Yanik Silver

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20 Predictions for the Transformative 2020s

by Yanik Silver Leave a Comment

Can you feel it?

We are on the verge of a new age. Everything is accelerating faster and faster, and nearly every system is ready to be rebuilt to truly serve our world.

We stand at the threshold of a great potential…

This coming decade will see more exponential growth, accelerated change and transformation than we have witnessed over the last 50—or maybe even 100—years (or more). And the good news is we actually get to consciously co-create our next stage.

The year 2020 is truly a landmark year. Just as 20/20 equals perfect vision, these enlightening predictions are a preview of what is on the horizon and what will happen in tandem with an increased awakening of consciousness.

This growing consciousness then becomes the true bedrock for all our decisions, actions, thoughts, and intentions, impacting everything spanning our communities, culture, commerce, and even a greater cosmic story, all unfolding here this decade…

Download this special report below.

Filed Under: Evolved Enterprise, Public, Transformation, Truth

Conspicuous (Conscious) Consumption and Socially (Good) Signaling

by April Reyes Leave a Comment

Let’s face it. Social media has become a beast. It’s difficult to get away from what everyone is doing, eating, or thinking about or where they are traveling. Social media is the spot where many people want to “show off” what’s going on in their lives and look cool.

If I’m an ultra luxury buyer, I might flaunt something like this sitting in my private jet (per “Rich Kids on Instagram“):

But you can use this built-in behavior of “conspicuous consumption” to your advantage as an Evolved Enterprise.

This is something new I’ve been thinking about…

Inside the book, I mention artifacts that your customers/members want to share. I highlighted the charity, Falling Whistles and the social enterprise, Giving Keys as two examples that practically force people to ask about what the item is hanging around their neck.

I want to show you a few more and get you thinking….

As you know, our key focus last year was Global Goal #14: Life Underwater. So after understanding more about the issue and its importance, I want to continue making a greater difference. One of my favorite examples of a company really pushing their impact is Addidas, working together with social agency Parley. As they say on the site, “We are working with Parley to keep plastic from entering our oceans and transform it into high-performance sportswear.”

Since an early prototype, they’ve really gone all-in, and it’s working. CNBC reported Adidas sold 1 million shoes made out of ocean plastic in 2017. Each pair of shoes has approximately 11 plastic bottles.

And I think there’s something big here that may or may not be their intentional strategy. Take a look at my shoes I bought:

They have lots of different models and versions now – but I picked ones that are bright blue/aqua like the ocean to “signal” what these are and what they are made of.

Signaling is a biological theory of how certain types of animals signal their status as a worthy mate or to establish their spot in the pecking order. On social media, signaling is what we show the world. It implies WHO we are, the identity tied to our behavior, and also our buying choices.  

But we can turn this in our favor for a greater impact with…

Conspicuous (Conscious) Consumption and Socially (Good) Signaling

I’ve now shared with multiple people about my shoes being made of reclaimed ocean plastic because a) It spreads this idea, and b) frankly, it makes me into someone with a stronger identity of caring for the ocean.

This is the same for your customer. Some people might think the shoes are ugly, and that’s a good thing. Really it is. I’d say more accurate is that they are conspicuous…hence our conspicuous (conscious) consumption. I also call these “conversation crutches.” I’ve told the story before of the cufflinks Virgin Galactic has sent to their future astronauts. It was brilliant because if I go to a black-tie event, I’ll probably wear them, and invariably I’ll have someone ask me what they are. Then I can share my love for space and Virgin Galactic in an organic way. Otherwise, I look like a complete jackass if I sit down and just start spouting off about how I’m going to space and how cool I am.

You can build this conversation factor into your product. For instance, one of the shirts I often wear is from the non-profit Not for Sale. The lettering is big and practically forces conversations about their work to stop sex trafficking. Actually, they have a really unique model of creating empowering businesses to develop economic opportunity in the headwaters of the Amazon, where they work.

The more distinctive, the better if you want those (socially good) signaling behaviors to be stronger. For example, there are now quite a few sunglass makers working with recycled and upcycled material. https://www.uniguide.com/recycled-sunglasses-eco-friendly-brands/ I really like the ones that have the most distinctive look and feel to them, so again, they force the conversation about the impact, like these from Norton Point.

Note: For a long time, they were sold out, so it seems this version was the most popular.

Another way to do this is by creating subtle distinctions like BMW did with their electric i3 car:

So the question to brainstorm is this:

“What can I do to make my product or service distinctive enough that my customers/members have to talk about the impact and enhance their own identity as someone who is part of the solution?”

Filed Under: Evolved Enterprise, Impact, Public

Let The Seeds You Are Planting Grow…

by Mike Budny 3 Comments

That’s part of my journal entry from a few years back when I drew this picture. A little further down the page I wrote:

“Allow the seeds to grow – you cannot constantly pull up the roots and expect a mighty oak to thrive.”

Seems fitting as we approach the holidays and the end of the year…

It’s natural to take stock of what you’ve accomplished this year and what’s next.

My friend and ultra successful entrepreneur, Rick Sapio shared with me his own personal process. (Side note: Rick has founded more than 20 companies and personally spent time with 14 different billionaires. We bonded over a shared experience of getting “kicked off” Necker island our first year. Funny story that you can find in a very old blog post here.)

Rick’s end-of-year process is really powerful and I immediately sent it to my whole team after trying it myself. Download it here. It’s part of a unique strategic program for entrepreneurs called Business Finishing School.

My wife, Missy, and I spent the morning of the Winter Solstice reflecting on 2016 and sharing intentions for 2017. We’ve never done that and it really brought us closer together.

Doing this work brought out some interesting insights including my answer to the question that asked, “What else do you need to do or say to be complete with 2016?”

My answer, “Blog post about “waking up” with drawings.”

Huh?

I didn’t really understand what that meant until yesterday…

A little back-story is in order.

I took the afternoon off to play tourist in DC. My first stop was the Air & Space Museum. I love seeing Spaceship One on display there. This was the ship that won the $10 million dollar X-prize for a spaceship to go up into space twice in one week. This was the technology licensed to become Virgin Galactic so it has a special place in my heart.

Next, I walked down the road to the Botanical gardens to soak in some tropical air. After that I took a detour to the U.S. Capitol building. I had never actually toured there even though I live so close. Luckily I got into the very last group allowed in. I’ve really, really wanted to check out just one feature inside. Underneath the dome of the Capitol is a fresco painting entitled “The Apotheosis of George Washington”.

It’s epic.

Just standing there and taking in this beautiful piece of symbolic art is so powerful.

The guide gave me the official story about the painting but I think there is quite a bit more there from research I’ve seen. Anyway after leaving the Capitol I still had a little time before I was meeting my brother for a Caps game that night, so I looked for a spot to meditate and journal. (Yes, it might sound a little strange but I’ve committed to meditating 2x/day so that calls for some flexibility and sometimes being slightly out of my comfort zone.)

I found a little plot of grass beyond most of the tourists but where I could still see the top of the Capitol building with the statue of Columbia. I leaned up against a tree and after mediating realized I was actually under a White Oak tree.

Aha!

That little nudge prompted me to find this drawing in a previous journal and here we are…

When I found that page from several years back, I read through the entry and realized it was perfect for this time of year:

I’ll type it out here in case you can’t read all of my writing:

“Allow the seeds to grow – you cannot constantly pull up the roots and expect a mighty oak to thrive.

My seeds have been planted, watered and nourished. It’s now a time to allow them to continue blossoming.

Evolved Enterprise as an overlay across what we’re doing is a bloom that has significant potential. It’s the framework for how I catalyze and co-create a meaningful difference & change the way business is played.

Allowing joy, my full heart and full business mind to converge together.

Taking everything that works in marketing and psychology and multiplying by the impact potential without losing the FUN. That playfulness is my barometer for where I’m on track. You could be solving the world’s problems in a totally serious mood – or laughing like the Dalai Lama. I prefer laughter and a sense of a divine inner child. Creating new ideas that have a deeper soul & evolved enterprise essence is fun! All the pieces of the EcoVerse coming together should be and can be incredibly fun…on the journey & as it happens.”

Then here’s text that I wrote with my left hand. (Using your non-dominant hand helps open up another part of your brain.)

“Let the seeds you are planting grow! You are in a place of divine timing and intersection. You’ve already done the ‘work’, in your journal, in your mind, your relationship network, etc. The pins are stacked. Allow yourself to ask for and receive your full abundance of joy, creation and fulfillment.”

Okay But I Still Wasn’t Complete…Yet
Reviewing my answer again of what I needed to be complete with 2016. I didn’t think that one journal entry was quite enough.

I found another more recent one that seemed to really speak to “waking up” — plus it had more drawings.

This one is more personal so I definitely felt a bit uneasy to share it.

However I decided that if I can help empower someone else or nudge them in some way, it’s worth it. And the bigger reason is I cannot shake this deep knowing of a seismic shift happening. I’ve felt it growing stronger as I’ve released Evolved Enterprise but even well before that.

See if this resonates with you:

Here’s the entry typed out:

“As I fully aligned my head (business side & creative side), my heart (impact), my voice (right speech), grounded foundation, gut, fun/lighthearted happy child and higher purpose = everything IS in alignment.

Head, heart higher purpose (and happy inner child) is good shorthand but it is so much more. And aligning your physical body, emotional body, mental body and spiritus body.

The chakras are a very good explanation of the subtle energy that falls into alignment for fully expressing our blueprinted destiny + dharma + truth. A state of grace [MC Yogi song “Grace” was actually playing at this moment]

And they really are subtle energies. The intuitions, the impulses of inspiration, enthusiasm, joy, insight & truth. When I shared my appreciation for the 2020 EcoVerse it was free flowing alignment of my higher purpose being fulfilled by the framework of the EcoVerse. I cried as I received the same MEN energy download on my 43rd birthday. Putting my full effortless effort – embrace my destiny of destiny of fulfilling this role to midwife and empower global visionaries to co-create the shift of the ages (Silver age). Not in an ego way but simply a blueprinted knowing in great service with immense byproducts I cannot even begin to imagine yet…”

[Written with my left hand (I call it my integrated hand)]

“Who are you to play smaller? Who does that serve? Not you, not the world. It’s a false humble. Your JOY is in full service…”

This last part was really huge for me. I wrote this out on my 43rd birthday with my left hand and it really stuck with me. It made it back into my journal again to remind me of this poignant message.

I pretty much always experience something profound writing with my non-dominant hand. I learned this technique from Bill Donius, author of Thought Revolution, when he shared the process with Maverick members. (Note: I have an entire process for journaling for entrepreneurs that I cover inside the Evolved Business Blueprint. It’s one of the modules for getting deep into the answers of a business that delivers your most meaningful work and creates an extraordinary profit in the process.)

Growth * Impact * Joy
We just got back from the Big Island of Hawaii for the Maverick Summit with the theme of “Legendary Legacy”.

Legendary Legacy is about stepping into your true voice. To connect your head (business smarts), with your heart and your higher purpose (without forgetting about the happy inner child too) 😉

The same thing that got you where you are now won’t necessarily get you to the next destination on your journey. The only way to grow is to continually express your deepest essence of your greatest gifts.

That’s why we’ve actually updated the 3 circles I always talk about. Here’s the original illustration that started so much of this journey a few years back:

Tada! The tree keeps showing up…

The dollar sign is replaced with the TREE symbol because at the core of everything we do is truly about growing yourself AND your business. The dollar sign was simply too limiting and one-sided. (Though one of our members did remind me money does grow on trees so we got you covered there too!) This is the DNA for everything we do and at the center of the marketplace of impactful entrepreneurs served.

At the Summit I also shared the BIG picture of how the pieces of the EcoVerse all tie together. Something I’ve been thinking about, journaling on and working through for a long time. (One of the topics I was talking about in the last journal entry.)

You can see the full 2020 Vision document here.

(I’ll be holding a special presentation at the beginning of the year to help you create your own Vision document and what it entails. Look out for those details.)

2017 Theme
Now as you go through the Reflection and intention exercise prompts from the worksheet you’ll end with a few words or phrases as your theme for this next year. One of mine is: “Seeds Blooming”…

Hmm…seems pretty perfect with this drawing and journal entry. And if you read the 2020 EcoVerse Vision you see the symbolism of seeds, soils, suns and blooms are pretty prominent.

Let me know what your theme is in the comments. And leave a note about what you think about these journal entries and going behind the curtain with me.

If you like it, please share this with someone that could benefit from this for the coming year ahead.

Filed Under: Evolved Enterprise, Happiness, Impact, Public, Transformation, Truth

Why Shark Tank’s ‘Mr. Wonderful’ is woefully wrong

by Yanik Silver 3 Comments

I get it.

Kevin O’ Leary AKA “Mr. Wonderful” has his shtick.

He’s got great sound bites and plays a somewhat ‘mean’ character on TV. But this time he is flat out wrong…

Kevin was presenting at Inc. magazine’s Iconic event in DC last week, and I’m always interested in hearing from business successes. He had a lot of smart things to say and I wanted to get some distinctions on royalties and percentages.

I hopped out of my seat to ask him that question, but as I was in line for the mic, I had to do a double take. Kevin was spouting off that business and giving do not mix to maximize profits.

Nor do friendships in his world.

He actually told the story of his first company and how he sat down his best friend to tell him he’d make him ‘rich as piss’, but that he couldn’t show up the next day because the company had outgrown his skills. Kevin did make his friend very wealthy,but they haven’t spoken for 20-some years.

Mr. Wonderful even said he would fire his mother if he needed to!

Kevin believes business has only one responsibility and that is to the shareholders to maximize the returns.

Is that really true?

What he totally missed out on is the possibility (and growing consensus) that making a difference and making money are NOT mutually exclusive. In fact, I would claim it’s just the opposite. Business can become one of the biggest levers for good—while actually being good for business.

And I’m not alone…

Bert Jacobs, co-founder of Life is Good actually opened up the event talking about the 4-letter word in business…‘LOVE’.

BertJacobsLifeisGood
That’s how he’s built his company into a $100MM+ powerhouse by giving at least 10% of their profits to support their foundation. He predicted, “Integrating a social impact is the future of capitalism.” I would agree.

And then I was really pleased to hear Kenneth Cole come on about an hour after Kevin with a whole host of notes about why “Mr. Wonderful” was wrong, too. One of my favorite quotes from Kenneth was, “All businesses need a greater purpose that connects in a way bigger than just a transaction. Stakeholders are more important than shareholders.”

But let’s put some facts behind these assertions too…

•    Fact: In the exceptional book Firms of Endearment, the authors show how firms that explicitly take a stakeholder-centric approach returned 1,025 percent over a 10-year period, compared to 122 percent for the S&P 500 during the same period.

firms-of-endearment-graph
•    Fact: Data from a recent Cone Communications study showed –
o    80% would be willing to buy a product from an unknown brand if it had strong social and environmental commitment.
o    62% would choose to work for a socially responsible company, even if the salary would be less than at other companies.
(Source)

•    Fact: New research from Nielsen shows data that’s also in-line with these findings across the globe –
o    67% prefer to work for socially responsible companies.
o    54% of global consumers (in 58 different countries) are willing to pay more for goods and services from companies    that make a difference. (Source)

And here are more real-world examples…

•    11X Valuation and turnover reduced from 100% to 18%

My buddy, John Ratliff, founded Appletree Answers in 1995 from his two-bedroom apartment and grew it through a number of acquisitions to 24 locations and 650 employees before selling it in 2012. I’ve never seen anyone at the ground level so passionate about making the lives of his employees better and living/breathing the culture.

It showed up in the company’s growth and in a reduction of employee turnover from the average of 100% to just 18% between 2008 and 2012 by using a key initiative called “Dream On.” Think of this as Make-A-Wish but for employees. And this translated into getting 11x what most other companies in this industry receive as a valuation.

•    15% Conversion increase on shopping cart

My friends, Josh Bezoni and Joel Marion, sell supplements and meal replacement products. Their company, BioTrust, added an optional donation to a charity on their shopping cart page and that increased their shopping cart conversions by 15%. They’ve now donated over $1,000,000 to their chosen cause all because of a simple impact element added at the point of purchase.

•    10% Conversion increase from website

I’ve got some more empirical proof that you make more when you give more. One of my colleagues launched a new Forex trading course, and he decided to split test a certificate showing the causes they give to on his sales page. They tested with the certificate and without. Having the page with the certificate raised the conversion by 10%. Now, this was a $2,000 product, and the 10% bump helped them write a $40,000.00 check to charity. Very exciting because that ten percent bump also represented tens of thousands in additional sales that wouldn’t have happened without this tie-in.

So, Mr. Wonderful, it seems you do have it wrong. All of this “stuff” is not an expense but actually drives bottom line. Therefore if you do not have an authentic and genuine core impact with what you’re doing in business you’re not maximizing revenue.

I call this an Evolved Enterprise™ and this concept is garnering significant accolades across the business sector.

Here’s what Tony Hsieh, CEO of Zappos, said about the new book:

“There’s a transformative shift in business, and what worked before is no longer an option. It’s time for evolved entrepreneurs, visionary creators, and change makers to rewrite the rules of business for the 21st century.”

When you finally align the true soul of your business with more impact, meaning and happiness — you’ll inevitably create greater profits.

I’m giving away 10,000 copies of the Evolved Enterprise book at my cost to plant the seeds of the new coming shift that can truly change the way business is played. Let me know what you think here or after you pick up the book…

Filed Under: Evolved Enterprise, Impact, Public, Truth

How Entrepreneurship Can Be The Ultimate Expression of Love

by Yanik Silver 15 Comments

Everybody has heard the advice do what you love and the money will follow, right?

Unfortunately it’s not quite true. In fact, I’ve got a $400,000.00 lesson that I’ll share with you later on. However, running your enterprise from the fullest expression of love can and WILL create the meaningful success that matters. Yes, we’re moving into some slightly uncharted waters combining the words ‘love’ and ‘work’ together but stick with me.

What does the ‘fullest expression of love’ look like?

Like anything and everything it always starts with you. Our responsibility is always on our shoulders first. And looking at the Evolved Enterprise diagram the founder (you) is at the center:

evolvedenterprisediagram

That’s because a business is always a reflection of the leader’s evolution.

Sleep Walk triangle 2

Sleep walking

The wild thing is even if someone appears to be successful, they still could very well be existing in a slumbering type of halfhearted state. Frankly, I’ve made a lot of money without totally applying myself fully.

And that’s not because I don’t care about my ventures or customers. If you get the mechanics around delivering exceptional value correct – you will be rewarded. But I think you can take it to another level. I’ve seen it over and over again with individuals seeming to have a great business but they are not fulfilled at a deeper level. They think business is just business and don’t consider how it could be their art. And that’s why so many people start looking for creative (or sometimes self destructive) outlets to compensate for not being totally engaged. Then that lack of energy carries over to your team, your work,  and your customers. Truly everything.

I know because I’ve seen it first hand…

About 7 years ago, I made a significant transition. I went from ‘just’ being an Internet marketer teaching and helping others sell their knowledge online to my next evolution. I couldn’t see doing what I was doing for another decade or more. This wasn’t a complete 180. There were still so many parts that were fulfilling in what I was doing and that left clues for a bigger, more expanded version of where I thought I’d like to play.

The idea for Maverick was rolling around in my journal for a long time and it really hit on so many things that lit me up; working with innovative entrepreneurs who not only wanted to grow themselves and their business, but also having a genuine impact in the world – while having some fun in the process. Truly changing the way business is played.

Of course, I could have easily decided to continue doing what I’ve always done and let those ‘golden handcuffs’ get tighter and tighter.

To me, it was almost like an awakening in a sense, and everybody goes through it at their own time and in their own way. The best way to think about this was an example my 6-year old daughter, Zoe provided. She really, really wanted a ‘wiggly’ tooth so bad. She kept checking her teeth but nothing was going on. Then finally she lost her first tooth a few months ago and 4 more followed in quick order.

Everything comes at the right time.

We can either resist this ‘cosmic alarm clock’ or lean into and embrace the transition into something bigger and better.

Granted it’s not always a frictionless transformation. But those thoughts you have of ‘there’s something bigger I could be playing at’ or rationalizing work as just work. Those are all indicators that change is coming. Part of my evolution was truly deciding if I was really committed to what I was building with the Maverick Ecoverse or not. And that commitment was a bit trickier after my personal income took a nosedive sinking about $400,000.00 into the venture before figuring it out.

This is where following what you love becomes a huge double-edged sword by simply and blindly following a passion without an established business model. Plus, if you have a pretty much carte blanche checkbook that doesn’t help either because you continue to throw more and more cash into it instead of thinking of creative solutions. (Yes, this was one of those times I didn’t follow my own advice with Maverick Rule #16 Bootstrap. Having too much capital leads to incredible waste and doing things using conventional means.)

So what happens?

Well you’ll continue getting bonked on the head with increased severity if you don’t figure it out. For me, it took finally selling my Aston Martin to cover payroll in order to make the changes we needed to get profitable. But I’m thankful for those experiences because it forced me to truly decide if the vision for what we were building was worth it or not. And that’s where passion really helps you with perseverance. Of course, you’re going to encounter set-backs and any venture is a zig-zagging process. And it was my love for the bigger mission – and that kept me going to figure out how to make it work.

One of my favorite questions during this period has been, ‘What would you do even if you knew it would fail?’

I believe I heard this from Brene Brown inside her awesome book Daring Greatly. It makes you think if whatever you’re doing is worth your life’s energy or not?

It’s an even better question than one you may have heard before, ‘What would you do if you knew you couldn’t fail?’  The refined version forces you consider putting in your full heart & soul regardless of the outcome. This is something I’ve been practicing more and more after studying it through one of my favorite recent books The Great Work of Your Life: A Guide for the Journey to Your True Calling by Stephen Cope.

Putting in the work (if it’s from a true place of meaning) is enough reward. Sometimes that concept may be difficult, but if we’re awaiting outside praise or recognition we’re always beholden to it.

So if you can truly awaken from the autopilot nature of where you are – you can start to stir a deeper sense of direction. And that inner guide has the key to what you can be doing to re-invent or re-work your company or yourself.

And at the highest expression is LOVE.

Loving yourself and honoring yourself shows up in many ways. It takes time and it’s an ongoing process. I’ll recommend my friend, Kamal Ravikant’s book, ‘Love Yourself Like Your Life Depends On It.

It’s a very personal story Kamal took as CEO of a venture-backed company in Silicon Valley and he went from depressed and blackness to fully engaged and living at an optimal level. You’ll have to challenge yourself to do the exercises in here for significant results.

Lately I’m seeing a lot of Maverick members and colleagues in a state of transition. Maybe it’s because I’ve personally gone through this and come out the other side that I’m seeing it more and more. But I’m not so sure that’s why it’s showing up more. It truly feels like accomplished entrepreneurs want to know ‘What’s next?’ And the same thing that got them to where they are now won’t necessarily take them to a higher place. But you can get there by continually expressing your deepest and most honest love for yourself and your gifts. (These are some of my favorite conversations with Maverick1000 members.)

When you’re fully utilizing everything you were designed to do there’s a complete sense of divine inspiration and time stands still. The more you can truly ‘know yourself’ the better you can recognize where your sweet spot is. I’ve taken multiple personal assessment tests and would recommend Wealth Dynamics, StrengthsFinder, Kolbe and even the Enneagram. I don’t know why we’re wired this way, maybe it comes from when you were a kid and brought home your report card with all ‘A’s’ except one ‘C’ and your parents focused on the ‘C’. But for some reason we don’t really focus and develop our strengths that come naturally. Those are the sweet spots that bring more joy and energy into everything we do.

Aligning With Your Shadow

Part of my journey has also been going deeper and exploring my ‘shadow’. This is a Jungian concept for a part that we want to repress and hold back typically from the light. And many times it comes up in all sorts of ways. It could be road rage and yelling at other people in traffic in front of your kids, it could be sexually acting out, it could be continually beating yourself up for not being good enough. One way you can often recognize a shadow is a behavior you see in others that elicits a charged reaction in you that really bothers you.

Essentially, everyone around you can be a mirror for yourself and if there’s something that bothers you – usually it’s because you have this behavior and haven’t acknowledged it. Many times just bringing awareness to your shadow is a fast step forward to integrating it more fully into who you are.

Personally, one of my shadows was recognizing I was not ever giving 100%.

I could see an interesting pattern looking back on my life. For instance in college, I’d go out the night before a big exam, come in late into the lecture hall smelling like bourbon, borrow a pencil and be the first one out. Even with that – I’d still get a solid ‘B’. And with my businesses, I’ve always done well and over-delivered but I’ve never given my everything. If I’m being totally honest, it’s probably because that leaves a little room to justify results if they are not what you hoped for.

As I mentioned before, echoing the Great Work of Your Life book – by putting your full essence behind something, you let go of the outcome because your full effort is reward by itself.

Loving yourself is also about taking care of yourself. One of my very astute friends, Richard Rossi, likes to ask ‘How would you treat a million dollar racehorse?’ Would you feed them junk? Would you let them not get enough rest? Would they get training whenever they felt like it? Or instead, would there be consciousness and intentionality in what you do? Of course there would. And you can probably guess where Richard was going with this – you’re the million-dollar racehorse. Actually I’d bet you’re worth significantly more than a mil.

But how are you treating yourself?

The Daily Return Path to Joy, Happiness and Bliss was part of my experiment to see how I can purposely work on making sure I’m the best I can be each day.

Am I perfect? No, not at all but I know I’m consistently evolving and growing.

Loving yourself fully changes the dynamics of how everyone around you reacts to you too. Because if we’re honoring your authentic vision there’s no time to say ‘Yes’ when you really should be saying ‘No’ to things that don’t support this. So many entrepreneurs I know are wired to be giving but they don’t make space for themselves.

One of my most recent practices to create space for myself has been meditating. So far I’m at 20 minutes per day in the morning. I know quite a few entrepreneurs who meditate and it’s becoming bigger and bigger. In fact, it came up in a big way as I was prepping to interview hip-hop mogul, Russell Simmons for a private Q&A with Russell and a Yoga session for Maverick members.

yogarussellsimmons

russellsimmonsyoga

Russell Simmons sharing success practices on the mat

Russell Simmons sharing success practices on the mat

Going through his latest book, Success through Stillness, the entire work is really devoted to meditation, yoga and a deeper stillness applied to business. I decided to make a commitment right there to try it in my life.

His deep conviction for these pieces helped take his game to a whole new level and really impressed me. (The funny thing is Russell will candidly admit he only started going to yoga to check out hot ladies!) Also, I’d been paying attention to more and more research about the scientific benefits of meditation – so I decided to go for it. I can’t say it’s been a light switch type moment where my world has completely changed, but it’s a practice and one that I look forward to now each day. In these moments of stillness, I feel like I get centered on what’s important and what’s not.

I see working on your own evolution as holographic for your business since we know everything really stems from you as the leader. Meaning a change to ‘you’ creates a change in your business too.  It really does work that way.

And it’s this full expression of love that shows up in different facets of your company, team and customers.

Company:Company love triangle 2

By law, a corporation is its own entity, right? So as an entity (AKA a ‘body’), the analogy would continue that there is a ‘Soul’ inside. It might sound really odd but I think that’s true. Your business can stand for something more and just like we evolve, your business’ purpose can evolve too.

A venture could be created with the purpose of simply maximizing bottom line profit, or it could be upped one level by having a distinctive mission or big ‘Why’. (Though I truly believe they are not mutually exclusive. In the Evolved Enterprise framework your bottom line is actually enhanced by a bigger mission.)

An conscious business is a catalyst to enhance every area of the business starting internally with culture…

Culture love triangle 2 Culture:

Regardless if you set an intentional culture or not, there’s always a culture internally within your company.

Your employees could be showing up just for their paycheck at the lowest level of engagement, coming together for the culture one level up or because they truly believe they’re playing a part in something bigger.

And what if your goal as the leader was to help everyone on your team become the fullest expression of themselves? Same as your personal evolution, right? Your company becomes the container and catalyst for growth, learning and complete expression of their gifts & talents. Not everyone is wired to do their own thing but when you can give your team a ‘sandbox’ to build their dreams, they win and you win. Zappos is a well-praised poster child  (for good reason) lately for taking their culture of happiness seriously. Just one of the perks there is having a ‘dream manager’ who helps their team figure out their dreams (i.e. owning a house, etc.) and making it happen. That’s huge. Starbucks has just raised their commitment to their team members by reimbursing them for online education.

On our team we start with strengths testing and then through some trial and error help members experiment and move into roles best suited for them. We’re not perfect at this but we’re continually growing. And you can see changes in engagement when people feel they could bring their full selves to work. It makes a big difference.

I’m really proud of this note I got from a Maverick Team Green member just the other day:

“I just want to say thank you for listening to my ideas and giving me the space to grow them. I have never experienced this type of freedom in my job and cannot even begin to express how much it means to me. I am very passionate about working towards positive change in our world. There is nothing I aspire to more than to be in a place where I can really help people. So once again, thank you for giving me the opportunity to realize my dreams. I love Maverick – the team and the members.” 

Sales love triangle 2Let’s look at a few other facets…

Sales:

If I’m just selling something without a bigger meaning, I’m simply selling to sell no matter what. But raising the intention up a level is a consultative sale. But still on a whole different level is falling in love with your prospect. And if you’re in love with them that means you could do what’s in your customer’s true best interest. Which sometimes means no sale – but other times it means you must do everything in your power to get them to buy because you know the positive results they’ll have.

If you love your prospect, you would be doing them a disservice to not get them to purchase, right? It’s a subtle but dramatic difference. And if there’s true love with the product or service that also creates a higher-level engagement with your customers/members/clients.

customers love triangle 2Customers:

On the lowest level of our triangle people are simply getting a need met. Your product or service is their solution so it’s transactional. At the next level there is a community being built with a true identity tied in. (I shared an entire segment on Community Code 2.0: Building Beloved Brand Builders at the last Underground® event.) And finally at the highest level of expanded love, your customers see it as their responsibility to actually ‘convert’ others. Yes, almost evangelical.

Don’t get me wrong about everything I’ve just covered. I think business is already a value driver and server or else it would be out of business, but by truly adding a genuine element of love it could be so much more. It can move from transactional, to transformational or even transcending business as usual. It could be an Evolved Enterprise.

What do you think? What have you seen that reflects a fuller expression of something bigger through business?

 

Filed Under: Abundance, Creativity, Evolved Enterprise, Happiness, Impact, Public, Transformation

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