(Clearwisdom.net)
Greetings, Master!
Greetings, Fellow practitioners!
Today I'd like to share my experience of working on advertising for a newspaper. Please kindly point out anything inappropriate.
I've been involved with the newspaper for one year and eight months. It has been a very busy time, and I've experienced, more than ever, Master's indescribable benevolence and the profound, boundless Fa. I'd like to share the following experiences with you all.
Discard Human Mentality and Take Saving All Sentient Beings as the Highest Priority
In the past several decades, I've taken many kinds of jobs other than sales. After I came to the United States, companies approached me for sales positions. But I had sworn to myself that I'd rather go begging than take a sales job. This mindset prevented me from joining the newspaper when it was first established, even though I knew that it needed help selling advertising and that it was a very important task. Two years ago, when I heard that there were not enough people working in advertising at the newspaper and that practitioners were having to pay for the printing expenses with their own money, I knew that I couldn't wait any longer. I had to do this. I didn't believe that selling advertising would be such a difficult job.
I started immediately, visiting businesses one by one. It was the hottest part of the summer, and I walked for three whole days. Visiting business offices is tough in New York City as you have to rely on your legs and, in some cases, you have to climb the stairs when there is no elevator in the building. Over those three days I handed out many newspapers and business cards, and I sweated a lot, but I did not secure a single contract. It was then that I felt that it was really a difficult job. Maybe it was easier to work on truth clarification projects. As a result, I didn't even try to look inward to see what kind of attachment I should get rid of, let alone removing the attachment during that process. Instead, I put this important job on the back burner.
Later, during Fa study, I enlightened to the reasons why I had not been successful. First, I had not truly understood the importance of using the media to validate the Fa, clarifying the truth and saving the sentient beings. Second, I had treated selling advertising as simply another thing to do instead of combining it with my cultivation. And third, I had tried to do it with a show off mentality. Once I had identified these shortcomings, I eliminated them and resolved that I must do the newspaper job well and with a pure heart in order to save more sentient beings. From handing out "truth clarification" materials, I had discovered that those people who had been negatively influenced by the propaganda would not take our materials, so the newspaper, as a newspaper that conforms to everyday society, makes it easier for people to learn the truth. Before the daily edition was published, I sat in the meetings held by newspaper' advertising team. I found out that there were only a few people involved. How could that be acceptable? It cost a lot of money each month to print the newspapers. We needed people. The more difficult it was, the more I needed to do it. This time I told myself, "No matter how difficult it might be, I won't give up because I'm doing a very sacred task. I am saving lives." In July 2003, I began working for the newspaper full-time.
Treat Every Customer as a Life to Be Saved
I told myself, "I need to present a righteous image of the newspaper to every customer." This is a Dafa disciple's benevolent thought. It's not for personal motivation. Every word, every action of mine would have a huge impact on the future growth of the newspaper. Through my interactions with customers, I discovered that people have been poisoned by the Chinese Communist Party's lies to differing degrees. It's not likely that those who are deeply poisoned would bring up the subject of Falun Gong. It's my personal understanding that to maintain the overall professionalism of the newspaper, as a salesperson, I should not initiate a conversation about Falun Gong. In this kind of situation I say quietly to myself, "Master, please give me the opportunity. I want to clarify the truth to this person." And then the customer often suddenly changes the subject and starts to talk about Falun Gong. So I naturally talk to him about Falun Gong until he learned the truth. Of course, sometimes the customer cannot accept the truth right away. Then I try my best to secure the advertising contract, because once he signs the contract, he will be able to read the truth all the time.
Through my daily work in advertising, I've run into many people and customers who have predestined relationships. In most cases, the customers that I have met have been poisoned by negative propaganda. One time, I secured a contract over the phone. Perhaps the customer did not clearly hear the name of the newspaper. When I got to his place, he and his family instantly surrounded me, fiercely repeating the lies fabricated by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). It seemed as if they would swallow me. I stood there and watched them quietly. For some reason, with Master's empowerment, my heart was full of kindness. After a while, I couldn't hear what they were saying anymore. I could only see were their mouths, which were distorted by the vicious lies. My heart wasn't moved at all. I patiently clarified the truth to them. Similar things have happened several times. Another time, as soon as I walked in the office and mentioned the newspaper, I was chased out like an animal. Whenever this happens, I do not dwell on how I have been mistreated. Instead I feel sad for them. Usually as I walk out the office I tell myself, "I'll be back, because you need to be saved, and you shouldn't come this close to Dafa and miss out." As I continued to encounter many similar situations, my attachment to fear slowly surfaced. One time, shortly after I was treated coldly, I went into another office. As soon as I opened the door, I got scared and backed out. More than a dozen men stood in the dark room, seemingly engaged in some sort of business negotiation. Right away, I realized that it wasn't right for me to react that way. How could I be scared? I'm most righteous! So I walked in again. They formed a circle around me, and I politely introduced the newspaper. Perhaps because of my righteous thoughts, their faces softened and they treated me politely.
Motivated by saving sentient beings, I have never rejected any potential customer simply because of the price. Of course we have a standard price list, but I try to help by offering them different ad sizes or time slots so we don't lose the sale either. I remember when I first started, I met a customer who wanted to buy a small classified ad. It's only $20. I had to wait out on the street for him three times. It was very cold, and each time I had to wait outside for over an hour. What I was thinking was not about his $20, but about how to let him form a relationship with the newspaper and position himself. So I wasn't upset, nor did I feel sorry for myself. Rather, I felt a sense of happiness as I waited. I have met many customers with predestined relationship. Now they are all reading Zhuan Falun. I'll share one example. I went to a school, where the principal was a woman. During our conversation, I learned that she was baptized when she was four and was a very devout Christian. After a while, I forgot about the advertisement and began telling her about the truth of Dafa. I shared with her about Christ's sacrifices, about Jesus' promise to human beings, about Buddha Maitreya coming to earth in the Last Havoc to save people. Of course I talked about these based on her acceptance level. At first she asked me questions. Soon her thoughts began to follow mine. After I finished, I began talking about the ad. She said, "You're different now than a while ago. When you were telling me all those things, your face was shining." At her request, I gave her a copy of Zhuan Falun. Of course she's a customer of the newspaper now.
When I go out to sell ads and stop to eat something, I grasp the opportunity to catch those nearby who are predestined. I believe that wherever I sit, there will be someone next to me who wants to hear the truth. It's the same when I am in the subway. Sometimes I miss the opportunity. Sometimes I do better. I remember one time when I was eating in a bakery, there were more than a dozen people around me. I heard two ladies talking loudly. They were probably in their late seventies, and both of them were nicely dressed. Suddenly I felt that they were waiting to hear the truth, so I began talking about Falun Gong with them. As soon as I started, they raised their voices. Although they were old, their voices were pretty loud as they repeated the CCP lies.
Everyone was listening to them, which surprised me. I told myself that I wouldn't leave until I had clarified the truth. Consequently, no matter how loud and mean their voices were, I remained patient and carefully told them the truth of Dafa. Perhaps my voice was very firm. It became quiet around me. These two old ladies stopped and listened. My voice got louder. In the end, one of the old lady suddenly said, "That's correct! Whatever the CCP shows on TV is all fabricated!" I was shocked when I heard this. How come she's helping me now? And her voice was so loud. Immediately I realized that my righteous thoughts had cleansed her field. Later, they wanted to learn the exercises from me. I promised them that if there wasn't a place convenient for them, I would go to their place to teach them.
When the Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party were first published, one school called and wanted to cancel their ad. When I heard this, I was very worried. I wasn't worried about the lost ad income. I was worried because the caller had just asked me to buy him a copy of Zhuan Falun and an exercise teaching tape. Plus, he had always been very supportive ever since the newspaper was established. But when the newspaper published the Nine Commentaries and needed more advertising support, he wanted to stop. It was a very sad situation for this person. I postponed all my other appointments for the day and went to his school to talk to him about the CCP. I found out that he was influenced by his secretary, who came from Mainland China. As a result of my truth clarification, he changed his mind.
I gave some customers Zhuan Falun as a Chinese New Year's gift because, through interacting with them, I knew this was what they were looking for. Sure enough, they were very happy with the gift and stated that they would support the newspaper forever. I know that today they have formed a predestined relationship with this newspaper. It's not for their everyday financial growth. Their true lives have been waiting for this day. So with Master's empowerment and the cooperation of the entire newspaper staff, I've formed predestined relationships with close to 100 businesses in the past year.
I can always feel Master's benevolence. Working on advertising in New York City requires a lot of walking on a daily basis. If I have several appointments in different boroughs in one day, it's very tiring and time consuming. One time I wrote down the addresses in a hurry without double-checking. After I finished with the first customer, I checked the address for my second appointment and found out that all the appointments were within three blocks of each other. I didn't need to walk much. I think that's because when I was writing down the addresses, I didn't have the notion of distance. Another time when I went home, I was carrying a very heavy load and had to stop every few steps. I live in a fifth floor apartment. My son was home at the time. When I got to the apartment building, I saw my son standing outside waiting for me. I asked him, "How did you know that I was coming home?" He said, "I was doing homework upstairs and suddenly heard you saying, 'Come down in a hurry and help me.'" I instantly realized what had happened. One time when I was in the office, my heart was very tranquil. Suddenly I found that I was actually up in the air. I looked down and saw Dafa disciples saving sentient beings on earth. There are many miracles like this. Here I just want to say, "Master is benevolent and his mercy is boundless."
Eradicate Interferences in Other Dimensions and Walk Firmly on the Path of
Fa-rectification Arranged by Master
One time as I was walking down the street, I heard voices from other dimensions, "If you go out again to get advertising, something will happen to you." Immediately, I felt my throat start to itch. So I coughed and coughed out some blood. There was a garbage can nearby. I used a tissue to hold the blood. It was pinkish red. But I was not scared at all. I glanced at the blood and thought, "It's blood in everyday people's eyes. But in the eyes of Dafa disciples, it's all illusion. Don't you ever try to scare me with illusion." I started to recite:
"A Great Enlightened Being does not fear hardship
Having forged an adamantine will
And with no attachment to living or dying
He walks his path of Fa-rectification openly and nobly"
(From Hong Yin II: Righteous Thoughts and Righteous Actions)
I recited for about half an hour and used up one pack of tissues. The flow of blood stopped. I didn't feel any discomfort. I covered the tissues with paper and continued to move forward.
One time, as I was leaving for an appointment to sign a big contract, it started to rain. At first it was just drizzling. To get there I needed to take a bus after taking the subway. On my way to the bus station, the sky was filled with dark clouds. Suddenly there was a gusty wind, and thunder and lightning filled the sky. The deafening thunderclaps rumbled one after another. I started to run, but the thunder seemed to follow on my heels. I started to send forth righteous thoughts and thought to myself, "I'm Master's disciple. I'm validating the Fa and saving sentient beings. Nobody can stop me. If you want to have a future then you have to assimilate to 'Truth, Compassion, and Forbearance.' Otherwise, if you continue to interfere, the righteous thoughts that I'm sending will eradicate all of you." The wind began to die down, and the rain became lighter. When I got to the customer's place in about an hour, I was completed drenched. On my way, the wind had blown apart my umbrella, so I bought a new one. It was blown apart too, so I bought another one. In the end, I bought three umbrellas.
Not Allowing Selfish Human Notions to Interfere with Cultivator's Faith
Oftentimes I would be busy and neglect Fa study. Although I studied the Fa every day, my heart was not tranquil. That's when the human notions get a chance to sneak in. When a customer made sarcastic comments, I sometimes would have a heavy heart, especially at the beginning. Soon afterwards, another practitioner said to me, "So and so said that you were selling the newspaper." I felt that I was wronged and wanted to give up. In private I cried many times. But at the same time, I would force myself to calm down and study the Fa. Master said,
"Because at this level of the old cosmos there is the principle of mutual-generation and mutual-inhibition and the two different factors of positive and negative, something positive and negative emerges at the same time whenever a person does something. And that includes everything that's done in human society, those two factors simultaneously manifest in everything." ("Teaching the Fa at the 2004 Western U.S. Fa Conference")
I've enlightened to the understanding that we are doing things in the old cosmos. Good and bad, benevolence and evilness are co-existing. I also asked myself, "You think it's difficult. Who are you? Those lives that are assimilated to the Fa are benevolent and selfless. Would they ever think of themselves?" Because I have attachments, I would be moved by interference. I studied Master's Poem:
"Cultivation is not difficult
The earthly heart is hard to discard
So many attachments - when to sever them
Everyone knows the sea of suffering has no shore
If the will is not firm
Barriers are like mountains
How to transcend the mortal world"
(Severing - Hong Yin II)
Once I understood the Fa principle, I searched inward to find my shortcomings based on the feedback I'd received, and tried to do better.
Get Rid of the Attachment to Comfort and Firmly Grasp the Cultivation Opportunity Master has Benevolently Provided Us
There was a Korean man who owned a Korean advertising company. I was very pleased to have an appointment with him and showed him our material. I had big expectations for him. But after a long while, I still had not heard from him. So I called him to follow up. He sounded impatient over the phone. This incident allowed me to see my attachment. I enlightened to the understanding that everything we do today is related to our cultivation. Our attachment to relying on everyday people is in fact an attachment to comfort. The path we are on is like a rugged mountain path, and Master is waiting for us at the other end. What Master wants is to save is us. We need to walk this path and to get rid of all obstacles in front us by ourselves. As long as we have a righteous heart and righteous thoughts, these obstacles will dissolve by themselves under the power of the Fa.
Getting Rid of the Selfish Attachment to Validating Oneself and Actively Supporting the Newspaper's Entire Workload
Here are two examples. 1) When I first joined the newspaper, I did everything, including working on the advertising, on my own. I usually wouldn't go to the office except for handing in contracts or taking materials. After working on advertising, if I still had time, I would go to the anti-torture exhibit site and distribute truth-clarification materials. I would think that handing out flyers would save more sentient beings than sitting in the office. 2) There was a period of time when the printed ads always had mistakes. Sometimes a new ad would have an error in it a few days in a row. When I found out for the first time, I would complain a little bit, mainly because I felt that I had promised customers, and if I failed, the customer would think that I hadn't told the truth. But after I complained, I would regret that I failed to keep my xinxing. So I would tell myself, "Don't complain again next time." But there would be mistakes again the next day. Although I didn't complain, this incident happened four times. Through Fa study, I realized that the above two cases were clear examples of old forces taking advantage our loopholes. When the incident happened, I failed to look at it from a holistic view. Instead, I looked at it from a personal cultivation perspective. What we need to do first is to eliminate the old forces' interferences and to completely negate them. I calmed down and found my attachment. In fact this attachment is very selfish. I was claiming to save sentient beings, but fundamentally I was still attached to myself. This is completely opposite to Master's requirement of Dafa disciples during the Fa-rectification period. I clearly saw the attachment hidden deeply in my heart. Everything about the old forces is basically selfish. Not only do we need to eradicate selfishness, we should also eliminate its shadow. As Fa-rectification period Dafa disciples, we should look at things from a holistic view and work well with others on the newspaper. Together we will fulfill our promises made long ago, our important missions.
The publication of the Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party marked a brand new celestial phase of the Fa-rectification. It's more urgent now to save sentient beings. As Fa-rectification period Dafa disciples, we should keep up with the Fa-rectification process and be clear-headed about the principles of the Fa. We should eliminate the residual poison of the CCP's evil spirit hidden deeply in our hearts and minds. If we observe carefully, we can see that our thoughts and behavior reflect the Party's culture. As Dafa disciples, the sooner we can eliminate the pernicious influence of the CCP's evil spirit, the better we can melt into the Fa wholeheartedly. We must cherish every minute, for this was arranged long, long ago in the cosmos. This is the glory bestowed upon us by the loftiest god. Our mission is significant and sacred. Whether we can walk every step righteously according to Master's teaching during the Fa-rectification period affects the eternity of the future cosmos. Every attachment of ours is an obstacle in our validation of the Fa and saving sentient beings, because it is extremely selfish and is completely opposite to the universal principles of "Truth, Compassion, and Forbearance."
No matter how long the road ahead of me, I'll always strengthen my firm belief in "Validating the Fa and Clarifying the Truth" in my heart and cultivate in the Fa to become a selfless, righteous enlightened being.
Thank you all!
