The Story

When East meets West… when Lao Tzu wrote down the 81 verses of the Tao Te Ching 2,500 years ago in ancient China, he may not have realised the impact its philosophy would have millenniums later in the West and the newly-emerging profession of life-coaching.

When Julia from Taiwan met Nick from England on a coaching course, they didn’t realise at first that they had a common interest in the work of Lao Tzu. This joint interest soon became a course project. As we explored a few verses of the Tao, we began to see how Lao Tzu’s teachings could be related to personal development and coaching principles.

On this blog we intend to continue this work by exploring one verse of the Tao Te Ching each week. We invite you to join us on our journey and add your own thoughts to deepen our learning. How do you interpret Lao Tzu’s message? And how does it speak to you as a coach?

Friday, April 16, 2010

Verse 35

She who is centered in the Tao
can go where she wishes, without danger.
She perceives the universal harmony,
even amid great pain,
because she has found peace in her heart.

Music or the smell of good cooking
may make people stop and enjoy.
But words that point to the Tao
seem monotonous and without flavor.
When you look for it, there is nothing to see.
When you listen for it, there is nothing to hear.
When you use it, it is inexhaustible.

[For Personal Development]
  • The universe is friendly. Things happen for us, not to us. Our job is not about bending the universe but to accept it.
  • Feeling and dealing with the pain is the only way to remove it and move on.
  • Pleasure is a temporary experience. Fulfillment is the true happiness which lives longer in us.
  • Pure water is colorless, odorless, and tasteless, but it fulfills our thirst.
[For Coaching]
  • Coaches hold a safe place the client to explore their passion and face their fears.
  • Reframing helps the client to see things differently and subsequently come to different conclusions, or feelings about the event or experience.
  • Great coaching is effortless. The harder we (i.e. the client and the coach) push, the slower the client progress.