Wisdom of the Ages: 60 days to enlightenment by Wayne W. Dyer Book Summary and Note Highlights

Wisdom of the Ages by Wayne Dyer, Book Summary.

When the choice is to be right or to be kind, always make the choice that brings peace. – Wayne Dyer.

New York Times Bestselling author Wayne W. Dyer has crafted a powerful collection of writings, and poems by some of the greatest thinkers of the past twenty-five centuries.

In succinct original essays, Dyer unravel the meaning and context of each piece of wisdom, with sets of guidance on how to apply these teachings into our modern lives.

Dr. Wayne W. Dyer was an internationally renowned author and speaker in the self-development and spiritual growth department. Over the four decades of his career, he wrote more than 40 books, including 21 New York Times bestsellers. His first book, Your Erroneous Zones (1976), is one of the best-selling books of all time, with an estimated 35 million copies sold to date. In addition, he’d created many audio and video programs. Appeared on thousands of television and radio shows. His latest book, Wisdom of the Ages shows us a window to wisdom and a door to greatness. Please enjoy, wisdom of the ages, by one and only, Dr. Wayne Dyer.

Wisdom of the Ages On:

*PATIENCE*

CONFUCIUS

Do not be desirous of having things done quickly. Do not look at small advantages. Desire to have things done quickly prevents their being done thoroughly. Looking at small advantages prevents great affairs from being accomplished.”― CONFUCIUS (551 B.C. -479 B.C.)

Confucious was a Chinese teacher and philosopher whose philosophy strongly influenced Chinese life and culture for over two thousand years.

Patience is a key ingredient in the process of the natural world and our personal world. Infinite patience describes the condition of faith or absolute knowing.

If you know with a complete absence of doubt that what you are doing is consistent with your own purpose, and that you are involved in accomplishing a great affair, then you are at peace with yourself and in harmony with your own heroic mission.

Dyer explains that by looking at your small victories, you can prevent the job from done thoroughly.

And by observing nature—your nature, and the natural world around you; you will see that you must allow a wound to progress at its own pace.

“Trust in your nature,” Dyer reminds us, “and let go of your desire to have things done quickly.”

To accomplish this, he suggests doing the following:

• Abandon your conditioned means of evaluating yourself as successful or not based on immediate indicators. (To be ahead at the beginning of the game can be a big disadvantage if it obscures your vision for the entire game.)
• Think about what you are in increments of five centuries rather than five minutes.
• Be patient with yourself through all your successes and disappointments, as you feel God has always been with you.

Wisdom of the Ages On:

*Meditation*

PYTHAGORAS/BLAISE PASCAL

Learn to be silent. Let your quiet mind listen and absorb.” ―PYTHAGORAS (580 B.C.-500 B.C.)

A Greek philosopher and mathematician, Pythagoras, was especially interested in studying mathematics to weights, measures, and musical theory.

Pythagoras’ writing had influenced Plato and Aristotle and was a major contribution to developing both mathematics and western-rational philosophy.

All man’s miseries derive from not being able to sit quietly in a room alone.”― BLAISE PASCAL (1623-1662)

Blaise Pascal, a famous French mathematician, physicist, and religious philosopher who lived twenty-two centuries after Pythagoras. was considered one of the original scientific minds. He is responsible for inventing the syringe, the hydraulic press, and the first calculator. Pascal’s law of pressure is still taught in science classes around the world today. 

Here are some suggestions for overcoming your terror and learning to be silent and able to sit quietly in a room alone:

• Practice noticing your in and out breaths as a way to cultivate turning inward to the silent self. (Notice and follow your breathing for a few moments, many times during your day.)
• Give yourself time this day to sit in a room alone and observe your mind.
• Read a book on meditation to learn how the practice can be initiated or join a meditation group.
• Listen to a guided meditation online. Then, go to sites like YouTube, where you’ll find plenty of resources.

*GRIEF AS A BLESSING*

JALALUDDIN RUMI

I saw grief drinking a cup of sorrow and called out, “it tastes sweet, does it now?” “you’ve caught me,” grief answered, “and you’ve ruined my business; how can I sell sorrow when you know it’s a blessing?” ―JALALUDDIN RUMI (1207 -1273)

Persian mystical poet and Sufi saint Jalaluddin Rumi writes about the pure love we can achieve, beyond ego, in the soul’s divine longing and ecstasy of union with God.

Here are some alternatives to the grief/ sorrow dilemma:

• Stop yourself in the middle of a sorrowful moment and very deliberately say, “Do I have to suffer now, inside as well as outside, over this loss, which I will ultimately come to see as a blessing?” Listen and follow your response.
• Practice being able to honestly express your feelings of loss without believing that you must be filled with sorrow as well. Do not demand instant change. Allow what is there to be there simultaneously that you allow the possibility of different behavior.
• You may have accepted grief and sorrow as inseparable because you have been taught that it is cold and inhuman to be otherwise. When you know that all falls are blessings and all losses are in divine order, you will gradually sweeten the sorrow and will gain the energy to soar to a higher altitude in all areas of your life.

Wisdom of the Ages On:

*BALANCE*

LEONARDO DA VINCI

Now and then go away, have a little relaxation, when you come back to your work. Your judgment will be surer; since constantly remaining at work will cause you to lose the power of judgment…Go some distance away because the work appears smaller, and more of it can be taken in at a glance, and a lack of harmony or proportion is more readily seen. ―LEONARDO DA VINCI (1452-1519) 

Italian painter, sculptor, architect, musician, engineer, mathematician, and scientist Leonardo da Vinci was one of the greatest intellects in the history of humanity.

According to many historians, Leonardo was a man with the most curious mind of all time. His accomplishments were monumental, and he is often credited with being the initiator of the Renaissance, which moved man out of the Dark Ages.

Leonardo saw mystery everywhere and delved deep to understand it. He studied the earth, the sky, and the heavens. He recorded the movement of stars and drew up plans for flying machines four hundred years before the Wright brothers introduced the first airplane in 1903. He was an architect and a consummate artist who plunged into the study of nature and human personality.

To put this advice of the original Renaissance man to work in your life:

• Practice detaching from outcomes in your work and projects. Be in the moment.
• Walk away from your work from time to time to do nothing. Just let yourself be and notice how free you feel. This kind of distancing without self-control will bring you back to your work with new alertness and much sharper judgment.
• Do what the late Dr. Dyer used to do when he felt stuck. Simply turn the entire project over to God. The answer comes, and clarity is often restored when he’d ask God for help.
• Remember what the greatest achiever of all time advises you to do “Now and then go away, have a little relaxation.” If there is anyone whose advice I would follow, it is the original Renaissance man.

Wisdom of the Ages On:

*HOPE*

MICHELANGELO

The greatest danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high, and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it.”― MICHELANGELO (1475 -1564)

Italian painter, sculptor, architect, and poet, Renaissance artist Michelangelo Buonarroti is an outstanding figure in the history of the visual arts.

To put Michelangelo’s advice to work in your own life, follow these simple guidelines:

• Refuse to listen to or internalize the proclamations of those who point to your limitations. You must always remember: When you argue for your limitations, the only thing you get are limitations.
• Above all else, never aim low or think small. You are a divine manifestation of God, and in that regard, you are connected to that which causes and creates miracles.
• Keep hope alive in you by remembering that famous remark of Albert Einstein’s “Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds,”

Wisdom of the Ages On:

*MERCY*

WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

from The Merchant of Venice

The quality of mercy is not strained; It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven Upon the place beneath it is twice blest, It blesseth him that gives and him that takes: ‘Tis mightiest in the mightiest; it becomes The throned monarch better than his crown: His scepter shows the force of temporal power, The attribute to awe and majesty, Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings; But mercy is above this sceptered sway,—It is enthroned in the hearts of kings, It is an attribute to God himself, And earthly power doth then show likest God’s when mercy seasons justice. ―WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE (1564 – 1616)

English poet and dramatist of the Elizabethan and early Jacobean period, William Shakespeare is the most widely known author in all English literature.

Be compassionate with yourself, do not judge yourself harshly when you make a mistake or fail to live up to your expectations.

“The willingness to forgive is a sign of spiritual and emotional maturity. It is one of the great virtues to which we all should aspire. Imagine a world filled with individuals willing both to apologize and to accept an apology. Is there any problem that could not be solved among people who possessed the humility and largeness of spirit and soul to do either ― or both ―when needed?” ― Gordon B. Hinckle

You will find yourself much less distracted with mercy in your heart and disheartened by the evil behaviors that you see and read about almost every day.

Put the ideas of this passage by one of the world’s greatest wordsmiths into your life by practicing the following:

• When you find yourself facing a situation where you will distribute justice, see the two sides of your own personality very clearly before coming to an honest conclusion.
• Give yourself the compassion you deserve for any past actions. Stop judging yourself harshly. Be kind to yourself and eliminate any ill feelings you harbor toward yourself.
• Once you have stated how you feel and justice has been done, then let go. Don’t hold on to grudges and use constant reminders to keep others in a state of guilt.
• Turn your most troublesome disturbances over to God. This action will free you from your own immobilization and anger and help you to see the saint in the sinner, who have just been exchanging notes with each other.

Wisdom of the Ages On:

*PASSION*

LOVE’S PHILOSOPHY

The fountains mingle with the river And the rivers with the Ocean, The winds of Heaven mix forever With a sweet emotion; Nothing in the world is single; All things by the law divine In one spirit meet and mingle. Why not I with thine? See the mountains kiss high Heaven, And the waves clasp one another; No sister-flower would be forgiven If it disdained its brother, And the sunlight clasps the earth. And the moonbeams kiss the sea: What is all this sweet work worth If thou kiss not me? ―PERCY BYSSHE SHELLEY (1792-1822)

English philosophical poet Percy Bysshe rejected all conventions that he believed stifled love and human freedom and rebelled against the strictures of English politics and religion.

Shelley was a man living at the beginning of the nineteenth century in England who risked his life distributing pamphlets advocating political rights and autonomy for Catholics in Ireland.

He lost his first wife to suicide when he was twenty-four, and two of his children died when he was in his mid-twenties. But that didn’t stop Shelley from remarrying and traveling throughout Europe, publishing his poetry and writings to support himself and his wife.

Living life passionately has its own tremendous rewards. This is intensified when one is aware that death, in its arbitrary way, can come unexpectedly. Shelley lived out of his passionate idealism with every breath and heartbeat. His passion is reflected in all his great poetry.

To put this passion into your life:

• Know that you are a part of a joyful universe. Allow your romantic, ecstatic, blissful emotions to appear more frequently in your daily life.
• Write your own poetry. Take the time to record your feelings of passion.
• Permit yourself to be a passionate person. Be passionate about anything or anyone you choose without interference from your inner critic.
• Tell those you love how you feel about them as often as possible. This will allow you to share your joy.

Wisdom of the Ages On:

*Inspiration*

PATANJALI

When some great purpose inspires you, some extraordinary project, all your thoughts break their bonds; Your mind transcends limitation, your consciousness expands in every direction, and you find yourself in a new, great, and wonderful world. Dormant forces, faculties, and talents became alive, and you discover yourself to be a greater person by far than you ever dreamed yourself to be.” ―PATANJALI (C. FIRST TO the THIRD CENTURY B.C.)

The author of Yoga Sutras, Patanjali, lived in India probably one to three centuries before Christ and is considered the person who established the meditation tradition. He has been described as a mathematician of mysticism and an Einstein in the world of the Buddhas.

To put Patanjali’s powerful Ideas to use, try these suggestions:

• Record in some form the activities of your life that you feel most in spirit (inspired).
• Use this inventory
• Listen only to the voice within you that beckons you to that activity. Filter out advice from those telling you what they think you should be doing with your life. The key is to become inspired from within, not from without.
• Remember the words of Ralph Waldo Emerson. “The measure of mental health is the disposition to find good everywhere.”

Wisdom of the Ages On:

*Being Childlike*

JESUS OF NAZARETH

Except ye be converted and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the Kingdom of Heaven.”―JESUS OF NAZARETH (C.6 B.C.-A.D.30) 

Jesus Christ is one of the world’s major religious figures, regarded by Christians as the Messiah predicted by the Old Testament prophets.

That Kingdom is available to you here now on earth, as it is in heaven. So all you have to do is make that conversion. To do so:

• Spend as much time as you can manage to observe little children. As you do, recall the child in you who would love to play with them.
• When you find yourself acting serious and stodgy, remind yourself of the invisible observer inside you, that is, noticing your somber side.
• Make the decision that  I am never going to let an old person inhabit my body.”

Wisdom of the Ages On:

*DIVINITY*

EPICTETUS

Men are disturbed not by things that happen, but by their opinions of the things that happen.” ―EPICTETUS (55-135)

Epictetus, an emancipated slave, was a Greek Stoic philosopher. Unfortunately, no written works survive, but his pupil Arrian preserved his essential doctrines in a manual.

To put these two ancient yet very up-to-date observations to work for you, begin to:

• Remind yourself daily that you are a divine creation and entitled to be treated lovingly by others, as well as by yourself.
• Practice regular rituals to affirm the presence of God in you and all that you do.
• Give thanks to everything you receive, including the rain, air, sun, and storms; however, they manifest. Gratitude is one way of recognizing God in all things.
• Let go of any inclination you have to blame external circumstances for your unhappiness.

Wisdom of the Ages On:

*Prayer*

ST. FRANCIS OF ASSISI

Lord, make me an instrument of Your Peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow love; Where there is injury, pardon; Where there is doubt, faith; Where there is despair, hope; Where there is darkness, light;  And where there is sadness, joy. O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek To be consoled as to console; To be understood as to understand;  To be loved as to love;  For it is in giving that we receive; It is in pardoning that we are pardoned, And it is in dying that we born to eternal light.”― ST. FRANCIS OF ASSISI (1182-1226)

The Italian founder of the Franciscan order of monks, St. Francis, approached religion with joyousness and a love of nature, calling all living being his brothers and sisters.

This sample prayer is one of the most famous and enduring of all prayers in recorded history.

Dr. Dyer would have suggested practicing the words of St. Francis by incorporating the following ideas into your daily life:

• Do a daily practice of privately reciting the words of this prayer. Just by saying the words, you will find yourself beginning to act on them throughout the day.
• If you find yourself in a confrontation of any kind with anyone, be it a family member or a stranger, before reacting, ask yourself, “Is what I am about to say motivated by my need to be right, or my desire to be kind?”
• Practice sending love where you previously radiated hate. Which will require strong vigilance on your part to overcome the cultural conditioning of an eye-for-an-eye mentally.
• Look into your heart and be honest about all the people in your past who have harmed you in any way. Where there is pain, practice pardon. Forgiveness is the foundation of spiritual awakening, and it is what St. Francis is speaking of in this divine prayer.

Wisdom of the Ages On:

*PHYSICAL PERFECTION*

WALT WHITMAN

To me, every cubic inch of space is a miracle…Welcome is every organ and attitude of me…Not an inch, nor a particle of an inch is vile… ―WALT WHITMAN (1819-1892)

American essayist, journalist, and poet, Walt Whitman made his major themes the sacredness of life in all its forms, even death, and the equality of all people.

Here are some suggestions for applying the wisdom of Walt Whitman’s observations to your life:

• Give thanks every day for this temple that houses your soul. Give verbal appreciation for your liver, eyesight, pancreas, and every inch of your body.
• Become more aware of how you choose to treat this miracle of a body. By being aware of what a perfect creation you are, you will avoid mistreating yourself.
• Refuse to call any part of your body flawed. God does not deal with flawed material.
• A body that is cared for has a greater opportunity to advance the spiritual life. Purity of thought will help you to maintain a pure, healthy body. Remember, thoughts heal the body, not the other way around.

Wisdom of the Ages On:

*Triumph*

MARCUS TULLIUS CICERO

The Six Mistakes of Man

1. The illusion that personal gain is made up of crushing others.
2. The tendency to worry about things that cannot be changed or corrected.
3. Insisting that a thing is impossible because we cannot accomplish it.
4. Refusing to set aside trivial preferences.
5. Neglecting development and refinement of the mind and not acquiring the habit of reading and study.
6. Attempting to compel others to believe and live as we do.

MARCUS TULLIUS CICERO (106 B.C.-43 B.C.)

Roman statesman and a man of letters, Cicero was Rome’s greatest orator and most articulate philosopher. The last years of republican Rome are often referred to as the Age of Cicero.

If Cicero’s six mistakes are an unwelcome part of your life, consider the following six suggestion:

• Put your attention on your own life and how to improve it. The more you become aware of tearing down the buildings of others, the sooner you will shift to constructing your own tall building.
• Ask yourself, as you experience worry, “Can I do anything about this?” If it is out of your control, then let it go. Instead, start working on strategy if there’s something you can do.
• Whenever you confront a problem that you feel is impossible to solve, remind yourself that this is nothing more than a solution waiting for the right response. Remove “impossible” from your vocabulary entirely.
• Give yourself assignments to work on what you consider the most significant issues facing all of us.
• Give yourself time every day to read spiritual books or listen to tapes in your spare time. Also, make it a habit of attending self-improvement seminars or lectures.
• Cultivate your own garden and let go of your tendency to examine and judge how others cultivate theirs.

Wisdom of the Ages On:

*VISUALIZATION*

WILLIAM JAMES

There is a law in psychology that if you form a picture in your mind of what you would like to be, and you keep and hold that picture there long enough, you will soon become exactly as you have been thinking.“ ―WILLIAM JAMES (1842-1910)

American philosopher, psychologist, and teacher William James was a gifted writer in theology, psychology, ethics, and metaphysics.

To activate this law in your life, here are a few suggestions:

• Be willing to wish for anything you want. Refuse to limit yourself or see yourself as unworthy. You are entitled to share in the abundance of the Universe.
• Be willing to ask for help. Don’t be embarrassed to put your request in writing as well as voicing it.
• As much as possible, keep your pictures to yourself, along with your intentions to materialize them.

Wisdom of the Ages On:

*FORGIVENESS*

LANGSTON HUGHES

CROSS

My old man’s a white, old man, and my mother’s black. If ever I cursed my white, old man, I take my curses back. If ever I cursed my black old mother And wished she were in hell, I’m sorry for that evil wish. And now I wish her well. My old man died in a fine big house. My ma died in a shack. I wonder where I’m gonna die, Being neither white nor black? ―LANGSTON HUGHES (1902-1967)

American poet Langston Hughes also wrote humorous newspaper sketches, a novel, and a short-story collection. He is most widely known for his poems, which use the rhythms of the blues and the ballad, are often documentary, and deal with the trials and joys of the black American.

To put these ideas of Langston Hughes to work now in your own life, begin to:

• Take stock of everyone who has ever wronged you in any way, regardless of how severe or recent it may have been, and choose to let it go.
• True forgiveness is when you can say, “Thank you for that experience.” ― Oprah Winfrey

Wisdom of the Ages On:

*NONVIOLENCE*

MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR

The non-violent approach does not immediately change the heart of the oppressor. It first does something to the hearts and souls of those committed to it; It gives them new self-respect; it calls up resources of strength and courage that they did not know they had. Finally, it reaches the opponent and so stirs his conscience that reconciliation becomes a reality.”― MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR (1929-1968)

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr, was a Baptist minister and passionate fighter for civil rights through nonviolent action. He was felled by an assassin’s bullet in 1968.

To become a part of this nonviolent movement, try these suggestions:

• Catch yourself before reacting to violence of any kind with more violence. Pledge to be an instrument of peace as all our spiritual teachers have encouraged us to be.
• Work on yourself each day to bring a more peaceful stance into your life. Take time to meditate, practice yoga, read poetry, go for solitary walks, play with children and animals, or anything that gives you the feeling of loving and being loved.

The ultimate weakness of violence is that it is a descending spiral; returning violence with violence only multiplies violence, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. –Martin Luther King.

Wisdom of the Ages On:

*ACTION/ DOING*

MOTHER TERESA

There should be less talk; a preaching point is not a meeting point. What do you do then? Take a broom and clean someone’s house. That says enough.”― MOTHER TERESA (1910-1997)

A nun who was a history and geography teacher and headmistress in Calcutta, Mother Teresa was called to leave the convent to help the poorest of the poor and live among them. In 1950 she and her helpers established the Missionaries of Charity.

To implement the advice of Mother Teresa, try the following:

• Keep in mind that you get treated in life the way you teach people to treat you.
• When you feel like your words are no longer impacting, resolve to be creative in shifting from a preaching point to a meeting point.

Wisdom of the Ages On:

*KNOWING*

BUDDHA

Do not believe what you have heard. Do not believe in tradition because it is handed down many generations. Do not in anything that has been spoken of many times. Do not believe because the written statements come from some old sage. Do not believe in conjecture. Do not believe in authority or teachers or elders. But after careful observation and analysis, when it agrees with reason, and it will benefit one and all, then accept it and live by it.” ― BUDDHA (563 B.C. – 483 B.C.)

Founder of Buddhism, one of the world’s major religions, the Buddha was born Prince Siddharta Gautama in northeast India, near the borders of Nepal. Seeing the unhappiness, sickness, and death that even the wealthiest and most powerful are subject to in this life, he abandoned the life he was living in search of a higher truth at the age of twenty-nine. 

Buddha’s name is actually a title that translates to the “awakened one” or the “enlightened one.” The title was given to Siddhartha Gautama, who left behind the princely life at the age of twenty-nine and went on a lifelong search for religious understanding and a way of release from the human condition.

His teachings became the basis for the religious practice of Buddhism, which has played a major role in the spiritual, cultural, and social life of the Eastern world and as much of the Western world as well.

To put this wisdom to work, follow these guidelines:

• Inventory as many of your beliefs as you can think of. Include such things as your attitude toward religion, capital punishment, minority rights, reincarnation, nontraditional medicine, what happens at death, etc.
• Please make an effort to open your mind to experiencing things directly before proclaim them as true and living by them.
• Expose yourself to belief systems that are in opposition to those you are familiar with. The more of these “contrary” experiences you allow yourself, the more you will know your truth.
• Refuse to be seduced into arguments based on ideas that have been foisted upon you by well-meaning others. In other words, stop giving energy to the things you don’t believe in or know to be inapplicable to you!

Wisdom of the Ages On:

*SELF-RELIANCE*

RALPH WALDO EMERSON

from “Self-Reliance”

These are the voices that we hear in solitude, but they grow faint and inaudible as we enter into the world. Society everywhere is in a conspiracy against the manhood of every one of its members. Society is a joint-stock company, in which the members agree, for the better securing of his bread to each shareholder, to surrender the liberty and culture of the eater. The virtue in most requests is conformity. Self-reliance is its aversion. It loves not realities and creators, but names and customs. Whoso would be a man must be a nonconformist. He who would gather immortal palms must not be hindered by the name of goodness but must explore if it is goodness. Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind.” ―RALPH WALDO EMERSON (1803- 1883)

American poet, essayist, and philosopher is known for challenging traditional thought; Emerson developed a philosophy that upholds intuition to comprehend reality.

Ralph Waldo Emerson was known as much for his essays as for his poetry. In perhaps his best-known and most frequently quoted essay, “Self-Reliance,”

This provocative American author, known as the father of the Transcendentalist movement, examined in depth the basic tenets of what it means to be your own person.

Here are some ideas to help you put this message of self-reliance from Emerson to work for you:

• Read the entire “Self-Reliance” essay and list Emerson’s points in this classic piece of writing.
• When you are about to cite a rule or law to justify why you act a certain way, stop and shift to your personal integrity.
• Declare your independence from your society in terms of your own self-identification.
• Refuse to do anything simply because everyone else is doing it. If it fits with your definition of ethical and right, then, by all means, keep doing it. If not, keep looking, don’t settle.

Wisdom of the Ages On:

*ENLIGHTENMENT*

Zen Proverb

Before enlightenment chopping wood carrying water. After enlightenment chopping wood carrying water.” ― Zen Proverb.  

Founded in China in the sixth century and widespread in Japan by the twelfth century, Zen Buddhism emphasizes achieving enlightenment by the most direct possible means.

The recognition of your unenlightened moments is the way to begin turning them around. Remember that those who are ignorant are generally unaware of their ignorance.

Become aware.

• Let go of your inclination to see enlightenment as something that you will achieve at some future time when your life circumstances change for the better.
• Practice making specific changes in your personal approach to things that take you away from your peace.
• Reserve a space within yourself for enlightenment to appear in the moments when you’re feeling anguish.

Wisdom of the Ages On:

*Leadership*

LAO-TZU

Acting Simply

True leaders are hardly known to their followers. Next, after them are the leaders, the people know and admire; after them, those they fear are those they despise. To give no trust is to get no trust. When the work’s done right. with no fuss or boasting, ordinary people say, “Oh, we did it” ― LAO-TZU (Sixth Century B.C.) 

Chinese philosopher Lao-Tzu wrote the Tao Te Ching, which means The Way. It is the basis for the religious practice of Taoism.

Historically it is clear that public office holders are seldom the true leaders causing change. Think back to the Renaissance age; the leaders were the artists, writers, and musicians, leading others to discover a resonating voice within themselves. A true leader listened to their hearts and souls and expressed their creative ideas with the world.

Seek to enhance your leadership qualities by being constantly alert to the mistake of thinking that your title makes you a leader. Titles do not know true leaders. Instead, it is the ego that loves titles.

Helping others become leaders while exercising your own true leadership qualities means working hard at suspending ego’s influence. True leaders enjoy the trust of others, which is very different from enjoying the perks and flattery and power that ego insists are the signs of being a leader. It would help if you gave trust to others to receive that trust.

Here are some suggestions for applying the wisdom of Lao-Tzu:

• First, before acting, stop and ask yourself if what you are about to say will create hate, fear, admiration, or self-awareness.
• Act on your desire to be a true leader by being as quiet as effective as possible. (Catch someone doing something right.)
• Become aware that it is the ego part of you that is suggesting you are a failure. Instead, remind yourself that you have succeeded as a leader even if no credit comes your way.

This summary is not intended to replace the original book, and all quotes are credited to the above-mentioned author and publisher. Thank you for reading.