Right Livelihood

Last summer, i rediscovered Nonviolent Communication. As i immerse myself in learning a way to communicate – to be, really – that enables deeper connections and more authentic living, i realize that this is something i could see myself teaching. Then i had a conversation this week and read a blog post that took a critical look at earning money by teaching NVC. There seems to be a disconnect there: On the one hand, teaching a way to live more authentic and on the other, charging for that. Why do we want to pay for something that is such a deep human yearning?

As i ponder that, i am aware of how close to home this hits: How can i survive if i cannot earn money in a way that feels authentic? Are there ways of living that do not require us to buy (!) into the dominant (and domineering) culture? It reminds me of Ishmael’s teaching that the way we live now evolved when the food was locked up (and i consciously resisted linking to my amazon associate account – the little ways we get pulled into commerce! Get the book from a library near you 🙂 ). How can we survive using new strategies, strategies that don’t rely on money?

Additional thoughts added about 5 hours later:
As i am considering all of this more, i wondered if there is a middle ground, allowing us to transition from our current money-based reality to an end-in-view, as John Dewey would call it, that is allowing everyone to thrive independent of money. Maybe earning money for me would mean to earn just enough to live simple, yet, comfortably, fully realizing that what i consider comfort is probably luxurious for many other people, especially outside the US. And as i type this discomfort creeps in again: How can i justify my luxury? Nevertheless, maybe the question to reflect on is: How much do i really need?

(Ends-in-view are goals that remain flexible through continuous evaluation of both the way we move toward them and the end-in-view itself. They are not end-states because they transform into the means to reach new ends-in-view. In this context, a world in which we live considering everybody’s needs would be an end-in-view. Teaching NVC could be a means of moving closer to that vision as well as an end-in-view for those of us who might want to share NVC.)

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