by Håkon Njøten
Step into a gentle reminder of how much you already matter. In this episode, you’ll rediscover the quiet ways you give, receive, and shape the world — often without noticing. A warm invitation back to your own meaning.
Meet your Teacher
Oslo, Norway
Transcript
Welcome to this talk named be aware of your contribution to the world. I've always had a soft spot for Lion King. I think I was nine years old when I first learned about the circle of life and it's so easy to forget that life and this whole world is really one great cycle of giving and taking. It's very spiritual. We give and we take with every breath. Let's begin with taking. What do we take? As I mentioned air, Food, Clothes, Coffee, Time, Support, Attention. Even when we just ask a friend for advice we're drawing on the resources of the world and that's completely okay. It's fine. You need food, You need warmth and you need people who can hold you when you lose your sense of direction. To take is part of being human and it's also worth noticing that everything we take comes from something or someone who has created, Lifted, Carried, Thought or made this possible. Just the milk you're drinking, The sweater that you wear, The chair you're sitting on, A therapist's steady guidance, A teacher who held space for you in your childhood. When you see how much time, Love and effort others have put into what you receive, Gratitude begins to to rise almost naturally. You take with more care, Not from guilt or strict discipline, But from a quiet respect for all the invincible work behind each small thing you enjoy and need in your life. So let's talk a little bit about giving because at the same time, And this is true for every single one of us, You are also someone who gives. You are in service whether you are aware of it or not. Maybe in your job, Most likely, Maybe in your relationships, Maybe in something you create, Or maybe in just small actions you never think twice about. But you are part of the same great cycle that keeps the world alive and we can be in service in so many different ways. Some are obvious like the doctor saving a life, The teacher lifting a child, The sanitation worker who keeps a whole city from drowning in its own waste, The person who helps an elderly woman across the street, Or a friend who calls exactly when you ask them to. But much of service is quiet, Almost invisible, Like the artist who writes a song that years later touches someone so deeply that their life changed course, Or the cook who creates a moment of calm in the middle of a long day, The game designer giving young people a place to belong, Or the coding instructor who opens the door to a first job. Even your hobbies can be acts of service. What if you're fixing a neighbor's bike or helping a friend at the gym, Taking a picture for them, Making a meme that pulls someone through a heavy day, It's funny, They laugh, Or building an app that changes life in its own quiet way even though it was just supposed to be a hobby. Sometimes even self-realization becomes service too. We often think of self-realization as something egoistic but it's really not. When you develop your talent so deeply that it begins to lift others, Well then you're in service. The first years of practice may look like nothing is happening. Let's say the first 10 years, Whether you're playing the piano or solving equations, But after let's say 10, 000 hours something happens. You become someone who can give from mastery. You're so good, You can inspire, You can solve problems, You can touch. This is service too. In your work, In your free time, In every gesture and every creation. What I'm trying to say is that you matter more than you think. When you become aware of what you take and what you give, Something within you starts to grow. A sense of responsibility but without heaviness. And even more important, A self-worth that doesn't depend on the applause. You do this because it feels good to give. I'm struck by how easy it is to forget that all of us, In our own ways, Are in service. Many of us move through the day on autopilot as if life is just something to get through. Last week on the London Underground in the early morning I found myself surrounded by construction workers heading to their sites to work. They had dusty clothes, They look tired, Half of them were drinking coffee and half were sleeping. They might look like they're simply going to earn a living, Like they don't see much meaning in their job but they get paid. But to me they're doing something much greater. They're building the parks where we breathe, The libraries where we find peace and quiet or inspiration, The bathrooms that we desperately use now and then. They prepare the ground for our lives, Often without seeing the value of it themselves. It didn't look like they did. And this is true for almost everyone and every work that is out there. And I'm saying almost because there are a few roles that take more than they give. I'm not gonna go into it but I'm gonna mention it just so you understand the difference. Like human traffickers, Scammers. Scammers is huge, Like every day in the email, On the phone. Criminal distributors of guns or drugs. People who intentionally spread harmful propaganda. These actually take more than they give. But most people, Truly most, Are holding society together and very very often without knowing it. So I hope you and all those who work quietly or loud, Including those between jobs or unsure of their direction, Can see how much value there is in being of service. How essential they are to the bigger whole. And now I want to talk about you. So what about you? Take a moment to look at your own life. Maybe you work in a cafe. Beautiful. You offer small moments of warmth to people who arrived tired, Lonely, Maybe cold. Maybe you're unemployed right now but you watch your nieces while your brother works. Well that's also beautiful. You offer safety, Play and presence for the kids. You hold a small world together. I could give countless examples but you only need to look at your own day. Where are you in service? Maybe in places you haven't even recognized. How do you touch the people around you? Do you notice it? Reflect on this and let that awareness grow. Let it become an inner engine, A quiet source of meaning and self-worth. Because you can really feel it when someone knows that they are in service. It creates like instant glow and meaning to their lives. Later on my trip from London to Oslo I took the train from the airport to Oslo Central. And the conductor moved through the crowded carriage saying warmly that if anyone truly needed a seat he would arrange it. He asked is there anyone elderly, Anyone pregnant, I am here to help. And he smiled and he thanked those of us who stood. He praised us for being so flexible and sporty. He knew he was in service and it shone through his voice, His eyes, His posture and he made all the difference. When we know we are in service something shifts inside. Motivation rises from within, Not from pressure. It becomes a kind of karma yoga. Action for the sake of action itself, Not for the paycheck. You're doing it to be part of something bigger. A quiet joy in contributing. So how does your own balance look if I can use that word? How much do you take and how much do you give? Not as a moral scoreboard but just just be aware. Are you doing well? Or maybe you're in deficit or feel like it? Most people are some days givers and some days takers. And that's totally okay. Wherever you are you can always adjust though. You can offer a little more attention, Maybe a little more kindness, A little more presence. You can do your best every time, Gently. So I want to push you a little bit. If you are aware that's when you can change. I'm thinking highly of you. But don't forget that you also need to take. Giving is impossible without taking. Even Elsa Mandela needed food and rest. You cannot pour from an empty cup. So take care of yourself. Nourish yourself first. Put your own mask on first. And when you feel the energy and the current return, Go out and be in service again. The world feels the difference when you act from fullness. Not exhaustion like you have to do this and this. It's just another thing on the to-do list. But it comes from the fullness inside of you because you've taken care of yourself. And you feel it too. Before we end, Maybe take one soft breath in. Not to change anything but to arrive in yourself. To feel that you, Simply by being here, Are part of the great cycle of life. Giving and taking. Receiving and offering. A quiet blessing in motion. So thank you for the many ways you are in service. I really hope you know. And when you know, You deserve to feel good about it.
