vegetable heartAt a meta level, Whole Self Leadership (WSL)’s mission is to change the way we do business. That fills me and my clients with excitement. I was explaining this passionately to my husband and he was filled with horror because it sounded as if I was trying to create a revolution and that felt frightening. Revolution smells of chaos, anarchy and pain. Just look at history. There is also something very forced about it. Energetically when you start to push something then you are likely to lose your flow and find it all hard work. A better term to describe what WSL along with other business is doing is creating a spiralution. In other words just as with a spiral, the movement starts out small and expands in time and as it does it gathers momentum.

Let me go further by referring to 2012 and the end of the Mayan calendar. There were many commentaries on what the date, 21 December 2012, signified: the media focused on the doomsayers’ prophesy; whilst others came up with some classic New Age explanations. What it seems to be about is bringing a huge shift in world consciousness which ultimately leads to wholesale paradigm change. This did not all happen on a fixed date in December. There are trends showing the shift in the years preceding 2012. The publication of The 7 Graces of Marketing in 2010 is a good example of new paradigm thinking. What is happening in Italian politics right now is another – people want a change to the status quo and they are getting it. A new reality is emerging and we need to be ready for it and to help businesses prepare for it.

Another way of framing it is to say that

the future of business is to be a force for bringing our societies alive across the planet ~ Manisha Dahad and Jo Brill

How do we do that? The 7 Graces of Marketing offers businesses one way of doing that and is one reason I became one of the directors of the newly formed 7 Graces Community Interest Company. I spoke at length about one of the other Graces, Connection, in a previous post. Here I want to talk about Abundance because it is at the heart of how we do business here at WSL and it can determine the level of success you have.

The traditional definition of abundance, the one that everyone associates with the word, is prosperity, wealth and affluence. Increasingly though, there is a view that it is about recognising that we have enough with what we have right now. There is no magic number – how often do you catch yourself saying that if you earn xyz amount you will be satisfied. Some of the richest people in the world feel poor. Abundance comes from within, having appreciation for what we already have and being grateful for that. It is about using the resources that we already have wisely. The rationale behind trusting that we have enough and living in that space is that we will attract more in. In simple terms, if we are not worrying about what we do not have and trust that we will receive what we need, we are then free to help other people and make a difference in the world. If we start each day off by saying how can I serve you to the Universe (substitute for higher power/ Source/ God/ Higher Self whatever works for you) then often the Universe serves us. If that seems like a step too far, start by using affirmative prayer. This works because you are thankful for the thing that you need as if you have already received it i.e Thank you for a steady cash flow.

I would like to share a story with you to illustrate this further. My clients are often on the search for more of their ideal customers. I find that when we explore that further they realise that it all comes back to them and how they are being. Often I find that at some level they are still operating from a place of scarcity or lack. One therapist I worked with still believed in competition rather than collaboration with other therapists. An example was when the client said that they did not email new clients their first session form in case that person decided to use their ideas to modify and improve their own first session form. What does it matter if someone does imitate you? Firstly it is a form of flattery because they think you have a high quality product; and secondly no two people are the same so even if someone else uses your material, they will never deliver it in the way that you do. What it also shows at a fundamental level is that that person did not believe there were enough clients for everyone so they had to protect their own assets very carefully. This uses up a lot of energy that could be better placed elsewhere.

This brings us to the other part of the definition of abundance which is benevolence. Generosity is a corner stone in the new paradigm way of doing business. If we peel back generosity to its essence we find kindness and it is kindness that keeps the world afloat as this video shows. It really does work like this but there are a few things to remember. It is unlikely to be the person that you help will be the one who supports you and it is rare that kindness is reciprocated immediately.

There are examples of people who live their lives in this way and are seeing the results that it brings. A conscious entrepreneur that I have a great deal of time for is Meg Montgomery from IDEABASH. She is incredibly generous with the time she gives new start ups. A year ago she invested in four projects and now she is reaping the rewards and is receiving a level of prosperity she could not have imagined back then. It is about trusting and having faith and modelling what you want to see in the world by living your values. Thankfully in this new economy of abundance, kindness has a value, and in fact is its life blood.

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Kate Griffiths is a qualified coach, speaker, community leader and writer, who is fascinated by the impact of words. She teaches business owners, leaders and teams how to communicate effectively to build stronger relationships and thereby improve the possibilities for innovation and collaboration.

Kate is also the Community Relations Director of the 7 Graces Project, a thriving community and social enterprise. The aim of the 7 Graces Project will be to provide an educational alternative and business incubator for a new generation of ethical, community-focused businesses.

Monday’s Musing: kindness comes from an abundant mindset
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2 thoughts on “Monday’s Musing: kindness comes from an abundant mindset

  • March 4, 2013 at 9:17 pm
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    A wonderful article, thanks so much Kate! A few years ago, with my therapist hat on, I found myself gobsmacked by how many fellow therapists shied away from networking on any level, because they felt ‘threatened’ (their words!) by ‘competitors’ : whereas I believe, as you do, that abundance and collaboration are critical to our success, as businesses, as individuals, as love-centered playfull creatives! I am also a huge fan of Meg’s work 🙂

    • March 4, 2013 at 9:24 pm
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      Absolutely Callie. The key is connection though isn’t it. When we know who we are and why we are here now and appreciate our uniqueness then we have no need to fear another or what they offer.

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