Can Spirituality Drive Success?
"Executives from a wide range of industries trooped to Harvard Business School to discuss how their spirituality helps them be powerful leaders... The conference explored issues of leadership, values, and spirituality in business...
"According to Ricardo Levy, chairman of Catalytica Energy Systems, executives are trained for action—contemplation is not part of their rulebook. In his own career, however, he discovered the need for spiritual guidance in crucial decisions, especially those that affect other people such as employees, he said. Levy's guidelines are:
-Quiet the mind.
-Reach deep inside. Go beyond the ego to hear the inner voice.
-Don't fear ambiguity; rest in the unknown. "This is the most difficult piece," Levy admitted. "We're not Comfortable unless we see the path."
-Stay humble in the face of temptation and power. "Being humble is a key issue. It's good for a leader to be reminded of the intoxication of power."
Asked by a member of the audience for his definition of success, Levy said, 'I'd rather use the word fulfillment. Success is a metric; you never have enough. But only you can define fulfillment. We as individuals are the only judges.'
"...Gregory Slayton (HBS MBA '90), chairman of ClickAction Inc., said... the value he most often uses at work is the Golden Rule, the principle that people should do unto others as they would have others do unto them. For example, when layoffs were necessary, he was upfront and honest with employees about what was happening and why..."
Read more in this HBS Working Knowledge
