The More We Become: Create Your Own Insights On How to Transform Your World and Our World

By Edward Liu

We have one life to live. What would it mean to create a life where we matter to others and they matter to us, with greater depth and meaning? Imagine if you can take your life to the next level in multiple areas and in the process make a positive difference with those around you! This is the premise of The More We Become. As we obtain greater happiness, clarity, and success in our lives, we increase our ability to lift ourselves and the people around us, making our world a better place.

In The More We Become, you will

• Discover the one thing you can work on that can positively affect you and all your relationships.
• Learn what you can focus on to expand your happiness. What are the pitfalls of the most common approach to finding personal fulfillment?
• Uncover how the Law of Attraction works in manifesting your dreams and goals.
• Take a journey with the author to explore how your inner silence can transform your outer life.
• Explore a new paradigm on wealth and giving that will not only help you find ways to increase your own wealth, but also make our world a better place.
• And Much More . . . What makes The More We Become different is that it pushes you to develop your own insights by building on the ideas in the book you find most impactful to your life. There is space on the side on each page (only on print book versions) to write your own thoughts and ideas. Each chapter has both guided and self-reflection questions, allowing you to take ownership of your own growth and take actions toward your dreams and goals.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Jan 6, 2020
• ISBN: 9781543980738

Book preview

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Praise for The More We Become

"The More We Become is practical, insightful, and inspirational! It sends a powerful message that as we increase our happiness, success, and wealth, we increase our capacity to give to others. The last chapter on wealth and giving is a must-read!"

Jon Gordon, Best Selling Author of The Power of Positive Leadership and The Energy Bus

"Edward Liu has poignantly captured the essence of happiness and a meaningful life in The More We Become. Through the use of storytelling and points of self-reflection, the reader is taken on a journey to realize their own power and purpose, so that they may create a better society around them. For those searching for a more balanced approach to life, where every day and every interaction creates positive energy, The More We Become is a must-read!"

Hetal Jani, Founding Director, SPEAK Mentorship - Developing Tomorrow’s Leaders

"In The More We Become, Edward Liu offers practical solutions for you to start empowering yourself and others no matter what stage of life you are in financially and professionally. Our most important act is to start making a positive impact in our communities by contributing our unique talents today. The More We Become inspires us to do so!"

Christine Li-Auyeung, Diversity Champion, Youth Mentor & COO, Elevoro - collaborating with global leaders to elevate human potential and drive positive change

"The More We Become is for us all. Mr. Liu pushes past the cliches associated with earning and giving, and lands the reader in a world where we are called to focus on the path and the promise we make to ourselves first. Never has the gap between the haves and the have-nots been so eloquently examined. I invite all to take this journey from meaning to purpose in life.

Dr. Sunil Pandya, MD, MBA, MHI Physician, Healthcare Strategist, and Serial Entrepreneur.

Copyright © 2019 by Edward Liu

Cover Design: Book Baby

Copy Editor : Cynthia Hacker

All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner without the express written permission of the publisher except for use of brief quotations in a book review.

The More We Become : Create Your Own Insights on How to Transform Your World and Our World by Edward Liu

Printed in the United States of America

First Printing, 2019

ISBN (Print): 978-1-54398-072-1

ISBN (eBook): 978-1-54398-073-8

Book Baby

7905 N. Crescent Blvd,

Pennsauken Township, NJ 08110

www.bookbaby.com

The greatest authentic prestige, honor, and privilege we can bestow upon ourselves is to develop and use our ability to elevate those around us. It says that we have become a person whose life is worth living because we matter to others and they matter to us.

—Edward Liu

Contents

Chapter 1 - From My Journey to Yours

Inspiration: The Starting Point

The Ripple Effect

What Can We Learn From Critics of Self-help Literature?

How Can You Make the Best Use of this Book?

The Essence and Overall Theme

Chapter 2 - Understanding Our Ego

The Nature of Ego

Image : Ego in Our Society Today

Your Core Essence

The Truth Behind the Façade and Image

Dealing With My Own Ego

The Cream Naturally Rises to the Top

We are meant to shine, as children do.

Going From Ego to Purpose

Letting Go of Our Ego for a Higher Purpose

Is Having an Ego Always a Bad Thing?

How Do We Move Forward with Our Understanding of Ego?

Chapter 3 - Happiness: Living with Love, Joy, and Spirit

From Ego to Spirit

Where We Spend Our Time

The Four Foci of Happiness

Why Strive to be Happy?

How Can We Cultivate and Expand Happiness in Our Lives?

The Three Responses (to undesirable challenges and situations)

The Power of Gratitude

Happiness as a Way of Life

Chapter 4 - The Power of Words and Thoughts

The Power of Word Associations

How Does the Law of Attraction Work?

Our Extended Selves and Our Universe

Sometimes Not Getting What We Want Is Better For Us

Making Good Use of Our Words and Thoughts

Using Our Thoughts to Empower Ourselves and Serve Others

Chapter 5 - The Journey of a Beginning Meditator

Exploring Meditation Together

The Journey Begins

The Intrigue and Power of Numbers

The Peace Village Experience

The Law of Karma

Seek and Ye Shall Find

Are We Our Thoughts?

Six Blissful Sessions with Sri Chinmoy

Meditation On My Own

The Effects on my Outer Reality

Chapter 6 - Transforming Our World: A Paradigm Shift In The Way We Look At Our Wealth and Giving

The Paradigm Shift

The Challenges of the Bottom Line Paradigm

Money Needs to Circulate

The State and Needs of Our World

Why We CARE

Why Should We Grow Our Money?

Examining How We Spend Our Money

Invest in Giving to Others

A New Paradigm for the Rich and Famous

How Can We Make Our World a Better Place?

Moving Forward

Embracing a Larger View of Who We Are

From The More We Become . . . To a Better World for Everyone

Let’s Continue the Conversation . . .

Bonus Chapter on Growth and Balance : Moving Towards Self-Actualization

Inspirational Books Mentioned in The More We Become

Notes

Acknowledgement

About the Author

Chapter 1

From My Journey to Yours

You drop a pebble in the pond, you get ripples.

— Bruce Lee

Desiderata

Go placidly amid the noise and haste

And remember what peace there may be in silence

As far as possible without surrender be on good terms with all persons

Speak your truth quickly and clearly; and listen to others, even the dull and the ignorant;

they too have their story

Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they are vexations to the spirit.

If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain and bitter; for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself

Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans,

Keep interested in your own career, however, humble;

It is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time

Exercise caution in your business affairs,

for the world is full of trickery.

But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;

many persons strive for high ideals,

and everywhere life is full of heroism.

Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection.

Neither be cynical about love,

for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment,

it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years,

gracefully surrendering the things of youth.

Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.

But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.

Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.

Beyond a wholesome discipline,

be gentle with yourself.

You are a child of the universe

no less than the trees and the stars;

you have a right to be here.

And whether or not it is clear to you,

no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God,

whatever you conceive Him to be.

And whatever your labors and aspirations,

in the noisy confusion of life,

keep peace in your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,

it is still a beautiful world.

Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.

Max Ehrmann (1927)

Inspiration: The Starting Point

I remember reading this poem on a poster in high school and being so impressed by these simple, and yet profound, truths. I remember rushing to share Max Ehrman’s words with a high school friend who was also pretty spiritual. We enjoyed talking about life’s truth and secrets. For one reason or another, I’ve always been fascinated by these principles we uncovered. I wanted to better understand life. I wanted to comprehend what made people successful, happy, and fulfilled. In the process, I found myself wanting to make a positive difference to those around me.

In high school, I also watched a documentary that changed my life. The name of the documentary was called the Eye of the Storm. The documentary was about a 3rd grade teacher from Wisconsin by the name of Mrs. Jane Elliot. Mrs. Elliot wanted to teach her students about discrimination, so that they would not become prejudiced towards those who were different. The inspiration for her lesson was sparked by the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968. Mrs. Elliot was distraught at how people could abuse, discriminate, or kill someone solely on the basis of the color of their skin. She was determined that her students would not grow up to hate others just because they were different. Mrs. Elliot was going to turn this tragedy into something empowering for her students. She told her 3rd graders, all of whom were white, that they will not only learn about discrimination intellectually, but they would experience what it felt like.

Mrs. Elliot first separated the children in terms of the color of their eyes. On the first day, she said that her blue-eyed children were superior to her brown-eyed children. She pointed out how well blue-eyed children did certain things. She gave specific examples of how brown-eyed people were rude, less intelligent, and, thus, inferior. Mrs. Elliot made the brown-eyed children sit in the back of the classroom. The brown-eyed students had to wear armbands (an obvious reference to Jews being forced to wear them in Nazi Germany), indicating that they were the inferior group. They were not allowed to get drinks of water like the blue-eyed children. Not surprisingly, during the course of the day when the students took their test, the brown-eyed children did much worse than the blue-eyed children. What was most fascinating, according to Mrs. Elliot, was the dramatic changes in the blue-eyed children. The blue-eyed children, who had been amicable kids and friends with the brown-eyed children just the day before, became power hungry, nasty, and egotistical. They pointed out ways that Ms. Elliot could control and put their brown-eyed classmates in place. Many of the superior students teased and harassed their brown-eyed peers.

On the second day, Mrs. Elliot reversed the roles. She made the brown-eyed children the superior group. As you may have guessed, the brown-eyed children reacted similarly as their blue-eyed classmates had the day before. Astonishingly, the brown-eyed children performed significantly better on a similar test than they did the day before. The blue-eyed students, now considered inferior, did worse than their brown-eyed counterparts, and significantly worse than the previous day. And these were the results after only two days! One can only imagine what it means for certain groups of people who have to deal with this prejudice on a daily basis. Wouldn’t this affect their self-perception and impact their ability to succeed in our society? Mrs. Elliot’s lesson also captured a small representation of what happens in history and in our society when those who have power and privilege keep other groups in lower positions.

A longitudinal study was done 14 years later on these same students. All of Mrs. Elliot’s former students noted how they appreciated people who were different. Some even had to deal with negative reactions from other whites, who were not so receptive to their less-biased treatment of blacks and other minorities. Incredibly, Mrs. Elliot has also done this lesson with adults and produced similar results. It’s a fascinating study of what humans are capable of, from both a positive and negative standpoint. To see this extraordinary documentary piece, I encourage you to go to http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/divided/etc/view.html

The Ripple Effect

So, how did this documentary become the impetus for my decision to become a teacher, and ultimately lead to my inspiration to write this book? I had an epiphany, as I realized that if, like Mrs. Jane Elliot, I was able to make a difference with my future students, that not only would it help them, but that it would also benefit those that they have the privilege to encounter and impact. Indeed, Jane’s students will not only appreciate differences and treat others fairly, but they will also pass their lessons and values on to their future generations. I got excited about the notion of a positive ripple effect I could contribute to if I became a teacher.

When I first started, I found out teaching was tough! I had a rough time during my first year as a teacher in New Jersey. I had a difficult time controlling the students in many of my classes. There were three different courses I had to prepare for each day, with over 125 students. That’s a lot of papers to grade! I must have averaged about four hours of sleep during the week. After a few months on the job, I felt burnt out. Needless to say, the school did not hire me back at the end of the year. My supervisor commented, Some people are born to teach, inferring I was not one of them. How about that for encouragement?

I thought about quitting, but decided I needed to give myself at least another year. At the time, my brother had bought a series of tapes from Anthony Robbins called Personal Power. I was curious, so I started to listen to his tapes. I found the tapes to be quite practical and uplifting. As a result of listening to Tony’s tapes, when I got a teaching job in the Bronx that September, I entered my second year of teaching with a very positive mindset. However, at my new school, many of the veteran teachers were very negative and pessimistic, especially about the students they taught. I did the smart thing of avoiding those teachers. Instead, I looked for teachers who were producing results with students and picked their brains for ideas on how I could be a teacher of impact. This was one of the principles of success I learned from listening to Mr. Robbins’ tapes--if you want to produce results at a faster pace, model the beliefs and actions of those who have achieved what you are looking to accomplish. The other thing I did that kept me in a positive state of mind was listening to inspirational tapes on my car ride to work. Not only did I come into work feeling positive, but the tapes provided ideas I often thought about and drew from. I had a fantastic second year as a teacher and did a 180 degree turn around from the year before. I became a popular teacher with my students and was respected as one of the top teachers at the school.

Over the next 15 years as a teacher, I was able to get my students to accomplish what many of my colleagues were not able to. What made the difference? What I found working in the school systems for all these years, was that a major challenge that got in the way of our students reaching their potential was the way many teachers saw our students. Having some very challenging students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, including students arriving to America for the first time and children labeled special-- we had students who not only had to deal with their own issues that they brought to school, but were facing what we educators called the soft bigotry of low expectations. Too often students were asked to do less than what they could achieve. I saw that educators who were producing noticeable results not only pushed their students to do more, but they also provided the support they needed to achieve success. Without a doubt, if I had any one strength as a teacher, it was a strong and stubborn belief in my students’ potential; I believe they are no different than any children in terms of potential regardless of where they came from.

I took it personally to prove that my students can achieve and do more than what others were asking of them. For example, I would get my students to stay after school. I formed the Homework Club with a like-minded colleague of mine, where we invited student study captains to get their classmates to come after school. The Homework Club provided a space for our English as a Second Language (ESL) students to stay and do homework and get academic support from each other and the teachers. We went from less than one-third of homework completed to over 50 % completion in our 11th-grade team. I did a research project where I had students take research notes and write a paper, then use the information to create a pop-up book. Every student completed at least the research notes and the paper, and most students were able to complete the pop-up book in time to present it to the underclass students. Some of my students pulled all-nighters to get it done on time. To accomplish this, I borrowed over 40 books from suburban libraries in New Jersey, as there were only a handful of books I was able to find in the Bronx. I also stayed late with my students, often until 8:30 pm, for two weeks before the pop-up book was due.

Students were required to pass NY state exams called Regents in order to graduate. Before I came to this school, statistically, on any given subject exam, less than 10 percent of our students were passing. By the end of the year that we had started the Homework Club, 39 out of 50 of my students had passed the US History Regents Exam (the subject I taught), 21 with a 75 or higher, and 6 with 90 plus! Keep in mind, my ESL students had just come to the country three years earlier, having very little knowledge of English.

At the time my students were trying to graduate high school in a new country and prepare themselves for college, the 4-year college graduation rate in America was about 30%. Of the 30% that graduated in four years, the working class made up about 30% and the working poor made up about 12%. So statistically, my students had a 4-9% chance of graduating from college in four years, given their socio-economic background, and an even lower chance since English was their second language. Spring ahead six years later, and 16 students that were part of our Homework Club obtained their undergraduate bachelor degrees! One of my students, Maciel, thought about quitting in her first year at college because the transition to college work was overwhelming. She decided against it and finished her degree. Maciel told me what kept her from quitting is the fact she knew if she quit, then other students from our school would likely not be accepted to her college in the future! Incredible individual, isn’t she? Maciel ended up coming back to our school to work towards becoming a social worker.

We as educators don’t often get to see what impact we have on the lives of our students. But Maciel’s story and others like hers remind me of the inspiration I initially received from watching Mrs. Elliot’s impact on her students and the reasons why I chose to teach. Many of my students will go on to serve and positively impact others. I feel so privileged and grateful that I’ve played a hand in their growth and success. In addition, how powerful of a ripple effect was it for me to pick up a set of tapes that led to a paradigm of how I was able to reach my students all these years?

This idea that we can induce a positive ripple effect is at the core of The More We Become. Being an educator for the last 20 + years, I have come to realize an important principle at a greater depth. If you are a student, or just a person in general, why should you strive to be the best that you can be? Why should you put in so much time into your studies and into becoming greater as a human being? It occurred to me that the more we start to realize our unlimited potential, our ability to help those around us (ourselves, our family, our community, our country, our world) also increases. The more that my students realize their true nature, the more they can give to their world. I endeavor for you to realize how much you can offer to those around you. In this way, we have an important responsibility to strive to be happy and be the best that we can be. If we all did this, it would follow that the more we become, the more we can transform and make the world a better place. So, it is my hope that with this book, you will find enough insights, develop your own epiphanies, and realize a greater self. Not only would this provide tremendous benefits to you, but it will better equip you to make a difference with those you care about.

What Can We Learn From Critics of Self-help Literature?

If you learn without thinking, you’ll get lost, if you think without learning, you’ll be dangerous. — Confucius

I always thought that it was a very smart thing to learn from experts as a way to improve oneself in a particular area. There are always people out there who have had the experience of achieving something you admire and have developed an elevated awareness that can help guide your actions. Why not learn from them, instead of through your own trial and error process? I was surprised to find many people critical of self-help books. I found myself defending inspirational self-help authors and why I like to read their work. How could anyone knock someone for sharing insights that can give you an edge in life? But rather than dismissing the critics, I became curious. I started to ask myself, Why do so many people have such a negative outlook on this industry? As a Social Studies teacher, I always told my students that you need to understand multiple perspectives. It is valuable to pay close attention to opposing viewpoints. Then, when you make your argument, it can be done with greater understanding and effectiveness. Occasionally, you might even be swayed to change your opinion. Here was an opportunity to practice what I’ve always asked my students to do.

The first and one of the most common complaints about self-help authors is that they are just trying to make easy money from people with low self-esteem. People with low self-esteem, they argue, read self-help to make themselves feel better. But at the same time, critics argue that it also reinforces to that person that they are not enough. Self-help, they say, often sets unrealistic goals to strive for, so when people do not achieve them, it further supports a belief of lack. The critics also have a hard time trusting the information in personal growth books, since many of the facts and stories are unscientific and full of fluff. By profiting from their books, they feel these authors are benefitting at the expense of the reader. Thus, critics question whether the reader really benefits from reading self-help.

A second critique I’ve heard is that someone who reads self-help doesn’t really own the information. People who read this type of literature quote facts and knowledge as if it were their own. One time, I said to a colleague that successful people focus 20% of their time