感恩南无释迦牟尼佛
感恩南无大慈大悲救苦救难广大灵感观世音菩萨摩诃萨
感恩诸位佛菩萨及龙天护法
感恩恩师卢军宏台长
感恩师兄们
感恩今天有机会和大家分享通过学佛帮我度过家庭以及事业的低谷，在失业近两年半后成功找到理想工作的经历，如果分享中有不如理不如法的地方请观世音菩萨及护法神慈悲原谅。
我原本在一间做金融软件的公司任职做亚太区总裁，2022年我在美国出差时，接到电话听到妈妈突然脑出血进了医院，我赶紧回家。
医生说她如果不马上做手术，活不过三天，但是做手术，很可能下不了手术台。果然手术后妈妈一直昏迷了两个星期，医生说能做的都做了，只能靠她自己的意志力挺过来了。妈妈昏迷的时候我每天都在ICU里面帮她念大悲咒。
有一天晚上我感觉到菩萨妈妈来看我妈妈，没多久她就醒了。她醒来后，我问她有没有感觉到菩萨妈妈来看她，她就点头。连医生都说这是一个奇迹。从妈妈出事我就许愿吃全素，并且坚持帮她放生，到现在她已经恢复意识，可以自己坐起来。感恩观世音菩萨保佑妈妈，给她多一点时间还债消业。
我的工作也在那个时候遇到挫折，我曾经梦到有小狗对我撒尿，那时不明白这是犯小人的预示梦，没有针对它念经化解。果然公司的同事借我妈妈生病的事情，向老板建议把我从重要的岗位替换下来，并且多次暗示，希望我离职。当时公司已经面临被收购，我也感受到所在的行业已经夕阳日下，销售越来越难，思考再三，决定离职。
没想到就在这个时候IT行业转型到人工智能，企业面临不确定性，所以很多公司都不敢盲目请人，市场面试的机会不多，竞争非常激烈。那段时间我因为找不到工作、家庭关系紧张、妈妈生病，精神压力非常大。我是家里唯一的收入来源，要支付全家人的生活费，还贷款，还有妈妈长期护理的费用。有好多次我都觉得要忧郁了，每到这个时候我就会赶紧念《大悲咒》, 《心经》调整自己的心情。
在等待的时候，我就想不如利用这段时间去读书。我就去观音堂问菩萨：我想去读书，但是学费很高，我也不懂自己能不能顺利毕业，这个决定是正确的吗？忽然我看到菩萨佛光显现，我就有了信心，相信读书是正确的决定，于是我求菩萨加持我圆满完成学业。
感恩菩萨保佑，我幸运的申请到NTU和清华以及UC BERKELEY 大学联办的Global EMBA课程，还有SMU 的 CEO Programme，并得到部分的奖学金。
我小时候没机会读书，只读到diploma，一路靠自己打拼做到亚太地区的总裁，手下都是学历比我高的。在公司里，文凭是我最拿不出手的硬伤，也因此受到很多人的质疑和看不起。现在有机会读书我真的太感恩观世音菩萨了。
学校的课程从早上7点到晚上7点，功课常常要做到凌晨两三点。我每天去上学的路上都会念心经和大悲咒，疲倦的时候也会念经，求菩萨加持我能够圆满完成学业。念经让我的心里充满了力量，头脑也更清晰。最后我拿到了16个A，顺利的毕业，再也不用被人质疑学历。感恩观世音菩萨！
毕业后我找到了一份同行业的工作，薪资比上一份工作低了40%，公司的管理很乱，每天被人逼迫我做不认可的事情，所以我很想辞职，但是我的积蓄也快用完了，不知道未来的路会怎样。那段时间我天天跟菩萨求，希望菩萨能帮我。
大概过了一两个月，前公司的美国总部竟然通过邮件联系我，说公司卖掉了，要把股票套现给我。我感动到泪流满面，感恩菩萨帮我周转过来。
辞职后我祈求菩萨能够帮我找到一份稳定的工作，有时间让我念经，最好可以转行到AI领域的公司。我每天针对找工作念诵21遍《心经》 和49遍《解结咒》，求菩萨保佑我化解我找工作的恶缘。每次面试前都会额外念诵《大悲咒》，《心经》，《准提神咒》和《解结咒》求菩萨保佑我化解和面试官的恶缘，让我可以得到他们的认可和帮助，通过面试。
因为我面试的都是美国的IT大公司，这几年竞争激烈，又更倾向于雇佣白人男性作为企业领导，我总是面试中唯一的女性和亚洲面孔，所以好几次都在最后一轮面试中落选。我就针对性的每周念诵3到4张小房子，求菩萨保佑我消除找工作中的业障。
小房子烧了大概两三个礼拜，我就得到了一份人工智能领域的面试机会。他们从100多名申请人中选出10人进行面试，不出意料，我又是唯一的女生。但是在面试的时候我却遇到了贵人。一位面试官对其他的面试官说“我们也不要一直请男性，也可以考虑雇佣女性领导”。在面试前菩萨也给我意念要对面试的公司做更充分的准备，所以我花了几天时间研究。最后他们真的问到我准备的问题。这也成为了我面试成功的关键。
就这样我顺利进入了最后一轮面试，公司的大老板从美国飞过来亲自面试，他告诉我，虽然我不像其他面试人一样具备人工智能领域的技术经验，但是他们更看重我的管理和人际协调能力。感恩菩萨给我最好的安排。
入职成功后我才知道，我在面试的表现让他们感到很安心，觉得我是容易合作的对象，有些求职者虽然技术上很有优势，却很傲慢，让他们担心难以融入团队。其实我在学佛前也是一个很强势而且追求完美的人，时常让身边人感到压力。是学佛让我懂得中庸之道和慈悲包容。
我至今还记得两年前在家庭事业都陷入低谷的时候，我哭着问师兄：我该怎么办？师兄说：你只管念经，菩萨会给你最好的安排。现在回想，我走的每一步真的是菩萨安排的，没有菩萨我无法想象自己能从失业的危机中走出来。
最重要的是学佛给了我最坚实的后盾，当我们遇到事业的低谷，很慌张，很忧郁的时候，我们要坚持念经、许愿、放生，同时提升自己的专业知识，一定可以度过事业的难关。举头三尺有神明，我们诚心的求菩萨，菩萨能听到，只要我们坚持念经、做功德，等到业障消除，所求一定如愿。
以上就是我今天的分享。
感恩南无释迦牟尼佛
感恩南无大慈大悲救苦救难广大灵感观世音菩萨摩诃萨
感恩诸位佛菩萨及龙天护法
感恩恩师卢军宏台长
感恩师兄们
TURNING THE TIDE OF ADVERSITY WITH DILIGENT PRACTICE AND FAITH
Deepest gratitude to Namo Shakyamuni Buddha!
Deepest gratitude to the Greatly Merciful and Greatly Compassionate Guan Yin Bodhisattva!
Deepest gratitude to all Buddhas, Bodhisattvas and Dharma Protectors!
Deepest gratitude to Master Jun Hong Lu!
Thank you to all Buddhist friends.
It is with deep gratitude that I stand before you today to share how my Buddhist practice has navigated me through challenging periods of my life — both in my career and within my family and how I pulled through a 2.5 year period of unemployment, and how I ultimately secured my dream job. Before I start, I would like to seek forgiveness from Guan Yin Bodhisattva and Dharma Protectors if my sharing today is improper in any way.
I previously held the position of CEO for the Asia-Pacific region at a financial software company. However, my life took a dramatic turn in 2022. While I was on a business trip in the United States — I was informed that my mother had been hospitalised due to a brain haemorrhage. Without hesitation, I returned home immediately.
Upon my return, the medical specialists presented me with two difficult options: the first was to proceed with an emergency operation, without which my mother might not survive more than three days. The second option was to accept the significant risk that the operation could leave her permanently bedridden. Sure enough, my mother fell into a coma immediately after the procedure for two agonising weeks.
The doctors explained that the only hope left was for her to regain consciousness on her own. During this harrowing time, I stayed by her side in the ICU every single day, reciting the Great Compassion Mantra.
One night, I distinctly felt the divine presence of Guan Yin Bodhisattva visiting my mother. Shortly after, she miraculously regained consciousness. When she awoke from her coma, I asked if she had sensed the presence of Guan Yin Bodhisattva — she nodded. Even the medical specialists agreed that this was indeed a miracle. I believe this turn of events was deeply connected to the vows I made during her coma: to adopt a life-long vegetarian lifestyle and to continuously perform life liberation on her behalf.
I am truly grateful that my mother’s mental clarity has returned, and she can now get out of bed without assistance. Deepest gratitude to Guan Yin Bodhisattva for Her blessings, granting my mother more time to repay her karmic debts.
Around the same time, problems at work began to surface. I had a dream of a small dog urinating on me—a prescient warning that someone was going to intentionally harm me. Unaware of the significance of this dream, I did not perform any targeted recitations of Buddhist scriptures.
As fate would have it, one co-worker seized the opportunity of my mother’s illness to influence our manager into removing me from the key position and subtly suggested that I resign.
Considering that my company was about to be taken over, and sensing that there was no prospect of a future for this industry as sales had become increasingly difficult, I made the decision to quit.
To my surprise, it was at this time that the IT industry began a major transition into the era of artificial intelligence (AI). With the uncertainty AI brought, many companies froze hiring, and job opportunities quickly dwindled.
Without a job, tensions at home began to rise. On top of caring for my ailing mother, I was under immense emotional strain. As the sole breadwinner of my family, I still had to shoulder our daily living expenses, repay loans, and cover my mother’s ongoing medical care.
There were moments when I felt overwhelmed by episodic depression. But each time despair crept in, I turned to spiritual practice—reciting the Great Compassion Mantra and the Heart Sutra helped me recalibrate emotionally.
Rather than passively waiting for opportunities to come knocking, I thought: why not take advantage of this lull in my career to further my education?
Seeking clarity, I made a special trip to the Practice Centre to pray for divine guidance.
In my prayer to the Bodhisattva, I said, “I wish to pursue further studies, but I’m burdened by the high tuition fee and uncertainty about whether I can successfully complete the programme. Is this the right path for me?” At that moment, I witnessed a radiant light emanating from the Bodhisattvas—this gave me the confidence to move forward.
With Bodhisattva’s grace, I was accepted into the prestigious Global Executive MBA (EMBA) programme at NTU, which partners with Tsinghua University and UC Berkeley. I was also offered a place in the CEO Programme at SMU with a partial scholarship.
Academically, I had limited opportunities growing up and only managed to obtain a diploma qualification. However, through sheer perseverance, I worked my way up to become the CEO overseeing the APAC region. All my subordinates held higher academic qualifications than me. My lack of formal education had always been my greatest weakness—one that invited doubt and condescension from many. So, when the opportunity to pursue higher education finally came, I couldn’t help but feel an overwhelming sense of gratitude to Guan Yin Bodhisattva.
My university classes ran from 7 am to 7 pm, and I would often stay up until 2 or 3 am to complete my coursework. Every morning on my way to campus, I would recite the Great Compassion Mantra and the Heart Sutra, and pray that I would successfully complete my studies. No matter how exhausted I felt, I persisted. I prayed to Bodhisattva to bless me so that I could successfully complete my higher education. The power of recitation recharged me daily, giving me a clear and focused mind.
Finally, I graduated with 16 ‘A’s, successfully completing my higher education. Now, nobody will question my qualifications! Deepest gratitude to Guan Yin Bodhisattva.
After graduating, I managed to land a role in the same industry I had worked in previously. However, the salary package was 40% lower than my last-drawn pay. To make matters worse, the company’s management style was chaotic. I was frequently pressured into taking on tasks that conflicted with my values. Although I often contemplated resigning, I was aware that my savings were quickly dwindling—and I had no idea then how far I could go with what I had. During this trying time, I prayed to Guan Yin Bodhisattva for help every day.
Then, something unexpected happened. Just a month or two later, my former employer in the U.S. reached out via email. The company had successfully completed its sale, and they wanted to reimburse me for the encashment value of my stock holdings. Upon reading the message, I was moved beyond tears. Deepest gratitude to Bodhisattva for turning my situation around.
After leaving that job, I once again pray for a more stable position—one that would allow me flexibility to continue my daily recitations–and ideally, a role within the AI sector. To support this aspiration and to resolve any karmic grievances that might hinder my job search, I recited the Heart Sutra 21 times and the Mantra to Untie Karmic Knots 49 times daily.
Before every job interview, I intensified my recitations—reciting the Great Compassion Mantra, the Heart Sutra, the Cundi Dharani, and the Mantra to Untie Karmic Knots—in the hope of resolving any karmic grievances with the interviewers, enabling me to be viewed in a positive way and hence, able to breeze past the job interviews.
Most of my earlier applications were with leading U.S. IT giants, the competition was incredibly fierce. Furthermore, these companies tend to favour white male candidates for leadership roles. As the only Asian female in nearly every final round of interviews, I consistently fell short at the final hurdle. To overcome this obstacle, I began offering 3-4 Little Houses each week.
After 2-3 weeks of offering Little Houses, I received an interview invitation with a company in the AI sector. Out of over 100 applicants, only 10 were shortlisted—and once again, I was the only female in the group.
But this time, something shifted, a benefactor emerged. One of the interviewers openly stated, “We shouldn’t keep hiring only male employees. In fact, we should seriously consider having a woman lead this team”. This was a pivotal moment, to say the least.
Interestingly, just before this interview, I received an intuitive message, urging me to put in extra effort for this opportunity. Taking this to heart, I spent several days preparing myself thoroughly. To my amazement, the questions I faced during the interview aligned almost perfectly with the areas I had studied. That turned out to be one of the key factors in my success.
As a result, I was shortlisted for the final round of interviews. The company’s key decision-maker even flew in from the U.S. to conduct the session personally. During our conversation, he shared with me, “You may not possess the same depth of AI knowledge or technical expertise as some of the other candidates, but what stood out was your management and human relation skill”. Once again, deepest gratitude to Guan Yin Bodhisattva for such a favourable arrangement.
It wasn’t until I started the job that I came to understand that what they saw in me was my ability to work as a team. While some candidates were technically outstanding, they came across as arrogant, making it difficult for them to integrate into the team.
To be honest, prior to my Buddhist practice, I was often domineering and a perfectionist. Many who worked with me felt a great deal of pressure. It was only through Buddhism that I learned the value of the Middle Path, as well as compassion and tolerance.
I can still vividly remember, two years ago, when my entire world seemed to crumble, in tears, I asked a fellow practitioner, “What should I do?” With calm conviction, she simply said, “Just focus on your recitation and entrust everything to the compassionate hands of Bodhisattva”.
Looking back now, I realise that every step I took during that tumultuous period was quietly guided by Bodhisattva’s grace. Without that, I cannot imagine how I would have pulled myself out after losing my job.
In closing, my Buddhist practice has been the unwavering pillar of strength in my life. Even when our careers reach their lowest point, and we are engulfed by anxiety and despair, we must never waver to continue to perform recitation, make vows, and release captive lives. We also need to strive to enhance our professional skills. With this, we can surely surmount our career setbacks.
Divine beings are watching over us, just above our heads. As long as we pray with sincerity, Bodhisattva will hear our pleas. As long as we remain steadfast in our practice and accumulate merits through virtuous deeds, once our karmic obstacles are cleared, our wishes will surely be fulfilled.
This wraps up my sharing for today.
Deepest gratitude to Namo Shakyamuni Buddha!
Deepest gratitude to the Greatly Merciful and Greatly Compassionate Guan Yin Bodhisattva!
Deepest gratitude to all Buddhas, Bodhisattvas and Dharma Protectors!
Deepest gratitude to Master Jun Hong Lu!
Thank you to all Buddhist friends.