Dearest Darling Friends,

In a training program recently, a single sentence Zen story, resonated very deeply with the audience.

Here is that story – …and the Zen Master said…if you feel like your ship is sinking, it’s a good time to throw out the stuff that’s weighing it down.

What followed was a very exciting and lively interaction with the audience. A single line story expanded into a 45 min debrief. It culminated with two super powerful insights.

1. There are some useless stuff that we carry that sinks us. These are largely emotional things like old regrets, shame, fear, jealously, hurt, hatred and anger.

2. I can’t start the next chapter of my life if I keep reading just the previous one. Hence, throwing away these emotions does two things. It helps me to move on and gives me amazing freedom to create the future of my dreams.

That’s a classical insightful Zen story that highlights the importance of letting go of emotional baggage to move forward.

From a leader / trainers ‘point of view’, here is a little breakdown of why this Zen story resonated so well:

•  The Sinking Ship Metaphor: This is powerful imagery. It vividly portrays the feeling of being overwhelmed and struggling. The ship represents our lives or current situation, and the sinking symbolizes our emotional struggles.

•  Identifying the Weight: The wisdom pinpoints the real culprits: not external problems, but internal ones. Its not the water (life) but the weight of the useless emotions that prevents us from rising above difficulties.

• The Necessity of Letting Go: It’s a call to action. To survive (the sinking ship), we must discard what’s holding us back. It emphasizes that we have the power to choose to break free.

• Moving Forward: The second insight is about perspective. Dwelling on the past keeps us stuck. To embrace new beginnings, we need to close the previous chapter.

Would love to know your thoughts about this story and the insights from it.

With love, prayers and best wishes,