Peace to you!

Each week, the Monk Mindset newsletter comes with:

Monk Mindset for Living Well

Monk Mindset 3
Be More Human at Work: Work and Study

Reflection on the Monk Mindset and Quote

I’ve been in school a lot, accumulating a whopping 6 degrees (2 undergrad and 4 masters). I’m thankful for those opportunities but also really hope I’m done with school! :)

Looking back, if I’m honest, much of my motivation for excelling in school was to achieve success for myself -- go to the right schools, get the ‘right’ jobs, look good and important to my peers. 

These motivations were largely self-directed and oriented, instead of towards others – or God.

But since my time in the monastery, I’ve developed a different understanding of the purpose of studies and work – that just like all things we do or encounter, it becomes an opportunity to mold us to become the most alive, full, and, yes, saintly version of ourselves.  

St. Vincent Ferrer, in his quote here, points to this same reality. True learning is not about filling our heads with facts, but allowing knowledge to transform our hearts – the essence of wisdom.

St. Vincent here also talks about letting “devotion” accompany our studies (or work). This arcane term really just means – do it with love and allow God into it. In this case, allowing our studies and work to not just be hollow vessels of worldly acumen, but rather infused with the light of wisdom and propel us toward true greatness.

In the monastic tradition of lectio divina, monks approach texts not as data to be consumed, but as encounters with the divine—letting each word work on the soul, not just the mind.

What if we brought a glimmer of this reverence to our daily studies or work? Whether you're studying for exams, analyzing spreadsheets, or managing household tasks, each moment has the chance to become an opportunity for interior transformation.

Put It Into Practice This Week

Here are 6 practical ways to achieve this “devotion” in study and work. Pick 1 or 2 and try them this week:

1. Seek to understand your intentions for your study and work - and then ask for the grace to purify the intentions so that your work and study become in service of others, the world, God

2. Begin each study or work session with a quick prayer or intention

3. Close each study or work session with gratitude for the opportunity to work or study

4. Seek to accomplish study or tasks without haste or over-hurry

5. Inculcate an awareness of God’s presence during your work or study 

6. Seek to study and work (to the extent you can) on things that help you to be this best version of yourself

Wishing you abundant peace this week,

John

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