Tag: #susancain

Are you connecting to your core values?

Connect to Core Values
Connect to Core Values

In the book Bittersweet by Susan Cain, she talked about accepting the bitter and losses in our lives, and how it can lead us to connect to our values and subsequently acting on those values.

I reflected upon it and listed the core values I believe is important to me at this season of my life:

  1. Courage – courage to do what God has called me to do, to trust in God’s plan for my life, and to be led by the power of the Holy Spirit
  2. Compassion – to reach out to others and inspire them to dream boldly, and more importantly, to have compassion on myself – to be kind and gentle to the little girl in me
  3. Creativity – to use my talents in bold unique ways to give glory to God – dare to dream big, be bold, go wild, run free, dance like no one is watching, and have lots of fun!
  4. Gratitude – to give thanks for the countless blessings in my life, including the trials that strengthen my character and driven me to be who I am today

I realise that I need to align my values with what I am doing in my life. That whatever project or work I embark on, it needs to align with my core values. And these values must be outward seeking, that is, it is to serve others and to give glory to God.

As we start the new year of 2024, I invite you to connect to your values and seek to live in alignment with your core values.

May this year 2024 be a wonderful year for you!

Bittersweet Year of 2023

I was totally struck by the interview between Mindvalley’s Vishen Lakhiani and author Susan Cain. She has a new book called, “Bittersweet – How Sorrow and Longing Make Us Whole”. I was so intrigue that I quickly got this book and read it. Her previous book, “Quiet – The Power of Introverts in a World that Can’t Stop Talking” is the de-facto book for introverts.

Her book helped me to accept pain and sorrow in my life. It is healthy to recognise the emotions of pain and sorrow as part of life – that there is no escape. Her book gave me so much hope in that it encourages me to acknowledge and accept the bitterness of life, and transforming it into creativity, transcendence and love. It is after experiencing bitterness that we treasure the sweetness of joy even more. And it had given me inspiration to transform my biggest trials this year into exploration, discovery, adventure and renewed confidence. Basically, it was God’s way of pushing me out of my comfort zone into the next level of who I can become.

In her book, Susan Cain wrote the real reason for our emotions is to connect us. And Sadness, of all the emotions, was the ultimate bonding agent. We can see this in the movie, “Inside Out”. We can see it in funerals, death and grieving.

Sadness triggers compassion. It brings people together.

It is humbling to go through sadness and sorrow. But when we go through these emotions, they can bring us closer to other people through our compassion, if we allow them. It helps us sieve through our overwhelming noise and distraction, and connect us to what matters most. And this can lead us to take committed action to transform the bitter to the sweet. Let the bitter lessons of life bring renewed hope and joy, gratitude and compassion, to people around us.