I had the good fortune of touring Thailand in 2019. Our tour guide Jean told us the story of ‘Spirit Houses’ - little miniature houses, surrounded by fresh fruit and flowers, on top of a pedestal that is often seen on a home courtyard or at the entry of a business storefront. These ‘phi’ houses (phi in Thai means spirit) are believed to house spirits that offer the owner protection and good fortune.
Jean says that many successful Thai businesses have grand and intricate spirit houses that their owners believe helped them be successful. She then offered a more secular view of this, by saying that perhaps many of these people took bold risks because of their belief that spirits are guiding and protecting them - which led to large payoffs of those risks and eventual success.
In his legendary 2005 commencement address at Stanford, Steve Jobs said ‘You can’t connect the dots looking forward. You can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something. Your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. Believing that the dots will connect down the road will give you the confidence to follow your heart, even when it leads you off the well worn path, and that will make all the difference.’
Jean and Steve are saying the same thing. Having faith and taking action is the path to success.
