As an international speaker, author, trainer, entrepreneur and philanthropist, Manna Ko has spent a large part of her life helping people become the best version of themselves. With 2022 coming to an end and another new year around the corner, thoughts naturally go towards New Year’s resolutions. However, too often people make resolutions that fall by the wayside before they even get to February. Today, Manna Ko will discuss how adopting her expectation that Your Gifts Will Find You™ can provide a graceful path for the new year ahead—and for years to come.
Manna Ko’s Your Gifts Will Find You™ represents a shift in our attitudes and thus our actions. Manna Ko notes people are amazed at how much better they feel about themselves when they celebrate others. Whether people are supporting their peers, serving others in need, expressing authentic caring, and offering genuine gratitude, championing others is a win/win for everyone. However, these things are not always easy to do, especially in the modern world. We have been taught from an early age that we should aim to be the very best at whatever we pursue, regardless of the consequences. It’s the proverbial “the end justifies the means,” which often leads to separation, and putting others down in order for one to rise above them. It’s an attitude that can dehumanize our peers, and anyone else we are in relationship with.
The digitalization of the modern world has made it easier to connect with people from around the globe than ever before in human history. And yet, more people feel isolated than ever before. This comes from an over-dependence on technology and a separation from relationship. People need people. And people grow and flourish best in relationships that provide kindness, safety, and opportunities for discovery. Manna Ko explains that we feel better when we work in service for others and show compassion for the needs of others.
Living out Your Gifts Will Find You™ also allows us to learn in ways that we aren’t necessarily comfortable with. For example, one of our gifts may be the gift of strategy, wisdom, and reconciliation. But these are often found by engaging in delicate or difficult conversations. Manna Ko has found that the best and most productive way to create win/win results in these types of situations is to go into them with an open heart, acknowledge your vulnerabilities (if it’s safe to do so depending on the situation), and to let go of “always being right.” Set pride aside and watch miracles happen.
The right thing to do is not always the easy thing to do, especially when we live in a culture and a generation that has been trained to always seek comfort, convenience, and other self-gratifying motives. Manna Ko suggests that this new year in 2023, we are given a wonderful opportunity to stop chasing the next sparkly “thing” or trend, and to meditate on the bigger picture—how we can help others grow. When we engage life with this perspective, ultimately we all grow together, and from that space of creativity, allowing Your Gifts to Find You™. Paraphrasing, C.S. Lewis, being humble is not thinking less of yourself, but thinking about yourself less.
Manna Ko on Building a Kingdom Instead of an Empire in 2023
As an entrepreneur, Manna Ko understands that rooting for others can seem counterintuitive in the corporate world. In fact, the biggest hurdle people face with embracing Your Gifts Will Find You™ is thinking they need to put their own aspirations aside. However, Manna Ko believes that when you allow Your Gifts Will Find You™ people settle into a genuine peace and trust that things will come into place, and their goals and aspirations will naturally fall in line. Said another way, Manna Ko says it’s time to stop building our simple little empires that take, take, take, and start building a kingdom of goodness that gives, gives, gives. An empire looks to dominate and claim everything in their path for themselves. A kingdom looks to serve its people.
New Year’s resolutions are often made with a particular goal in mind. Whether it be finding a new career path or losing 15 pounds, there’s typically an end point. However, embracing Your Gifts Will Find You™ is a lifestyle that doesn’t help a person achieve a “happy ending” but rather a happy life that we get to experience each day. Yes, there will be struggles, and yes, there will be days where we fall, or don’t live in service of others. It is human to make mistakes, but Manna Ko believes it is pivotal to give each other and ourselves the gift of forgiveness. Instead of choosing a resolution that is broken and forgotten, choosing to believe in the hope that we are made for amazing things and that our lives help better the world can lead to a better 2023 and a better life ahead.
