Focusing on Business
Greetings!
With the holidays approaching all too rapidly, and an economy that is less than solid, it's time to focus in on Feng Shui for Business. It's not just massage therapists and crystal shops that benefit. My practice has dealt with insurance offices, purveyors of ATM machines, retail stores - a wide variety. And, because each and every one of them saw positive results, consider if you might give your business that extra boost for this holiday season. No push here . . . just a gentle nudge. After all, the bottom line is - does it increase customers and profits? You decide.
always at your service,
Sugeet
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Costco's take on Feng Shui 
The Canadian Edition of The Costco Connection from August of '05 carried an article entitled "Good vibes, good business." Rather than reproducing the entire article (which includes an introduction you already know) I want to share the meat.
"By introducing feng shui into your place of business, it is believed you can optimize a positive energy flow while minimizing the negative. This translates into a more pleasant, efficient and comfortable place in which to work, along with a happier staff, less stress and increased business volume.
""In a nutshell, feng shui helps us arrange our environments to enhance our lives," says Costco member Peter Manjuck of Circle of Life Feng Shui, a California based consultancy. "By introducing positive energy into your business, you can increase the harmony, happiness and prosperity for all who work there."
"The nice thing about feng shui is that it doesn't necessarily involved expensive or extensive renovations or changes to your environment. Changes, or "fixes" as they're called, can be as simple as the introduction of a tabletop fountain, fan, mirror, fish tank or live plants.
""I often recommend the use of a bagua mirror to clients," says Manjuck, co-author of Feng Shui for Success-An Essential Guide for the Workplace. "you can buy them at just about any Chinese gift shop for under $10. They're octagonal in shape and have the I Ching markings around the outside. The bagua mirror is a tremendously effective tool in redirecting negative energy back to its origins."
"Feng shui consultants suggest changes tailored to your work or home environment. "We're like doctors," says Marie-France Dayan of Feng Shui Dynamics in Montreal. "We give prescriptions. It's up to the patient to take the remedies and follow directions as given."
"Dayan says one business that followed her recommendations saw its sale increase 70 percent over the course of a year. Nor bad for a process cost the business owner $300 for the consultation and $300 for the fixes - which included landscaping at the store's entrance and the precise placement of Chinese-style ornamentations such as jade elephants, water-immersed bamboo and silver coins within the store.
"Another business owner changed her furnishings from white (which represents death in feng shui) to black wrought iron - said to be auspicious. She also neatly packed away all her clutter out of sight. The results were a significant increase in sales and a dramatic decrease in stress.
"During my own recent consultation, in which the focus was to try to increase sales, recommendations included placing a small bowl of water and a turtle (not a real one!) on the bureau by my desk. These changes were easily done, and since that time I have enjoyed a 50% increase in my monthly sales following a four-month slump.
"How much of that good fortune is a results of the feng shui fixes? Who knows? But one things is indisputable: The feng shui recommendations certainly didn't hurt, and they cost me very little effort or money to install."
Doreen Pendgrass is a freelance writer who avoids clutter and never sits with her back to the door."
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Commentary
The improvements noted in the article come from different consultants, different businesses in different countries - neither country in the East. The results were the same. Both consultants tend to use cures ('fixes') involving physical objects taken from the Chinese tradition. I've found it is possible to effect just as powerful cures without the extensive use of the usual fans, chimes etc.. At the same time, sometimes a little oriental influence is a good thing.
The article features of picture of a "lucky bamboo." Those who read my column, Ask the Feng Shui Guy, in Flowstone News know that this is not bamboo at all - rather it is Dracaena sanderiana, a species native to Cameroon. It is not related to bamboo, and is toxic to pets. Further, the pointed leaves give off sha chi or bad chi and should not be used where the flow of energy is important. It is a pretty novelty and can be use to introduce the wood element and the color green, but "lucky bamboo" is a marvelous marketing gimmick with no real potency in Feng Shui.
Water features, on the other hand, are potent when used correctly. Other than table top fountains, it's best to have a consultant design and align water features for a business or home as it can be either very beneficial or detrimental to the site. Homes with a stream running next to or through the property need special attention.
One reason for the name Creative Visions Feng Shui is my goal of recommending the most potent solutions embodied in the most aesthetically pleasing way. If it's not beautiful, I don't want it used. Beauty is inherent in good Feng Shui and powerful in itself.
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Next Month . . .
Feng Shui or Snake Oil - EXPOSED!
OK, so I've been going on about using Feng Shui in Business and how effective it is - but there will always be snake oil salesmen. I believe I've turned one up and you'll hear all about how a major manufacturer got taken by a slick Feng Shui somebody. In my book, it's pretty amusing if not downright silly.
I feel one of my responsibilities is to educate and then to take the mystery out of this ancient and effective tool for personal and professional use. Part of that is to invite your comments and questions.
<sugeet@FengShuiCV.com>
As appropriate, I'll be glad to answer them, although I usually leave that to the Flowstone column.
And as a last favor, don't you have a neighbor, business associate or friend who might find this newsletter helpful? If you do, please don't let me stop you from forwarding this on to them. Simple as a click here. If they like it, they can subscribe, and otherwise, you've given them a bit of lightness as the days grow shorter.
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