Q&A Sunday: Closet in the Career Area

Photo by chuttersnap on Unsplash

Photo by chuttersnap on Unsplash

Hi Anjie! I noticed that my closet is in the career area of my bedroom, and I’m wondering what that means. I do feel a little stuck in my career and am not sure what to do next, so I would like to know if that’s related.

Thanks so much for your question! Closets can be very interesting areas to look at from a feng shui perspective. Feng shui encourages us to peek in dark closets and corners of our homes and begin shifting the energy there. The area of the bagua map where a closet is can also tell us a lot, so a closet in Kan, also known as the career area, could very well give you clues about what is going on in your career.

I would encourage you to take a look at your closet and see what is going on inside. If you haven’t been using your closet, this could mean there are some issues you are not acknowledging. Sometimes closets that we ignore can represent areas of our lives that we don’t want to look at. If this is the case for your closet, maybe there is a career path that you haven’t seen yet. Are you open to seeing a new, different direction in your career?

Often closets can be magnets for clutter as well. If your closet is cluttered, you may be blocking new career opportunities. A closet full of clothes you haven’t worn in years is a source of stale, stuck energy. By going through your closet, you can shift the energy and welcome vibrant, life-affirming qi. 

A full closet could also mean that you are keeping yourself too busy to welcome new opportunities. If your closet, home, or schedule is too full, you have no room for anything new. This is true both literally and metaphorically. If you let go of some of the items in your closet and create a vacuum, the universe can fill it with something fresh and exciting. By letting go of old items, you are also encouraging your heart and mind to let go of old behaviors and beliefs that are no longer serving you. Go through the items in your closet and donate anything you haven’t worn in the last year or two. Even things that are no longer in good condition can often be recycled. 

As you start to clear out and shift the energy in the career area of your home, you may find that you have more clarity on what to do next in your career. I would also highly suggest working one-on-one with a feng shui practitioner, because they will be able to help you dig more deeply and give personalized recommendations based on your unique situation. 

by Anjie Cho

Thanks for reading our "Q&A Sunday".  We will be answering questions submitted by our readers. Click here to submit any Feng Shui questions!

If you’d like to learn more about feng shui, check out Mindful Design Feng Shui School at: www.mindfuldesignschool.com

Lonely Rooms

Photo by Nolan Issac on Unsplash

Photo by Nolan Issac on Unsplash

The practice of feng shui is connected to how we move through our homes. Feng shui translates to “wind and water”; think about how each of those elements flows through a space. How do you connect with the spaces in your home? 

Good places to look at are any areas that are lonely or neglected. For example, my closet has been pretty lonely lately, since I’ve been spending so much more time at home and not wearing as many of my clothes. Clothing represents how we show up in the world, so that’s something to reflect on if you also have a lonely closet: how are you showing up in the world right now? To find another layer of meaning, I can look at what area of the bagua my closet is in, and reflect on what is going on in that area of my life.

Once you’ve identified a lonely room or an area of your home that’s been neglected, notice what’s happening there. Is there dust accumulating? Are you tossing stuff randomly and using it as storage? Try personifying that area and thinking about how that room might feel given how you are treating it. You can start by recognizing that and apologizing. Also, notice if it symbolizes anything in your life. It may not be symbolic, but it’s something to look at and be curious about. 

This idea also extends to the people in your life. Especially right now, a lot of people are feeling lonely. Even as an introvert, after months without contact, I’m starting to miss people! Think about who in your life may be lonely, and how you can connect with them. You may not necessarily need to apologize to them for not being in touch, but you can offer them some attention. By connecting with someone else, you’ll also receive something in return.

Even though we each have our own little bubbles of energy, we’re actually all interconnected. When you start to acknowledge and care for the lonely rooms in your home, the lonely people in your life, or the lonely aspects of yourself, the insight and joy that comes from that experience radiates. For example, if you start to pay attention to a lonely room, that joy starts to permeate the rest of your house. Then it starts to permeate your heart, and then the people in your life, and beyond. When we make a change, we don’t just affect the lives of people we know; we can also profoundly change the world.

Start with your home; that’s what feng shui is about. What can you do about the lonely rooms in your home? Notice how the energy you give to these rooms starts to resonate out to other areas of your life. 

by Anjie Cho

Thanks for reading our "Q&A Sunday".  We will be answering questions submitted by our readers. Click here to submit any Feng Shui questions!

If you’d like to learn more about feng shui, check out Mindful Design Feng Shui School at: www.mindfuldesignschool.com

Q&A Sunday: How to Set Better Boundaries

Photo by Duong Chung on Unsplash

Photo by Duong Chung on Unsplash

I have been feeling depleted and overwhelmed lately, and I think it has to do with not having strong enough boundaries. Do you have any suggestions to help with this?

Thanks for your question! Boundaries are something that a lot of people struggle with, myself included. In feng shui, boundaries are related to the earth element. Earth is about taking care of yourself while at the same time taking care of others, and being able to strike that balance. For people who tend to have too much earth, like myself, it can mean we put other people first and take care of others, often at our own expense. Earth is a heavy element, so this translates to a lot of weight and heaviness. 

One way of not honoring your boundaries is saying yes to something you don’t actually want to do. I’ve definitely experienced this before! When you say yes, but you actually mean no (or when you haven’t even thought it through fully), you’re offering without the correct balance of generosity. The other person probably doesn’t want what you are offering, because they can feel that energetically. Nobody wants to receive something from someone who’s overwhelmed and resentful. 

The biggest generosity we can offer ourselves is the gift of saying no, which creates space. Often we fill up our spaces—both our homes and our schedules—because there’s a fear of space. We’re afraid of what happens when we’re just left with ourselves.

Saying yes to everything also means you are letting everything in and depleting your energy. When I started getting aura readings, my healer told me that my energy field was very porous because I had poor boundaries and was letting too much in. 

I noticed this recently too - this spring, I was very sick and I received a lot of emails from people who needed things from me. I thought I was being clear by saying that I was sick and unable to help, but still I was getting so many requests from people. I realized that by even responding, I was being unclear. Sometimes nonresponse is the clearest way to respond. 

It’s important to be crystal clear with your boundaries. Take care of yourself, and listen to your needs. Sometimes, it means saying no. Sometimes it means not responding. You may even want to try saying no first, and then you can backtrack later and say yes if you change your mind, instead of the other way around. I hope that helps - let me know how it goes! 

by Anjie Cho

Thanks for reading our "Q&A Sunday".  We will be answering questions submitted by our readers. Click here to submit any Feng Shui questions!

If you’d like to learn more about feng shui, check out Mindful Design Feng Shui School at: www.mindfuldesignschool.com