Date post: | 21-Nov-2014 |
Category: |
Business |
Upload: | saurabh-sood |
View: | 217 times |
Download: | 4 times |
CORPORATE WORLD AND SPIRITUALITY
By:Saurabh Sood
WHAT IS SPIRITUALITY?
It is the relationship one has with one’s self...For many people, it is the simple yet sacred act of connecting with something greater than oneself- often referred to as your higher power, the divine, or the absolute.
It is about “inviting God into your life”
S = Sense of,P = Personal,I = Insight,
R = Religious,I = Interests,T = Towards,
U = Universal,A = Acceptance for,
L = Love,I = Integrity,
T = Truthfulness, andY = You (GOD)
Self Awareness
Reduce Stress
Ethical Development
Aims of Spirituality
Abundance and Creativity
Transformation
Wisdom
Power of Rising Sun
S
North
EastWest
South
Sacred Directions
SPIRITUALITY IN CORPORATE WORLDDifferent people have different perspectives, so scope of spirituality in business is very wide.
Different Views about spirituality.•Simply embodying their personal values of honesty, integrity, and good quality work.
•It’s treating their co-workers and employees in a responsible, caring way.
• It’s participating in spiritual study groups or using prayer, meditation, or intuitive guidance at work.
• It’s making their business socially responsible in how it impacts the environment, serves the community or helps create a better world.
Nowadays every organization thinks about three things while doing the business :-
1. Profit.2. Commitment to people.3. Planet.
Employees are as important as Economics .
KEY SPIRITUAL VALUES EMBRACED IN A BUSINESS
Integrity
Honesty
Accountability
Quality
Cooperation
Intuition
Trustworthiness
Respect
Justice
Instruments to Achieve Spirituality
PrayerMeditationYogaSilent sittingChanting mantras, andListening to grasping religious
scriptures
TASK-ORIENTED VALUES
PERSON-ORIENTED VALUES
Emphasis on:
Attitudes:
JobProduction
ProductCompetition
EfficiencyComparisonConformity
PersonGrowthFriendsCooperationLoveUniquenessDiversity
Prove yourselfJudgment from outside
(producing feelings of guilt)UtilitarianFunctional
Striving, strainingSense of accomplishment
Time measured by rhythm of clock
Become yourselfJudgment from within(producing conditions of peace)CreativeExpressiveNon-grasping, non-strivingSense of wonderRhythm of nature
ARE SPIRITUALITY AND PROFITABILITY RELATED ….??
• Bringing ethics and spiritual values into the workplace can lead to:-
• Increased productivity• Profitability • Employee retention• Customer loyalty• Brand reputationAccording to a growing body of research :- More employers are encouraging spirituality as a way
to boost loyalty and enhance morale
RESEARCH ON SPIRITUALITY AND
THE BOTTOM LINE
A recent study done at the University of Chicago by Prof. Curtis Verschoor and published in Management Accounting found that companies with a defined corporate commitment to ethical principles AND PAVING WAY FOR SPIRITUALITY do better financially than companies that don’t make ethics a key management component.
More Researches….
Business Week reported that 95% of Americans reject the idea that a corporation’s only purpose is to make money.
39% of U.S. investors say they always or frequently check on business practices, values and ethics before investing.
The Trends Report found that 75% of consumers polled say they are likely to switch to brands associated with a good cause if price and quality are equal
WHY ALL THE SUDDEN INTEREST IN SPIRITUALITY AT THE CORPORATE
WORLD?
• Survival - To survive into the 21st Century, organizations must offer a greater sense of meaning and purpose for their workforce. •Increased no. of females - Another factor in the popularity of spirituality at work is the fact that there are more women in the workplace today, and women tend to focus on spiritual values more often than men.
The 3 C’s of Spirituality:
Connection
Compassion
Contribution
Putting Spirituality Into Practice
• Learn to forgive• Practice Gratitude• Demonstrate appreciation• Give and Receive• Cultivate Compassion• Honor the sacredness of all life
Attributes of Spirituality within the context of work
• Defining ourselves as having inherent values, greater than our roles, titles and possessions.
• Affirming meaning and purpose in spite of absurdity and chaos.• Emphasizing authenticity, inner wisdom, creativity, and transformation.• Recognizing the immaterial, transcendental and sacred dimensions of reality.• Having a servant’s attitude towards work and leadership.• Embodying spiritual values of integrity, honesty, love, kindness, and respect.• Emphasizing social responsibility toward the community, society and
environment.• Viewing God and spiritual principles as the basis of moral decisions.
How can we create an environment
supportive to the spiritual dimension of life at work?
“Through the process of spiritual awakening we are shown places in ourselves that we have not seen before. Within each of us is a source of great strength, compassion and beauty. When we tap into this place we are inspired to connect to others , give comfort and support to those around us, even in dark times”
Selliken Bernard and Schneider(1996)
REASONS FOR PRAYER AND MEDITATION IN THE WORKPLACE
To prepare for difficult situations, when they are going through a tough time.
To give thanks for something good.
CHALLENGES FACED BY THE CORPORATE WORLD
CULTURAL DIFFERNCES MATERIALISTIC APPROACH Materialism in the age of plenty
eventually makes many people insecure TIME AND COST CONSTRAINTS THE INNER PEACE Technology has brought many comforts but at the
cost of mental calmness
STRESS “Spirit rises, matter falls” That can be panacea for various human materialistic problems
A balance need to exist in material desires PEER AND FAMILY PRESSURES CONFLICT HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT VIRTUAL ORGANIZATIONS
Beware of GREED and its fallout
Paths of SpiritualityThe everyday
mystic
Generosity of Spirits
Passion to Serve
The way of the HeartWay of faith
Thy will, Not mine, Be done
Contemplation and
Transformation
GOD
Fruits Of Spirituality
• Forgiveness, control of mind• Control of Senses• Thoughts, words and deeds• Endurance• Faith• Equilibrium ,balance and normalness.
We are not human beings having a spiritual
experience, we are spiritual beings having a
human experience.
Summarizing in Mirage form Paths of Knowledge and enlightenment is never-
ending and infinite We can always look for reality but it never reaches
so easily Keep exploring, questioning, investigating Quest for truth is enlightening intellectually Objectivity in spiritual matters will bring us closer to
spiritual reality
It is not how much you do but how much love you put into the doing and sharing with others that is important.
- Mother Teresa