The quote, “If your action inspires others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader,” by John Quincy Adams, shows that the leaders’ role in the business world has changed. Their purpose is not limited to micromanage their employees and making more money but instead, focus on inspiring and helping others in achieving their dreams. To create a better society, leadership and ethics need to come together. Leaders all around the world need to take responsibility for the consequences of their decisions, which can affect people and the community. Conscious Business is the notion that can be used to reform the business world as it is emphasizing business leaders to think about their actions before making any decisions. This concept is driving an energetic shift, however, the impacts of it on the world is different because each person has his/her visions, views, personality, mindsets, and goals to achieve. Hence, Conscious Business can be implemented when individuals are aware of their surroundings, people, and how they engage with each other to make the world better.
The Role Of Conscious Business
The new concept of business aims to seek benefits for both human beings and the environment. But, the term ‘Conscious Business’ and ‘Conscious Capitalism’ are intertwined with each other because both reflect on how to start thinking about business in a new way that is called Conscious Business. Today’s business leaders would never deny that a company’s ultimate goal is to make money. Nevertheless, they can start focusing on doing Conscious Business by switching to environmental friendly lighting options, using solar power, or operating in a green-certified office building. While promoting their brand, they can focus on making a difference in the world. Consequently, their families, friends, and even strangers will start to recognize the brand and how it is changing the world.
Four Tenets of Conscious Capitalism
As aforesaid, Conscious Business is about doing business that results in a spectrum of positive effects. To achieve this, Conscious Capitalism is one of the best ways. It is divided into four tenets that are interconnected with each other. These four tenets are Purpose, Stakeholder Management, Leadership, and Culture.
- Purpose: Every business should have a higher purpose that surpasses its intention of making and gaining more money. Companies should focus on making a difference in the world. By creating a meaningful purpose, they have taken the first step towards building a Conscious Business world.
- Stakeholder Orientation: A business must create value with and for its various stakeholders like customers, employees, vendors, investors, communities, etc. While making any decisions, these stakeholders have to think about the choices are based on how well expected outcomes would support the broader, interdependent system of relationships. It is assumed that healthy stakeholders lead to a healthy business system.
- Conscious Leadership: Conscious Leaders recognize and support the higher business intent and concentrate on building value for and harmonizing company stakeholder interests. They understand the central role of culture and develop Conscious Culture with purpose.
- Conscious Culture: A culture is defined as the values, principles, practices, or the underlying building blocks of business. So, it is the leaders’ responsibility to create a business where stakeholders are connected, and the company embraces the purpose, people, and processes.
Difference between Conscious Business And Traditional Business
A traditional business plan consists of a variety of matters, which include a company to obtain financing, make future plans, effectively market to customers, and many more. These plans are created according to a specific targeted audience so that businesses can attain maximum profits from their products or solutions. Also, leaders who are primarily motivated by money cannot inspire others as well as the employees. As a result, there will be no creativity, innovation, and engagement. This is where Conscious Business overcomes the drawback of traditional business. This new concept of business focuses on keeping employees engaged, increasing creativity, and enhancing the productivity of the companies. It is believed that companies cannot offer eye-catching, innovative products if they do not have engaged workforces and high-grade suppliers. Today, large organizations such as Apple, E-Bay, Microsoft, Facebook, and H&M are gradually moving towards a more conscious way of being.
The Conscious Business Declaration
The Conscious Business Declaration proclaims essential principles that will increase economic prosperity while healing the environment and improving human wellbeing. It aims to define a new standard for 21st-century business, one that will allow the businesses to become the most powerful engine on Earth to create abundance and flourish for humanity and all life on Earth. Humanity’s Team, The Club of Budapest, The Goi Peace Foundation, and the Fowler Center for Business as an Agent of World Benefit, drafted this declaration in 2015. It consists of seven principles that aim to unite Conscious Business leaders to form a global community of practice committed to improving themselves and organizations to achieve the highest good for business, humanity, and the Earth.
The Seven Principles
- We are one with humanity and all of life. Business and all institutions of the human community are integral parts of a single reality – interrelated, interconnected, and interdependent.
- In line with this reality, the purpose of business is to increase economic prosperity while contributing to a healthy environment and improving human wellbeing.
- Business must go beyond sustainability and the philosophy of “do no harm” to restoring the self-renewing integrity of the earth.
- Business must operate with economic, social, and ecological transparency.
- Business must behave as a positive and proactive member of the local and global communities in which it operates.
- Business that sees, honors, and celebrates the essential interconnected nature of all human beings and all life maximizes human potential and helps create a world that works for all.
- When aligned with oneness, business is the most powerful engine on earth for creating prosperity and flourishing for all.
Conscious Business Activation
The Conscious Business Declaration alone does not accomplish very much. It needs to beimplemented and adapted by business leaders globally. To ensure this, the creators set out a vision for training, consulting, and certification services that will illustrate global business consciousness. This umbrella of services is cited as the Conscious Business Innerprise. Under this, training & certification programs are offered to business leaders to help them realize this more connective approach.
Ultimately, it is up to leaders who have the power and potential to change the business world. All they have to do is to make sure their decision creates a positive effect instead of a negative one. They should also feel responsible for every action and decision.
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