Capitalism’s greatest challenge is its addiction to economic expansion. Our entire financial system is predicated on the assumption that GDP will always keep increasing. Stock markets, debt and retirement funds all depend on this. So does our monetary supply. The financial crisis is a symptom of this challenge.
Category: Collected articles
Leader should be careful not to kill the spirit of enthusiastic service, which is individual and spontaneous and voluntary. Leader should try to always generate some atmosphere of fresh challenge to the people, so that they will agree enthusiastically to rise and meet it. That is the art of management: to draw out spontaneous loving spirit of sacrificing some energy for a Higher goal. All of us should become expert managers.
The first thing to see about such an organization (and this sometimes surprises people) is that it’s quite […]
Money is important but it’s not the key to fulfillment. The “safe” choice, the most monetarily rewarding one, can carry enormous psychological and spiritual pain. As Ralph Waldo Emerson put it, “Sometimes money costs too much.”
Servant Leaders are leaders who have taken up the responsibility to personally take care of a group of serious candidates for the advancement in devotional service. They are leaders-servants, the concept that is becoming more and more prominent in business sector today. They are facilitators. They recognize talents and potential of the devotees and help them express and engage them. They are friendly and unselfish. They like to see others advance. They like to assist others in becoming servant leaders.
Leaders should never consider themselves as proprietors of those in their charge. Ownership implies that we have a right to do with our property as we will, and it can serve as justification for all kinds of exploitation and abuse. But if we view ourselves as caretakers, coordinators, catalysts or carriers of the vision, and if we treat others in loving, supportive ways, we will not engage in such exploitation.
It is a qualification of the great thinkers to pick up the best even from the worst. It is said that the intelligent man should pick up nectar from a stock of poison, should accept gold even from a filthy place, should accept a good and qualified wife even from an obscure family and should accept a good lesson even from a man or from a teacher who comes from the untouchables
For only when a ruler has learned to listen closely to the people’s hearts, hearing their feelings uncommunicated, pains unexpressed, and complaints not spoken of, can he hope to inspire confidence in his people, understand when something is wrong, and meet the true needs of his citizens. The demise of states comes when leaders listen only to superficial words and not penetrate deeply into the souls of the people to hear their true opinions, feelings and desires.”
The key to attempting to change anyone’s behavior is respect. You must show that you respect the employee as a person while asking for conflicting behaviors to change. Redirecting people who are not living the values is one of the most important things a leader must do. To do so is to ensure your credibility and to reinforce the importance of values.
Resonant leaders use self-awareness to measure their own moods precisely, and they naturally know they are affecting others.
Good moods stimulate good performances, but it doesn’t make sense for a leader to be happy as a blue jay at dawn if sales are taking or business is going under.
You may need to get a little creative with your schedule, but there are definitely ways to help balance career and family. Sometimes an extra few minutes each day or a once-weekly good block of time can go a long way in helping restore your peace of mind and help you feel less harried.
As we grow up, we reach a point in our lives when we open up to change. A whole new understanding allows us to accept information that will help us to unlock our self-improvement power. Until that change happens, something we need to improve in our lives could be staring us in the face, however, we will not see it; even if it is right under our noses.
Many believe business ethics is a recent phenomenon because of increased attention to the topic in popular and management literature. However, business ethics was written about even 2,000 years ago — at least since Cicero wrote about the topic in his On Duties. Business ethics has gotten more attention recently because of the social responsibility movement that started in the 1960s.
Phillips writes an insightful and sometimes moving explanation of what he has gained from his experience. He also describes accurately some of the problems of being a manager is today’s environment and how Zen can help people and organizations.
When defining a value for your company, it’s a good idea to try to describe it in detail. For example, a company may adopt the value “Customer Delight.” That’s the value’s name. The description for the value could be something like: “We recognize that in today’s highly competitive market providing excellent service is not sufficient to satisfy customers and ensure their loyalty. Our goal is to convert the customer’s interaction with our company into a thoroughly and unforgettably enjoyable experience.” You are describing how the value can uplift a company in general, or your company in particular.
Good conscious leaders develop through a never ending process of self-study, education, training, and experience. This guide will help you through that process.
The Conscious Manager also presents other exercises, for example, ones that help readers not to overreact to things that happen every day, things that are not worth getting twisted up about. Both kinds of exercises help us find out what really matters to us, so we can pursue that effectively and without distraction. The book features vignettes in business settings that illustrate the value of this approach for managers.