In this issue:
Seeking and Finding
Accomplishing More By Doing Less – Tassajara Weekend Workshop
Good reads
Business retreats
Z.B.A. Zen of Business Administration
Seeking and Finding
My 19-year-old daughter recently left me a copy of the book Siddhartha, by Herman Hesse, asking me to return it to our local library. I picked it up to return it, on my way to run some errands, and instead began reading. I read the entire book (which took about three hours) and I felt moved and joyful. What a gem of a book! It was written in 1922, following the end of World War I. I had not read it since I was in my early 20’s.
In the last chapter, Siddhartha, an old and somewhat content ferryman, is asked by his lifelong friend Govinda for some guidance in his seeking. Siddhartha replies, “When someone seeks then it easily happens that his eyes see only the thing that he seeks, and he is able to find nothing. He takes in nothing because he always thinks only about the thing he is seeking…But finding means: being free, being open, having no goal… In striving toward your goal, you fail to see certain things that are right under your nose.”
A perspective that Zen practice brings to business is to embrace and attempt to penetrate the paradox of seeking and finding. Without doubt, strategy, planning, and disciplined execution are essential aspects of growing a business. I encourage some coaching clients to establish a weekly ritual of reviewing customers, prospects, product offerings, as well as financial results compared to financial projections. I suggest reviewing tasks and projects for the week and looking at goals for the upcoming quarter and through the remainder of the year. This is an important process of seeking, planning, as well as understanding your business.
Finding requires a different perspective and can be developed through other types of activities. Finding means being alert, aware, flexible and responsive. Finding is best performed with a “soft” mind – a mind and body that are open and ready for whatever might happen. Mindfulness practice and meditation practice are ways to develop our ability to widen our capacity for finding.
In many situations we must simultaneously employ our seeking and finding minds. When we are driving, we usually have a clear route and destination mapped out. However, at the same time, we need to be responsive and flexible to other drivers, road conditions and a multitude of other factors – often factors that we could never have anticipated.
In business, and in our lives, we can easily fall into a rut of seeking, and ignore the importance of finding. Many great new product and service ideas result from finding – discovering and seeing a need that exists that is right in front of us. And, finding joy, happiness, and appreciation in our lives is often the result of finding what is right in front of us, right now, right here – in the midst of our messy and impossible lives and world.
With best regards,
Marc Lesser
Accomplishing More By Doing Less –
A weekend workshop, Tassajara, August 17 - 19
What is it you want to accomplish? What gets in your way? During this workshop we will explore how Zen practice, slowing down, and letting go can clarify and increase our accomplishments, lead to more intimacy in our lives, and allow for greater ease and satisfaction. We will examine the practices of generosity, fearlessness, patience, and wisdom as they relate to our work and our lives. This is an experiential workshop that will draw from spiritual practices (meditation, mindfulness, compassion), leadership practices (listening, strategy, innovation) and creative expression (movement and writing). To register, call 415 865-1899 or see the San Francisco Zen Center site: http://www.sfzc.org
Good Reads
Blink, by Malcom Gladwell – The subtitle of this former #1 bestseller is The Power of Thinking Without Thinking. This book contains useful and interesting research and ideas on a subject most people pay little attention to – thinking. A key topic addressed is the ways in which our thinking and intuition can be of great value, and also of great hindrance.
Siddhartha, by Herman Hesse – As quoted above, this is an inspiring book about how to live a meaningful life. Hesse plays brilliantly with the edges of spiritual questing, worldly and business experience, and the process of inner development.
Growing Local Value, by Laury Hammel and Gun Denhart – This book is part of a series by Social Venture Network. The subtitle is, How to build business partnerships that strengthen your community. It is a hands-on practical guide to growing a business through embedding your business in your community and your life.
Business retreats
A one-day or multiple-day retreat for your management team or your staff can be a powerful way to refocus and re-energize your team and your business. This is an investment that can pay off in a multitude of ways. Let ZBA Associates help plan and facilitate your next (or long overdue) retreat.
Z.B.A. Zen of Business Administration: How Zen Practice Can Transform Your Work and Your Life
Z.B.A. - in foreign languages - I am pleased to report that Z.B.A. Zen of Business Administration will soon be available in Spanish, Chinese, and Korean!
Z.B.A. Zen of Business Administration - A great holiday gift for anyone exploring how to integrate their work and their life... An excerpt from the introduction: "Business practice could also be described as the method and discipline of removing hindrances. The challenge of business is to identify and remove what gets in the way of manifesting and implementing a wide and creative vision, to remove the obstacles to distributing people and resources where they are needed, and to remove the obstacles to actually meeting the needs of all people in our communities and on our planet. What would a world without hindrances, without fear, look like?
Coaching, Consulting, and Facilitation - To learn more about the services offered by ZBA Associates call me at 415 389-6228; email is mlesser@zbaassociates.com.