Attention Creative Leaders in Durham Region!
Do you have your tickets to see Robin Sharma at the Durham Tourism Summit? Tickets are $30 +HST and includes a Sharma’s new book (compliments of Dagmar Resort) For info visit www.artoftransition.ca
Check out this article that just appeared in the Toronto Star….
Sharma shows the way; Novel maps out road to happiness Toronto Star Nov. 5, By: Paul Irish
Author Robin Sharma is the first to admit that some of the advice he gives in his novel/self help books could be considered cliché by some.
Rising to fame in 1998 with the release of The Monk Who sold his Ferrari, the Richmond Hill resident warns of the utter futility of “keeping up with the Joneses” or the sad irony of “ending up as the richest person in the graveyard.”
But he stands behind the adages as a path to freedom and so do most of the six million people who have read his dozen works, seven of which are international bestsellers.
He is one of the most widely read authors in the world and his latest release – The Secret Letters of theMonk Who Sold His Ferrari (Harper Collins $30) – will likely keep him at the top.
In the original work Sharma, 47, introduced the now-famous character Julian Mantle, a successful but misguided lawyer whose physical and emotional collapse propels him to confront his life.
After suffering a heart attack in a courtroom he renounces his worldly trappings and embarks on soul-awakening journey to the east where he meets the Great Sages of Sivana who offer enlightenment.
The result – for the reader – is an engaging odyssey on how to release one’s potential and live with passion, purpose and peace.
The follow up, the just-released Secret Letters of the Monk Who Sold His Ferrari, is just as intriguing and powerful.
Mantle falls ill (again) and sends his nephew, Jonathan Landry, on an international journey to retrieve Mantle’s letters and other reflectionson what he has learned on life.
The voyage moves from the Bosphorous River in Turkey to a remote fishing community in India to the catacombs of Paris revealing a series of life-changing lessons meant to help readers reconnect with what matters most in work and life.
“A lot of us don’t realize what’s most important until the last hour of the last day,” Sharma said in an interview. “Most people miss out on the life they should have had and could have had.”
But what is the most important thing in life?
The answer, according to the Mantle character (and, of course Sharma himself) is: “to find out what you truly love to do and then direct all your energy towards doing it. Once you do this, abundance flows into your life and all your desires are filled with ease and grace.”
Sharma says relationship building (family, friends, office colleagues, even people you meet on the GO train) is a close second.
His third premise on a fulfilling life is: (yes, we’ve all heard it before but he insists that it works): stop comparing your life to the life of your neighbour.
To be sure, Sharma is no Pollyanna and realizes bold changes can be difficult.
He knows most people live in a comfort zone as he did at one point in his life and he understands why, it’s safe. And he also understands it’s hard to start a new direction once you begin a journey – but he insists if it’s sad and unfulfilling, it’s time to stop.
“Change takes courage,” he says. “If you’re not scared often, you’re not making much progress.”
A former litigation lawyer who became disgruntled with his job, its long hours and his sense of emptiness, Sharma turned to self help literature – loved it – and decided to share a synthesis of what he learned.
As well as being an author, he’s also the CEO of Sharma Leadership International., a success-coaching and training firm with clients such as FedEx, IBM, Microsoft, GM, Nike and Panasonic.
He says the world has entered a period where technology has become the master of man instead of the other way around.
He stresses he’s not a Luddite – he’s a strong believer in the Internet and the rest of the digital world – but warns we shouldn’t become hypnotized by our glowing computer screens.
The father of a teenaged son and daughter who have BlackBerrys, Sharma makes sure the pair read at least an hour of literature a night and has them active in sports and other non-electronic activities.
Most importantly, he’s making sure they develop strong ties with family and friends.
“A lot of people – including mothers, father, sisters and brothers – are losing the ability to relate to one another,” he says. “We have to relearn how to connect.”
Kerri King Manager, Tourism
Planning and Economic Development Department Regional Municipality of Durham 605 Rossland Road East, PO Box 623 Whitby ON L1N 6A3
Phone: 905-668-4113 ext. 2606 Toll Free: 1-800-413-0017 ext. 2606 Fax: 905-666-6228
http://www.durhamtourism.ca
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