Living a Life of Prosperity: Inside and Out

What is prosperity? According to Webster’s dictionary prosperity is the condition of being successful or thriving; or economic well-being.

Shakti Gawain, author of Creating True Prosperity describes prosperity as the “experience of having plenty of what we truly need and want in life, material and otherwise.” According to Ellen Peterson, author of Choosing Joy, Creating Abundance “prosperity is not what you have or how much you make; it’s actually how you think.” While Maria Nemeth, author of The Energy of Money says “Prosperity comes when you participate fully in every aspect of your life. It’s state of growth.”

Many people define prosperity as their career or position at work, education or degrees they’ve earned, where they live, cars they drive, schools their children attend, vacations they take, and even clothes and accessories they wear.

My definition of prosperity “living the life I love without worrying about financial constraints and having a happiness in my heart and spirit.” My life of prosperity began in August 2002 when I took early retirement from my public relations job with Social Security Administration.

 But, I almost missed my opportunity because I wasn’t taking the time to get quiet and I wasn’t listening to my whispers. In June 2003 I attended Oprah’s Live Your Best Life Tour. Oprah says, Life speaks to you. First in whispers—your intuition. If you’re not paying attendion it’s gets a little louder, a tap on your shoulder. If you’re still not paying attention to get hit in the head with a brick. Still ignoring life speaking to you, a brick walls fall on you. And it you’re still not paying attention or listening, the earthquake hits.

It took an earthquake to make me listen. I wasn’t satisfied or happy with my job. It no longer felt like a career, it was just a way to make a living. It was the very best job I’d ever had, but like everything else in life, it changed. For almost a year I went to work unsatisfied and in search of something—something to satisfy me or make me happy. The problem? I wasn’t listening to my whispers. Not until March 2002 when I had what I call “my meltdown,” did I finally stop to listen. I took three weeks off from work and spent quiet time at home. It was amazing how quickly I heard my whispers once I took the time to spend by myself and get quiet. I read a quote that spoke to me and changed my life, “Our purpose in life is to find our gift, perfect it and give it back to others.” It was my Aha moment.