Our Environment is Not the Only Thing that Changes – So Do You
Change and transformation is happening in business and society at large – like it or not. We as human beings are constantly changing even at the level of our body’s cellular biology, yet vast numbers of people try to hold on to “just the way we are/I am” to avoid personal growth. When something shows up that contradicts our perceptual worldview, we tend to ignore our experience or intuition and disconnect from what our own inner truth is telling us as we attempt to cling to “what we know”. This will not allow you to adapt to change easily by any means.
The wisdom to change what you can and accept what you cannot requires “letting go” of control. Actually, better said is, “letting go of the illusion of control”. You see, you don’t have control over the shifts that are occurring now. What you do have quite a bit of potential control over, if you pay attention is…your thinking and feeling. You have the power to embrace change and not accept that, “I am just the way I am”. This is powerful in that even if you can’t change the external situation at that moment, at least you will be able to adapt and see with more clarity.
You can learn how to see differently and attain a new future and take different, more constructive actions. There is a hurdle though that you need to be aware of. It is something called, “cognitive dissonance”. I want to focus here on the fact that the great majority of people seem not to be able to venture out of the box of what the “masses” are doing and begin to connect with what is important to their own purposeful life journey, even if what they are doing doesn’t lead them to the supposed outcomes promised by prevailing “wisdom”. What are some reasons?
1. We don’t trust our own inner wisdom
2. We need to wait for the voice of “authority” before proceeding
3. We are too stuck on “what is” and have no imagination muscle for “what can be”
True Potential: How Do You Feel About Joy, Meaning and Worth?
True potential is a challenge to uncover if you are out of touch with what is the most misrepresented and misunderstood aspects of being human – feelings. HeartMath research findings indicate that feelings (heart) are 5,000 more magnetic energy than that of thought (brain). When the mind and heart are coherent, or “on the same page”, a person is in a higher state of well-being and creativity. So, what is the passageway to more joy, meaning and worth?
Feeling
Simple as that.
Simply yes, however, since the western world in particular, has built up so much resistance to feeling/emotion, it is not easy for most people to access anything but the more “negative” of feelings – the ones that repress our joy, worth and meaning. How ironic. We have created a society that disrespects the very part of ourselves that will bring us what so many are killing themselves over with excessive “doing” and “hard work”. The issue is we have a “perception” that causes us to increase exactly what we don’t want – negative, fear-based emotion and its subsequent feelings. We become attached to “wanting” to feel happy all the time (happy is not the same as joy actually, it’s situational) or to frantically avoiding feeling sad. The great number of people are also disconnected from their heart in a way that is unhealthy. Feelings are not bad or good except thinking (judgment) make it so.
“Remember that there is nothing stable in human affairs; therefore avoid undue elation in prosperity, or undue depression in adversity” ~Socrates, 469-399 B.C.
Our culture and social institutions historically and from what I’ve observed with eyes wide-open produce:
1. Reduction in joy (Focus on lack, fear and competition)
2. Reduction in self-worth (“Who you are” is equated with “What you do or have” and that apparently is “never enough”)
3. Reduction in meaning (The focus has/had been only on “shareholder value” in business instead of a higher purpose in work for the individual).
Reaching True Potential Requires Self-Trust
Reaching true potential is easier said than done. We’ve conditioned our brain and mind to trust outside of our self. Once I garnered the courage to color outside of the boundaries of what I was “informed” from those around me to be “true”, I really began to grow. Here’s the catch: I had to learn to trust myself. It’s amazing for me now to notice just how much we are willing to let “science” or others dictate to us what works for us and what doesn’t. Actually, there is much trial and error going on, even in science. And then there is perception, meaning, one authority says “X” and one will say “Y” about the same outcome.
So who to believe? I would believe my own experience before I would research – and of course, research has its place. It does help the logical mind to process and put tangible structure to the concept. The lesson is to allow space for “both”, instead of either/or, black or white. We can better own our power though if we are willing to:
1. Rest and renew our minds
2. Reconnect with our heart to uncover our core values – and recognize that we evolve
3. Reflect on new ideas, does it fit our current model? Does our model need to evolve? Does it align with our values? Do our values still support and expand our genius, joy, and inner peace?
After all, science can’t even define or explain gravity – it still affects our daily lives. Just because you can’t explain it intellectually doesn’t mean you will not hit the ground hard if you jump off of a tall building. Currently, most people are simply doing what the late psychologist William James said:
“A great many people think they are thinking when they are merely rearranging their prejudices.”
Peace of Mind and Adaptability to Change Depends on HOW You See
Innovation, adapting to change and having peace of mind depend not on what you see, but “how” you see it. Here are some tips to help you shorten your “to do” list, increase your clarity and decrease your overwhelm. Let’s look at work. There is so much busyness and “doing” that it has gotten out of control and is causing suffering and illness now.
This chronic state of needing to “get stuff done” has become a great source of dis-ease, not only in mind but also in the body. I’ve been reflecting on this social ill more deeply recently, and I’ve had some insights that I’ve been applying with great results. Of course, we are all still growing, including the so-called “gurus”.
Before listing some tips, realize ahead of time here that “work is never done”. Free your mind from the concept that you will ever reach a place while here on earth that you have external “stand still”. Change is constant. Once you finish a project or task, there will always be something else. Life evolves. Now, I’m not even going to address how some external voices continuously try to manipulate you into buying things that are really not purposeful or your true heart’s desire. That is a conversation all about creating the perception of lack or something is missing in you to get you to “need” something.
These tips listed below are just to suggest that in order to slow down and shorten your “to do list”, you need to create some clarity. So here goes:
Work Life Balance: Gratitude Today Keeps the Doctor Away
Work and life balance is central to health, real wealth and enjoyable relationships. Gratitude and appreciation are apparently little known secret ingredients to what everyone is really seeking – inner peace, meaning and joy. Then we can “in joy” our efforts and monetary results and use money constructively and with greater purpose. “Stuff” starts to lose its meaning in general.
“Happiness” is very situational, yet joy is the “peace that passes understanding”. It is not a transient mental state; it is the essence of our “being”. We’ve just lost sight of this truth. So, why is there so much increase in disease, debt and divorce or unsatisfying relationships – at home and at work? For one thing, we have forgotten, “who we are”. We have attached our worth and identity to “stuff” that many of us don’t really want.
In fact, I’d venture to say that most people don’t really know what they want or “why” they are so busy “doing” things. It has become a national epidemic – “Doingitis” – a “dis-ease” state. Then, we don’t even feel grateful or appreciate what we accomplish or have. There are steps and processes one can take to disentangle one’s self-worth and meaning from this chronic distracted way of living. However, here I will offer one simple remedy; cultivate gratitude and appreciation. This one thing, felt with the heart and not just an intellectual exercise can:
Focus on the Core Four for More Effective Productivity
Effective productivity comes from managing our energy, not “time”. Time is a construct and everyone gets the same amount everyday. The issue is not how much time as much as it is how much energy and how you are using and renewing. Energy is the Capacity to do work. When we re-energize the whole of ourselves – spiritually, emotionally, and mentally and physical – we will have more energy to be productive. These four areas need optimum functioning to achieve optimum results. Here is what these four areas represent in everyday terms:
Spiritual – Purpose, Meaning, Connection
Emotional – Quality, Perception, Intention
Mental – Focus of Attention, Self-Expression
Physical – Manifestation in the world; outward expression of our inner landscape
Traditionally, we have only been dealing with physical and mental, which accounts for why stress and burnout are at an all time high, as well as “dis-ease”. We also do not have authentic and purposeful self-expression because we often are clear about who we really are. We need to fuel our “doing” with a healthier sense of “being”. This self-awareness to cultivate a healthier state of being will fuel our passion, purpose and meaning and make our “doing” much easier, greatly enhancing effective productivity. It will give use much needed clarity. There is now also plenty of research to support this even beyond my own empirical experience.
It is also the sources of inspiration and innovation, empathy and relationship connection, as well as feeling more confident and self-accepting.
This is not “soft” or weak; in fact these are powerful ingredients for a form of collaborative leadership that can innovate and adapt fluidly to our changing, unstable environment.
Self-aware collaborative leadership can stimulate development of ownership and alignment within the individuals of an organization. In order to engage the mind and heart an organization needs to value the activity of reflection – slowing down and reconnecting to inner vision and values. As individual learn how to manage their brain and mind in a way that releases self-limiting stories and assumptions, they can:
Is It Truly Visionary Leadership or Are We Just Waking Up?
Leadership and vision is something I’ve been dealing with all of my life on different levels. From student government, asking questions that irritated those around me that questioned the status quo to literally growing up and becoming an entrepreneur and eye surgeon before selling my practice. Vision and leadership are themes in my life in a very personal and experiential way.
Our world has been operating so backwards for the past few thousand years or so that those first who are starting to wake up (including myself) are often dubbed as “visionary”. Pretty much everything that I talk about and what media pronounced “thought leaders”, best-selling authors and others share is simply ancient wisdom spoken in terms of today’s language. It’s just a new cycle of old information.
Yet, to us it is a “revelation”; hence, it seems new to today’s world. If you are brave enough to look inside, you might notice that on some level, you “already know this”. Of course, everything is relative. I’m just happy to see this conversation beginning to make its way into conversations on public platforms.
We need courageous “enlightened” inspired leaders who can turn on the light and see their own inner authentic light so that they can see:
1. The light in others
2. See new possibilities for innovation
3. Let their light – and hence their Life shine!
It takes courage to break free from old programming and inner tapes that dim our light. It’s like the dark cave allegory by Socrates. The inhabitants were in fear of their shadow (as many people today are scared of their own inner “shadows”) in their ignorance. One brave soul makes up his or her mind and made their break into the sunlight, only to realize, freedom was only a few steps away.
She or he realizes that the illusion of the shadows on the cave walls was the equivalent of the “boogeyman under the bed”. Yet, when the one who had set himself free was rejected when he went back inside to tell the others that their shadow illusion was to be transformed by coming out into the light… as I said, nothing new under the sun.
The good news is, now that our environment has shifted so far so fast, we are being shaken out of our caves! The earth is rumbling under our feet metaphorically, and if we don’t run out of the cave, we may just be crushed by it. In order to be the type of “in the light” inspirational leader that is needed in today’s world, one will need to leave the cave and inspire others to do the same.
Innovation: The Power of “How”
Innovation can happen in a “2 Degree Shift”, meaning the answer you seek could be right in your face…if you could only perceive it! Have you ever heard the old adage, “If it were a snake it would have bit me?” (Meaning what you were looking for was right in front of you but you did not see it). It is not just a matter of what you want, what you need to consider is “how” you are looking at:
1. People
2. Situations
3. Circumstances
Also, slow down and consider “why” you want what you want so that:
1. You can engage your heart – your source of passion and courage to persevere
2. You can align with and for some, discover, your core values
3. You can really want the results when you get (think “receive”, preferably) them
Many people are running themselves ragged trying to “get there” and if they make it, it feels like a hollow victory. Why? They did not make the time to reflect on their true inner values, why they wanted it in the first place or what is the best “how” to get there in a way that is with ease/less stress, meaningful and sustainable…seeking true innovation, maybe even invention. Many people have lost themselves in “doing”, so much so they feel disconnected – from their own heart and from others. Life is more than about getting what you “think” you want. How about slowing down and reflecting, reconnecting with what you are truly passionate about? Truth be told, you won’t be able to have the peace of mind, be able to fluidly adapt to change and let go of the “time wasting” activities until you deal with:
1. Your “story”
2. Recognizing that “you take you with you” wherever you go; “Life” is not out to get you – you are “co-creating” your experiences
3. “How” you see your self and others – “Reality” is not objective; it is subjective
“Reality is an illusion; albeit a very persistent one” ~Einstein
Innovation: Do You In Joy Your Work?
Here’s an innovative idea – “in-joy” your work by bringing joy to your work instead of seeking to extract “joy from your work”. Stop looking for joy and happiness in all the wrong places. What is a “wrong place”? Anything that is outside of yourself. Creativity is within you. Peace is already within you – even in the midst of seeming outer chaos. Joy is already within you.
Yet we are so conditioned to give away our power – our sense of identity, our need for love, security and self-esteem – to externals. This is why consumerism is so out of control. We’ve believed the lie that there is “something wrong with us”.
Hey, we all are in process and there’s plenty of room for growth. Yet, needing to grow doesn’t need to come from a place of “deficiency”. It is vital to realize:
1. What you see (with feeling) is what you get – so start seeing a new vision for your life, beginning within your “mind’s eye”.
2. You are applying the meaning to your life – you define your experience by how you see – your perception of the person or situation, the circumstances.
3. Joy is already within you – it’s just buried under your “cataract of the soul”, your misperception regarding who you think you are and what you can be, do or have.
I’m getting so many epiphanies these days. Why? Because I’m expecting them, I’m looking for them. “ Seek and ye shall find”, is a Truth.
Diversity and Inclusion Begins at the CORE
Diversity as a consulting arena was not something I was attracted to historically – until now. I notice that it too often seems to be only “representation” which is better than nothing…somewhat anyway. Just to have physical bodies in a room is really not creating a culture of inclusion and innovation. I attended a “diversity and inclusion” corporate event last week and I am inspired to see that some people are starting to realize that personal individual growth will need to be addressed as well as structure change to create inclusion.
Outer change cannot happen until the inner landscape of our mind is adjusted first.
Here’s the traditional ways that society has addressed diversity:
1. External Social Laws
2. Excessive Discussion without change
3. Hiring women and people of color
This is a place to start AND, it’s now time to go deeper. We can’t “force” inner change. Women are smart and more than capable. People of color – men and women – are smart and capable. Where the “smartness and capable” can be applied is not based on color or gender in reality. To do so is just due to one’s blind spot and belief system. The challenge is to help people to grow beyond their inner insecurity on the one hand, and to also help those stuck in “homogeneous comfort zones” to embrace change that brings opportunity to the whole of humanity.
Until there is balance within our minds and hearts, we will not have inclusion or effective innovation in the mini laboratory of change called the “work place”. Change begins at our CORE as individuals and it requires Courage, Open-mindedness, Reflection and Enthusiasm. Organizations are composed of individuals. Here’s three ways to create inclusion and a more diverse work place, both in terms of people and ideas:
1. Start with the culture – be brave enough to explore values, purpose (“why) and without blame, to examine what is no longer working and commit to change
2. Recognize that “know thyself” is the key to creating better and more effective leaders and teams – create a culture of personal growth and development using processes that promote “self-awareness” first which leads to better “emotional intelligence”
3. Realize that people are now looking for meaning, autonomy and fulfillment – beyond money and the weekly grind if you want to attract and retain committed employees
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