Writing Sample

Fabulous Feng Shui

by Linda Woods

Business is at a standstill. Your love life is nonexistent. You forgot to balance your checkbook and, to make matters worse, you haven’t been feeling well. What to do? Call a Feng Shui consultant for advice.

Years ago, when I mentioned that word, (pronounced fung shway), most people would give me that far away glazed look that said: "Huh?"

Now, more and more people are discovering the magic of Feng Shui - an ancient Chinese art that helps people come into harmony with the energy in their environment. It enhances everything from your business, to your love life, to your checkbook to your health. All you have to do is follow simple guidelines. You’ll learn how to arrange your furniture, use colors and textures, hang certain artwork in strategic locations and use special “cures” in problem areas of your environment to enhance the flow of chi or energy.

Energy surrounds all things and is in a constant state of motion. Feng Shui practitioners believe that when we unblock this energy, we can change our current condition and improve our lives.

 There are five elements that are used to balance the energy (or chi) in a room: fire, earth, water, metal and wood. Feng Shui is about using the right elements in the right places. The bagua (a symbol shaped like an octagon) is the main reference diagram used in Feng Shui. It breaks down your living environment into the following areas:  health, career, fame, family, creativity, love & marriage, knowledge & helpful people.

For example, if you’re having health problems, the “health area” in your home (which you can locate by placing the baqua over a drawing of your house) may have bad vibs. You can change this by moving the litter box to a new location, or adding a bright lamp, wooden table, fresh cut flowers or your favorite family photos.

You could also hang a mirror over the table or choose artwork that includes the colors of all five elements for radiant health. Feng Shui (which means wind and water) helps you identify the problem areas in your environment and the solutions to enhance them, and thus enhance your life.

Retailers use it in their stores to attract hundreds of new customers, hotels use it in their lobbies to help their guests relax, and home builders use it to sell $600,000 houses that have been sitting empty for months.

According to an article in the New York Times, a company’s fortune improved immediately when the owners followed the advice of a Feng Shui consultant and positioned a couple of boulders outside the front doors of their 15,000-square-foot facility for protection. They also installed a water fountain near the boulders to attract positive energy, moved the office of the president to the “wealth quadrant” and kept a vice-president of design in the “creativity” sector. After the adjustments were made, sales picked up and employees were much happier. One of the sales managers even admitted that he found himself mysteriously drawn to the building on weekends.

A certified Feng Shui practitioner came to my home recently, walked through each room with a tape recorder and gave me advice on how to improve the “feel” of my space. She suggested that I move the living room sofa so that it faces the front door and increases the flow of energy to the rest of my house. The beams in my dining room had to be softened or removed, and I was told (if I wanted to slim down) to start using the front entrance to my home instead of the rear (via the kitchen, where my first thoughts would naturally be of food). I’ve also placed fiery red artwork and candles in my fame area, a bubbling fountain at my front door in my career area and crystals in my hallway to entice the chi energy to move more freely.

I’ve noticed a major difference since I’ve started using these principles. My house now has so much energy that some people feel it immediately when they walk through the front door.

Feng Shui can also be an effective tool for career enhancement: Just thirty minutes after hanging a perfectly framed picture of the Washington, DC water front on my career wall, I received a phone call for a job interview that I had been wanting for months. I couldn’t believe it.  But, just as the right painting, color or cure can bring the desired result; a powerful item in a specific area may also bring about sudden change:

Several years ago, I worked for a woman that I did not care for. She was narrowly focused and very unfriendly. I was not allowed to be creative or make suggestions for improvement. I was there to do a job and take directions.

I wanted to move the energy and find a new job, so I placed a powerful water scene (Niagara falls) on my cubicle wall. I knew that when I hung it in my work area, I would either be promoted or fired within a short period of time. Within one week of hanging that photo, I was out of there.  I still use this “Niagra Falls” photo today when I want to accelerate change in my life.

 You have to be careful, because the wrong item in the wrong place can definitely cause problems. Years ago, I found a colorful poster of this beautiful mermaid. She was reaching out of the ocean and embracing an eager young man who was seated on a rock. There was so much passion in that picture that I knew it would help me attract my own loving, passionate relationship. I framed the poster and positioned it on my relationship wall in my bedroom.

Within three weeks, a handsome young man came into my life. He was very passionate, but he turned out to be one of the worst relationships of my life. He had more energy than anyone I’d ever known. He was very much “alive” and “on” at all times. It was intoxicating to be with him. But, I soon learned that his energy was artificial and quite dangerous. He revealed that he was addicted to cocaine and (though I cared for him deeply) I could not have that problem in my life, so I ended the relationship. 

How could that piece of artwork, which was supposed to bring me passion and joy, lead to such a painful ending? I didn’t put two and two together until my friend (a fellow Feng Shui student) came by. He took one look at the picture and said: "No wonder, Linda! This represents impossible love: she's a fish and he's a man! What did you expect?"