"Entrepreneurs: The World needs You!" article in Special Issue of Thunderbird International Business Review

It is with great pleasure that I am sharing with you my first internationally published article, in the Thunderbird International Business Review (TIBR) Special Issue on "The Fight Against Poverty", called "Entrepreneurs - The World needs You!". The fight against poverty is actually for me more a quest/path for a better world through more consciousness, inclusive and sustainable development.

I wrote this piece in personal capacity and I am an authentic believer in several global initiatives of the UN, its vision and potential of inclusive and conscious business for sustainable development. Therefore, I naturally mentioned several of UN's initiatives in this area I have been involved with such as the Global Compact, Growing Sustainable Business and Inclusive Market Development.

While this article calls on entrepreneurs and business people, in fact the world needs the full, authentic, conscious You, i.e. Essence/Potential/Soul of each of us. I hope its an inspiring article that you enjoy. Any feedback most welcome.

Abstract:
The way we see the role of business is changing dramatically. What have we learned from the recent and ongoing crises? Where does one look for guidance on the “right thing to do” now? In a world where we live on one globe, it is time to shift our energy to real responsibility and sustainability. This requires a new paradigm. As Albert Einstein said, “No problem can be solved from the same level of consciousness that created it.” We are not separated from our environment, nature, and society; we are actually a part of it.

Therefore, let us unleash entrepreneurship and the power of business in a way to serve us more holistically. This new type of thinking, this expanding consciousness, is giving birth to all the new concepts of social entrepreneurship, corporate social responsibility, corporate sustainability, inclusive business, conscious capitalism, and sustainable development.

On the global level, there are increasing numbers of business-oriented initiatives aimed at steering the power of business toward the public good such as the UN Global Compact and the Business Call to Action. Where to look for inspiration at the individual level? Within yourself. As Mahatma Gandhi said, “You have to be the change you want to see in the world.”

Continue reading the Full Article (PDF).

The Pyramid of Conscious Capitalism - Abraham Maslow's hierarchy aplied to Conscious Business

Via Scoop.it I came across various interesting articles on Conscious Business and Conscious Capitalism.

Especially, the following beautiful illustration reminds me of Abraham Maslow's famous needs-pyramid. I have always been intrigued by Maslow's pyramid and how to 'transcend' from basic needs all the way up to the elusive-sounding "self-actualization".

Wouldn't it be great to have a similar, clear hierarchy and pyramid for the evolution of business and capitalism?

See below the best illustration I have seen so far: Maddock Douglas' "Pyramid of Conscious Capitalism" outlining the hierarchy from society/environment, beyond profit, towards purpose - from survive to succeed to transform: 

Read the full article at Maddock Douglas and explore more on the topic via Scoop.it where also my own article about Conscious Business is featured.

Conscious Business: What is it? Does it matter? Uniting IQ, EQ and SQ for Global Sustainability

Climate change, economic and financial crises, environmental disasters, nuclear risks etc. - how many more wake-up calls do we need? We are at an important crossroads where we decide on how we behave, consume and lead our lives - and how we do business. 

As drastically as it sounds, the choices we make have a direct influence on the survival of large parts of society, the environment and the world at large. The bottom line is: Our individual and collective decisions determine our future and do affect all of us.

"Let us choose to unite the power of markets with the authority of universal ideals. Let us choose to reconcile the creative forces of private entrepreneurship with the needs of the disadvantaged and the requirements of future generations."
Kofi Annan, former UN Secretary-General

There is a (r)evolution underway, an expanding consciousness: managers meditating, people seeking for purpose and standing up for their rights, leaders shaken by unpredictable crises. The "winds of change" massively affect the corporate world, too, and foster new ways of doing business more consciously. Therefore, this article explores these new ways of conscious business, the related new leadership style and required integration of IQ, EQ and SQ (spiritual intelligence). 

Why should we look into Conscious Business?

Several years ago, I realized that I wanted to change my career from money-maximising to a profession with a purpose. I wanted to feel my lifetime well invested in positive change, meaningful work and making a difference in the world. While working for NGOs and the United Nations, I kept my interest in business because I have always been impressed by business organisations' efficiency and entrepreneurs' innovative creativity and 'can-do' attitude.

However, I began to inquire into the what, why and how of business and my own actions: What are we doing? Why are we doing it? How can we do it better? So I started on the long journey of inquiry into myself, business and capitalism. I realized the importance of expanding our own consciousness to embrace positive change and achieve global sustainability. Also I recognized that there are old and new - more conscious - ways of doing business: From CSR, social entrepreneurship, inclusive business to conscious business.

"We are living in a phenomenal age... finding approaches that meet the needs of the poor in ways that generate profits and recognition for business, we will have found a sustainable way to reduce poverty in the world." 
Bill Gates, Microsoft founder and philanthropist

Conventional versus Conscious Business

Here are some pointers to contrast the conventional way of doing business with conscious business. This is a simplification aiming to open up awareness by seeing an enterprises from different perspectives. 

Some dimensions might seem like contradictions while others seem easier to be reconciled:

• Money vs. Meaning
• Ego vs. Eco(logy)
• Compete/control vs. Cooperate
• Profit vs. People/Planet
• Fear vs. Freedom
• Superiority vs. Sustainability
• Shareholder vs. Stakeholder
• Value vs. Values
• Capital vs. Consciousness
• Share vs. Sharing
• Greed vs. Giving

Some might say that this sounds all nice but will question if conscious businesses are sustainable, profitable and competitive? Yes, they can. In fact some argue that they excel in the marketplace (see A Better Way to Win: Profiting from Purpose). 

What is Conscious Business?
After having looked at some differentiators, how can we define a conscious business?
It is "a business enterprise that seeks to be aware of the effects of its actions, and to consciously affect human beings and the environment in a beneficial way." It is a value-based enterprise "where values represent social and environmental concerns globally as well as locally", i.e. go beyond economic value (see Wikipedia Conscious Business).

There are no universally agreed criteria on conscious business but some accepted principles include "Doing no Harm" and the Triple Bottom Line approach of aiming for "positive value in the domain of People, Planet, and Profit". One such example is "The Body Shop" founded by activist Anita Roddick and many more examples to be explored on this blog. 

"We are running out of time to integrate the material and the spiritual worlds."

Peter Senge, MIT Professor and author of 'The Fifth Discipline' 

What does Consciousness mean?
Let me try to demystify the word 'consciousness' which fills whole PhDs in various fields. There are different levels of consciousness such as universal, collective and individual consciousness. This article focuses onto the individual consciousness, however all these levels are connected and affect each other.

Your individual consciousness can be described as your awareness of your interconnectedness with everything within and around you: your own soul, co-workers, society, environment, planet, universe etc. The matrix of connections can also be seen horizontally (friends, family, colleagues etc.) and vertically ('Mother Earth" and 'Higher/God-like/Universe').

In simplified terms, consciousness is awareness and relates to your holistic, spiritual intelligence. It does not come from your knowledge or your mind, it is not determined by your IQ and it goes beyond your emotional intelligence (EQ). The closest to consciousness within the intelligence systems-thinking would be your spiritual intelligence (SQ). 

Conscious Leadership

Conscious business requires conscious leadership which is based on all three main intelligences: IQ, EQ and SQ. SQ which is the spiritual intelligence quotient describes how well you live and lead with wisdom, compassion and peace (explore deeper at Deep Change). 

Conscious leadership can also be seen as integrating the various leadership dimensions from paternal, humanistic, holistic to spiritual-based (read more at Spiritual-Based Leadership Research Programme).

Some key principles of conscious and enlightened business leadership include:

• Know yourself
• Do no harm
• Take (self-)responsibility
• Cultivate generosity
• Live integrity
• Act courageously
• Be inspired and inspire
• Embrace change

"The best way to begin an integral approach to business is with oneself...
How do body, mind, and spirit operate in me? How does that necessarily impact my role in the world of business?"

Ken Wilber, one of the most influential spiritual philosophers

Towards Conscious Capitalism and Global Sustainability

Does this all matter? Yes, it is required to meet the challenges of our century and our livelihood depends on it. A conscious business values its people and therefore requires conscious leadership that inspires and brings out the best of its staff.

With an expanding consciousness amongst business leaders, consumers, activists and policy makers, we are all part of a (r)evolution towards conscious capitalism. Let us jointly address the urgent issues on environmental sustainability, social justice and broad-based prosperity to ensure global sustainability. Join the movement and leave a comment.

Recommended Reading:

• Conscious Business, Fred Kaufman
• Spiritual Enterprise, Theodore Roosevelt Malloch
• Good Business, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
• One: The Art and Practice of Conscious Leadership, Lance Secretan

Additional Resources:

• Waking up the Workplace (free online seminars 17 March-23 June 2011)
• Conscious Business Summary (by Realize)
• Conscious Leadership (by Gina Hayden) 
• Conscious Capitalism Institute
• 10 Conscious Companies (credit to Sean Murphy for top photo)

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About the Author: Juergen Nagler, has worked and consulted for leading businesses, NGOs and the United Nations, blogging in personal capacity at Business4Good (biosketch).

The Enlightened Business Summit - October 25-29th Teleseminar - Conscious Capitalism

Via the World Business Academy newsletter comes an open invitation to "The Enlightened Business Summit", a virtual global event that features around 40 top CEOs, bestselling authors, pioneering entrepreneurs, and provocateurs – for free. To cite from the World Business Academy:

"The Summit features leaders such as Tim Ferriss, Tony Hsieh, John Mackey, George Zimmer, Christine Comaford Lynch, Tony Schwartz, Roxanne Emmerich, Stephen M. Covey, and Mihaly Csikszenmihalyi. It’s designed with mainly 30-minute talks interspersed throughout the day so you can stay on top of your work while learning the best insights from the world’s top business minds.

If you’re like us, you recognize that conscious capitalism can become the single most powerful engine for good on our planet. But what it takes is having a great guidebook and wise advisors.

Most of us have been raised in a war-zone approach to business that actually doesn’t work very well – it leads to unhappy employees, uncreative teams, burned out leaders, and stagnant sales. Recent financial crises are forcing all of us to get far more creative in harnessing the best science, insights, and wisdom for creating businesses that liberate our creative potential and truly succeed – on all levels.

That’s why this event can be so valuable for you and your organization – it gives you unprecedented access to world-class advisors for transforming the way you do business.

You can participate live on as many calls as you like and interact with both the featured leaders and other participants via a state-of-the-art MaestroConference platform, which will connect you to participants from around the world.

The Enlightened Business Summit runs from Oct. 25-29th as a free offering from The Shift Network and it will be hosted by Chip Conley, author of Peak and one of the most popular speakers at this year’s TED conference."

I only know a few of the speakers so far, such as Stephen Covey ("7 habits of highly effective people"), Lance Secretan (read his ONE book on conscious leadership), Hazel Henderson. A very intersting topic and line-up. Being 'free' the value for money is hard to beat, so I will selectivly tune in.

For more information & registration see: www.enlightenedbusinesssummit.com