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Article in The Guardian, Saturday, 21 October 06
They waste money and they waste lives, and most people have known one. They are soul-destroying organisations – workplaces full of cynicism, scepticism and disillusionment. You feel cramped and stifled. You are asked to deliver results that cannot be achieved, yet your strengths lie unused. Morale is low and a general sense of pointlessness undermines any attempt to move forward.
Most organisations achieve just a fraction of what they are capable. Businesses and services are striving to meet the demands of a 21st century world whilst using old ways of working that leave people ill equipped to deliver. The speed and complexity of change that we now face invites us to evolve to a higher way of working, one that is soul-friendly – good for the whole person, mind, body and soul.
Soul-friendliness is often misunderstood as something airy-fairy or new-agey. Take Jim for example. “Why should I go on this course? Complete waste of time.” This was his reaction to being asked to go on a half-day course set up to help make his workplace soul-friendly. Jim was an excellent salesman in a sound company so why should he bother with this new-fangled nonsense.
He dragged himself along to the course, arriving last, sat down, arms folded and hostile. Within fifteen minutes he was on board, involved and learning. Within a few months he had helped his business reach its 12-month vision within just 3 months, and by the end of the year the company had pushed turnover up 49% and profits by 60%. Jim, with his colleagues, were putting their values and vision at the heart of how they worked. They were using some powerful tools designed to create soul-friendliness. And it was having a clear impact on the bottom line.
Four years later, Jim is still using the tools and getting the results. From being a hard-bitten, cynical salesman he has become a generous leader, innovating, mentoring, encouraging and caring for his team. He became a different person – emerging from under the rubble of mediocrity that most businesses generate.
Some of these soul-friendly tools seem very out of place in a busy workplace. For example, the first tool that changed everything for Jim was stillness. In finding a place of complete stillness inside himself Jim reconnected with what mattered to him.
Within the busy-ness found in many offices, taking a few moments to become still seems weird. It takes courage to do it but it pays huge dividends. In stillness people can become aware of what is really going on behind the smokescreen of frenetic activity. Then they are able to make decisions based on discernment.
Other tools bring celebration, vision, meaning and purpose into the workplace and can be applied to everyday business issues. But to be a soul-friendly company, an organisation must also put in place systems for encouraging mutual support, and for overcoming the blockages that sometimes can be created by senior bosses.
Most organisations are sitting on a goldmine of untapped assets lying locked up within their people. The soul-friendly organisation learns how to tap into the inner resources of each individual and their ability to work with others. Far from being a waste of time, soul-friendliness is a necessity.
Georgeanne Lamont is author of The Spirited Business (Hodder & Stoughton)
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