I am not a relationship expert. However, I do run into relationship issues while I coach business executives.
What I have noticed is that the biggest lament for women in a relationship (marriage, common law) is the lack of expression, appreciation, and priority from the man in her life.
Women find men to be misers in expressing their love and appreciation and give priority to other things (business, sports) compared to the relationship.
Men, on the other hand, are confused. No matter what they do, women can find fault with them.
If men started to take every opportunity to express their love and appreciation and assign priority to their relationship things would get much better.
If women, on the other hand, picked their battles instead of making every battle a big one, things are bound to improve.
It would be good to do a weekly checkpoint of how this is working as follows:
– what worked well last week?
– what could have been done better?
– what are the goals for the coming week?
I believe when an important relationship is rock solid in terms of communication, respect and understanding the rest of the challenges are far easier to handle. When the foundation of an important relationship is shaky, the rest of your life gets impacted!
Once you find your life mission, the one thing you need to do, then fuse it with all of your activities—personal and corporate. By so doing, you unleash your potential and find fulfillment on your journey.
*Embracing a Principle-Centered Approach*
Listen and trust the voice of your conscience and work with integrity, principles, and respect.
You have a social conscience, and you ensure that your corporate work creates a better society all round. You do not engage in any activity that is detrimental to the overall well-being of society or the environment.
*Making a Difference*
It is not just what you have that matters; rather, the value of your life is determined by who you are and what you give. You treat life as a precious gift and use this gift to give and to make a difference.
*Embracing Life-Long Learning*
You learn from cradle to grave. You learn from all, including nature which offers immense wisdom. You know that, in order to succeed in life, competence is the key which comes from life-long learning.
*Having Faith in the Unknown*
You do not fear the unknown. You are willing to take risks and to persevere in realizing your dreams.
*Persevering*
You never give up. You persist until you succeed in achieving what you believe in.
Perseverance and patience go hand in hand.
*Being Effective*
You are a role model inspiring your team through your example.
You eliminate insecurities by trusting and believing in the inherent abilities and gifts of team members.
You are results-oriented, not task-focused.
You empower your team—you do not overpower them.
*Having a Positive Attitude*
You keep confident expectations. What you expect is what you invite into your life.
You are solution-oriented, not problem-focused.
You are non-judgmental, giving people the benefit of the doubt.
You do not worry about criticism. You believe in doing your best and leaving the rest.
*Balancing your Life*
Real success is holistic and caters to your body, mind, and soul. You allocate your time wisely and do not compromise on a tight set of priorities, which brings you balance and synergy.
*Savouring the Path*
You know that destiny lies in the path. You love the challenges and hurdles because they enhance your strength and tenacity.
You regard each day as the most important day of your life. Thus, every day—every moment—is a gift that you cherish and savor. You go with the flow without taking your eye off your goals.
*Taming Our Ego*
You strive for positive pride and shun egotism.
You let the subject disappear in the object by letting the self disappear in the higher purpose of your work.
You accept your shortcomings. You do not have a need to become defensive or take things personally.
*Igniting your Spirituality*
You make spirituality the centerpiece of your life, including your corporate life, so that 24 hours of your day are grounded in spirituality.
You know the corporate soul—the real reason for the corporation’s existence.
*Understanding Life and Death*
You realize that there is a beginning and an end to everything in life. Every beginning is an end of the old, and every end a beginning of the new.
When you die, you know that you do not take what you have but, rather, what you gave.
*Experiencing the Divine in Corporate Life*
You know that all success happens by the Divine’s work. Hard work and struggle pay dividends, but without grace you cannot go too far. You invite the Divine into your corporate life and make the Divine your partner in everything you do.
You become co-creators with the Divine by creating something beautiful in this world through your work.
You see divinity in all. You understand that everything and everybody is a signpost to the Oneness of creation.
These principles are universal and practical. They are founded on love and act as a bridge between your personal and corporate life. If these principles are implemented by you and other leaders in your team, your corporation would be a more happy, peaceful, and loving place where each person is given the space and the opportunity to flower to his or her potential and to contribute to society and to the world. Your corporate life will, thus, be materially rewarding, as well as spiritually enriching.
I use the word Sufi as a symbol for the esoteric side of all people. It goes beyond labels and focuses on the essence. On the outside people are different, on the inside not that different. Rumi the Sufi giant says, “We are all fellow travellers on the journey of life and we all face the same seasons of life.”
Why is this approach important in the corporate world? It gets rid of toxicity, egotism and turf wars – all of which is highly detrimental for the business.
I use the word “Corporate” in Corporate Sufi to symbolize the drive to excel in business, profession or career.
Corporate Sufi thus reflects someone who is driven, focused and goal-oriented, yet
heart-centered, principle-centered and balanced – a person who aspires both material and spiritual abundance.
I believe that success without happiness is a failure, that balance leads to more success, not less. It is about taking your life from success to significance!
Corporate Sufi Worldwide’s mission is to inspire and empower leaders at all levels to achieve material success, blended with a deep sense of purpose, passion and happiness.
We call this the synergy of Business, Balance & Beyond.
A meeting gets cancelled at the last minute. This cancellation leads to a detour and to an incident which invites a new connection which becomes a game changer connection for you. Someone bumps into you by chance needing your guidance at the right time and right place. You stumble into an old email and decide to respond to it leading to a totally unexpected assignment. Is there a design behind these coincidences?
The Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung called coincidences “synchronicity” or “acausal connecting principle.” He believed that there is an underlying order and structure to reality, a network that connects everything and everyone.
Your success will come from hard work, a focus on your core priorities and “luck” or coincidences. These coincidences are the Universe’s way of responding to your dreams.
Henry David Thoreau said: “If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours.”
The Universe is designed to respond to your deepest and consistent desires!
Your life is made up of both external and internal aspects. While the external includes your actions, behavior and outcomes, the internal deals with the power of your thoughts, beliefs, and creativity.
Each feeds off the other. Your affirmations and imaginations form the most potent expressions of your internal life.
The legend of Babe Ruth’s “called-shot” home run in the 1932 World Series dramatically illustrates the value of conviction. Playing in Chicago’s Wrigley Field, the New York Yankees had won the first two games against the Chicago Cubs. They would go on to sweep the series four games to none. Ruth, the Yankees’ top slugger, opened the game at Chicago’s Wrigley Field with a first-inning home run, then came to the plate in the third inning. He took two strikes, and then, according to observers, pointed toward the centerfield bleachers. He knocked the next pitch over centerfield and out of the park.
Legend has it that a teammate asked Ruth, “What if you hadn’t hit the home run?” Ruth’s answer: “It never crossed my mind.
” Babe Ruth’s philosophy was “Never let the fear of striking out get in your way.” He didn’t, and though he struck out more often than most players, he rewrote the record books when it came to home runs. What you affirm and imagine, you invite!
People who are successful in life have all developed the skill of self-discipline.
Discipline is also a big point for service providers, especially entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs have no bosses to watch over them or make sure they are getting the job done. They have to be their own bosses. They have to supervise their own behavior. Part of their discipline is to believe firmly in behavioral economics – that every behavior they display must produce economic benefit. Sometimes you may do things to contribute to good causes that produce no economic benefit to you. But here too, you must assess whether you are using your time effectively and efficiently to produce the results you set out to produce and to provide the maximum benefit to those you are trying to help. Discipline also requires you to be clear about your purpose.
The clearer your purpose in life, the more focused you will be on the areas that are really important in your life. Once you’re focused, you’ll know which areas to delegate, which areas to throw completely out the window, and which areas to give your best resources. Discipline, purpose, and focus are three powerful ingredients of success!
We all have a deep desire to achieve something, but often put it off to attend to it someday rather than today.
Our rationale for putting this off includes:
• It is not the right time to do it
• There are other more pressing things to complete
• My desire is only a pipe dream and totally unrealistic
• Once I finish A, B, C – I will attend to it then.
A lot of people have found themselves in such a scenario, and thus they struggle to get to their desire.
Usually, by the time they finish the tasks on their list, there is usually other tasks still waiting to be completed. Work never disappears, but desires can evaporate.
My recommendation is if you have a deep desire never let a day pass without doing something that advances you toward your desire!
