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In feng shui every direction, such as north, south, or northeast has a number, color, element and a shape associated with it. Each shape has a distinct meaning. For instance, the tall, rectangular shape of wood is associated with growth. The shape associated with “big metal” or the northwest is round. This is also the shape of coins – or “change” – and wealth.

Go into almost any Chinese restaurant and you’ll see beautiful chandeliers. You might wonder if this is an effort to dress up the interior of the restaurant, and while it might be, chandeliers have a much more important symbolic place in restaurants, and indeed, your home. These chandeliers are thought to bring up the quality of the dining experience because chandeliers are thought to invite wonderful chi – and they do!

When traveling, whether for business or for pleasure, you can still enjoy the benefits of feng shui. You might have even noticed that enjoy your travel more (or less) when you travel to certain places that are in one direction. Maybe you find that you enjoy travel equally well, but more so to some places than others.

There’s a saying that success is just the accumulation of good habits. It’s true. The more you do to help yourself and to be successful, the more successful – and prosperous – you’ll become. Success and the wealth and acclaim that comes with it isn’t as much a secret as much as it is a habit.

It may not seem like fame and recognition are important, but they are. This part of feng shui and your life directly relates to how others see you and how you present yourself in the world. When you have good fame luck, opportunities often find you and others promote you and open doors for you. When fame and recognition energy is low, it seems like you’re lost in a crowd with little or no recognition and no opportunities for introductions, recognition, or that boost your reputation and social status.

There are few homes with perfect feng shui. Fortunately, rather than hanging a windchime or adding flutes to a beam, you can make simple decorative changes can be made that will look and feel more natural. These decorative elements can help remedy difficulties such as poison arrows that come from a front door and back door alignment or odd windows and slanted walls. Here are nine important feng shui decorating fixes that you can use in your home that will look good and help your home’s feng shui.

As educated and advanced people, we now know that unseen forces, like radio waves, gravity, and even solar flares, do exert an influence over us and our lives. We’ve come to understand that energy is a real, living thing and the acceptance of chi – the flowing river of energy that resides in our bodies, our homes, and the Universe, is also real. So, it should come as no surprise that the energy of chi can also exert an influence on us that’s either beneficial or detrimental. The problem with feng shui today is that although feng shui is more popular than ever, it’s that surge in popularity that’s given rise to myths about feng shui that can actually cause more harm than good.

The bed is a critical piece your ability to be rested and supported as you sleep, and indeed, your life. When the headboard of your bed is compromised, it will create problems for you in your life in your relationships, health and difficulties with money, and even getting proper rest. Many beds simply don’t have a headboard at all, and this gives the sleeper absolutely no support, sleep quality is impacted and many find they feel like they have to “go it alone” in the world. Based on that, you might think have any headboard is better than none, but that’s not exactly true either. Some headboards can cause more harm than good.

Good feng shui has a number of definitions. It includes everything from good landscape layout, auspicious topography that includes mountains, lakes, or oceans, and good design, including auspicious or  inauspicious shapes, harmonious arrangement of elements, and a host of other factors. But did you know that good feng shui can also include very subtle environmental clues, too? It’s true. For instance, have you ever walked into a home or office and felt uncomfortable at once? Or, perhaps your children became unruly or your baby started to cry. These are all signs that the feng shui of the space is not right.

One of the most common questions in feng shui is what color to paint a bedroom. Bedroom color is an important choice because we always want our bedrooms to support our rest and relaxation. Colors that are soft, muted, and easy on the eyes are always preferable to bright and energized colors, such as a crimson red or bright blue. Think of terms of the restful quality of the colors you select, whether it’s for wall color or your bedding.

In feng shui, there are a lot of ways you can use mirrors to your advantage. Some of the most popular ways are to reflect a beautiful view, add more light to your room, or make the room look larger. But equally important are the ways not to use mirrors, or the feng shui mirror don’ts.  

Paying attention to your office can pay in rich dividends for your career. You’ll notice that once you make changes, corrections, and enhancements to your office, you’ll feel differently in it and enjoy your time in your office more. What’s more, everyone who comes into your office, or cubicle, will notice what you have done and will be influenced in their thoughts about your space — and that will make them feel differently about you and help build your career.