Written by Danielle Raine, Holistic Creativity Coach
Danielle Raine is a holistic creativity expert and mindset coach for creatives and entrepreneurs. She has been studying the creative process since an epiphany at Art School in 1993 that revealed how to access the flow state.
Imagine a business plan that helps you sleep well at night, skyrockets your self-esteem and infuses your life with a deep sense of fulfilment. This is the potential that’s available when we align our professional efforts with the beautiful spiritual concept of dharma.
“You have something unique to offer the world. The world wants what you have to offer.” – Marisa Peer
What is dharma?
Before we explore the many professional benefits of knowing your dharma, it’s worth clarifying the meaning behind this curious Sanskrit word. So, what is dharma?
There are a number of spiritual and esoteric definitions of the term dharma, but they all have one central idea: that we each have a very unique and valuable role to play in the Grand Plan of humanity. Some may refer to this as life purpose or destiny, and there are varying opinions about how much say we have in the details.
Like many inspiring spiritual principles, the concept of dharma may mean different things to different people. What’s helpful in finding your dharma are the universal gifts that emerge from the journey of discovery, rather than a definitive understanding of the term.
“The road to purpose can be paved with pleasure.” – Victor J Strecher
The gifts of dharma
While the exploration of your dharma can be a gift in itself, here are just a few of the benefits you can expect to enjoy when you begin to follow this thread;
Balance: When you feel clear about your dharma, you’re free to let go of the need to do everything. You’re able to focus solely on the unique role you are here to play.
Having it all: While you can let go of what’s not required for your unique path, you still get to enjoy a vast range of experiences and blessings that feels like Having It All.
Holistic sweet spot: In your unique dharma blend of talents and purpose, you enjoy a sweet spot of alignment and success that supports your health, wellbeing, and longevity.
Peace of purpose: Feeling on track with your life purpose brings peace to both heart and mind. It’s easier to release angst and confusion when you’re clear about your path and unique role in the world.
Easy decisions: There’s a saying that decisions are easy when you’re clear on what matters. When you know your dharma, old patterns of indecisiveness and doubt just fall away.
Dharma is about more than just finding your purpose, it’s a way of living that serves humanity, aligns with the universal currents of life, and elevates your personal experience. It’s a sweet-spot, where joy, service, expression and success work together in harmony, and the result is a natural flow of prosperity and unexpected blessings.
If this sounds like the kind of foundation you’d like to build your career and business upon, here are just four of the ways knowing your dharma can be an inspiring, uplifting and fulfilling route to your happiest success and most valuable legacy.
“Each of us has a dharma, a purpose in life. When we are in dharma, we enjoy and love our work.” – Deepak Chopra
4 ways knowing your dharma can boost your business
1. Clarity creates confidence
Imagine no longer wondering if you’re in the right career. Imagine feeling confident and delighted that you’re doing the work you were born to do. Imagine how that mood of alignment and delight could elevate the actions you take in your business and how that positive energy could lead to more positive results.
When you know your dharma, you get to enjoy that In The Zone feeling of, ‘I’m in my element, I’m exactly where I’m meant to be.’ As a result, it’s so much easier to make clear-headed decisions about what actions to take, and what to avoid. You become more decisive, effortlessly taking bold actions because you feel so confident that you’re on the right track.
In the business world, clarity, confidence, and decisiveness are huge assets. When you trust yourself and your decisions, others pick up on that certainty – you’re seen as trustworthy, credible and magnetic.
Not only are you more likely to make the right decisions in a way that feels effortless, almost inevitable, but the clarity and faith that supports those decisions tends to create better results. Beyond tangible outcomes, this inner certainty makes for more peace of mind and a more enjoyable business journey.
Your dharma gives you a clear touchstone as reference for all those difficult dilemmas.
“No one can do what you can do. We are waiting on your greatness.” – Lisa Nichols
2. The joy of right livelihood
After studying successful people in various fields for over three decades, I noticed a couple of things. Firstly, there are as many strategies and routes to success as there are winners and champions. But the other thing that I noticed was that all the success stories had something in common – a devotion to their work.
Part of the experience of being in your dharma is an enjoyment of your labours. When we’re doing the work we were born to do, uniquely designed to do, there’s a flow, an ease to the process that can be a life-enhancing joy.
So, our dharmas can be joyful – but how does that help us in business? One major benefit is that we’re more likely to put in the hours when we’re doing what we love. This level of commitment and staying power is a hallmark of success.
Another advantage is that work done in joy is often naturally magnetic, it’s imbued with a quality that increases its inherent value. This may not be a tangible factor, but it’s a quality that others respond to on an unconscious level. As the old proverb suggests, those without a smiling face should not open a shop.
When you know your dharma and live it, your work becomes a joy – and joy is good for business.
“Joy is a net of love by which you can catch souls.” – Mother Teresa
3. Purpose: A potent fuel for business success
Have you ever had the experience of being able to do more for others than you’d do for your own self-interest? This is Purpose Power, and it can be a considerable business asset.
Humans are naturally altruistic, we love to give, serve, help and share. This explains the modern phenomenon of purpose-seeking that has taken over the world in recent decades. One of the most common life goals for many working adults is to find more meaning in their lives and careers. We want to do things that make a difference, that have a positive impact on the lives of others.
Discovering your dharma delivers that sense of fulfilment – it’s an inherent part of the process. And this alignment with meaning and purpose is a potent force that can be used to fuel business success. It’s an inner drive that will help you keep going during tough times and disappointments.
This spirit of service also enhances your business offering. Being focused on others and helping them meet their needs is the essence of great customer service. It’s all too rare in the commercial realm, yet people can feel it and respond positively, often in terms of repeat business or word-of-mouth recommendations.
This is business as a spiritual practice, and it’s a natural side-effect of knowing your dharma.
“It’s that desire to contribute in a bigger way that fulfils us.” – Brendon Burchard
4. Partnering with higher powers
On the path of dharma, we’re connected to something beyond our own minds, a higher power that allows us to tap into forces beyond basic human functioning. This is the realm of intuition, synchronicities, miracles and grace. These are the occasions of right timing and unexpected twists that we could never engineer, but make a world of difference to our success.
When we live in dharma, these everyday miracles become the norm, it’s even possible to start to expect them and summon them, almost on demand. As a case in point, I had the idea that I’d like to help more people with their dharma. I woke up the next morning and this post virtually wrote itself in a happy episode of Flow Writing.
How can these higher powers support business success? Many of today’s most successful entrepreneurs, creatives, and business success stories credit otherworldly forces as a key factor of their journey. Tony Robbins mentions moments of grace, Richard Branson speaks of trusting intuition, Regan Hillyer advocates trusting soul guidance, J K Rowling cites mysterious forces of inspiration – all leaders in their fields who acknowledge the role of a higher power.
Aligning your business ventures with your dharma is a powerful way to tap into these forces – for your own success and achievement, as well as the good of the collective.
“When you find your thing, it fuels you.” – Dana Wilde
Is it time to find your dharma?
From my own journey of discovery, I’ve learned that a large part of my dharma is helping others to find, live, and love their dharma. So, I hope I’ve inspired you to start exploring this uniquely meaningful and inspired route to enjoying the good life, serving humanity as you do.
Because the satisfaction of being on purpose paves the way for a wonderful sense of presence, more joy in the journey, and an ability to make peace with where you are. In an age of increasing anxiety and existential confusion, the gifts of dharma create a foundation for good health and emotional wellbeing – your ultimate business assets.
I believe that the future of commerce is love-based, and we can future-proof our businesses by infusing the spirit of dharma into our visions, plans, and strategies. If this beautiful Sanskrit word sparks a similar fire in your soul, and you’re ready to fast-track your dharma journey, I’ve put together a free guide to help you: 3 Top Tips For Finding Your Dharma.
And if you embark on this divine mission, expect to be rewarded with the powers of purpose, joy, clarity and spiritual assistance. You can also look forward to the wealth of ripple effects that these will bring to your life – and your business.
Enjoy discovering your dharma!
Danielle Raine
Danielle Raine, Holistic Creativity Coach
Danielle Raine is a holistic creativity expert and mindset coach for creatives and entrepreneurs.
She has been studying the creative process since an epiphany at Art School in 1993 that revealed how to access the flow state.
For three decades, she's been working and experimenting in the creative fields of design, blogging, publishing, marketing, tech, and entrepreneurship, with a particular focus on the nature of inspiration and flow productivity.
Her speciality is a wellness-based, feel-good approach to creative fulfilment and success, along with an enduring theme of enjoying the journey as much as possible.
Through her coaching, courses, books, and blogs, her mission is to share the simple, practical tools that create rapid shifts and inspiring results, so that her clients, students, and readers can do more of the work they love to do, and bring their most exciting creative visions to life.
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