It has become clear to me over many years working in business, participating in the running of businesses and observing other business owners that motivation based simply on greed and winning ends up damaging both the business and its executives.
The ‘80’s business credo that “greed is good,” made famous by the infamous investor Gordon Gecko, is now clearly seen by many business owners and executives as definitely not being good. Not for them personally, nor for their staff, nor for their customers nor for their businesses. Following this credo is bad for their health and the health of their business..
There is an increasingly now a widespread acceptance that there must be some sort of “spirituality” at the core of a business. Some spiritually based equity. A basic fairness, for it all to work. For a business to succeed long term it is increasingly now understood that it must nurture and sustain all its stakeholders. And this includes the owners or shareholders, the staff, the customers and the community at large..
Maybe the Internet with its incredible potential networking, maybe simply the human spirit, maybe the sustained emptiness that has been felt and lived by thousands upon thousands of business owners and executives who have amassed physical wealth but ended up physically and emotionally bankrupt, has led to this realisation..
But one thing is certain. There is now a widespread understanding within the business community that there is a place for genuine “spirituality” within the heart of those businesses which will be sustainable throughout this decade..
Geri Larkin, writing in “Building A Business The Buddhist Way,” coins the term a “right livelihood business.”.
She says; “In my experience the characteristics that best separate a right livelihood business from the rest of the pack is that they are driven by spiritually-based principles.”.
She says that these principles can come from many of the world’s ancient spiritual traditions. However, she personally feels that the Buddhist precepts offer a user-friendly framework that has served her and many of her clients well over the years..
While there are many core precepts to be found in the great spiritual traditions and in the “wisdom of the Elders” of the indigenous peoples Geri Larkin uses Thich Nhat Hanh’s version, (spelt out in his book, For A Future To Be Possible,) in her training and consulting programs. Geri believes that this version has a clarity for all business owners deal with the day-to-day decisions that we all face. In looking for a simple presentation of what “spirituality in the workplace” could be based on I also believe that this presentation is an excellent starting point. For your consideration, here are the five precepts:
1. I am committed to cultivating compassion and learning ways to protect the lives of people, animals, plants and minerals. I am determined not to kill. Nor let others kill, and not to condone any act of killing in the world, in my thinking and in my way of life.
2. I am committed to cultivating loving kindness and learning ways to work for the well being of people, animals, plants, and minerals. I vow to practice generosity by sharing my time, energy, and material resources with those who are in real need. I am determined not to steal and not to possess anything that should belong to others. I will respect the property of others, but I will prevent others from profiting from human suffering or the suffering of other species on Earth.
3. I am committed to cultivating responsibility and learning ways to protect the safety and integrity of couples, families and society. I am determined not to engage in sexual relations without love and long-term commitment. To preserve the happiness of myself and others, I am determined to respect my commitments and the commitments of others. I will do everything in my power to protect children from sexual abuse and to prevent couples and families from being broken by sexual misconduct.
4. I am committed to cultivating loving speech and deep listening in order to bring joy and happiness to others and relieve others of their suffering. I am determined to speak truthfully, with words that inspire self-confidence, joy, and hope. I will not spread news that I do not know to be certain and will refrain from uttering words that can cause division or discord, or that can cause the family or community to break. I am determined to make all efforts to reconcile and resolve all conflicts, however small.
5. I am committed to cultivating good health, both physical and mental, for myself, my family, and my society by practicing mindful eating, drinking and consuming. I will ingest only items that preserve peace, well being, and joy in my body, my consciousness, and in the collective body and consciousness of my family and society. I am determined not to use any alcohol or any other intoxicant or to ingest foods or other items that contain toxins, such as certain TV programs, magazines, books, films and conversations. I am aware that to damage my body or my consciousness with these poisons is to betray my ancestors, my parents, my society and future generations. I will work to transform violence, fear, anger and confusion in myself and in society by practicing a diet for myself and society. I understand that a proper diet is crucial for self-transformation and for the transformation of society.
These precepts can form the basis for our best intentions, and our best intentions for our businesses and our environment. As such we do the best we can. When we stumble we need not feel guilty. Our job at this point is to just pick ourselves up, make amends as best as we are able, and pick up were we left off.
With more than six billion of us on Mother Earth at this time, all seeking happiness and a meaningful and sustainable future the time has come for good men and women to lead. To lead their families, their fellow workers and their communities towards a more joyous, more harmonious and much more fulfilling way to be. The time has come when we must look inwardly at what makes us truly happy and then discard what we know damages us, damages those we love and damages those with whom we share our working lives.
You can be a part of this. Simply by deciding this to be so.
