Feeling too Yin? Balance it with Yang

By Jessica Hoelzel

During the winter months, we are in seasonal time of more Yin energy than Yang. Yin is darkness, going within, and inaction. It’s opposite, Yang is light, outward expression, and action. It’s good to honor this time, to embrace the slow pace and reflective nature of this season, but if you are feeling a little too isolated or immobile, add some Yang to your environment. Feng shui is all about balance. Being too heavily weighted on one end of the spectrum is not ideal.

Ideas for adding a bit of Yang energy:

• A lamp or candles for a warm glow
• Shades open wide to let in sunlight
• Lively music...maybe some dancing?
• A blooming plant

Simplify Your Life

Yampa River, Steamboat Springs, CO June 2011

By Jessica Hoelzel

 

A very wise man, back in the 1850’s – when it seems life should have been far less complicated that it is today, wrote this:

“Simplicity, simplicity, simplicity! I say, let your affairs be as two or three, and not a hundred or a thousand, instead of a million count half a dozen, and keep your accounts on your thumbnail.”

That man was Henry David Thoreau, Philosopher, Naturalist, author of Walden.

What he wrote so long ago, his advice gleaned from pulling himself out of the busy shufflings of society, and into the tranquil balance of nature, is advice we should heed, now more than ever.

Now, our world can seem chaotic. Now, our world can seem like time is accelerating. Now, we need to focus on what really matters. And not let things that don’t clutter up our lives.

Time to get real. Time to re-focus. Time to live authentically, with what really matters: LOVE.

Be with the people you love.

Do what you love.

Surround yourself only with what you love.

There’s nothing more simple than that.

Feng Shui at Work: The Dangers of Too Much Yang Energy

By Jessica Hoelzel

In my earlier posts, I’ve been writing about balance, and how the basic feng shui guiding principle “use nature as your model” can help you achieve it. The Yin/Yang symbol represents balance, according to the I Ching (an ancient Chinese text used for divination and explaining the order of the universe).

The aim of the I Ching practice is to bring about balance in which celestial consciousness guides earthly awareness to follow the rhythm of nature.

- Roger Green

Its design symbolizes how chi (life force energy) fluctuates between Yin and Yang, which are opposites. When balanced, there are equal amounts of both Yin and Yang energy. Things get challenging if there’s too much of one or the other. (Off-balance.)

In the workplace, balance is often difficult to come by – for many reasons. One reason being that there is often too much Yang energy. Yang energy is masculine, aggressive, willful and active. Too much Yang can overpower. Yin energy is the opposite: feminine, passive, flexible and still. Too much Yin can underpower, but adding some Yin can balance out the occasions of too much Yang.

Too much Yang, according to Kirsten M. Lagatree,
in Feng Shui at Work, can:

Impede decision-making
Cause lost opportunities
Cause bad financial outcomes
Hurt morale
Encourage high turnover

How do you assess what’s going on and fix it?

Common Workplace Issues
Too much Yang................Add some Yin

Florescent lights..................Turn some off, use desk lamps/task lighting

Smelly................................Use diffusers* or fans, empty and clean trash regularly

Noisy.................................Designate quiet areas, wear headphones

Hectic................................Put systems in place to create order, create opportunities for breaks

Too warm..........................Add window shades, use a fan, fix heating

Crowded...........................Reorganize/eliminate furniture, encourage off-site work

Male-dominated.................Bring in art/accessories with feminine feel, hire more women

Cluttered............................Purge, organize, streamline things

I'd love to hear from you. What's going on in your workplace? Do you think there's a solution? Click below to leave a comment.

*Curious about diffusers? Check out these options from Young Living. The Travel Diffuser would work perfectly in an office or cube. Contact me by email for more information.

Boundary Waters Balance Part 1

By Jessica Hoelzel

The feng shui of the Boundary Waters? Perfectly balanced and harmonious.

Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, John Lake

For good feng shui, one of the core principles you must follow is to “use nature as your model”. Heading into nature every now and then is a good way to observe nature’s perfect balance, and achieve a state of balance for yourself.

When you are in nature there is less distraction, pulling your energy this way and that. No TV, no cell phone, no Internet…in our case, no motorized boats or traffic either. When in nature, you are free to be present, to BE. When you can BE, unencumbered by the typical distractions, you have the opportunity to find some balance. With the nurturing solace of nature’s beauty surrounding you, you have the opportunity to:

BE in quiet

BE clear-headed

BE healed

BE refreshed

BE inspired

…and return to a state of physical, mental and spiritual harmony.

So how do you keep that state alive when you return home? By ensuring that your surroundings are also balanced. That you don’t have too many noisy distractions – or at least opportunities for quiet. That you also have a place of beauty which provides you solace.

Stay tuned for more to come on how “stuff” impacted our experience of balance…