you find yourself in need of some truly reliable and helpful people in your life. To be honest, more people become curious about Feng Shui because of the allure that it will improve their finances or love life, than for the probability that it will allow them to ‘receive it forward‘. In fact, the Helpful People/Travel/ Service area may be one of the most overlooked areas on the Feng Shui bagua. We all need to be able to give and receive stellar service as we move through this thing called life, and when this area is in sync, things just have a habit of going your way.
So who are these “helpful people” anyway? Let’s run through a few scenarios where helpful people are very appreciated. You were just in a wreck, you call your insurance company and they jump through hoops to make sure that all of your needs are met. Need a tow truck, car rental or doctor? Chances are that your insurance agent is acting as a very helpful person in your life in that moment. Here’s another example; let’s say that you walk out of your apartment and your car battery is dead. One of your neighbors has jumper cables, and offers to give your car battery a jump with their’s. They just did a “pay it forward” and they helped you out of a frustrating start to your day. A helpful person could be the girl taking your order in the drive-thru window or it could be the contractor in charge of your home’s plumbing needs. Regardless, it is always a good idea to tweak this area BEFORE it becomes a issue in your life.
“When this area is in sync, things just have a habit of going your way.”
Now that I have your attention, let me give you the 411 on this area. If you mentally visualize an imaginary tic tac toe box around your home, it will then be divided into 9 evenly placed squares (the example below is not perfectly even, but at least it gives you a visual). The Helpful People area is located in the bottom right hand corner in relation to your front door. Using your mental bagua, go to each room, locate the helpful people area and do an inventory of your findings. Your home is an overlay of multiple helpful people areas, and they all matter! Once your inventory is complete, you’ll want to analyze the data. Did you find your daughter’s collection of headless Barbies or did you find a chaotic table full of un-filed papers, bills, receipts and other symbols of overwhelm? Whether you found your meditation pillow and yoga mat, or your son’s legos scattered like land mines all over the floor, it doesn’t take a Feng Shui license to know what you need to do in order to bring some balance back into your life.
The next step is to eliminate the most obvious problems first. If your area is filled with clutter and broken items, clean it. Don’t wait for your kids to call Hoarders, and embarrass you on national television! Next, remember that this area revolves around being of service. From a Feng Shui point of view, all areas can be enhanced by balancing the elements. Helpful People is strengthened by the metal element. The colors that enhance this element are obviously metal tones like silver, bronze and gold, and metal items like bells or metal Tibetan Singing Bowls as well as white and light pastels. The shape that represents the metal element is a circle, so adding round, metal items would really pack some punch. Obviously, whatever you add, needs to be able to fit in with the decor that already exists within your home. Placing a Feng Shui “cure” in your home just because the store clerk assured you it will bring good luck is not nearly as powerful as finding a way to allow the cures to be blend seamlessly into your surroundings. It is much more desirable to have your friends walk into you home and feel great about it without knowing why, than for them to walk in and be confronted by all sorts of kitschy Feng Shui Chinese items that have no relevance to your life or culture.
Feng Shui may have its roots in some of the more esoteric and secret aspects of Chinese culture and lore, but at its most basic level, it is a very common-sense way to add a little peace and happiness into your life. Have fun with it, and whatever you do, don’t take yourself too seriously!
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