Wabi-sabi is a Japanese term for a world view formulated around the the acceptance of transience and imperfection.
Loosely translated, ‘wabi’ is a reflection of an individual’s isolated position in nature, while ‘sabi’ defines the serenity that comes with age. Together, they lay the path to enlightenment.
Wabi-sabi may be found in a tree’s autumn leaves, in the weathered rocks of a zen garden.
I see it in those who find success in their business.
It’s easy to get caught up in visions of the future, only to neglect the present. Our journey begins with a dream of the finish line; of the goal we aspire to. When we start, the road looks clear. Nothing stands in our path. So we commence. But if we keep our eyes transfixed on the horizon, we’re bound to trip up on the perils that lay right before our feet. They were there the whole time; but we never thought to look.
Each step is its own destination. It takes precision placement of our feet, awareness of the obstacles before us, and a keen ability to react to the changing environment to stay on track.
Because it will change. It may be tomorrow, a year, or a decade from now, but it will change. How you react will make all the difference between staying on the path and diverting on a trail to ruin, as many have done before you.
There is no perfect path. Only the path undertaken by those who stand ready to react to its imperfections.
It is they who will find what they are looking for in the end.