"Work Like a Monk"-A new book will be published soon. (3)

You Are Not Your Job: A Monk’s Guide to Finding Peace Beyond Productivity.

My new book "Work Like a Monk − How to Connect, Lead and Grow in a Noisy World" will be released by Simon & Schuster on 11 September 2025.

Work Like a Monk

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- For Older Professionals Nearing Retirement -

You Are Not Your Job: A Monk’s Guide to Finding Peace Beyond Productivity

For decades, your title, your expertise, and your work have been a core part of your identity. You’ve navigated challenges, led teams, and built a legacy. But as that chapter of your life begins to close, a quiet, profound question may arise: Who are you now?

This transition can feel like the ground beneath your feet is shifting. In my new book, Work Like a Monk, I tell the story of a businessperson who faces a sudden cancer diagnosis. In an instant, all the "minor ‘life noise’ that had once bothered him, vanished." The solid ground of his predictable life split open, forcing him to confront what truly matters. This moment of profound "helplessness" was not a failure, but an opening—a chance to let go of what he thought he controlled and to listen for a deeper truth.

For many of us, our careers have defined us. But Buddhist wisdom offers a comforting reminder: our deepest value was never in the title, the promotions, or the productivity. Within each of us lies a "True Person without rank" —an essential, unadorned self that exists beyond any role we have played. Retirement is not a loss of identity, but a returning to our most authentic one. It is not an ending, but an un-becoming that makes space for a more peaceful way of being.

How do we navigate this journey? The book reinterprets the ancient Indian concept of the Four Stages of Life for our modern, longer lifespans. It suggests a gentle transition from the "householder" phase of work and family into the "forest-dweller" phase—a time for reflection, for stepping back from daily duties to discover a new kind of freedom. A revered monk named Kuya once taught, "Only when you let go can you truly find freedom." This is the essence of this new stage: the freedom that comes not from achieving more, but from releasing the need to.

Your career was filled with the demands of listening—for the next target, the next deadline, the next problem to solve. This new chapter is an invitation to listen so quietly that you begin to hear. This is the gentle shift from active striving to receptive being. As the priest in my book explains, you "Listen mindfully, then the voice will be heard". This new voice might be a long-forgotten passion, a deeper connection with nature, or the quiet joy of simply being present with loved ones.

This transition is a sacred journey. It is a path toward a peace that does not depend on what you do, but on who you are.

If this gentle path calls to you, I invite you to explore it more deeply in Work Like a Monk. It is a guide for finding peace, purpose, and a new kind of freedom beyond the world of work.