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| Feng Shui For Shop |
Have you ever wondered why people do that? Festive seasons - no matter how much of a scrooge you are or how low your finances - are happy and auspicious occasions. And you celebrate that by adding new objects, furniture pieces, attire, and repairing or replacing what is broken or no longer working.
You bring in new energy when you clean, arrange, or get rid of old stuff... Yang energy breathes new life into any space which may have become stale. But do not limit your revitalization to pre-festive periods. You should actually do so all year round to ensure your feng shui always stays fresh and vibrant.
"You will never have good energy if you are lazy!" Cut the grass, prune the trees, dust and wipe the surface areas in your home and office. Get rid of chipped crockery, throw away faded or unwanted clothes, and repair anything that is broken. Good feng shui is not only about correction; it is also about working about good maintenance.
It is for this reason that during the crazy period before any festivities, retail shops organize events to draw the crowds. It is important to keep your merchandise 'alive'! Keep moving your displays and clean or polish them regularly. There is nothing worse than a tired shop with fused lighting, dusty displays or broken equipment. The busiest stores are those always changing their goods, themes and displays. There should be lively music, nice smells and well-trained staff.
Back in my days, there was a time when sales in my shop were down. I installed Christmas lights all over my ceiling. They not only brightened my store, their constant blinking created lively chi and drew customers in to browse; and when they browsed, they bought. The important thing is they came in. If customers won't even enter your shop, you don't stand a chance!
Whatever action you take always brings a reaction. If the carpets are looking worn, change them! Do not fall into the trap that when income is slow you need to conserve; in fact, that is precisely the time to invest some money to change the energy of your shop or business. Paint the walls, clean the cash register, change the music and bring in new stock. Never be of the notion that you need to sell off existing products before you restock on new stuff.
You can do the same for your home. In the course of my consultation work, I have been to some homes of clients who complained of cashflow problems. One client complained of bad business and unhappy offspring who were not performing. Things were so bad he had had two vehicle accidents in one year that left him unable to work for six months! There were no poison arrows aimed at his home, but the single storey house was dank and dark. Very little sunlight could enter because the huge trees in front blocked off all the light. Each wall had a different color and they were all in shades that made his home dull, mismatched and very yin. The walls were also very messy as his youngest son had doodled all over the house! Furniture was sparse, dirty and unkempt. Even the beds were unmade daily.
His older children were discarding unwanted paper by simply crushing and littering the floors. His wife was nagging all day, creating inauspicious energy daily. Even before I started to analyze the flying stars, I suggested he prune the trees to let in the light, but his reply was that he liked the shade the trees created, as they made his home cool from the scorching Malaysian sun! How was I to teach him how to better his feng shui when he wasn't prepared to listen?
A home must be yang and not yin. Yin places are for resting. Cemeteries are yin. Bedrooms are yin. Hospitals and police stations are yin. Get the gist? Even if I do not elaborate on the analysis of his home, I am sure you know what had to be done. The stale energy in his home had a dominoes-effect on the energy of his family. Everyone was going down in every way. This is just one example of how important energy is for the success of your family.
Recently, at our store, we did our new year spring cleaning and rearranged all our displays. We cleansed our space with incense and hung red paper Dragons on the ceilings - 9 Dragons chasing 'pearls'. We changed all light bulbs that were fused, as good lighting is crucial for good energy, especially in a year that lacks Fire energy! We played loud music and told our staff to groove and move with the music! The lively music also put our customers in a fabulously festive mood!
We added a great big wealth aquarium at the entrance and a humongous wealth vase filled to the brim with ingots, crystals, coins and money between our cash machines! We wrapped a string of blinking red festive lights around a crystal tree and placed it on our cash counter to keep the chi moving! We filled a basket with golden garlic and gold bars, topped it with a golden ship sailing into our store.
I have seen another smart retail store do something similar. They bought some kind of disco lights and aimed them at their ceiling near the entrance to their store. The lights when switched on shone half inside and half outside the store. The small lighting device had thousands of tiny multi-coloured mini strobe lights that moved in circles all day and all night. This brought them a continual stream of customers into their chain of stores!
You can apply the examples here in all kinds of ways for your own homes and businesses! Just remember that you have to constantly change to have good feng shui. Your mind must be positive, creative and receptive. You must first want to be better, then you must think hard of what you want to do, and lastly, welcome change with open arms!
This is my formula to success. Never be lazy when it comes to maintaining your feng shui! Keep on revitalising, repairing, reviewing and rearranging. And always make sure you oversee what is being done. It is even better if you do some of the maintenance personally, especially if the home or business belongs to you. There is nothing like being hands-on, for it breathes life into what you do. To find out more, you can check out Feng Shui For Shop.