by Nico van Haastrecht, Warnsveld, The Netherlands
After more than 25 years of working in the profession of electrical engineer I finally became conscious and aware of what I had felt for a long time in my work. This slowly was revealed to me when I had become a student of Universal Medicine.
What I had felt all the time was unpleasant and made me over time dislike my job and profession more and more. Now I look at it with different eyes and am able to more observe what is happening and to not get that much involved in it. Now I am in the process of re-evaluating my job and am starting to appreciate what I do because there is still that much to learn for me – and for humanity as a whole. Below I will describe some of my observations that annoyed me in the past – but now I can see what is behind it and that it is not about me, but about systems and patterns that play out. The most beautiful thing is that we can change these patterns by being present and trusting that our feelings are true.
In my profession as electrical engineer I work in engineering offices on projects for the development of industrial plants. There we work in multidisciplinary project teams in which different disciplines – like civil, mechanical, structural, instrumentation, electrical, procurement, construction, etc. – work together to materialise the project, with each of them bringing in their specialisation, and at the end all parts must work together as one installation. What appears to be the most challenging in these projects is that we have to work together as people, with each other’s personalities, lifestyles, characters and moods, in order to get the job done, getting the plant built. The technical part, thus far in my career, has never been the difficult part for me.
So it is not the technical part that makes it difficult but the interaction with other people that brings the issues on the shop floor. The interaction of people’s characters, moods and emotions are not based on meeting each other in essence – the part of us which is always expressing towards love and harmony with others in the world – but on meeting with what is built around this essence. This can be represented in our bodies as being hard or defensive, in our communication as being blunt and aggressive to timid and condoning, and almost always as competition, all with the focus on being right and getting validation.
As I realised, what we build around our essence is for protection against getting hurt, and lets us avoid meeting each other in truth. I understood that every time we meet not from our essence, we harm each other. So we build a way of being that is all about protection and how we think the world wants us to be. It hurts to not be our true selves and it hurts to relate to others from this place also. From deep within we know that we are all the same and we crave being met for who we truly are. Simple things like truly meeting my colleagues, before providing a service or a product to them, does make the difference. This meeting may be as simple as having eye contact, a hand on the shoulder, or a considered handshake. When I come from my essence, simply my voice and my body invite the other person to feel their own essence.
Engineers in general, including myself, are educated to provide complex solutions and improvements for apparent problems found in society. Whilst there is tremendous mental skill and ability in this, I have also observed that we bring in complexity because we are disconnected from ourselves and from humanity, and therefore look only to the latest technical marvels available, searching for a way to impose them onto humanity (this is the complexity), thinking that we are improving the world and doing good. When we truly connect to humanity however, we can only provide the simple solutions that will serve all in equality, nothing more and nothing less.
The scope of work is not always clearly understood between the client and the contractor at the start of the project. Before we make an offer on the ‘invitation to bid’ we must get a clear picture of what the client needs, otherwise the client can have a different understanding of what has to be delivered compared with what has been offered. Most of the time this misunderstanding becomes apparent in a stage of the project when a change has a big impact on the budget, the planning, and on the relations with the client. This causes stress on the project that the employees at the other end have to suffer. I have found that such simple things as meeting the client in truth, without the arrogance of “we know what you want and this is what you get”, we explore the needs of the client, resulting in a mutual understanding of what has to be delivered, coming to the conclusion of “we know what you want and this is what we can offer you.”
They say that it is the budget and the time schedule that put projects under pressure, but are these schedules and budgets realistic? Most are based on targets that are set because some people want to have that outcome for any reason, without envisaging if they are realistic and feasible (that is, if all is in harmony). Some clients enforce the schedules to be adopted by the contractor, and the contractor accepts because they want to have the order – out of need, and the belief of scarcity in the market, amongst others. Once this has settled in the project, it is very difficult to challenge it; in practice, the budgets and schedules most of the time cannot be met and they overrun significantly. In my experience a certain quality, with a given quantity and budget, has its own schedule regardless of whatever we want of it. We must be truthful to clients about this fact and not compromise from a neediness to have the job or project executed. We have to tell the client if a schedule or budget is not feasible; it is part of the role of an engineering office to present this.
The above-described observations do help me in how I do my job, where I place my way of living against what is presented in my daily work. I know that I do not have the direct influence to change them all, and it may take some time to get them changed, but up to the point where I have a say I am standing up and bringing into practice what I have summed up above. This brings back a joy I had missed for a long time.
Words on Serge Benhayon 
Nothing really works if a goal is set on targets or numbers, someone is always left worse off. Making work about people does truly benefit everyone.
Making it about purpose, and people makes sense, and changes the dynamics of work.
One of the things that can change business is simply reading, with honesty, what is going on. From there we can activate the changes if possible, but the clarity needed is always available to us.
An important component of life, to read honestly what is going on with situations.
When I am not connected to purpose, it’s very difficult to accept the reality let alone understand others from the place of holding them as my absolute equal.
Working in Joy, and sharing with the clients can only bring an amazing example for all involved. A True work ethic is what working is all about providing a service that shall imprint in the most loving way all that are involved including the consumer at the end of the production line.
“serve all in equality, nothing more and nothing less.” A beautiful philosophy for any workplace.
Nico, this is beautiful, you bring it back to each of us and how we all contribute, and we all matter, how in being ourselves and bringing that truth we offer a way for all of us to come back to being and working in the harmony we all know and naturally feel. This is who we are and can be who we all are with each other.
Sooner or later, providers of complex solutions have to consider the world of simpler ones.
Nico I really got a very realistic insight of how a job of an engineer is as you described it so wonderful comprehensible. I find it inspirational how you are a role model for your colleagues and also for your costumers to show that there is a different way to be with each other on a personal and also on business level.
Joy in work, yet this is not something most feel but it is very possible, and as you’ve shared here Nico, it comes from a willingness to see and observe, and to be honest about what is and isn’t possible, and at all times to stay open to each other. And no matter what is going on, each of us has an essence that is all about love and harmony, no matter what we might present outwardly and remembering this allows us to stay open, to be tender and loving with each other and ourselves.
In all the things we do, we are first and foremost people and we are always in relationship, and we suffer greatly when we get lazy in our communication.
I love your honesty Nico in sharing that when we work in teams it is often not the technical aspects that can be the issue but rather the personal issues we can bring into the equation that interferes with the purpose of the plan.
Yes Suse, only by becoming honest and by surrendering to the plan we can become aware of the true purpose of working together. Although we already understand that the projects we work on cannot be done without the working together of many people, we possibly cannot imagine that we are capable of so much more if we can let go of our personal agenda and surrender to that greater plan we are all part off.
We can change the way we live… And this is the beauty of what is being expressed here. It doesn’t have to be dramatic. It can be simply one small step after the other.
We can let go of the protection, which never worked as intended, and just added to our problems, ‘what we build around our essence is for protection against getting hurt, and lets us avoid meeting each other in truth.’
In technical engineering there is the tendency to only let it be about the technical part and what I found that when we as engineers go there we get lost in the right and wrong, or in the good or better and in that often forget that there is a bigger picture to look at. It then comes to responsibility and what is really needed to serve for the project (which are people), the people that will work in the facility we build and the product it has to deliver for its clients, people again.
It is interesting to look at time schedules in projects. How do we perceive these? Do we only perceive these as dead lines, moments in time we have to deliver, or, do we see these as a means of planning our work together so we we can work efficiently in the knowing that what we are doing is needed or affecting other peoples work dependant of how much we can appreciate and work with the planning.
Engineers are mostly men and men are very sensitive but can have a hard exterior. If we meet people with the understanding that they can be sensitive and don’t impose, then there can be some very good and constructive meeting as you outline Nico.
yes indeed, it is exactly as you describe Christoph, the male engineers I work with are mostly showing a hard exterior, but when met from an equality in sensitivity, a deeper connection can be made. And in that connection there is no more competition and work is been done with much more joy and understanding for its purpose instead of that it is a task we must do.
Meeting one another from person to person and the quality of equality and oneness will lay the foundation for true cooperation instead of each of us working together from our own protected island.
Yes, first one on one and then whole groups and even larger organisations.
Indeed Christoph, I do now start to get more a sense of why we have to work together, why we have organisations with many people to work in. It is not only because of the amount of work that has to de done, there is something for us to relearn in these groups, teams and organisations, a way of living and working together we have abandoned a long time ago but will bring us the possibility to live the grandness and glory we all are once again.
Complexities in life do only exist because we have lost our connection with our true selves and with the purpose of our existence here on earth. When we continue to think that we have to improve ourselves from a belief that we are not enough the complexity we have created will continue to exist. Only when we understand that we are already everything that we ever wanted to be, a way of being we only have to return to if we are ready for that, simplicity will return in our lives as this will serve us best.
In a world full of complexity many do not like when simple solutions are presented that actually not only are more effective and efficient but way easy to implement and understand.
Yes Joshua, there is a arrogance around complexity what to me is best explained by when you observe for instance scientist or engineers that are great in expressing their complex ideas but on a human level are unable to connect to the simplicity life in truth is.
Nico I agree that truly meeting people in their essence that we do business with is a true way to have relationships and support people. Business can be about healing and true connection before we talk products and services. When someone has an experience with a business that delivers true care, clear communication, and integrity it is another way people can experience healing, i.e., to restore their trust and feel valued as an equal.
It can also remind people that there are still decent business’s and people here in the world, ‘When someone has an experience with a business that delivers true care, clear communication, and integrity it is another way people can experience healing, i.e., to restore their trust and feel valued as an equal.’
That it is possible to be in such a complex world and to stay connected with oneself is the message that is needed to be presented, taught, and reflected in all higher learning institutions.
Our work and the workplace change when we connect and truly meet people rather than putting deadlines, rules, security and success first. Everything is about people first and foremost and in the end, no matter how thick the red tape might be.
Business’s and industry would do well to remember that, ‘Everything is about people first and foremost’.
“When we truly connect to humanity however, we can only provide the simple solutions that will serve all in equality, nothing more and nothing less.” When the connection is made with the client to understand what it is they are wanting and working with them in honesty and realistically appraising the project this prevents so many hassles with budget blowouts and time constraints.
Observing what goes on at work, rather than allowing ourselves to get swept up in it all, really helps us to understand what is truly at play. I loved how you acknowledged the need to explore the needs of the client, and being honest about what was achievable within the budget and what was not. When we are prepared to listen and be honest with people it makes for a much more harmonious relationship, both ways.
When we live and express with truth and love, there is so much we can bring to all situations in life that supports everyone to evolve.
Expressing with love, truth, and integrity needs to be our foundational way of expressing with all.
We spend many hours at work, with our colleagues and others who come into regular contact, and it is very interesting how we often associate this part of our life with stress and think that there’s much to not be happy about. Life is a classroom and there’s much to learn if we can just observe and not react, and work place is a perfect place to exercise that. Being a good student makes life richer.
What this blog clearly reveals:, there are different ways to be together while we work towards a shared goal and how we are makes a huge difference in terms of what we are truly offering.
Work is a wonderful place to learn about ourselves and others.
So often work projects get messy not because of what needs to be done but because of the personal issues and interactions that people bring to it- as you describe the competition, measuring, bickering etc. It all takes energy and focus away from the task at hand and brings in much complication.
Thank you Nico, reading this again what I felt was a simplification – being honest and direct with clients about realistic outcomes for example, instead of the complication that emotionality brings which is accepting unreasonable terms due to fear to lose the contract, and then trying to deliver and all the stress that entails. We sorely lack but direct, honest communication. We often let the truth go because we are invested in what we think we will get out of it.
Sure Melinda, but I see this also with the contracts which on itself are not only used to agree on the services or goods that have to be delivered but come loaded with so much protection just because we have the experience of parties that willingly or unwillingly do not comply to the contract at the end. But again what I found in this case was that in general it is not unwillingness but actually just a lack of connection and personal relationships that were not invested in.
When we come together to work on a project it is the connection between and among those in the group that will allow the project to flow with everyone working with a shared purpose.
Working together in harmony, connection and truth is essential for group work.
I really connect with your comment about listening to the client and working out what they are asking for and what you can offer, as opposed to arrogantly telling the client what they will get. I have added the word arrogant as that is what I hear when I consider the two approaches.
It is always important to listen to the client first, rather than imposing what you deem they will get
While the workplace caries such a potential for people to learn and work together, there are so many things that are put in front of that that make it sometimes hard to see that this is the case. Like being presented in this blog you have a personal interest over the interest of the all, personal need over the overall need of the project and the people working on it etc. For instance what I experienced lately was that the client was portrayed as being ‘difficult’ and hard to come in common terms with. I found after connecting with them it was actually the opposite. It was more the attitude of the company I was working for that portrayed its way of doing business on their client instead.
If we connect to who we really are and with that connection go to work we cannot else than work in harmony with that what is needed and nothing else. So what does this mean to us, when the harmony is not there, if everything what is done is done with the only purpose of personal gain instead to be true to all. We all do feel that and of course this will play out in our bodies and our moods as we will feel the discomfort of that. We are made to work in harmony with one another and therefore our workplaces are a beautiful place to be for learning that. It is important to understand that work is that for us, a place and an activity where we can learn to work together in the quality of togetherness or oneness we all in essence are and are so longing for.
It’s true Nico, when we are present with ourselves we have more awareness of ourselves and the world around us – and thus it is much easier to clock our patterns that only serve to distract us and take us away from that sense of solid connection and presence we can have with ourselves.
Indeed Suse, that connection with ourselves is of utmost importance as that is our stepping stone we will stand on and observe from. Dependant on the level of honesty we will be able to see the patterns that actually do not serve as patterns are a repetition of the same we use for security in life and at the same time bind us to a certain way of being that is not allowed to change with the flow of nature anymore. The flow we are naturally connected with and that is constantly asking to be more, e.g to evolving into a greater awareness and purpose to life. Patterns therefore, when observed correctly, can be seen as an obstruction of this flow and will not allow us to grow and evolve but instead will keep us trapped in the same of the old.
Being present with ourselves allows us to be far more aware.
It is beautiful insights you share here, Nico, powerfully demonstrating that through tenderness and honesty with oneself, with the willingness to be open to change oneself one can change the external. Thank you.
The more I feel truth – the more I know that evil exists. That which I once had chosen to not see will I see. And the more I allow myself to observe what this evil contains: the more real and clear I become. No longer do I know that, but that truth must be lived in full to put a stop to any evil in the world.
What you describe feels like you have now made your work about people first and not just about tenders, jobs, tasks and accomplishments. That would be a huge shift – it counteracts boredom and dissatisfaction and means we can stay in our job and give it our best; until such time that it is time to move on and never before.
I love that with the livingness you have chosen for yourself along with the deeper connection to people you now choose, there is a fluidity and responsiveness available to whatever is presented in life and an embracing of what is possible outside the confinements of the norm.
Sure Samantha, it is the livingness that brings that quality to life we feel is so natural and in honor of our being. While actually so natural to live, it is not lived by many and is very much needed to be reintroduced in our societies as most of us have lost that connection with the essence of life of which the livingness is a result of.
You convey such integrity in what you share here Nico and this is very powerful and easy to relate to. Here is a man who tells us how it is and someone who puts people at the heart of whatever he does. Very beautiful. Thank you for sharing it here.
The most important integral aspect of any project for a successfully harmonious outcome is relationship and this is clearly and beautifully expressed here. And the relationship that is foundational for this to occur is the relationship with oneself, which you demonstrate so well Nico.
This is a timely read for me. Thank you, Nico. I was just feeling sadness of not being myself at work, and the effect that was having on my body – tight, constricted and painful. And what I am feeling is that it’s never about putting extra effort trying to be me at work because it might be potentially more stressful environment, but work is an equal part of my life as me cooking at home, sleeping, talking to my mother on the phone… and for every part of it, I am the one responsible.
Sure Fumiyo, it is our responsibility how we are at work and if work is affecting us or not. If we can observe we will see that it is only situations we have not dealt with from which we carry the hurt which will make us feel tight and restricted. But if we understand that it is our responsibility in full, that we have to deal with that which is presented to us, life starts to flow again and we will experience a way of being that really loves to work and will find that we would not want to miss this in our lives as it is a means to serve all of humanity we are so connected with.
Appreciation brings far more than we realise, even when we appreciate what doesn’t feel right, as it gives us an opportunity to make different choices.
This is a brilliant sharing Nico of what it means to live, work and serve from the simplicity of connection to our essence. Thank you.
The mark of a true artist in any profession is to make the seemingly complex simple
A much needed ingredient that is missing from many work places and careers. This is something I have seen played out for many years with my husband also working in engineering, and the impact it has on everyone, including the family… working long hours and like today working on a statutory holiday to get the job done. Deadlines, expectations etc. when put before people is a recipe for further complications down the track. What you have realised with connection being the utmost first step Nico is inspiring to take into any work paid or voluntary we undertake. Thank you
Yes, what Nico identifies here is truly significant.
Nico the quality you are bringing to your workplace everyday is powerful to read. All are touched by your presence and quality and this brings a true purpose that would inspire and support everyone around you.
One of our greatest strengths is working together for a common purpose. Unfortunately, courtesy of all the different steps we have taken in life and the experiences we have had in the past working together is sometimes complicated by these experiences and brings up alot for all of us, as a consequence this forces us to be working on ourselves simultaneously.
Thank you Nico for sharing your many great insights and observations at your workplace. I have always had a strong sense of service which always meant more to me than the money throughout my working career but my need for recognition was always running quietly underneath. Recognising that this stemmed from my lack of self-worth was a huge revelation and i now have a much deeper appreciation of my true value.
It is interesting to consider why do we work. Is it for the money to pay our bills and to buy our food or is it because work has to be done to keep society running or could there be a true purpose to work. To me the true purpose is that yes we have to work to keep our societies running and to earn the money so we can pay our bills as that is how our society is currently organised. And I want to add that work is also for us to evolve as humanity in us working together for a bigger plan in putting into work a combined effort to make our lives here on earth more truthful to who we innately are and to return to a way of living we have lived here on earth in ancient times. By allowing me to sense the impact this has on how I perceive work I have to say that I actually love working as there is so much more to it than only to work to earn the money to pay my bills.
Sounds like an awesome thing for everyone to experience a feeling of being in a family even though you’re at work. I think this is a stress in itself for many – that we feel we can relax at home with our family or by ourselves but when we get to work we need to put our “work hat” on, which some actually need, but it doesn’t have to mean we stop being relaxed and at ease with each other.
What great changes can come about in how a workplace flows through people like yourself and the wisdom you bring to your workplace and clients.
Many things I have experienced and witnessed in various work places totally agree with what you have shared here, Nico. We see so many faults in the system and relationships surrounding our work places, and it is quite sad that many openly admit and accept that the business is all about money, and it is very rare to see any kind of willingness to bring about true change as we often think moving to another job, hiring new employees would iron out a problem.
I loved re-reading this blog. There are so many great points you raise here. I often feel how we underestimate the lack of clear and open communication and how we run around trying to fix the issues in productivity, relationship amongst the staff as well as the client/supplier, without addressing the core issue. There’s much personal pride and hurt that won’t let many see the responsibility they have. Finger pointing and defensiveness is such an ugly game many play and make themselves feel suffocated. It is a peculiar situation as everyone involved actually wants the same thing.
Nico I have also found how destructive jealousy and comparison is in the work place, because it becomes an unwelcome disturbance and distraction, and works against everyone working as one together.
Nico thank you for sharing your observations, I have observed that by staying with my awareness I am able to see what is at play, and on occasions see a possible conflict before it happens.
It has been my experience that when I get myself out of the way and truly meet people, the most fraught relationships improve enormously. There is also so much joy in seeing someone for their essence. We can bring this wherever we go to whoever we meet. It changes everything.
Bringing the light you are Nico to work for all to feel, What a difference this makes in all aspects of your life and of those with whom you work.
‘We have to tell the client if a schedule or budget is not feasible; it is part of the role of an engineering office to present this.’ Taking responsibility for all parts of any role is essential for harmonious working relationships and the sacrificing of one or more aspects is what leads to stress in any environment. It is great to hear that you have recognised this and are now speaking up and re-finding joy in what you are able to offer your fellow brothers.
It is interesting that the problems come not from the technical aspect of your job but from the human interactions and I feel this is true in most jobs, my father was a vet and he said the most challenging aspect for him was breaking bad news to owners and in his lengthy training they had only had one session on that! When the academic focus is on learning the most up-to-date intricate solutions then the harmony of providing what is needed for the customer is lost because it becomes about showing off all your skills and not, as you say, about working in brotherhood to get the job done in the best way for everybody.
In what you share Nico, I feel it is the simpleness of communicating truth that we miss in our lives, and it is this that brings in complication.
Indeed Leigh, sometimes I get the feeling that people like to have complexity in their lives. They use it in a way to keep them busy and feeling smart because they can handle this complex situations, the complex situations that were not needed at all in the first place. How smart is that?
“As I realised, what we build around our essence is for protection against getting hurt, and lets us avoid meeting each other in truth. I understood that every time we meet not from our essence, we harm each other. ” This is profound Nico. yet the whole world lives in protection, and thus we harm each other – not intentionally of course. To truly meet another and be met is such a beautiful gift. Cooperation and not competition is key – and the pyramids can be built once again. We have a lot to re-learn…..
So true Sue, we have a lot to relearn in human communication and in working together and in that I can feel lies our biggest opportunity to grow as humans all together. Working together in cooperation and in co-creation with the grander picture to realise that what is needed, not for ourselves but for humanity as a whole, considering all aspects of human life and beyond, even the effect our work will have on the universe. The way we are with ourselves and one another and all what we do has a huge impact on all people we share this planet earth with and on the grander whole, the universe where we are a inseparable part of. That is something we will become aware of when we will go this direction, the direction we have to take in our evolution back to who we truly are and where we will find out that we are much grander and profound than we have ever considered our lives to be before.
What you have explained Nico makes total sense. If you come to a project with honesty and without need, just working out what is wanted by the client and what you can offer, with a realistic budget and realistic work levels then everyone is served in truth. Bringing this to your workplace is love in action.
Indeed Amanda, love in action that is so needed in our nowadays workplaces. Bringing back the importance of human relationships over the plans, schedules and invented improvement programs for the way we work. If we base our projects on the human scale, rhythm and work together in close cooperation and with one unified purpose, miracles can happen and maybe one day we can build like in the times we have erected the great pyramids once again.
The art of engineering is there to serve mankind and needs to be appreciated as such. The engineering and design of bridges, air planes, cars and trains and modern mobile communication tools to name a few, have brought something very important to humanity as we are now able to visit and connect to one another more easily from all over the world. The interconnection with all of humanity we all can feel in ourselves and is in another dimension than where our physical bodies live in, we are now able to have in practical 3 dimensional physical life too because of the marvels that engineering have brought to us. We have to bring back engineering to serving mankind and not let it stray away on its own illusionary track of improving the world as it is not about that. We are unable to make the world perfect from the way we have chosen to live our lives in the physical form here on earth. We are much grander than that.
It all comes down to expression and communication from our essence and to truly connect to humanity and in that engineering or any other occupation is not any different and are the skills paramount for our success. Engineering is a great good when used for its true purpose. Engineering for humanity is what we may call it and in that we will design that what is needed to serve all of humanity in our evolution here on earth.
Very well said, Nico, and this theme that it is not the technology that throws us at work, it is the human interaction… And this extends into professions where violence would seem to be the main stressor like paramilitary organisations like police forces, but again it is seen to be the human interaction mainly in communication that provides the main stress. Empowered expression and communication are paramount for our well-being.
When we take responsibility for ourselves at work then we are taking responsibility for ourselves in the world.
Agree Shami, when we live responsibly this offers a powerful reflection for others to be inspired by as well.
Nico, your words ‘So it is not the technical part that makes it difficult but the interaction with other people that brings the issues on the shop floor.’ When people bring their emotions and problems into work it means not only are we dealing with whatever work there is to be done, but also having to negotiate or avoid other people’s drama. If we concentrated on just being ourselves, and bringing all we truly are, it would make for a very different working relationship.
Yes Sally that would really make a different working relationship if we dedicated ourselves to be at service to our work instead of bringing in our emotions and just only doing the job or task that has been given to us. This is asking a level of responsibility that is not commonly known yet. When this will be understood and be brought into practice, the way we will work will completely change as each of us will feel the individual responsibility in that we have to bring ourselves in full to our workplaces as we have never done before.
We have so many hidden agendas driving us on and usually at the expense of our well-being, health and relationships, and it is essential that we stop at some stage connect with ourselves and feel these old habits and patterns and start to truly heal so that our relationships with others and ourselves come true.
To stop our habits and patterns, is a great and important step in our healing indeed cjames2012. It is much needed in our world that we become aware and start to see that we live from all kinds of habits and patterns and that we see how these are witholding us from living the grandness that we actually are.
The imposition of “we know what you want and this is what you get” instantly creates a reaction and a brick wall whereas “we know what you want and this is what we can offer you” opens up a choice and working together. Beautiful.
Indeed it is Mary, being open and transparent to one another in business is key for a true working relationship, for working together to one unified goal and with a shared responsibility. This is in great contrast to working individually for projects instead, where we are not working together but instead make others responsible for the quality of the work we deliver.
Nico I loved the part ‘Now I am in the process of re-evaluating my job and am starting to appreciate what I do because there is still that much to learn for me – and for humanity as a whole.’ When we start to understand things from an energetic point, we realise that there is much for us to learn and understand.
Yes Sally, and the more we learn the more we wil become aware of what life actually brings to us. I am coming to the understanding that I can either live a life that brings me illness and disease or I can live in a way that brings me healing and restores a natural order. For me I have found that approaching work from this knowing that work is a means of healing too as through work we can learn how to work together as a group and that everything we bring in that has an effect on the whole and either is healing or harming us.
I love the commitment you have to changing patterns of working and protection that do not serve and only add to the complexity and disconnection in relationships and worksites. You are a blessing to an industry that is in dire need of the simplicity, love and harmony you offer and to people willing to see what is possible.
It is not only a blessing to the industry that I am working in but also to myself as I am part of the whole I am giving my natural expression to. Realising this aspect inspires me even more to take my full responsibility in life and in that to my work as these are all one. If we would truly understand that the expression of work is to learn to work as a group together in brotherhood and, that only through brotherhood we will liberate ourselves from the misery we currently living in, we would value work completely differently.
I think this blog post is so awesome Nico. I work in an industry that deals with construction companies and architects daily, and the mess I see constantly leaves me frustrated no end. We don’t work harmoniously. We don’t really listen to what it is the client wants, we just tell them what they want to hear in order to win the job and deal with all the issues that arise later due to the lack of clarity further down the line. It doesn’t have to be this way. But unfortunately, it will take some time for people to catch on that actually…there’s another way, and guess what, it’s 10 times less stressful, and you may enjoy your job !
I am fully with you Elodie, we can love and enjoy our job as it is a natural expression in our service to humanity. For me it is important that we make work about people first. As everything we undertake will always serve people, in one way or another, and will always come from people, the people that work together in providing the services to each other.
Nico what you present in your blog is so important. I too have been in jobs where I have felt disconnected because I have not liked what was happening. I have now found that when I speak up and share my observations I feel truly engaged and alive again. I see that although change does not immediately happen, small changes can occur in time. I’m learning patience and consistency and to not give up if I don’t appear to be heard at first.
This is an important thing you share here Anne. When we disengage because we do not like what we are part of we just add to what is there and we do not acknowledge that we are part of the whole and are contributing to it. As you say, the only way is to become honest with ourselves and how we feel and from there speak up and say what we feel that we have to say. And by doing so we take our own responsibility in life and start to live our true selves and become alive again and doing so will fill us with joy as what we carry inside so desperately wants to be lived.
Nico, I can feel how you are truly bringing you to the workplace even though this can be challenging at times. We are each responsible for what we bring into the workplace each day and everybody gets that reflection.
So true Anne and thank you for your posting. The responsibility for what we bring to our workplace is of great importance. Do we bring the same of what is already there, with other words do we measure ourselves to the culture and way of working that is common at the workplace we enter, or, do we bring our true selves and in that inspire the people to live more of themselves too and to show them that there is another way to go about work and all of life as being the greater part of the picture.
the thing is, that for most people they are not even aware that the patterns and momentums are driving them, so to be able to become aware of them is such a blessing for a start, and then to be able to go to the source of these beings and to start to heal is even more profound experience… Thank you Nico
That is true cjames2012, that many people are not aware of the momentums and patterns they are in as they are in the same time withholding us from being aware of them because of the way they are energetically constructed. Therefore what people need to become aware of these momentum’s and patterns is a reflection of someone who is living without these. It is such a blessing to be that reflection and I appreciate myself for that , to live to the best of my ability having embodied all what I have regained on life to serve as a reflection for people to consider, to reignite the spark of light that is in us all equally.
Nico, I got a real feel of the integrity you are bringing to your work as I read your blog. I noticed when you spoke about the way complexity can sometimes be introduced as a way of seeking identification and recognition and can see ways that I have allowed this to happen in my own work (although less so than in the past) and see it in the way others work. Yet simplicity and honesty doesn’t carry emotional baggage and when we work in this way, everyone around us is able to be calmer and more open and the quality of the outcome is there without the fuss.
This is so true Helen, if we take ourselves out of the way we make space for simplicity and honesty to our lives and everywhere we go. The calmness that is emanating from the stillness that is lived is for people a reflection that there is another way to go and that trust and having confidence in life is given a chance to be restored. There is no reason to make fuss as that is only a distraction to where it is all truly about, and that our true purpose is to work together in harmony and truth.
It really is a challenge NIco when you have to deal with so many stakeholders and everybody wants everything done yesterday. You are right though, we need to bring truth everywhere we go and the more we do, the more others will join in.
So true Elodie, we can only start with ourselves and bring truth everywhere we go to the best of our ability. And the more consistent we become in that the more people will come and have a look, and will join in eventually if they choose to do so. Slowly we can introduce love in our nowadays loveless businesses and let this love do its work. I do meet many that truly love to work with me and are curious about the way I am and how I do my work. And that is what I am bringing, the inspiration for my fellow human beings to show them that there is another way to go about working and living and that re-introducing love into our lives is the way to go, opposite to how people are manipulated to perform themselves in the goal driven businesses we have created in the absence of love.
That’s so awesome! I want to work with you!!
I can feel an uneasiness around doing things differently because whilst it’s exactly what I want to do, when I do approach things differently at work, I am constantly met with ridicule and end up feeling very disheartend and to be honest a bit hopeless.
Thank you Elodie, living from our inner most is actually very simple although we sometimes might feel a bit uneasy with it. I have learned that appreciating myself for how I feel and what I do is not for myself but for the benefit of everybody to connect with and to learn from. If they accept it or not does not matter, but they have had the choice that would not have been there when I not would have lived the way I do.
Nico the need to build relationship so that client needs can be clearly established is not always understood in many business situations, but as you say, is fundamental to creating simple and satisfying outcomes, even in less complex situations such as in retail. It really is fundamental and requires us to be open to others.
Exactly hartanne60, these simple things as building a relationship with our clients first and from there to get an understanding of their true needs, is the art of providing services where people will return to. Building long lasting relationships from person to person and not from any need of having to reach a certain sales target or whatever. Acting in the latter way will keep us from building these relationships as it will then only be the dollar signs we have in our eyes, filtering out anything that is not about dollars from our perception.
It’s a strange foible of the human race that although many people miss being connected with themselves and each other, they put up walls of protection to keep everyone out. It doesn’t make sense. It is time to show another more connected way.
Lets go for that Amanda, and show that there is another way, a way of living without the walls of protection but instead with all the protection down and letting people in to the deepest of our being. Showing them the truth and love that we all equally hold within and that we all want to naturally connect to as we come from there.
Nico what you share here is powerfull and very inspiring, to transform our workplaces to support us to evolve and I know this all begins with me and the choices I make which will bring this consistency and love more and more each day.
That is actually all what it is about Anna. It begins with us and how it feels for me is that it is about the quality of my everyday living that I will equally bring into the workplace in everything I am. So actually it is about consistently building my livingness in every aspect of my life and by doing so I equally bring this into my the places where I work. I cannot otherwise show people from my livingness another way of interacting and working with each other and when organisations are ready for it, they will slowly begin to understand that this is the way to go as they are in desperation looking out for new ways in order to cope with the ever growing demands from their clients and customers.
This is so inspiring Nico thank you for sharing. When we come from our essence and people are before profits all workplaces will be transformed.
And that is the way we have to go Shelly, as that is why we are here on earth, to work together with one purpose, to one unified truth. Our workplace will transform into a place where we can evolve back to who we actually are. We will work in brotherhood together as we have done building the pyramids, and how we have built and held the library of Alexandria, serving humanity in their return to the universal way of life.
What a wonderfully inspiring blog Nico.
l feel your passion and vision. The quality of your presence and your love is changing the configuration of your workplace. As you hold you l feel the possibility of great healing for all who work there and beyond.
Thank you Nico for sharing your experience and observations in the workplace. I have heard of so much unreasonable pressure put on workers to meet an unrealistic deadline. Profits being put above decent working conditions, and this comes down from the top. I love your words “when I came from my essence, simply my voice and my body invite the other person to feel their own essence, for me this is true support and engenders great teamwork”, so beautifully expressed.
What a great and accurate description of the true scope of projects Nico. I have been the client for years on many of them. Time, money and you only get what is in the contract, changes will be charged, has been the bread and butter of most I have observed. I have found that there are small things that can make big changes by working with the contractors rather than against them. Without clear lines of communication it doesn’t take long for things to unravel. Commutating aggression and threating monetary forfeitures is the easiest way to stop the flow, but is often the club that is most often used. Meeting people when engaged in a project can be as important as the project
I agree Kristy. I work in IT and I’m able to resolve faults quickly just by listening to the customer. Unfortunately most IT professionals think their customers are stupid because they don’t understand how computers work. It’s a part of our job that we educate where possible how it works. This will reduce IT issues, but instead IT staff blame the user. And, when you listen to customers they can actually teach you something. I always listen to my customers because they are my customers.
The more I read and re-read your blog Nico and evolving conversations, the more I connect to the depth of wisdom you’re expressing. To seek to and ‘Live from your essence’ is a wonderful model and an inspiration for all of us and the impact you’ve had on those you work with speaks for it self. It leaves me pondering on what it would be like if I truly lived from my essence, rather than settling for less.
Nico, I really enjoyed reading your observations of your work and how this has changed, we should never underestimate what we can each bring to a workplace and how much this can positively influence a project or relationships within this environment. Ultimately every job is about people and when we make an effort to put people first in the ways you describe the effects of this can ripple a long way. To bring an integrity to your aspects of the work is a brilliant reflection to offer whether or not it is then replicated by others. But how fantastic to now enjoy your job where before you didn’t and to be offering the perspective you now have.
Thank you Nico, this is such a gorgeous reminder about how it is ALWAYS all about PEOPLE FIRST. Life truly transforms if we always make it about people first (worth saying again and again) and then as you so beautifully share keeping things simple and serving all equally. When we live like this magic happens and joy is our natural way!
As you say Nicola, it is worth saying it again and again that it is about people first. And keeping things simple is another quality that is worth repeating again and again. Both are qualities of human life that are so natural to us. When I am with these qualities my body relaxes completely and I know that I do not have to perform anymore to any ideal or belief, but that I am looked after and that I am here to work for the plan by just being me, working together in co-creation to evolve back to where we belong, return into the joy of being Sons of God.
Beautifully expressed Nico.
So true Nicola for when we make everything about people first and our quality of relationships between each other the quality of productivity in any project is a natural reflection of this.
Beautiful Nico, it is also my experience that the most challenging part of our workplaces can be the actual dynamics between the people and not the actual work itself. What I am also realising is that these same relationships can be our greatest teachers. By being open to learning what we need to from all our interactions with others, we can learn how to reimprint and rebuild these relationships and as a natural unfoldment, evolve our workplaces and ourselves.
Beautiful Nico, it is great to hear your lived experience on how different a workplace can be when we make it about people first.
A beautiful blog Nico. Having met you over several years when attending UK Universal Medicine presentations in the UK, it is gorgeous to feel and see the joy you emanate now. As you say, your life has been inspired by Serge Benhayon and you are so inspiring to me and many others – “This brings back a joy I had missed for a long time”.
Thank you Stephanie for reminding me what an inspiration we are for each other. Being aware of this fact alone already makes life worth living. If I could ever imagine how grand we are (and I slowly get a growing awareness of that) and the impact we have on one another this will have an impact on my daily choices in which I have to include all of us and not only myself.
Well done for bringing such clarity and honesty to an area where it sounds like most people are more likely to be trying to achieve an initial pleasing of their clients through offering something which is unrealistic.
This is truly awesome Nico. I can feel the commitment and integrity in expressing Truth in your day to day work, and the simplicity and presence feels deeply powerful. One voice in expressing Truth consistently is all that is needed to awaken more voices that reverberate far and wide. Thank you for honoring and expressing what you feel true in your every day work.
So true 1heart1love1earth – ‘One voice in expressing Truth consistently is all that is needed to awaken more voices that reverberate far and wide.’ – how important it is to not hold back that ‘one voice’.
Wow Nico – very inspiring observations. I love how you chose to honor the truth of who you are as you met in truth of who your clients and colleagues are, bringing integrity and equality to your workplace. What a blessing for all. ‘When I come from my essence, simply my voice and my body invite the other person to feel their own essence.’ – powerful and simple as you lead the way so beautifully.
Living from our essence is so natural to us and will open up the way to true and open relationships in our lives and of course also in our work. As it sounds so simple and easy why is not everybody doing this? Because we have forgotten that we come from there, that we are innately designed to live and work together in this way. The constant tension we feel in our bodies is because we are not living this and will continue until we return to our ‘true me’. To come back to our original ‘true me’ we need someone to show us how to do that, a role model, someone who shows us the way. And as you say Carola, we are leading the way by just living from our essence.
This is a great blog Nico that we can relate to any workplace, as you say, Jenny, making it about the people first.
It’s interesting to consider that probably every job is really about relationships much more than it is about the technical skills required to do the job. We can learn technical skills and with enough practice can become proficient at them but learning how to do harmonious relationships, well that is another matter and something we don’t get much schooling in, even though as illustrated in this blog it has a massive impact on how a job gets done and how satisfied people are with their jobs. Perhaps every education course should include a subject on relationships?
That would be a great thing to do Andrew, and much needed so. As when I look honestly to my life I have been struggling with relationships whole my life because I did not appreciate the value of them, how important relationships are in my life, that I need to have relationships to evolve in life instead of the old that I need a relationship to fullfil my needs, which you actually cannot call a relationship but is actually an arrangement.
These are beautiful observations to share Nico and what I get from it is that we are the ‘engineers’ of what we stand in. That is, the quality of the space before us depends on the quality we have lived prior and it is this that then imprints our every move and thus the space we occupy. If we do not like the ‘building’ in which we stand or the people standing in it, it pays to look at the foundation that we have laid.
‘we are the ‘engineers’ of what we stand in’ – Liane, I love how deliberate these words are – it is so true. We all have to sleep in the quality we made our beds with.
Beautiful said Liane, ‘ we are the engineers of where we stand in’. When we have found that the foundation we have laid is not properly done, we must have the guts to demolish the building and build it all over, but now with the consideration that the foundation has to support all people equally that will live and work there.
It is fascinating to hear you describe the quality of groupwork that is possible Doug when we consider people first and not just focus on the outcomes or goals we are trying to achieve.
It’s been interesting to observe over the years in various workplaces when change is introduced, it’s not dealt with very well by anyone. What I have noticed in these times is that the change becomes about making ‘the system’ work more efficiently or better. However, because there has been no focus on people (which is ironic as my work is all about people…in every aspect) it actually makes things much more complex and complicated.
That is interesting indeed Jennifer. As to my experiences change are introduced to become more efficient and productive. For that reason all kind of procedures, ways of working and formalities are enforced top down to the the workers, nowadays sometimes so much so that a lot of time is to be spent on complying to these procedures instead of doing the real work that has to be done and the anticipated efficiency improvement will never be made. How different would it be if we make it about people first, when everybody involved in the work, including the customers, would work together in equality and the knowing that we are all interconnected and dependant of each other. That everything we do has an effect on everybody else and that we need to work together because that is where we are designed for. True teamwork or group work will evolve from this and will inherently provide the efficiency and productivity we are looking for.
Our workplaces, and how we are in them are so important, given that we spend an enormous amount of time in them, especially if we stay in the same job for a long time. I have to agree Nico with what you have said about the many dynamics that occur with personalities, varying beliefs about how things should be done, even conflict. These are the things that end up being so time consuming. I love how you are now making how you work all about connecting to the people at work. There would not be too many jobs on this planet that are not about people.
Thank you for giving us a sneak peak into you unique and interesting industry. I am glad to hear that you are sticking with your job as it is a huge skill set you hold and coupled with connection it is a truly heavenly combination. I could imagine that clients would be be faced with heady, self absorbed individuals the majority of the time, being met with warmth and kindness is unexpected and a huge gift.
What a great insight Nico to the inter-connectedness between people. How amazing must it be for huge projects to have one person holding truth and clarity as the main purpose of service. The truth you offer would have amazing ripple affects all through the other parties and works. Macro or micro scale project we all have a responsibility of the effect we bring.
“…This brings back a joy I had missed for a long time….” I love my work, it often seems more than many of my colleagues, because I think I have an understanding of the big picture of how we are all needed to get to the end point. Having an understanding of where and why puts a block on the frustrations I often have to deal with, as people go about their job with self-importance, denial, protection and competitiveness. Your blog provides a great explanation of what goes on in so many organisations but offers a way around the usual way of dealing with stuff, that enables work to be experienced with a sense of joy instead. Grand indeed ☺
Wow Nico. What an intriguing blog with your know-how, leadership and awareness. Why aren’t you the Project Manager and have some say in how Projects need to be run? If not it seems important you need to have a say and pave the way. Love to hear how you go and what unfolds next for you. You’re an inspiring man.
Thank you Rik, and you are right I should be the project manager but due to the nature of my work, I am working on contract basis, the type of role I have in these projects is always different, one time the project manager and the other time I have the role of a specialist. But I must agree, I truly flourish when I can lead the way and show people how to do it and this can be done in any role I fulfil in a project. The care I have for the people I work with is so profound that in everything that I do I take them into account, caring for the people first, that is where I stand for.
Connecting deeply with people both in the workplace and out allows us to appreciate and understand each other and provides the opportunity for unity, purpose and amazing group work.
Interesting to consider the effect on productivity of a workforce that are in harmony, feeling valued, listened to, connected with and purposeful.
We will be amazed about what we human beings are able to establish when we will work in harmony, feeling valued and listened to. Together we will connect to the purpose of life and co-create only that what is needed for all people equally to evolve, to grow to our higher self as that is the true purpose of our life here on earth.
Humanity working together with True purpose, unity and absolute Love will be Heavenly to behold.
Bringing simplicity and heart to work with you Nico is incredible – what a different perspective you now have and what a great opportunity for your clients and colleagues to grow and learn from what you present.
Thank you Nico, you have exposed the dynamics of what usually goes on between people working in teams. When seen from a place of Love it is quite obvious what we do and why we do it, the harm it creates and why it is never going to work. The love that you bring to your workplace by meeting your colleagues in their essence first before you converse about the job is such a ginormous gift. It could seem like such a small thing but ultimately it has such a huge and healing effect, the ripples of which will be felt far and wide.
Thank you Rebecca. it is such a joy to truly meet the people I work with, because I get to see the true man and the true woman behind the tradesman or tradeswoman. The intimacy that this brings, is opening everybody to be themselves and to speak from their heart. In turn this intimacy brings a harmony to the work that is about people first and when that is established, the job at hand is easily done, in the right time and order.
I can really feel your love here Nico.
Nico there is SO much you have written about here. How it’s not the job that is joyless but how we are with ourselves working it that can be and changing this can change everything.
I can consider how unrealistic expectations placed on people create unnecessary tensions if left unacknowledged and blindly followed. Sometimes I am given things to do and can go into an initial panic/overwhelm. I am aware of this tendency and wish to have loads of time to complete tasks in so I don’t react in this way.
However, now I am learning to not pass judgement on what is and is not possible if I stay present with what I do and bring all of me to the task at hand. Measuring how long I take to complete tasks based on previous experiences embellished with time spent in overwhelm (the spin produced from this) and time spent ensuring I get a return on my investment – me being ‘good’ at my job so get to feel I am worthwhile for instance; is inaccurate.
Discovering what’s possible is something that can only evolve if I choose to focus bringing all of me to a job in full consideration of all involved, rather than arrogantly imposing what is to be done.
When we do not recognise and appreciate ourselves enough there are many ways in our work to get affected by. As you say Karin, trying to fulfil the demands of the workplace in order to feed your self-worth issue will eventually devastate us resulting in not enjoying our work as much as we could do. Our workplace is actually a great place to be, where we have interactions with other people and have the possibility of doing group work, working together with a shared purpose and through that we can develop ourselves and as a group if we choose our workplace to be a playground as such.
Dear Nico, thank you for sharing this ” I realized, what we build around our essence is for protection against getting hurt, and lets us avoid meeting each other in truth. I understood that every time we meet not from our essence, we harm each other. ” So simple and so true, it doesn’t matter what words are used, said, expressed if we do not come from our essence for in truth they are not us. That doesn’t mean we don’t express, but learn to express how we really feel more and more.
I had an experience a few years back when I was consulting with architects for a house I was building. I remember vividly meeting with one and he was very cold and clinical and similar to your example Nico offered up what he would do for me with a take or leave it attitude. Needless to say I decided to go with a designer who saw an opportunity to work together to produce something of value. It always has to be about people first and everything else falls into place. In my observations the morale of any company or organisation is dictated by those leading the way and whether or not they value others.
Reading your article Nico van Haastrecht reinforced for me how absolutely vital it is to have integrity in our business interactions; otherwise we are affecting everyone that we work with or be with. The integrity that I am referring to is the integrity of being in our essence rather than trying to protect ourselves from hurt. We all have a responsibility to deal with our hurts.
Strong comment Elizabeth, I feel extremely inspired to have this as my top priority at home and work, as without this what does it all mean anyway… we can tick a boxes and get the job done, yes- but if that worked and was the answer then the people that ticked all the boxes would be living proof of it working but they are not, I know because I have been one and still dabble in box ticking to this day. The answer is essences and living and expressing from that point as much as we can without perfection.
As you say Elizabeth, Integrity is the key in having successful business interactions and it leads us to having a true purpose in our work, the purpose of living to our true essence in all that we do. While we work from our essence we will always work according to the Divine plan, the plan that will evolve us all back to the Divine beings we originally come from.
Wow this level of integrity and making it about people and harmony first is super powerful. I see how this can be applied in my job and in any workplace.
It is amazing if you do your work in service for people and connecting to them and what they need, and not what you need for yourself. Great sharing of an working man with high integrity – beautiful.
I love the simplicity with which you write about your work Nico, it’s great to read how you are bringing truth, honesty, respect and simplicity into your workplace.
Nico, this is testimony to the fact that we can change our job without changing jobs. We can bring back the enjoyment by being with ourselves, and others feel this and more easily reconnect with themselves, and this makes a world of difference wherever we are.
Sandra I love reading your comment “we can change our job without changing jobs”. This is such a simple truth. The complexity that can occur in a work place because of personal disatisfcation being externalised. Taking responsibility for the truth of what we feel or think is being reflected to us is such a life changing choice. This understanding will be great in the 101 handbook of ‘How to Live Life with Joy and Simplicity.’
Yes I completely agree Sandra. If we change jobs just because our existing job is triggering a hurt or issue in us that we have not dealt with then we will recreate it again in our next job. These things come to us again and again until we have mastered what is there for us to learn and evolve. The same applies to relationships and every other aspect of life.
I wholeheartedly agree Sandra, this has been my experience from not particularly enjoying nursing to loving every moment (no exaggeration here). My job has changed dramatically not for that reason.
I fully agree with you Sandra, when we bring ourselves without reservations to our work, dedicated to the people we work with, we will give everything that we are to it and we express ourselves in full. This cannot else than fulfil us with joy because we are designed to express our inner essence in full, in everything we do and wherever we are.
‘‘we can change our job without changing jobs’ Yes we can, but sometimes there’s a fine line between knowing when it’s time to move on in a job and when not to. Nico has shown that by re-connecting with ourselves and resolving our issues, it is possible to find a new way of being in the same job.
So true Sandra, we can change our job without physically changing our job. When we would all allow ourselves to be with ourselves wherever we are I can imagine how that will look like as it will change the way we are at work and work together. Our working together will be for the one unified truth, with one unified purpose. Because there will be no personal issues at play anymore, our combined effort will do the work that is needed to be done in order to serve our client, who represents in fact all of humanity in the one.
This is a lovely window into the world of business anywhere, for as you say, it is usually not the technical part but the human element that delays a project. It’s so easy for misunderstandings to occur if we do not fully explore the needs of the client and whether the budget and time frame are realistic. Once a ‘mutual understanding’ is reached, as you say Nico, it simplifies the project; “we bring in complexity because we are disconnected from ourselves and from humanity”. When people feel connected to themselves it brings harmony to the project and makes it easier to sort out any challenges along the way.
Nico this is testament to the power of observation. If we reconnect to our essence we allow ourselves greater understanding and appreciation of what is really at play. Being a student of Universal Medicine has equally allowed me to see that we have a choice to live outside of the complex systems and patterns that keep us away from true service.
Thank you Nico this is so supportive as I have been pondering the importance of the connection I build with clients before exploring how best we can work together. I have been feeling that I want to bring up with my colleagues how we deliver the information we are told to get across to clients at our first meeting in ways that are meaningful for them rather than just doing it by rote to tick the box. I love this reminder ‘The most beautiful thing is that we can change these patterns by being present and trusting that our feelings are true.’ This builds connection and thus avoids the complication of imposing solutions and competition which are so damaging.
It is actually all about building true relations in which both parties can grow, and not to build relations for your own benefit only. It is such a blessing to be in such a relationship with my clients as it is never a burden, but always feeding me and asking me to be more every time we meet.
very insightful and a great testimony to the joy that comes with taking responsibility for true harmony in the workplace – thanks for sharing Nico.
This blog could be about any job: when we aren’t ourselves complexity reigns, it is exhausting and very stressful for everyone. I can feel the steadiness, honesty and truth you bring to your work Nico – just by being you, and it is very inspiring.
It’s a disaster that so many people dislike their job or wish to have another job. The statistics claim it is a significant percentage of the population. I use to be one of those people, but after delving into what was actually causing these feelings with Universal Medicine, it was clear the angst was with myself and not my job. Once understood, everything else changed, including how I felt about my job.
So true Matthew Brown, we always bring ourselves to the workplace and the way we perceive everything is filtered and coloured by the hurts we carry with us. By healing them we become more real and are able to observe what is truly going on in our workplaces. We will see that it is not about us or the work that has to be done, but that it is the unresolved hurts of people that are playing out against one another. It is a great blessing that we have found Universal Medicine that made us aware of these facts which in turn allowed us to reconnect with truth and joy in life, of which work is a major part of.
Nico you’ve supported me to feel my own neediness to execute a task or project for others, to prove my ability and worth to others. It’s great to step back and allow others their own responsibility and offer myself the space to truly feel what is needed, not what I ‘need’ out of something.
Yes getting myself out of the way and letting go of my ‘neediness’ for recognition etc has transformed how I am at work and is so much less stressful and enables me to feel what would support in situations and allow evolution.
Brilliant observations they are Nico, thank you for sharing as I feel they are invaluable for all in whatever workplace we are in. As you say, it is in how we are living that is what we bring to our workplace, or the world, that will be one that brings true service to it, or anything that is not.
I love what you’ve presented here Nico and in particular this sentence “When I come from my essence, simply my voice and my body invite the other person to feel their own essence.” That’s my experience too and to me that is true support and engenders great teamwork.
Fabulous to hear your experience from your particular industry. This is all familiar to me as one of my clients has shared all the same issues and observations of the engineering industry. How awesome that you have allowed yourself to be aware of what is going on and are bringing yourself in full presence to your day. I can feel how your purpose has been restored by doing this and knowing how powerful it is; and hence not being deflated and exhausted by your work anymore but instead appreciating what you bring.
I work in the construction industry and deeply appreciate the importance of delivering the truth whether it is what the client wants to hear or not. In doing so I feel clear and light because I know it is what is needed at the time.
It so easily warps a project if there is any personal investment in it. Not truly listening to what the client wants and being unrealistic about the budget can result in huge financial and energetic drain. But on the other hand, as you say Fiona if we are true to ‘what is needed at the time’ we ‘feel clear and light’.
Nico, it is interesting that the impressive complex solutions are not what serves humanity and what does is found in simplicity.
Impressive, complex solutions can be very useful. Building a house, as I am learning, is quite impressively complex and building a skyscraper or even a major road are major exercises in complexity and very helpful. The key may be to stay connected with your co-workers, clients and everybody else connected with the process. Then these interactions can be very simple and built on trust and the great complexity of the work is very manageable.
Great point Christoph. How can we hope to build a house if first we have not built connections with the builders? And how can we connect to others if first we have not rebuilt the connection to ourselves? Connection does seem to be the key, without which we crumble.
I love how changing yourself brought a different appreciation of work, colleagues and clients. You express well your unfolding relationship with clients: truly listening, your integrity, humility, willingness to explore the clients needs and not impose your own agendas. Summed up beautifully when you are able to say to them: ‘ We know what you want, this is what we can offer’. A gentle, inspiring honest blog. thank you.
Important reflections on the way it is. It is so true how often in workplaces everyone is rebounding off a way of being that is not from the essence of the person but the many reactions, behaviours and attitudes.
Love it Nico – “They say that it is the budget and the time schedule that put projects under pressure, but are these schedules and budgets realistic?” More often that not in most work places there are unrealistic expectations and in my experience that is because we don’t make life and work about people and we don’t stop to actually listen to another person, so how can you set budgets or time frames when you are not even having a real discussion with the people involved. It warms my heart to read how you are the opposite of this Nico, connecting with people and every aspect of their working roles.
Well said Terri-Anne. By making business about budgets and time schedules (important though these are) rather than people first we are actually adding complication to what could otherwise be a much simpler project. People are the factor in business that get the job done, that create the ideas that put in the labour. To not make the job about the people is to be blind to the factor that actually makes all the difference and determines success or failure within a business. In my experience, making it about people first and looking at what is realistic for these people to achieve greatly simplifies processes within business.
Well said TerriAnne and Kate, even now with some awareness coming in about how people (employees, clients, relations) are actually the business, and great HR slogans and programs are set up that state that they are about people in most cases the underlying intent is still about numbers and profits. It takes a huge shift in awareness such as Nico has demonstrated to make it truly about people first and foremost.
And we also must remember that people first is not only the employees in the company but also the end customers of our services. Everything we put labour in is to serve people in one way or another. When we for instance build a bridge, beside all the expertise needed to build it physically, we also must consider that this bridge is for people to cross the river in such a way that they can travel safely form one place to another, to visit other people, to visit their families and friends.
A great blog Nico, and I love what you share here terrianneconnors. So true, we have to make life about people first and foremost, and if we don’t listen and connect with the people we bring in complication.
I know right? Seriously, I would love to work with Nico!
Nico I can very much relate your work on a much smaller scale when I have renovated houses, if I don’t question the smallest thing that does not feel right, (I may not know what it is at the time) but if I brush it aside thinking that it will be alright or the builders know what they are doing, sooner or later it will present itself again and will be a lot more complicated than if I had spoken up at the time.
So true Alison, we know when something is not ok because we feel it in our bodies. Appreciating this feeling will always work in the interest of both ourselves and in this case the workers who are renovating your house. If we leave it for that moment it will return to us in a much more complicated way where we not only have to deal with the issue that has physically manifested itself, but we also have to deal with the fact that we have felt it before and neglected this knowing and, in a way neglected ourselves by doing so. It needs honesty and self responsibility that will allow ourselves to evolve from this as there is always a lesson, in this case the lesson in trusting our feelings as being our guide in our life.
I really feel how much your way of life has changed since Universal Medicine and how much more open you are to people, dynamics and your industry in general. The power of being able to know how to live a life from your essence! It has truly changed your life. It’s amazing to feel how much this has changed for you and the way you work Nico.
Thank you Natasha, and that is truly what is actually happening. I am more open to people and sharing how I feel about things and not holding this back anymore. When I truly allow myself to feel what is all happening in my workplace then I cannot be otherwise than who I truly am, in all my sensitivity, tenderness and serve humanity in humbleness to the best of my ability.
Absolutely agree Nico, The amount of sensitivity and tenderness and humbleness that I also feel from expressing exactly how I feel is quite incredible. I never knew I could be so sensitive and delicate to life and its ways. It is only by being very self loving that I’m able to drop into an honouring of myself and truly share what is going on for me and how I see the world.
Nico, you have said so much here. So many people do have so many different ways of seeing things and it is easy to hold tight to what we believe is the only way which in turn causes many road blocks. I love the way you are choosing to look at what is happening from lots of different perspectives and coming out of it with joy, harmony and a true connection. Thanks for sharing.
Your are completely right ch1956. It is true power when you can put yourself out of the way and observe what is in front of you. Observing life in this way makes it possible for me to look from all kinds of different angles and perspectives from which I then can only conclude that there is nothing wrong or nothing good but that in fact everything is telling me something about life and how I am related to it. Being able to live life in this way, I appreciate life as a big playground that I may enjoy and which is teaching me how to live life as a human being that lives in connection with his inner heart, that lives a soulful life on earth in constant communication with all that lives around me and of which I am part of.
“we know what you want and this is what we can offer you.” What a different feel when said this way instead of “we know what you want and this is what you get”. The first so much more open and offers a choice. Remarkable blog Nico, you have opened my eyes about the vast array of services involved to bring a project together and I really enjoyed reading how you go about this now, bringing it back to being about the people and connecting with them first.
Nico, this is amazing what you have shared with such clarity, how dynamics can play out between people and work not flow when we are not in harmony with ourselves or others. I can feel how instead of being ‘in’ this you have been able to take a step back and with the help and support of Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine not only see what is going on and the reason why you have not enjoyed your work for such a long time, but also how you can change this. Beautiful. And it is lovely to hear that after a long time you are now finding and seeing the joy within your work. From my experience of working in an office once one person can see this (the protection we walk around with) and make the changes needed within themselves first this then helps the rest of the group of people see and feel a different way to be. What you have shared does not just apply to engineering but groups of people working together everywhere.
Nico what struck me is the depth of integrity you have brought to your workplace, and the care and respect you have both for everyone around you and also the natural order and shedule of things that need to be done. A very gorgeous blog to read thank you.
A similar thing plays out for me at work. If I’m not listening to the client, feeling what is appropriate to them, I can come up with a completely unsuitable, complicated solution that yes may save them money… but disempowers them and so ultimately leaves them worse off. If I connect to the person first, then the service matches and there is a harmony in the work we do together.
“If I connect to the person first, then the service matches and there is a harmony in the work we do together.”- this reminds me of helping with breastfeeding. If I connect to the mother with eye contact and talk to her with an open heart, she relaxes and understands the instructions how to breastfeed her baby. And the baby responds by sucking well on the breast without fuss. But if I speak to her from knowledge and instruct her what to do, in the majority of cases, the first time mother gets anxious and doesn’t let down, or says her nipples hurt, and the baby won’t attach properly or fusses at the breast.
Your way of being with your work can be taken to any job anywhere. I too am loving my work, I love being with people and then can sometimes get pressured to confirm that this is having an impact positively and then I want to perform rather than just be myself. The more I trust that I am enough and I know what will be needed next the more at ease I am in life.
So much goes awry when we make it about profit or purpose first and people second. Whenever did this make sense to do this, given at the end of the day, none of us live in a vacuum?
Very true Victoria. Ironically, when we make it about profit over people, everyone loses despite the lure of the seeming ‘gain’.
Great blog Nico, putting the humanness back into engineering. Dentistry is very similar. The technical aspects are so very engaging that we forget that it is people that come first and this includes the dentist and their staff. Without this understanding we create fertile ground for conflict, tension and misunderstanding.
A very wise man and electrical engineer, my father Ken, used to say to me “Rachel, engineering is about people”.
I think you need to meet each other Nico, and write a book or two that will set that industry alight with truth and a new way.
Nico you raise an important point and that is to make work about people first if you wish to deliver a great outcome. In my experience (in a non technical field of work) if the harmony between people is present the outcome is magical – closer friendships, and a very effective delivery. A joyful experience for all, and a spring in my step as I approach work each day.
Your article beautifully demonstrates how there are equally personal and systemic factors in our workplaces that contribute to the discomfort and conflict often present on a daily basis, Nico. Whichever factor appears to be causative, underneath that, as you say, is the fact of not meeting ourselves, and then others, from a place of deep and abiding respect. When this is done, we are then able to be honest and openly discuss factors such as the ever present unrealistic deadlines and budgets that, quite frankly, operate just about everywhere, including in the public sector.
It is awesome to read how you have changed your way of being in your workplace and, from there, your responses to people, and to the systems, in which we work.
Unrealistic and constant deadlines have nothing to do with people and everything to do with a constant grasping for profit and outcomes at all cost – the cost being the people trying to meet them. Having said that, we have a responsibility – to begin to change what we have silently accepted, for whatever reasons we have chosen to do so, and collectively say no to harmful work practices.
Your blog illustrates clearly that our work has to be about people first. I work in an industry that is supposed to be looking after people’s welfare but it is full of impositions and agendas that are increasingly becoming more complex. What is great about working in this environment is that whilst the systems, the way we do things is constantly being changed and solutions are always being sought for the constant amount of problems being created, I can bring a quality to my work that moves mountains simply by being and expressing who I am.
I could relate to your blog Nico working with clients as a carpenter, and how communication with my clients and getting very clear on what they want is a large part of the work.
Sometimes what the client wants for their budget is unrealistic, and at times I will talk them out of employing me and offer them cheaper options, I enjoy this level of honesty and not coming out of a need to get the job.
“at times I will talk them out of employing me and offer them cheaper options, I enjoy this level of honesty and not coming out of a need to get the job.” That’s refreshing to read, Thomas.
What I have taken from your blog Nico is that regardless of the industry what makes a difference in the workplace is the quality of relationships that we are having. When we make it about people rather than ‘just the job’, then how we feel about our work changes.
So true Donna and Nico, to have a comittment to meet others first, and the work will flow from there.
Thank you Nico. When I don’t meet another person from my essence I can feel the harm I am causing. I can be ticking the boxes in being kind and nice, but if my heart isn’t open it feels awful. It can flow on from simply holding back in saying what I feel about something. This is a pattern that I often play and to feel how much it hurts me and others is a great thing as I am letting some guards of protection down.
Nico, it is lovely to read of the choices you have made to bring such changes in your life and it is simply gorgeous to feel the absolute joy that emanates from you in every word you write. Thank you – I am smiling from a very deep place of joy myself after reading this blog.
I agree Nico, when people start to truly work together with a focus on connecting with each other, seeing and listening to each other amazing things can be achieved. That is the reason why our forefathers knew how to build something like the pyramids, we have lost that wisdom for the reasons you are describing in your blog.
The most beautiful quality in the world is understanding. When we have understanding for ourselves and others and we can see a bigger picture and the driving force behind complexities and unsavoury behaviours there is so much compassion and this is what your writing brings Nico. Thank you.
Understanding and compassion in the workplace, Shevon: that’s the kind of revolution I would want …..or perhaps the word is “evolution”?
Understanding is such a beautiful quality shevonsimon, I agree. It allows us to feel where another is at and what needs to be expressed to bring harmony to the relationship. From this point a way forward can be felt.
Thank you for sharing your observations Nico. It is interesting to see that you identify a lack of connection and understanding as the root cause for stress that enters a project. Your experience of meeting your clients in their essence and bringing understanding from this connection is applicable across industries.
This is such a delightful and tender blog Nico. I love the fact that you have taken the time to observe the various complexities, targets, goals and expectations that we tend to run with at our work place with this tenderness and that has started some lovely insights and understanding which was a pleasure to read. You provide a great example of how we can all approach our work, regardless of the scenarios and complexities around us.
Small things do make a difference in one of my jobs I have limited face to face contact but a lot of email contact with clients. As a lover of people I was really wanting to find a a way of connecting with people through my written correspondence, that was often routine or repetitive emails attached to invoices etc. I decided that I wanted to come up with a unique sign off. I googled it and came up with not much…… in the end I landed on “warm regards” What I have experienced is really fascinating. I love that this sign off often changes the type of response I get from people with a few responders changing theirs to say the same.
Thank you Nico. Working in the engineering industry I have also observed that there is a lot of pressure put onto the engineer to meet often unrealistic demands. That communication in the industry can be fraught with tensions and either holding back or dishing out. It is beautiful that you are finding another way and inspiring others to do the same.
What amazing learning you have done with Universal Medicine Nico! I feel how studying with Serge Benhayon has helped you re-connect to the main part of your (like all ours too) job: it’s the people. Yes, they are the most unpredictable part, but we are all people, and we are worth it. Everything we do is ultimately for people, and the energetic and physical quality we put into any project leaves a big imprint for all to feel. How awesome for everybody who meets you that you are bringing this awareness to your work in the field of engineering.
I love what you’ve shared here Nico. I used to moan about how bad projects were, how disorganised and badly managed they were and did not enjoy work – I clocked watched and lived for the weekend and holidays. But that has all changed for me over the past few years, and now I love work and feel a joy at being at work with my ‘work family’, and even see my fellow commuters as my ‘train family’! What’s changed? I have since attending Universal Medicine presentations and workshops and the inspiration of Serge Benhayon and others who have shown me what work is really all about. It’s not just about earning money to live or getting ahead in a career for recognition, it’s about serving others; serving our community whether that be local or global, and with that comes a true purpose of what work is all about. And I don’t hold back telling people how much I love work.
Nico, what you’ve described is just the same in a corporate environment. I see this all the time; project deadlines set which are often unachievable and it creates a lot of unnecessary complexity with workarounds if the final solution can’t be delivered on time, this often equates to more people being needed for a longer period of time, and it often gets quite messy. So what you say about it being about people is so very true – the people working on the project, and the people who will receive or use the end product, service, building, road, etc.
You touch on the beautiful concept of being able to truly meet and see a client for what they need and not what the work/serviceman wants them to need. Too completely different ways of working with clients. One is truly honouring and the other is bias based business.
“This brings back a joy I had missed for a long time.” This line summed up the power of what you express here so perfectly for me Nico. I can feel how important it is to allow ourselves to feel what is really going on in all aspects of out life. Blindly accepting complications and practices that make life disharmonious as ‘just the way things are’ leaves me feeling down. Acknowledging what I feel and the part I can play to create change also brings me great joy.
“Acknowledging what I feel and the part I can play to create change also brings me great joy.”
That is both beautiful and inspiring. Leonne.
I loved reading the description of your work Nico, it brought great perspective to my own industry also and how people behave/invest. The Way of the Livingness really is very simple and I know has allowed me to blossom, in a way I never thought possible. This I know has impacted how I am at work too.
It makes such a difference when we deeply connect with others and they feel it every single time. I know from when I am with others, all I need is to feel a connection and everything else is easy. It’s such a basic thing yet we struggle with it time and time again because we aren’t raised with awareness of it, and yet it should be the first thing we make all human interaction about.
I love the simplicity you bring Nico! I agree with you wholehearted: it is always about people. It doesn’t matter what work field you operate in, if we make it about people meeting people, people working with and for other people a whole lot of things start to change and make sense. You bring true healing, Nico by your expression and communicating about what you see and feel.
Nico, Your blog should be mandatory reading in all University Faculties – if our new graduates started their working careers with this understanding that we work for and with people and not for some abstract structure then the complexity and confusion that is created in many workplaces will be eliminated. You have clearly described how when you made your day to day working life about people, then the technicalities of the job flowed in harmony resulting in the projects being completed and finished on time and on budget. What a joy it would be to work in this environment and what a beautiful light and energy you will be reflecting to your colleagues.
Great Observations Nice. So great to see how you are looking at situations that arise in the engeineering work place with perspective and seeing where the true answers lie. They lie in not having beliefs, expectations or needs about a project, but instead a willingness to work together.
Nico, I can so relate to what you have shared. In my work, it is also very project driven, so the need to plan upfront, set targets, budgets, schedules to deliver. In the past, I would allow myself to get very emotional/reactive when things were not working or going to plan. When people involved were disengaged. I have changed 100% how I am in these situations now, my presence and how quality that I meet people in is totally different since attending Universal Medicine presentations and practitioners. I have so much more patience and willingness to understand where other people are at, choices they are making and most importantly, how I choose to meet people and situations. There is no longer an angst every day, but a joy in what I do and how I work.
To add to all this, what we talk here about is true team work. Working together brings up personal issues which interfere with the workflow and outcome. You cannot focus on the outcome without addressing the points which have positive or negative influence on it. And the biggest influence is the human factor and its choices. Working together as a team should be very honest and point out what is not true but in the same way supportive and respectful. If we would build on that, many projects would have a different outcome and would be more solid and profound.
This brings a real and practical truth to this sort of industry with what goes on. Being able to come from observation and understanding make all the difference on how we interact and work together.
Hello Nico, what you bring awareness to is a very important part in daily work and should be noticed and explored by so many more branches of work. I work in a international trading company and only can confirm what you have observed. It does not matter if you work with suppliers, clients or forwarders, if you put the person first, if you meet them in their essence – all work which has to be done just flows differently. You build up an honest and respectful foundation and if problems arise they are much easier to resolve as you work as a team and do not blame others. The same is valid for the work with your colleagues with whom you spend most time of the day. Stress does not arise from too much work but from your attitude as to how you care for yourself and relate to your colleagues. Do you connect with each other or do you work still as strangers after 10 years? Work can be fun and enjoyable if you just allow yourself to connect to each other in your essence.
Thank you Nico, this has helped me so much this morning, as I work in the estate agency business and sometimes there is so much to organise before a tenant can move in and they specify a certain date, but at times it is not possible – I agree with you it is better to be honest and tell them up front, otherwise we have to try and push everything through and it gets very stressful.
Good point Julie, I can imagine this to be quite difficult at times. Sometimes people prefer to be ‘lied’ to. It’s so amazing to do what we can, without giving our power away to the customer or the situation. Everybody needs to work in with everybody, considering what is needed by all, not just one party.
That’s a great blog about how we often make it about the technical aspects, the concept or the theory instead of connecting to humanity and work for humanity in its simplicity as it is needed. I work in a very different area than you do Nico, which is supposedly about humanity, but there is the same complexity and confusion created all the time. Why is it that we have constantly remind ourselves that we work for and with people and not for some abstract structure. In my sector, the non-profit sector, for example, is a massive abuse of human resources who work over hours and are really badly paid all in the name of “doing good”. This is all so wrong. How can a whole sector supposedly do good by helping other people meanwhile abusing the people who are doing the work? How can doing good become bigger than the care for people? This exposes quite clearly how evil “doing good” actually is.
Gosh it is amazing how simple it could be Nico if all the parties involved were to be honest from the onset of the contract. So for instance one example you shared that many contractors agree with the clients from a need to make sure they get the job, knowing already that it cannot be done in the time and budget suggested. Such deceit from the beginning of the job, so therefore no true foundation to begin with, no wonder it all goes pear shape. Thank goodness for your insight into what is really going on, you are a true change agent for that industry.
I agree dishonesty from the outset creates a very shaky platform for any big project to commence on. How can any relationships prosper if they begin firstly with dishonesty?
What a beautiful blog you have written Nico, there is much in it to ponder and reflect on. When at work, as in every part of life, we approach what needs to be done from the perspective and understanding that we are part of a whole and that our quality affects the whole, we would function less on our little islands. If we then also appreciate ourselves more, the importance of our quality, we would support others too, naturally so, in bringing their amazingness to serve the project as a whole. Things would look and feel quite different at work and the client will definitely benefit from it.
Yes I agree Katinka, when we begin to see ourselves as part of a team and appreciate the qualities we bring to our job and the team, it then becomes natural to affirm other people for their contribution, talents and qualities. When we do so, it becomes much easier to build a team that is all pointing the same way, i.e all focussed on quality of service and customer care, because the team is caring for all its components, all the people within it.
Having a mutual understanding and keeping in mind realistic targets for a project. It sounds so simple and many people would agree but is it common place?
From what I have seen no it is not. Some examples where covered in the above blog such as the the neediness to get a job and accepting unrealistic project times. We have so many preconceived ideas on what we are, how we should be and what we should deliver. To the point that the obvious actions that should take place don’t. The quality that is described to be true to yourself, equality and connecting with people are essential parts to anyone’s working life or life in general.
I have worked in a number of places where the quality is destroyed by the obsession and pressure to meet targets, it’s a shame because it misses the whole point, which is life is about people and connecting to people, and while it’s of course important for a business to succeed, it should never be at the cost of its people.
Sadly this has entered into more professions as paper work that describes a person has become more import than the actual person the paper is describing.
It is sad, and it’s unpleasant to feel the lack of integrity the company holds, in putting its figures and profit above people.
True!, there needs to be another way and I hope to see businesses breaking the mold sooner rather than later. As we have seen how much damage companies do who purely focus on their income figures and paying the share holders. It diminishes quality, unfairly distributes wealth and in extreme cases utilizing forced (slave) labour.
Totally – quality is so important, and not enough importance is placed on the quality of work, and the integrity and quality of the business.
Agree Meg.
What if there was a employee bonus model in place that rewarded the quality of the relationship the employee had with a client, instead of the number of sales they collected during the month?
This would turn the business world up side down!
I love that idea. It would be AMAZING if employers celebrated what truly counted!
Soooo Amazing…. 🙂
Nico, this is a really great blog. Interesting that you have said that you had no problem with the practical engineering side of the job, the problems arose in the interactions between people themselves who worked with the company. These people were having, in effect, do ‘group work’ where everyone brings in their own particular issues and hurts etc. that they have been living with. This is in line with what my late husband used to say many years ago, when we had a company with 50 employees, many of whom had higher degrees and ordinary university degrees. He always used to say that the problem was never doing the actual work, but managing all the problems that people (staff) brought into daily life. Similarly, it has been said jokingly in the past about a new hospital, “this is a great hospital, sad that we have to have people in here”. Wonderful how you say Nico “I know that I do not have the direct influence to change them all, and it may take some time to get them changed, but up to the point where I have a say I am standing up and bringing into practice what I have summed up above”. Yes, you are doing what you are able to, bringing yourself into the equation and shining for others to see. This is all that is required for you.
It’s lovely to feel the depth of your observations Nico and therefore the quality that you must bring to all these projects by the way that you now work. Really, any project, no matter what it is, can be defined by the team cohesion between people, which will translate again to the quality of the process and the finished product.
I can really relate to this article Nico. The technical difficulties are never the most challenging ones. As you say people respond positively when you genuinely talk to them as a person, and understand what is going on for them. It is great that you are paying more attention to the human relationships at work, and that has made your job more joyful. I loved your observation that doing a job to a quality standard has its own time schedule and budget, and if we impose a shorter timeline or budget it inevitably blows out, or quality is compromised.
Thank you Bernard, I agree. Nico has so perfectly shown that quality work has its own time schedule and budget and if that is well communicated to the client then a greater understanding can be there from the beginning. I have learnt a great deal about the whole process from reading this blog and therefore in my next project will have a greater understanding of what everyone is doing.
I love how you describe quality – the purity of what can be collectively delivered from the sum of our own individual essences; a quality which brings best value to client and consumer when not compromised at any cost. ‘A certain quality, with a given quantity and budget, has its own schedule regardless of whatever we want of it’. This is the challenge of commerce. When quality is compromised by budget and/or time – which it so often is – everyone can feel it, from design, manufacture through to implementation and/or consumption. That, by definition, is a true false economy.
So true Cathy, that true quality is compromised in many aspects in our lives and everybody is affected by it, if we are aware of it or not. This also signals to me how we are about with ourselves, about the quality we allow into our lives. Do we compromise on this on the same arguments as in our commercial activities on budget and time?
Wow this is an amazing blog Nico – so much to ponder on. I really appreciate the detail of observation you have brought in here: from looking at the way our essence is covered up by the protection of ourselves through employing distorting emotions and moods, to the destructive habit of coming at projects in the spirit of competition, being right and getting recognition (over and above being open to hear what would actually work for the client), right through to being honest about assessing the time and length of the project when communicating to the client. You have laid on the table here the beautiful ways we can bring harmony to a project and so make it truly worthwhile for all involved. As you say, it all comes down to people and how we are with each other – caring, respectful, clear and honest, allowing for the possibility for a deep love to come, with that person, with the project and with all involved. Thank you for such a super blog Nico.
I whole-heartedly agree Lyndy; Nico’s observations are of a detail that can be applied to any workplace or group work and to bring connection and love into the engineering space – well what a gift Nico offers his colleagues and clients and to everyone who reads his blog here. I so enjoyed reading this sharing and appreciate the reflection for myself.
It’s so true Lyndy. Everything comes back to people and our interactions. As Nico has shown, even in engineering where it seems to be about building a project, it is actually about the relationships between the people on the project.
Just yesterday I noticed how much warmer and more spacious the office feels when people work in harmony and without offloading on each other; the actual physical difference was astounding – a cramped space had opened up, allowing everybody more room and the winter chill had subsided to allow for an increased in temperature and greater ease in the way we all moved around. Everything is indeed energy.
It is so true Gabrielle that a small space never seems so small when there is harmony. Just as a large space can feel small if there is disharmony.
Thanks Nico, your observations really show how we work, although I work in a completely different environment, there is a commonality in the ‘deadline’ pressure rather than allowing the project to be about the quality, harmony and connect where it will likely unfold and complete exact to how is needed. We would probably find that in working this way with harmony and connection without that sense of pressure and need, the completion will possibly complete without any delay and not take forever and with great quality..it is an old belief that has never been challenged to my awareness, that we must work under this pressure of restrictive time frames often unrealistic – it has to be done within this time frame or the world will ‘fall down’.
I agree Karoline, it is an old belief based on money and a lack of connection to the truth of what ever the project is, and the trust that it will be affordable and serve. It is based on the failures of creation, not the inspiration of co-creation.
Wow, I never realised engineering was so much about people. It is so cool to feel the changes you are bringing to your work Nico. Observation is a great key indeed to not absorbing or getting caught up in the competitive or emotional energies at play.
Great point Rachel, ‘I never realised engineering was so much about people’…. in all industries people are involved regardless of the type of industry…workplaces exist because of people….and how we bring ourselves to those workplaces affect how we are with each other and towards our work….
Everything is about people, and the minute we make work, life and the whole kit and caboodle about anything other than people, we’re in trouble.
As Victoria says, in the end it’s all about people… I find this even with Accounting and Tax. They could be construed to be dry, numerical topics… but behind that is a person, with a whole array of feelings and emotions about money and that is the guide for the service and advice that follows.
Everything in life is about people and that is why life in truth is so beautiful to live. Life is absolutely not about achieving anything in the physical but it is about meeting people in their essence and experience that we are all equally the same but with different expressions. And that’s what makes living life such a fun, if we are able to appreciate this fact. Living our lives with this understanding will also bring back joy and fun into our workplaces and any tasks or jobs will be fun to do.
Nico and Doug, I am fascinated by your description of the protection and blame game that occurs in your particular line of work. I imagine this is how we have ended up with such complex and high levels of litigation and legal contracts. When we meet others in an open and honest way, simplicity and reason seems to prevail no matter how complex the task and allows the space for joy to enter between each other.
Amazing. What an inspiring article. The underlying understanding of truth in this article, is that everything in life has to be brought back to people. Without this, we only harm and complicate and this takes us away from the deep connection we all crave. Emotional needs get in the way. Your industry is thick with needs and lack of connection. The amount of hurts stacked up and money wasted is astronomical. Thank you for this enlightening article – it leads the way and one day the world will understand what you have presented.
Hello ginadunlop and I agree. It seemed most of what was described was about people and how to ‘manage’ them. As Nico van Haastrecht is saying, “What appears to be the most challenging in these projects is that we have to work together as people, with each other’s personalities, lifestyles, characters and moods, in order to get the job done, getting the plant built. The technical part, thus far in my career, has never been the difficult part for me.” For me this is telling, anyone can do a job but it’s the how we do the job that’s important. The real connection to yourself and then to people is something that supports everyone and allow you to see what is going on or “observe” as Nico points out. Too often we get caught just doing something and not really seeing the person that is in front of us. True care for yourself that then goes out from there to others, Universal Medicine supports people to rediscover this care. Thank you Gina and Nico.
Thank you, Nico, I loved reading how you are bringing back the joy into your work.
‘We must be truthful to clients about this fact and not compromise from a neediness to have the job or project executed. We have to tell the client if a schedule or budget is not feasible; it is part of the role of an engineering office to present this.’
What you share here is so true for all of us, if we are not being truthful about what is possible, or choose not to correct people when wrong assumptions are being made, by keeping quiet it’s the same as if we’d stated the wrong assumptions ourselves. Just because the words don’t come out of our mouth, by keeping quiet, it’s as if they did.
Nico, what you have shared is a series of really important points that essentially bring human relationships back to the focal point of everything. People are what matter – people are what our world is about – people and connecting to people and meeting them for who they are is essentially why we are here. None of the other stuff really matters as much as meeting the person first and foremost. In your blog it was/is beautiful to feel how you have re-established a deeper connection with yourself first, and then this could not but be shared within your workspace and all around you. There is a real quality that you hold in being able to observe and hold the bigger picture particularly in such a large workplace scenario – the understanding of others that you bring whilst at the same time not allowing any complexity from them is a powerful quality and a gift to humanity itself. Thank you Nico.
I love how all it took was for you to express yourself for joy to come back in your work again. So simple but very effective, and I am sure this has a great impact on all of your colleagues, family and friends, not to mention your own overall well being.
This blog shows how playing roles rather than engaging in a true and natural way is not limited to us as individuals. We have brought it into corporations, so that now a company will play a dominant role with some other companies or service providers, and a subservient one with others, depending on things such as need and relative power. Inequality and abuse of power crushes us as individuals, and this is magnified when the inequality is played out between companies and organisations. Of course a company is a mere construct; it is made up of people, and it engages with people, people employed by its competitors/clients/service providers etc, and so as Nico shows, it is people that suffer the consequences of ill choices made by companies.
Well said Nico… and I agree so much with what you have observed in your 2nd paragraph, about it being our interactions with people that can turn us off our jobs… but if we connect with the essence of the people we are working with, our interactions and relationships with these people instantly change. We become more understanding and any of the judgements or grievances that we have been holding can fall away.
Honestly and openly communicating with a client/customer – this is the key. It can inspire them to open up as well or allow themselves to review the project/purchase. The outcome will be incredible, less stress, less overspending, satisfaction on both sides and a relationship that is sure to continue.
Nico don’t underestimate the ripple effect of your being within your work place. I have witnessed how one person can change how an office operates simply by being more loving and caring towards others. By you simply choosing to be honest with your clients helps build trusting relationships. What you have shared makes so much sense, and we spend so much of our time at work, it is worth putting effort into the relationships we have there.
Nico, your observations come back to a basic point that is that all we truly need to do is connect. Connect with ourselves and thus with others and this allows for an already greater platform of understanding and accepting with less reaction and emotion. Reaction and emotion is what creates all the problems.
This is a great awareness you bring Nico to the way humanity works in general. That it is about connection first and that quality is important instead of the focus being on the outcome most of the time. The sentence, “The most beautiful thing is that we can change these patterns by being present and trusting that our feelings are true.” really shows us that the power to change work patterns is inside us all.
I work at Cologne Bonn Airport where we work as a team very well together! We have found that if we do not communicate, every little problem, can disarray the whole group! And we have learned not to hold ourselves back, even if it is sometimes uncomfortable! A great process of connecting us more and more!
This blog asks us to consider how we are in our professions and are we truly serving our client’s, customers and patients – with the quality of love.
Nico, your essence just exudes from your blog in such a lovely and delicate way, What I can feel that you offer, is a consistent, steady pulse, with what you offer, and the joy as you say that was missing but now truly lived. So lovely to feel, so thank-you for sharing you with us.
“It hurts to not be our true selves and it hurts to relate to others from this place also.”
Thank you, Nico, for this line, it ‘calls out’ an awareness that has been just under the surface … to not relate to others from my true self does hurt but I’ve been dismissing and minimising that discomfort in the name of being capable, confident, professional, functional, etc. I don’t want to do that anymore!
the “we know what you want and this is what we can offer you.” approach sounds so much lovelier.. I really love how you explained that we don’t always meet people in our essence but instead protection and that this creates friction as we are constantly worried about getting hurt (hence the protection) and not truly 100% giving our all to the situation.
Thanks Nico. What you have shared here is incredibly important. As in all relationships when the foundation is one based on need or self gain when things go south, trust is very hard to regain and the stress that this enforced relationship has on all parties is hard to deal with. However if we are honest from the outset and enter the relationship with a transparency, communicating clearly what can and cannot be done with no investment other than to be of service then trust can be maintained and the project seen through to the end with no fall out. The fact that you are standing for this in the work place is much needed and a wonderful example for all in terms of what work could be like.
Nico, what a beautiful blog, it really touched me and reminded me how when we keep it simple and make it about connection first, there is a joy there, and we all figure it out together, and I love that. There is so much here that you note, that I’ve experienced in my work, the one is how we approach clients with the client acknowledging what they want and and us acknowledging what we can deliver, and from that foundation we honour both and can find a way forward. It’s simple but very important. And most of all to remember that it’s not about changing everything at once, a big one to remember – it’s about being true on our parts and speaking up, and knowing that in time it will change, but to give it time. Thank you, this has been so supportive today.
There is so much in this blog Nico. The takeaway message for me today is the reminder that, “….every time we meet not from our essence, we harm each other.” I’m sure none of us set out to deliberately harm another in our daily lives so why can it be so difficult to take responsibility for ourselves, in the way we live and the quality of what we bring to life? Could it be that we don’t want to see the extent of our responsibility because if we did we would have to let go of all of the things we use to comfort ourselves – from being emotional to checking out on TV to numbing ourselves with food, being defensive around others…….and so the list goes on. And yet, the quality of life that awaits us if we do accept responsibility and let these comforts go is amazing. How do I know this? I have witnessed many, thanks to Universal Medicine, take responsibility for the quality in which they live their lives. The reflection is glorious and inspiring which has supported me to take more responsibility too. An endless work in progress which I wouldn’t have any other way.
I fully agree Lucy, the key word responsibility, taking responsibility for our lives plus being connected to ourselves is a ‘game’ changer. I too have seen many people’s lives change thanks to Universal Medicine. I bring this to my work place and I find that I don’t get caught up in the anxiousness, or pressures of the workplace but have a steadiness that I bring and quality.
And what an awesome reflection is offered to your colleagues as a result Karoline. The picture I see is all of us, humanity, like dominoes all lined up in an amazing constellation. It only takes one to choose to change the status quo and ‘move’ and the rest will too. Of course, we’re not dominoes and we have free-will, so it’ll take a while for all of us to ‘move’, but move we will of that I am sure.
Now I understand more about how I feel in certain buildings, especially public buildings. And when I first walked into the Hall of Ageless Wisdom, that was built for Universal Medicine presentations by Serge Benhayon, I felt so loved and so safe as never before in a building. The values, that you present here, Nico, are felt by everybody who enters such a building.
It is interesting to see all the interactions you have observed playing out Nico, and seeking to understand what is underneath them, the hurts and the behaviours to protect those hurts, which end up hurting others, and so it goes around, and how this feeds through to affecting the whole office. It doesn’t matter if it is an office, school, family, relationship, country, we are all humans run by the same things, the hurts and the protection, the arrogance and all the other stories on top. Through you making the choice to choose your essence, to being open and honest and just being yourself, will provide an enormous reflection and may just be the first reason they might ever see that others may trust to be able to drop the guards they hold. Super inspiring.
I can relate your observations to my workplace and at times I have not observed and have ended up very frustrated. Your observations highlight so much about our inability or ability to work in harmony or disharmony with each other and the affect it has on all including the project outcome.
Making Engineering about people may well be one way to bring back the many qualified engineers who have left the industry – this is a great article, especially the re-think on quality and deadlines.
Office politics can be very difficult to be around. I know myself, I can unconsciously shut down around these environments but when I do I get so drained. Being open and connected is so worth it, it shows others that it’s possible, to not be afraid and to embrace our essence and share it with others and with that comes a freedom and joy.
Yes Kate, I can relate to this ‘shutting down’ when things get too heavy or uncomfortable in the office. It’s an old pattern to absorb what is going on around me, out of sympathy, an investment in being right or great sadness that other people are disconnected from who they are too. If I connect to my essence and remain so, then I too connect with others and can feel them for who they are first rather than the disconnection.
Yes Rachel, and this certainly takes dedicated application to master!
Yes Kate ‘office politics can be very difficult to be around’ I fully agree but why does office politics occur, it is often a reflection that things are not working and human relationships are not genuine and breaking down, often there is disconnection from ourselves and each other, and away from our inner amazingness, because we are in our hurts, resentments, not feeling appreciated etc. etc.
Yes true Karoline, its actually very exposing of where we are truly at, something we don’t always want to see or admit to.
“every time we meet not from our essence, we harm each other. So we build a way of being that is all about protection and how we think the world wants us to be. It hurts to not be our true selves and it hurts to relate to others from this place also”. Nico in these sentences you are describing my work place. I am beginning to observe and not absorb. Sometimes I feel the heaviness in the office and I stop myself and say “this is not you, simply feel it but not absorb it” and I can, so now I am not being so drained at work and not going home exhausted. I still have energy at the end of the day.
That is truly great lindellparlour, how you explore the power of observation. When we absorb situations we are in it costs us that much energy to keep up the shields of protection and for acting in ways that do not belong to us. I am sometimes really amazed by the power observation has. By being able to observe I can see what is truly at hand and from there I can call to stop the ill way and lead the situation into a truthful direction.
The next phase of my learning Nico, stop the ill way and lead the situation into a truthful direction. Gosh that sounds fantastic. Thank you for explaining how you work with the power of observation. ☺
Absolutely, the power of observation is life changing. It’s one of our innate super powers that heal as we walk the earth, with each footstep in observation we strengthen our awareness of life, its cycles and rhythms. We are open to respond to the call of the Universe.
Rachael I’m also becoming aware through observation that how I am in life affects others. If I’m not being responsible by eating sugar and feel tired from this poor food choice then I notice that the people around me also struggling with tiredness. It’s a ripple affect. Of course it also works in a positive way as well. If I’m totally connect to myself I start expressing love. This lifts the people around me and/or it can make them feel where they are at and this creates an opportunity for them to heal.
Building spaces in harmony or leaving their imprints of imposition and abuse over another one? The traits cannot be seen, but they make a difference for the people who will live, work, walk, etc. there. This is an important matter.
That is all to be considered Eduardo, and we will return to this level of integrity when we reconnect to who we truly are. The Pyramids show us that we human beings are able to build structures and buildings that do respect all of humanity and beyond.
I agree with you Chris, that lack of communication or the way that is communicated plays an important role in if companies are successful or not. And with successful I mean truly successful, where nobody is missed out, a healthy working environment where the people are important and truly met, a healthy financial situation, and healthy relationships with the customers.
In many professions it is the communication that is the Achilles heel… In some police forces it’s the trauma so much that causes stress and downtime, it is the communication with colleagues. In some medical industries in countries, it is the communication that is the fault line of complaints, communication is essential, and expression is everything, put them together and we have the possibility through being responsible in our communication to reconfigure business in general.
Complexity is such a killer of joy, unbelievable nearly if it weren’t true and happening every day out of the need for recognition and the pursuit of money.
Complexity is a killer indeed, and I have used complexity a lot in order to get recognised and being seen. But now I can see also that I used it to keep myself away from what was truly going on, that it was about the relationships I had with my colleagues and used the complexity to make myself special to avoid the relationships to become too intimate.
First we have to come to the honest confirmation that we are choosing to making this mess of our lives and work. Only then we can start working on the undoing of this ill way of living and start to build a new way, the way that brings integrity, decency and common sense back in our lives and in our workplaces.
Awesome Nico! The workplace is such a crazy mess of everyone trying to keep their head above water and in constant competition. We say we are a team, but so often we are in separation that it’s nearly impossible to be truly working together. There is definitely another way to work, and your example is brilliant!
Thank you Nico for sharing your story. This sentence stood out for me ”When I come from my essence, simply my voice and my body invite the other person to feel their own essence”. This is a wonderful reminder for me that when I am faced with challenges with others to simply be with me and to know that this is enough.
That easy it indeed actually is Caroline Francis. If we are not out for any result, recognition or reward but just can be ourselves and open for a true meeting of each other, is such a relief for the people we are with in a world where we are bombarded with all kinds of demands that are asking us to not be ourselves.
Nico, I find it revealing how much we try to manage others in order for them not to hurt us, not to interfere with us too much or, at least, to hurt us less. If we ever get the best out of others both them and us have an amazing, much more productive and fun time. We can do it today and some time in the future we will.
I agree Christoph, we can be far more productive and have fun time at work. We are so much more than we currently are living and in future we will all live this grander us and will have workplaces with true purpose for all of humanity and not only for ourselves as is the case nowadays.
Dear Nico, your article is great. I loved how you have unpicked an industry that I have previously perceived to be elite because it has been shrouded in technical know how, the sort of thing I don’t readily understand. What you reveal is an industry plagued by the same issues as every other workplace, things that look like greed, ego and unrealistic timeframes. You demonstrate another way of doing your job that enhances your experience and the experience of everyone you come into contact with, and the final outcomes for the project. Thank-you.
Thank you for bringing this in Monica. If we allow ourselves to see the bigger picture and acknowledge that we are all equal to each other, that we are designed to work and live with each other and are looking for ways to be with each other, then work is really a great playground for us to learn all of this. We are all interdependent and I know that the workplace is a great place to experience this. It is actually about people first and when the relationships and interactions are true and harmonious, the work at hand will be done in a fluent and efficient way, serving humanity in all its aspects and with the quality of love.
“If we allow ourselves to see the bigger picture and acknowledge that we are all equal to each other, that we are designed to work and live with each other and are looking for ways to be with each other, then work is really a great playground for us to learn all of this” – this is a true gem. Thank you, Nico.
I love this blog Nico, and the comments it’s inspired. There is so much here, but when we make it first and foremost about essence, meeting the other first, we create a platform and a space where all of us can look at how we work and how that can be harmonious for one and all. As others have noted, it starts with one being willing to be true, to speak what is felt and all of a sudden the space is there for all and we can collectively as a group find a way that engages all equally and in the needed time. To do this we often need to let go of false outer demands of schedules, times and budgets; we need to understand what clients want and be honest about what we can deliver and have all take responsibility for their part, contractor, client and staff – we are all equal partners. Work is really a play ground for us to learn to be us, to express the truth of our essence being together in a group; to ensure that what unfolds is truly of that essence in it’s quality; knowing that our quality, our essence will guarantee that quality, so each and every one of us taking that responsibility for us doing so, sends a ripple out there which changes everything, it shows the way.
That is the way to do it Fumiyo, take responsibility for our own emotions and express what we feel has to be addressed. To give expression in order to serve not only ourselves but the company where we work as a whole. If we hold back who else will do it? And if we hold back are we then not also contributing to the created situation that not only frustrates us but many more in the workplace?
I used to blame my colleague/boss/circumstances/profession for the frustration and resentment I was feeling at work – I used to feel trapped. What Serge Benhayon presents has supported me to develop self-responsibility, and this as a result has helped me to learn to take responsibility for my own emotions, and if there is a real issue I do not hold back from addressing and discuss with the others, to the best of my ability.
I am always amazed by what a difference one person can make in a workplace. When someone voices that there is an unrealistic budget or time frame there is most times a sigh of relief and agreement from others. Not everyone will pay for quality but many people when we feel integrity and quality from a craftsman very much appreciate and value it.
Intresting point you raise Fiona Lotherington about the quality and integrity we can feel from a craftsman, and I love this. It feels that because we have lost the connection with each other that we have also lost our connection with the value that someone brings through his work and what time is involved. We treat the works delivered by human beings the same as buying a product from the supermarket where in general people are looking for the cheapest product without considering the quality of it.
Yes Fiona and Nico, it is always great to express with honesty if the budget is unrealistic. As you said it does create space for everyone to do their job with much more integrity and quality.
Nico, it is awesome that you are making your work about people, honesty and harmony, rather than budgets, time restraints and solutions. Thank you for sharing what you have come to understand because this is relevant to everyone, no matter what their career.
Thank you Carmin Hall, it is so important to understand that life is about people first and not about the economic structure we have created in society in which we all can be caught in. We have to free ourselves from this ill understanding of life and change the way we live to a life dedicated to people and people only.
Yes Nico and Carmin, if we make work about people (clients, consumers, workers, contractors, and wholesalers, everyone) the budget and deadline is looked after.
Wow Nico if more people were to bring this level of honesty to their work there indeed would be more harmony and less frustration when projects don’t run to time. So beautiful that you take the time to find out what the requirements are so you truly understand what they want to achieve and whether that is in fact achievable on the budget they have.. This is a very much needed way of being.
We are with more people Judy Karen Young bringing this to the workplaces. We as the students of the livingness will bring all that we live to our workplaces where we will ground love and truth as the basic principles of where to work from. From there it will as a trickle effect slowly spread out to all workplaces in the world from where universal human integrity will be developed to be the basis for all the work that we will do.
Wow your awareness and observations from your work is wonderful to read Nico.” When I come from my essence, simply my voice and my body invite the other person to feel their own essence.” I loved this line because it really does show if, we share our true selves it can open up so much more for everyone around us. Now that is an amazing gift.
It truly is an amazing gift if we invite people we meet to feel their own essence as many have walked away from this and by doing so finally have forgotten about the the existence of their essence. Although there is a remnant feeling that there must be more to life, there is the tendency to look outside from ourselves for solutions instead of looking inside for what is already there.This shows me that people have no clue how to re-connect to their essence if there are no people around who live like this as an example. Therefore I am dedicated to live from my essence and bring this true way of living back into our communities to the benefit of all humanity.
How inspiring nvanhaastrecht, that you live in a way to model this for others, to show that even in a so called demanding and complicated profession like Engineering we can be our essence and it changes everything. It brings us back to the centre and we can work from there out. We are us first, and in showing others it can be done, they get inspired to do it too!
Very beautiful Nico that you share these simple facts. They are the answer to so many problems on workplaces and in the world actually. We are not connected to the truth and so expect and ask a lot of each other that can’t be realized or is way too complex.
What you say Benkt, we are not connected to the truth, or more honestly we must say that we have chosen to not be connect to the truth. And by doing so we keep this illusion alive by adding to the creation of chaos and complexity that is already all around in our workplaces and in our society. The only way to stop this creation is by choosing to reconnect to our inner heart and work from there, from what is needed for humanity in co-creation with the true purpose of us living here on earth.
I love what you write here, nvanhaastrecht, ‘The only way to stop this creation is by choosing to reconnect to our inner heart and work from there, from what is needed for humanity in co-creation with the true purpose of us living here on earth.’ It is a way of living and working that we can take out into the world into any workplace, any where.
Thank you Nico. We so often buckle under pressure at work for fear of being labelled a non-committed member or because with seek validation. As I learn to be more truthful with myself I now provide a fair assessment of the time needed to complete a task rather than push myself as in the past.
That is the way to go Patricia Darwish, we have to bring the truth of the reality back in our workplaces and reclaim our space for the tasks that are required to be performed by us.
Awesome Nico. honesty is the key to everything. Others find it refreshing in business dealings so it is a great observation you have made.
Thank you Emily Newman, honesty and integrity are two of the main ingredients for having true business dealings but also to build true businesses as well. As we realise that we are all connected to each other and become aware of the fact that everything we do has an effect on everybody we cannot choose anything else but honesty and integrity in everything that we do.
This is true. It’s easy to see how complication and drama is created when we don’t meet each other from our essence, and just want to deliver our agendas without considering another person, all to avoid getting hurt and exposing a really raw and sensitive person on the inside. What if we expressed to each other on this basis first? by the fact that we are all the same underneath, then we could build amazing things in harmony. I really enjoyed this blog thankyou 😀
Indeed Harry, we can build amazing things when we can live and work in harmony with each other. Just look at the pyramids of Gizeh that were being built by human beings thousands of years ago. We now cannot imagine that these perfectly built structures were built by human beings because we have lost our ability to live and work in harmony with each other. Even with all the technical marvels that we have now we are currently not able to build something equally to these with the perfection, dimensions and quality that are presented in these pyramids.
The building of the pyramids – what a wonderful example of what can be created when people are able to work together in harmony. As you say Nico, even today; “with all the technical marvels that we have now we are currently not able to build something equally to these with the perfection, dimensions and quality that are presented in these pyramids”. We gaze at them in awe and wonder why we can’t replicate them, but until we all learn to live and work in harmony, in true brotherhood, the answer will remain elusive.
It is crazy game we play, to see how we create our lives based on not getting hurt so we live in constant protection with the everyone we meet, not letting people in when in fact the thing we want the most is to connect and be met by others.
I fully agree Francisco, we are lets say designed to connect, live and work with each other in all aspects of life. So the question is why do we prevail our hurts above living our lives in full? Could it be that we consciously choose to live this reduced way of life because we have an investment to it, that we want to keep it as it is in order to build a comfortable life where we do not have to consider our responsibility for what we contribute to the societies we live in? It is indeed a crazy game we play.
So true Francisco, we could work differently in connection with ourselves and others and this in itself would start to bring a new quality in the workplace and seriously, miracles would start to happen!
Wow I can feel how awesome it would be to have a person like you Nico doing the job. The amazing opportunity the Employer has, to have someone with such professional integrity working for them, would be rare.
I completely agree with you Deidre Medbury, It is awesome for my employers to have me in their teams and working for them.
I love seeing you claim everything that you bring to it Nico… accepting how glorious you are rather than putting on a false humility. That in itself must be refreshing when you walk in the door!
So true cjames, we can bring who we are to any profession all the time, because it is us performing the profession and not the other way around.
Nico, in your writing you are bringing conscious presence and clarity into engineering, a profession which, for many people on a so called ‘spiritual path’, would say is the antithesis to an inner journey. But it is not, as we can bring who we are to almost any profession, and you are living proof of that . Thank you again.
I so agree cjames2012, we all can bring who we are to whatever we do. As Nico shows, it is making a conscious choice to connect to others, from our true essence and making our work not about meeting deadlines and schedules first, but about connecting to people. A great blog.
Great observations at the workplace Nico, you describe the reality of almost all workplaces I’ve ever come across displaying this disharmony and that, when we are not being who we truly are, there exists a tension and one which can so often lead to us quitting our job, industry or profession to escape feeling it. But is there any need to do this (quit) when we are, as you say in our ‘essence’ , in other words being the real-us, communicating and expressing as this. Then it wouldn’t really matter what job we did, because we’re being ourselves in it.
So true Zofia, when I am in my essence my work is really fun and it does not matter what job I do. The important thing is to build on my self appreciation and to not make it about me or getting the job done in a certain way, but about meeting people and to build relations with them.
Yes I agree Zofia, I have often felt that any job where I can be myself is the one where I will be the most happy. I have observed that conflict or tensions with others is the most common reason people don’t enjoy their work. What a wonderful world we will be in when we can look forward to work, knowing there is nothing to fear because we have all we need to deal with any situation we encounter. This is the future we are slowly and surely getting too, because our current situation is unsustainable and the misery that rules in most workplaces cannot continue to be unchallenged when people are living in that, daily.
Thank you Lynda Marinelli, for your appreciation of the quality I bring to my work in everything that I do and how I am with the people I work with. It is amazing to experience this joy and dedication that is so naturally there in everything I do and give expression to.
Nico you write with a strong dedication and clarity of your livingness. Thank you for sharing your joy.
Standing up and having a say is what I struggle to do in my work place in particular – it helps to realise I am not doing this to just help myself, it is the bigger picture that I need to see.
Thank you Christine for this reminder that we do not only stand up for ourselves but also for all people in the same situations. You show us the power we have and that it is our responsibility to bring everything that feels not right to us to the fore,
This is so true Adam, that we have lost the ability to connect to each other as human beings. But by knowing that, part of our work is to bring this back into the workplace, connect from human to human first since that is the most important and from there the workplace dynamics will change. As we are in true relation with each other we will not allow these atrocities in our workplaces anymore.
Nico, I completely agree with all that you have presented. So many issues at work are based on poor communication skills. So often we are left dealing with a scenario that is not achievable because no one was willing to call out what was not true from the beginning. Contractors undercut each other out of the fear of not having enough work. Clients serve to exploit this fear, pushing the boundaries of what is possible for no other reason than they can. I know this is not the case in all instances, but it is certainly quite common, and comes down to the simple fact that in the world of business it is about every man or woman for themselves, whether they are a C.E.O., or factory worker. We have lost the ability to connect to each other as human beings, and this is reflected in the work culture we have learnt to accept as normal.
Love what you have written Adam. I can see the other side of this and only because you called out the truth of it. If we all called out the truth of what was going on at work and communicated with each other we would actually be in the place of working together. When we work together everyone is honoured and the best comes out. Work would be fun – life would be different.
I loved how there was no division between you being in your essence and work. Really interesting to read how this has transformed how you are with colleagues, clients and projects in general. What you write about what we build up around our essence to avoid getting hurt was really helpful, and how this gets in the way of our truly meeting people.
It is so natural to have no division between working and non-working life and why should there be? Work is just an activity in my life completely equal to being with my family and friends, cleaning the house, washing the dishes and cooking for dinner to name a few.
Thank you chanly88, to connect with people first is the most important in all that we do not only for work but in everything we do. And as you say, I too am continuously refining and deepening this connection and am allowing myself to be more of myself every time. It is so freeing to the quality that lives in me and was for so long imprisoned waiting for me to let it out.
Thank you Nico, brilliant reminder for me to reflect how I conduct my work. The key for me is to connect with people first, be honest about the work and with the client and not to take on work from a point of neediness. Learning to continuously refine and adjust how I work to bring joy into it everyday and not to run on stressful energy but to be steady, realistic and honesty.
So very simply said chanly88. Be honest and make it about people and I have all the energy in the world – it just flows.
Ah Nico your insight into the world of engineering is a description of human interaction world wide ! We all limp along, licking and protecting our wounds, all being who we are not, which adds to our hurts because we get into more scrapes and scraps. These newly perceived wounds confirm the fact that we were doing the right thing to not be ourselves and there you have what we call life. Bring in Nico and those around him get triggered into remembering who they are underneath their protection. Their guard drops and they have a taste, however minute of another way of being. That way of being is wonderfully familiar because it is in truth where we are all from. This is our return path, our destiny is guaranteed x
While our destiny is guaranteed stewara5, by our choices we decide how our time will be until that moment. I have chosen to follow the path of my inner heart and will show this to everybody, if they are ready to appreciate it or not.
Thank you Nico for sharing your great insight into your most important work place. As you have said the technical detail is no problem, it is relationships that get in the way. What if clarity and harmony was our natural relationship with each other, then what have we chosen to take its place and why?
And this is exactly the point Paul. In my work people tend to dig themselves into the technical details and create complexities and misunderstanding by doing that, while on the other end they are just asking for being met in their essence and are longing for working together in that clarity and harmony as you describe. People try to avoid the intimacy this way of relating to each other is asking for since this intimacy asks them to become honest to themselves and become friends with the hurts that are driving them to continue this behaviour, the behaviour that withholds them from the intimacy in their relations they are actually craving for.
It’s inspiring to read how you have been able to bring joy into your work by connecting to yourself and to those around you. Expressing , as you do, from your inner essence will provide a beautiful reflection to those you work with. Thank you for sharing this Nico.
And it is so natural to do so Peter and beautiful to feel what it brings to all of us.
Thank you Nico and Peter, I agree, being natural or feeling natural is all that Serge Benhayon presents!
Humanity can only benefit from people like you Nico. Your willingness to come from your inner essence and meet others in their essence and to break down the complexities that your occupation can bring is an amazing way of serving.
Thank you Karen, breaking down the complexities is a great thing to do and it makes life so much fun because it allows to have true relationship compared to having relationships with the complexities people cary with them.
Nico while reading your blog I could feel the impact you could have in your workplace by living your truth, how this can cut out a lot of confusion and disharmony. The same goes for all aspects of our life, as does the important point of seeing people’s essence and not the protective wall they have built around them. This latter part becomes easier for me as I break down my own protective wall and allow others to see me.
So true Kim, we can only see through the protection people are carrying when we ourselves have discard our protection first. Otherwise our protection will withhold us from seeing this with others as that is where we have build these protections for, to protect ourselves for the hurt we experience when we meet people acting from their protections.
Thank you for sharing Nico. I used to freak out at the thought of engineering, I just thought it was so complicated. How you describe it here is so simple and I understand what you write.
Until we acknowledge that the engineering industry is there to serve our societies it can act as a disassociated modality that is only striving its own created complexities while these are not serving our societies at all. When we bring the engineering modality back to its true purpose, and that is to serve our society, it will land on the surface of our common understanding and will lose the myth of complicity that it has created by this disassociation.
It is very contenting to present oneself in and with integrity, as it honours oneself as well as everyone else equally. In that equality our essence is met. What greater joy there can be?!
Honouring and appreciating oneself is where it all starts from, that is the basis to change the way we interact with everyone we meet and have relations with. And indeed Alex, what a greater joy can there be than having relations in which we are equally met? I cannot imagine anything greater for now.
Yes Kristy, a lot of the busyness in our world will cease when we start to listen to each other and become honest about how we relate to each other and to ourselves.
Great blog Nico. It is inspiring to hear how you have found a way to bring joy back into your work by finding another way to be yourself and therefore your colleagues, clients and the way you approach your job. It is beautiful to read how an industry is enriched through your own personal expansion from connecting to who you truly are. Gorgeous.
In a way it is exactly where life is about, to live a life of joy in all it simplicity. We all have to opportunity to do this just by simply choose to connect with the joy inside ourselves and by letting go of the hurts we have in life that withholds us to have this joy all day. And if we do so, we cannot else than also bring this joy to our work places.
This was a great read as I have met so many over the years, me included, getting caught up with work issues that it has been my experience to shut off or down to not get caught out, instead of just listening and remembering to connect
Indeed Jaime, it is important to not get lost in your work, but see it as another area in your life where you give expression to your being. And the simple act of staying connected with yourself and the people around you, to observe and not to absorb makes such a difference how we can be at work.
Nico what struck me about your blog was when you talked about keeping things simple rather than creating complexity. In my experience I used to think complex was best. Things just could not be that simple. I am learning that actually the reverse is often true. Great that you are experiencing joy in your work. Not many people talk about work and joy in the same sentence.
That’s right Debra, not that many people do experience joy at work. For many people work is solving issues of all kinds with whoever the need an issue is with and they forget to feel that they are part of these issues to start with. From this pattern they do not allow themselves to feel that there is also joy in working together as a team, of truly meeting people instead of meeting a person that is an issue connected to. I have joy in my work every day, because I love meeting people and I love to bring simplicity to my work for everybody to benefit from so they also have the opportunity to experience having joy in work.
Awesome Debra Douglas, “Not many people talk about work and joy in the same sentence.” This is a huge epidemic! Working is a normal activity we all have to do. We earn a living. It exposes that we are not working together… no joy.
When I consider the whole merry-go-round of our actions and reactions, my mind boggles at the extent of the games we play to stay protected and shielded, when it could all be so easily solved if we stopped and honoured ourselves and each other.
So true Jinya, we have to build new businesses based on truth and basic principles such as respect and personal integrity to show the world that there is another way.
Yes Nico “we have to build new businesses based on truth and basic principles such as respect and personal integrity to show the world that there is another way.” So simple make it about people. I made it about people with the last few jobs I had. At one job everything I did was logged and reported on monthly. The numbers looked as though I was less than my colleagues. The fact was the quality of service could not be measured by their reporting and never could be measured. The way I felt and the way I made my customers feel was how I measured customer service.
This is great Nico – we need this slowly implemented back into the business world because it’s the only thing that will work. All the other things might appear to be working but just wait until things start to shake a bit – what is not built on a proper foundation will crumble and fall.
Indeed Matts, until the moment we as a society are ready to accept that our ill pursuit to improve the world does not sustain, the ill ways of working together will continue to be explored and also will continue to show us that it actually does not work and falls apart. We need to implement the basic fundamentals as personal integrity and the human factor back into our work processes as the foundation for true and supporting businesses.
Working in an environment where personal integrity and the human factor were at the foundation would be fabulous. To start, its something we can all implement ourselves in the way that we work.
That’s right to change the workplace, and the world we live in, is to deeply honor our truth in any given moment.
I agree Tony, when we allow ourselves to accept that we are designed to work together as teams and when we are ready to not let our personal issues interfere, we will be amazed about what we capable of.
“we bring in complexity because we are disconnected from ourselves and from humanity, and therefore look only to the latest technical marvels available, searching for a way to impose them onto humanity (this is the complexity), thinking that we are improving the world and doing good.” This part really stands out for me. Everyone is so busy pressing the buttons on the latest technical gadget that they forget to look up and meet the people around them.
Yes Mary, it is about meeting the people around us. We love our gadgets to hide in. Just look around in public transport for instance, how many people are completely attached to their smartphone, tablet or laptop, so they do not have to connect with the people around them.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we all start to “meet each other in essence”? Fantastic to learn that you are meeting your fellow colleagues in your essence in simple, non-imposing ways.
I fully agree with you Ryoko, it will be wonderful to meet each other in essence and not from any imposition. And it is already happening all around where we are. We are the ones that can bring this to society as our way of living.
Nico, this is so much here about how we work, and the work systems and environments. I too work in an engineering environment (software), and notice the biggest issues are never really the technology per say but how it’s applied (often overly complexly) or mis-applied and how true relationships are not built with clients, this is something I’m learning to be with and see my part in it, and how I in how I meet each and every one of my clients can change things. It’s also changed how I view work, I’m so much more playful and I just love being in work and around my colleagues, which is huge turnaround from the stress and pressure I’ve felt in the past. Thank you for sharing your awesome observations.
So true Monicag2, I notice the difference how work flows for me compared to my work colleague who have been on this site for 20 years. Give it your all to servicing your customers and there is abundant of energy and the job gets done on all levels. Life feeds you back when you make it about people.
Great observations Nico and what a difference you are making with your work colleagues and projects.
You make a great point Nico that often it is the personal interaction and personality stuff that play out in teams and groups, that are often the most challenging. “From deep within we know that we are all the same and we crave being met for who we truly are” – I have found also that it makes such a difference to be in a group where people are not primarily protecting themselves from feeling the hurt of not being met for who they truly are. It’s lovely to read what you now bring to your client meetings and the way you are with them – they feel met and this makes a difference to their experience and that of everyone else who is part of that project.
Great article Nico. You show so clearly that even in industry it is all about people. When we all connect to our essence anything and everything is possible.
This is lovely Nico and I can feel the grace and understanding that you bring to your workplace. This is what I have found is needed too – with more compassion and understanding when communicating and interacting with anyone at work whether that be service users, customers, colleagues, managers and contractors. In the end the way people are treated surely has to come before any systems, procedures and policies.
Thank you for sharing a way in which anyone can apply within their workplace. It all starts with being with ourselves and then that connection can be shared with another. Just as I am learning how my body needs connection to understand how to best support it by connecting with another in the same way we can learn to understand how to better support another rather than assuming what needs to be done. Often the assuming, like you have said, can be coloured by needs, expectations or ideals.
Hi Nico. The thing I felt most strongly from this was your integrity and honesty – bringing these qualities into your dealings with your clients and the communication which you choose to have with them. With these three items high on the agenda any company would improve in many ways for both staff and client.
Great insights Nico, it’s really about relationships and people first, and not systems and many get lost in those systems and their complexity. I feel the simplicity offered in your approach and it is very inspiring, thank you.
‘The most beautiful thing is that we can change these patterns by being present and trusting that our feelings are true.’ This is so inspiring Nico and I can really relate although I work in a completely different field, mental health support. Working as a team whether it is with colleagues or in establishing a relationship with a new client keeping it simple and having a true connection are key. Thank you for your lovely reflections.
Imagine if this went into your company’s work manual together with all the other important technical bits and bobs, etc! Imagine if it got adopted by other work places!
Is it possible that you are showing us here another way – an approach that has a huge potential to bring simplicity back to complexity. Could it be that if this was accepted, lived and practiced in work environments, everyone would benefit and there would be no ‘losers’?
If I were to work in a company now I would seriously take parts of your blog (with your permission of course) and incorporate them into the staff manual. This is priceless Nico! So if you hear from me in the future – it’ll be your consent I’d be after. 😉
Indeed Dragana, this would be great if these principles would be described in company’s work manuals and you have my consent to use them. They would support all of us to learn to live to these principles in our daily lives and at work and that is exactly what is needed in order to sustain the activity of these principles in everything that we do. So lets start to introduce these principles and way of living to everywhere we work and inspire the people we interact with.
Thank you Nico for sharing these observations, they really support me to see how we as human beings tend to interact with each other without allowing ourselves to just be and open our hearts to other people – and enjoy each other!
Nico, what you have presented is so familiar to me. Most of my career has been in large corporate organisations, working on projects and managing the change that goes along with implementing complex technical projects. But my experience mirrors yours completely, the complexity comes from the people interactions. Your article almost bought tears to my eyes with how beautifully you described the interactions I too am faced with daily. So thank you, really bought focus and a renewed commitment to what i can bring to my work environment.
Thanks, although we work in completely different industries, I can completely related to your expression of your workplace – the human factor is the same. You beautifully named how we are with each other and how we can truly be and the joy found in that. INSPIRING!
Nico, you are an inspiration. It’s great you have put joy back into the job. Fifteen years ago I was struggling with a lot of the same issues you describe with delivering software projects. If only I had known then what I know now!
I agree Doug, Nico brings in what we are all asking for, even if we know it or not, and that is humaneness. No one wants to be a robot at work just doing what needs to be done.
I think we need to have more people saying no to the old way, and a big dose of playfulness so we can really look forward to going to work instead of looking in the calender for vacation time.
Hi Nico, I really enjoyed reading your blog and I can certainly relate to everything to you saying. I work in a hospital and therefore with a large team of people. It is pretty much the same as you described working with your team of engineers. Like you I have found that just being myself, really letting myself be with people and meeting them for who they truly are as a person and not just the job they do makes an enormous difference to them and me. I have found that if I make life about people then whatever project I am doing within that works.
Beautifully said Elizabeth, I have to agree with you, and Nico, you inspire with the way you write, I can feel your steadiness and ability to see what is needed at work
This is great… I can so relate to what you are saying “being present and trusting that our feelings are true” and how things can get so complex in working with people sometimes… I am in a business with my family and all sorts of things come to the table in all sorts of guises that really “shouldn’t” be there and I too am seeing the changes in how we are dealing with things.
Thanks, it felt empowering to read your article and when English is not your first language too… inspiring.
Thank you for sharing your observations at work, it is great you have re-found joy, it feels like you bring much love to the field of engineering.
What is so amazing with your post Nico is the beautiful, calm and gentle energy with which you describe your observations and experiences. How fabulous that this is the energy you are able take to your work, your colleagues and your clients every day. You demonstrate how by choosing to truly meet others, what we can offer humanity as a whole increases a thousand fold. Thank you for your loving simplicity.
Yes Rowena, Nico shared his experience with such grace. What a blessing it is, the care and love Nico is taking into his role. A true role model makes it about people and leads by example for all in equality. Go to the top Nico it is where a man like you needs to be.
Thanks Nico, this is amazing! Knowing you as the truly gentle man you are and seeing you work in this industry gives me strength and the knowing that if we follow your advice we actually will be able to one day build something like the pyramids again. This makes me cry – sooo much love.
Hi Nico – My own field of work is totally different from yours – public service management – and yet your observations are so relevant to my own experience of working with others in my workplace…. thank you for your share – so true!
Thank you Nico for shedding light on what goes on in the engineering, construction world. This shows how by just being yourself in your essence can and does make a difference, interaction by interaction, no matter where you are or what you are doing.
Thank you Nico. While some work environments may appear to be harder than others – to implement the ground shaking change you describe here – the reality is that it can be done… and it can be done in all working environments. Thank you for identifying it so clearly so the rest of us can start to bring it into our work place. In appreciation for your journey… and for your willingness to share what you are learning.
Nico, I can feel strongly your wisdom at work in what you describe here. It is a blueprint for all our interactions, especially in the workplace. You have enriched us all with this article. Thank you.
Nico, this is a truly amazing blog! It has so touched my heart with its truth and with its heart-felt, body-felt, observation of how the thing that really matters is simply the energy we choose to operate in. You clearly describe how the energy we choose filters down through every meeting, decision, and practicality of the project at hand, so that, if we choose to be in our essence, the whole project will have its touchstone in divinity (or not!).
I felt the depth of your words: “When I come from my essence, simply my voice and my body invite the other person to feel their essence”. If the engineer (or whatever profession) is in their essence, the client will feel the connection (and love) from the conception of the project – the engineer will truthfully present the possibilities and realities of what he or she can offer, and all the complication caused by the stress of misunderstanding, or the sliding over the actualities of time frames etc. can be minimized if not eliminated.
You have so beautifully demonstrated that it is first all about people and the quality in which we operate and then the practicalities simply need to be dealt with. As you said,”The technical part, thus far in my career, has never been the difficult part for me”.
A project that you, in your essence, are involved in could never end up in the disaster that happened, for example, in the Japanese nuclear plant in recent times. Thanks for your amazing, inspiring blog.
Nico, this is one of the most powerful articles on our expression, that I’ve ever had the fortune to read. Thank-you. With clear common sense, you have named the major factors that hold us back (our fear of being hurt), and also shown how it is possible to bring true awareness and communication to any workplace. I rejoice with you, that you have re-found your joy, even in the most difficult of circumstances. What a blessing you are to your workplace.
Absolutely Ariana.
Re-reading this blog today, I am touched even more deeply by Nico’s commitment in the industry in which he works. My husband works in commercial building, and so I have some idea of the ridiculous pressure of unreal deadlines, and the frequently combative and defensive communication that can occur in the workplace, between engineers, managers, contractors, clients… If we harden up in such an environment, it can most surely ‘spill’ into home and family life also.
Well done Nico in bringing such forthright yet tender honesty to your communications, such a level of self-responsibility is most surely needed.
Strong point Mary. People are looking for someone who is consistent. My experience is if you are not acknowledged or there is jealousy towards you, at the end of the day we all feel it and know who that person is. If things get desperate and you’re living that consistency people know where to go. That’s why it is so important to never stop bringing it !!
Very practical and descriptive of what living esoterically is on an every day sense. Thank you for living this Nico and sharing with us what it looks like in such an industry, and that it can fit in anywhere!