Two years ago Mr K and I stumbled blurry eyed off the shinkansen (bullet train) in Kyoto, Japan, at the beginning of our six month sabbatical in Japan’s ancient capital. I will never forget the moment we walked through the door of our apartment, which was smaller than the kitchen we had left behind in England, dumped our rucksacks on the floor and looked at each other – we had done it! We had put a three storey house in storage, put the brakes on a few projects and taken this time for ourselves. Mr K then promptly fell asleep for the rest of the day, while I headed out to discover the delights of the local supermarket, filling our tiny fridge with unrecognisable vegetables, defamiliarising myself with the Kyoto dialect and trying not to skip along with an inane grin on my face.
That six months was a huge turning point for us. Apart from getting engaged on my birthday in a beautiful Japanese garden, it was the catalyst for Mr K to quit his 12 year career in engineering to come and work for Do What You Love, and it was a major factor in helping us get clearer on what we really wanted the business to become.
Now, two years on, having got married, had a baby and expanded the business somewhat, with an especially crazy March, it’s time for another mini break.
We aren’t taking a six month sabbatical this time, but we are dedicating the whole of April to calm, quiet reflection, taking it easy on the work front, and committing ourselves to getting out in the sunshine, in the woods, by the sea, getting healthier, and enjoying the moment even more.
Do you want to join us? Starting on Monday we are doing ‘Zen for Ten‘, a ten day mini chill, and you are invited!
Sometimes life gets so hectic we hardly have time to think, let alone dream and plan the road towards doing what you love. As we search for meaning in our busy lives it can be hard to tune out the noise and listen to what we really want to offer the world. You are invited to join us for ‘Zen for Ten’ – a simple ten day programme to help you slow down, tune in and light up. This is based on our free resource ‘Zen and the art of doing what you love’ (which I wrote whilst on that sabbatical in Japan) and it is free to participate. It will help you be more present, get quiet and focus. It will help you see more beauty. It will let you travel lighter. And it will get you on the road to doing what you love, for life.
Just enter your details here and you will receive daily emails for ten days starting on Monday 7 April 2014, with beautiful imagery, short exercises and inspiring prompts.
We cannot wait to breathe more deeply, live more slowly and appreciate life more during this special ten days. See you there.
