Spirituality in Business – Say What?!

by Malcolm Avner

There is a reason why flight attendants instruct passengers to strap on their own oxygen mask before applying a mask to the child (or person acting like a child) in the adjacent seat. Because both are most likely to survive if the responsible passenger first ensures his/her own ability to act capably. A (literally) unconscious responsible party could ensure the demise of both passengers!

The analogy applies to any organization. The responsible party (CEO, owner-operator or senior manager) must first personally embody the values, awareness and integrity that are ultimately desired for the entire organization. Just as an organization is a reflection of its leadership, so is leadership a reflection of the leader’s personal thoughts, beliefs and feelings. Many of us are well aware of our own technical abilities, interpersonal skills, likes and dislikes. However, how well do we recognize the subconscious beliefs and emotions that profoundly impact our decisions and behaviors? This is where spirituality fits into the picture.

Spirituality (as distinguished from religion) is about being aware of our essential truth and making conscious choices based on that truth. And what is essential truth? It’s the hunch – the gut feeling response; it’s the message from your intuition; that small voice in the back of your mind that instantly whispers the best answer to any question you ask yourself. Essential truth is what we frequently obscure with false beliefs and mindless routines. That all-knowing voice from within guides us toward whole-life enhancing choices. Leadership that stems from spiritual connectedness encourages honest interpersonal communication, life-balancing work styles and compassionate, health-promoting policies and decisions.

Leadership that reflects spiritually influenced thoughts and actions produces compelling results. When perspective on the business shifts to a place of balance among life’s priorities, decisions tend to enhance long-term value, thus maximizing owner’s equity and promoting customer loyalty and employee retention. Recruiting becomes less of an issue, as quality employees are attracted to a positive, supportive workplace. Organizational resourcefulness is enhanced because employees care.

So what’s the cost to a business that operates without spiritual direction? We need look no further than newspaper headlines: The debacle at Enron and others that result from massive failures of integrity in leadership; the “us-vs.-them” attitude of employees and management; management decisions designed to shortchange business partners and governmental regulators. The pervasive costs to a company can be intangible and are therefore more easily overlooked: Lower employee moral, less trust among employees; less customer loyalty (resulting in higher marketing and customer service costs); greater expense in hiring and keeping quality employees; loss of investor confidence (resulting in a lower valuation of the company) and more. The personal emotional toll can be debilitating: Loss of self-esteem and distrust of partners, suppliers and community.

Making the transformation to include spirituality in business
Getting in touch with essential truth begins with self-knowledge and personal accountability. Simple -- yes. Easy -- maybe not. Intentionally altering self-concept and making new agreements about life require fierce honesty and acceptance of change. You may have heard the old adage: The definition of insanity is to do the same thing over and over, expecting a different result. The first step on the path to transformation is to embrace change as a partner, not fear change as a threat. Only when a leader experiences self-knowledge, self-compassion and self-accountability can those traits can be modeled, taught and integrated into an organization’s culture. Simply by becoming aware of underlying beliefs, thoughts and feelings, a person is empowered to make conscious choices and change behavior patterns. New habits of behavior organically develop from updated, truth-based beliefs. Are you ready to heal your organization? Begin by healing yourself!

Malcolm Avner is a holistic business and life coach based in La Jolla, CA. Over the past 25 years, he has helped hundreds of business owners improve profitability, create plans for growth and tackle daunting organizational issues. His practice includes intuitive tools, such as DreamWork, energy therapy and Family Systemic Constellation, where whole-life issues can be addressed within the context of business issues. www.MalcolmAvner.com