The 3 Best Tips On Conscious Capitalism

Making a difference through profit

There are many reasons why a person might seek to work within a conscious or spiritually-based business model.

I have always appreciated the concept called the “pain of longing.” This is a pain that naturally arises from within — an indescribable hunger for something deeper. It reflects a profound need for connection to some inner source or truth.

One of the first inclinations one may have when experiencing discomfort is to become rigid and dogmatic, or the polar opposite — experience a sudden sense of freedom. With social freedom one may discard many of the rules, and “in-the-box” business practices of the past. It is easy for one to become psychologically and emotionally imbalanced, even devoured by the pain of longing. It has many similarities to romantic love. In my early days of inquiry into spiritually based business practices, my teachers and mentors spoke of the essential law of “conservation and balance.” They spoke of the tools needed to remain focused while in this “ecstatic state.”

Conservation and balance are core to both personal and business success. It refers to a harmonious place at the middle point of two polarities; between the macrocosm and microcosm; between resignation and surrender; and of course inner peace and the external world of action/interaction/greed and short-term profit. It is as if there is a tug-of-war going on between the wisdom that lies within and the dance of how you engage the marketplace.

When you live in a state of ‘conservation and balance’, new and unexpected possibilities arise. Your un-focused mind suddenly becomes conscious of previously unthought-of potential. This awareness often becomes a door to the deeper aspects of your journey on the Wisdom Path. It also shows you new profit centers and innovative business ideas. In its application to business, conservation and balance invokes discretion, foresight, forethought, new wisdom, circumspection, the exercise of good judgment and common sense, an appreciation for caution, and an open doorway to love, compassion, and abundance.

Can any of us know love through logic? There are so many different types of love. In one sense, the pain of longing is a form of love — but the object of this love cannot be defined through intellect or logic.

Conservation and Balance

I have always been intrigued by the ideas of the Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto. He observed in 1906, that for many phenomena, 20% of invested energy is responsible for 80% of the results. This important statistic reflects the value of conserving and balancing physical, mental, and spiritual.

I have observed that those who master conserving and leveraging resources such as time, space, emotional energy, etc., experience less unnecessary struggle than those who do not. Defining your strengths and learning to conserve them and apply them effectively and efficiently is not a simple exercise. This is a constant process that requires the ability to leverage different resources. Conservation and balance is a discipline that is innate but often repressed or ignored in exchange for short-term gain and immediate gratification.

Once an individual is committed to this Wisdom Path, this idea of consistent conservation and balance becomes as natural as breathing. Of course, conserving and balancing is a step-by-step process. Each step requires a distinct awareness. If you are not conscious (aware), and have not transcended attachment to short-term gratification, you can take this concept, which is a path to freedom, and turn it into a rigid, mental prison.

The less your attachment to old ways of thinking, dogma, and short-term gratification, the less unnecessary struggle you will experience. It is often said that “anything done in moderation is not destructive” but that, of course, isn’t necessarily so. Moderate self-destructive behavior is nevertheless self-destructive. If you understand the value of conserving resources, you may still have difficulty balancing them, especially if in this process of conservation you are motivated by pride, vanity, ambition, and a hunger to own more and more or experience greater and greater pleasure at any cost.

Unfortunately, those who delude themselves by acting in destructive ways don’t know who they are, where they are, where they are going, where they have been, or the cost they are bound to pay.

The 3 Tips

1. Pick a career that expresses your passion.
2. Learn something new every day.
3. Collaborate with others. Don’t go it alone.

The Takeaway

A person who lacks clear thinking may push things to the point of excess and claim they are being moderate. Unfortunately, this way of thinking and living, more often than not, leads to an unpleasant end. Understanding conservation and balance is not just a philosophical issue. It is connected to an individual’s ability to survive. It is only the immature, unaware, arrogant, greedy, or emotionally unbalanced person who struggles with this concept. In the end, he or she is the first to succumb to a dangerous, toxic, or stressful environment and financial collapse is not far behind.

This story is an excerpt from my course “How to Become Really Wealthy”

https://asklewis.substack.com/p/an-introduction-to-my-new-course

©Lewis Harrison, all rights reserved.

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Before you go…

I am Lewis Harrison, a successful entrepreneur, and advisor to philanthropists. I am also the award-winning author of over twenty books on business, leadership, personal growth, and strategic thinking. For over a decade I was the producer and host of the show “What’s Up” on NPR-affiliated WIOX FM in New York.

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