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THIS WEEK
How to Keep Your Soul Working in a Corporation
ALSO IN THIS EDITION
How to Keep Your Soul Working in a Corporation
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My head rested on the glass window of the morning train heading into the city – my eyes staring into the distance, looking at nothing in particular. I sighed as I felt the now familiar feeling ... the feeling of my soul being shrink-wrapped.
Every morning, on the now all too familiar train ride, I would pack away all the non-corporate, non-acceptable parts of myself, and shrink-wrap them for later. Every evening, if I remembered, I would quietly tear a corner into the shrink-wrapping and let my soul breathe. The trouble was, over the years, more and more I forgot to open the shrink-wrap, until the tight feeling and the corporate mask was all that was on permanent display.
Every now and again, the "unacceptable parts" of me would mount a breakout attempt, usually met with much tut-tutting and murmurs of the need to set a better example to the staff. They were quickly brought under control and the shrink-wrap made a little tighter.
Corporations don't deliberately set out to close down your soul.
Nevertheless, little by little we learn that emotions in the workplace are frowned upon – no matter whether they are anger or unbridled joy. No matter whether it is caring for another team member having a bad day or caring for our clients and spending 3 minutes more than allocated to treat them as human beings. Beige emotions to match the carpets are the norm.
We learn that creativity and being a maverick are dangerous. It makes you stand out. Yes, there are the odd muttered platitudes of "we need more creativity and innovation" ... but only between the hours of 9am and 9.15am ... and only within the context of formal meetings ... and only when following the appropriate hierarchy channels and with the appropriate paperwork completed.
We learn that intuition (while usually right) is seen in the same category as witchcraft and people who are in tune with their intuition need to be prepared to be burned at the stake. Corporations worship at the altar of logic, facts and figures. Never mind that slavish following of facts and figures resulted in the GFC.
So little by little, our souls die at work. For 20+ years I was a soul less High Priestess of the corporate world, having one of the top Human Resources jobs in government.
I finally broke free, peeled off the layers and rediscovered my soul. But, even now, after 5 years of freedom, I still catch myself periodically looking over my shoulder, concerned about what "they" may think.
It doesn't have to be that way. What I have learnt is you don't have to lose your soul – you can keep it and still survive and thrive in the corporate world. How?
There are organisations and corporations that welcome authenticity and humanity. That strive for connection with their employees and their customers – connection that is more than rhetoric. If your soul longs to dance ... find them! Choose them! Work with them!
If your choice is to remain and be a force for change in your workplace, start with the people immediately around you. Build connections one person at a time. Allow the non-corporate part of you to talk to the non-corporate part of one other person at work. Start a ripple of being able to breathe, to share and connect.
Remember to reconnect with who you are outside of work hours. Remember who the "non-corporate" part of you is. Remember what that part of you likes to do to relax and unwind ... and do it.
Find something creative that you love to do and do it. Not everyone is an artist, but everyone can take photos, build model cars, cook or sew. Channel your out-pouring of creativity into ways that bring you joy.
And finally, connect deeply with the ones you love or have chosen to love. Be open with them; be honest and authentic with them. The tighter the shrink-wrapping gets, the more open you need to be with the people around you. They are your safety net. They are the ones who will throw you the lifeline to rescue you from a sea of beige ... if only you let them in.
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| Business Tip: Lessons From the Floods |
Brisbane recently went through devastating floods. In the past weeks, I have been listening to stories from different businesses about what happened on the day of the flood for their business. Here are two contrasting examples of businesses and how they coped.
Some businesses mobilised massive armies of people to help them move their goods to higher ground before the floodwaters hit. For example, one car yard, over two locations, managed to move over 700 cars to higher ground.
An accounting practice found that their employees waited for direction before doing anything, and as the manager was away they did nothing. Nothing was put up out of harm's way. Nothing was taken off site. They just left the building and went home, and when it was obvious that the building was in danger, no-one called in to help. All of the records, computers and furniture were lost as a result. Data is the lifeblood of the accounting practice. Imagine the impact!
Some businesses had no off-site back-ups of their data, so lost everything. Others were up and running in off-site locations the next day.
The thing is that natural disasters happen regularly. In a disaster, how well thought-through is your disaster plan? Does everyone know their role? How independent are your employees and willing to take action that is needed to save your business (and a bigger question, how connected do they feel with you and your business).
There are lessons to be learnt for your business from the floods, if you just stop and look.
| Blog of the Month: Heart of Business |
Each month, I will share some of the blogs I always read - some are truly corporate, some psychologically based and some which blend spirituality with the workplace.
Mark Silver is someone whose writings I have followed for the past few years. His blend of Sufi wisdom and spirituality, with a pragmatic corporate approach is refreshing, enriching and always generates thought for me.
Add Mark's Heart of Business blog to your reader. His recent posts include: How to Tell When Someone Really Does Need to Think About It and the Cliff Edge Moment in the Sales Conversation. Both posts help you to be authentic without being pushy, and connected while still promoting your business.
If you want to be a good judge of character, this post shares some brilliant wisdom - listen to the little stories not the "BIG" ones that people tell you.
exuberantly yours
Ingrid
Heart Harmony
Legal stuff: This newsletter is intended as only a general guideline for Australian businesses. You should seek specific advice for your situation rather than relying only on this newsletter
Earnings disclaimer. Some of the content may include advertorial information, which means I may receive financial compensation for the products I recommend. But - unless I know and trust the product , I will not recommend it.
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