Spirituality at work
By Shivi Verma Subscribe now October 2013 With workplaces fast becoming increasingly toxic, Shivi Verma noses out 11 spiritual laws that can help us resolve our issues and stay happy, motivated and successful at work Are you doing more than your fair share at work, but getting little appreciation? Do you feel discriminated, ignored and sidelined? Are you a victim of politics? Is your boss dictatorial or manipulative? Is the culture at work unethical? Are you afraid of losing your job? Is your work unsatisfactory? Do you dread going to work each day? Do you snap at your spouse and kids for no reason? Is your health taking a beating? If your answer to most of these questions is in the affirmative, it’s fair to assume you aren’t happy at work. Let’s face it. Most of us spend the maximum time in a day at work. If those hours are unhappy, frustrating or traumatising, what are our chances of being happy? Of making our family happy? Of safeguarding our health? And yet, all too often, we believe that it is impractical to expect a congenial work atmosphere, cooperative colleagues or a supportive boss. We struggle on, consoling ourselves with the thought of the pension or the PF we will be entitled to at the end of the day. Or we put in our papers and quit, only to find nothing much has changed, and the same problems dog our footsteps. Can we instead take responsibility for our well-being and proactively work towards protecting our spaces? Can we create a happiness bubble around us that no one out there can burst? Can we continue to upgrade our productivity, competence and dynamism despite a toxic environment? Azim Jamal: Align your life's purpose with your professional purpose I remember a colleague called Sanjay Singh in the former organisation I worked for. In a workplace mired with distrust, plotting, scheming, and politics, he seemed to be peacefully and happily getting along with everybody. I watched him closely and saw that he was blessed with the two great qualities of tolerance and self-control. He minded his own business and refused to be drawn into any office gossip, politics or groups. He had the capacity to listen to the complaints and criticism of his colleagues without ever adding his own two bits. He never flirted with female colleagues even though he met with a number of encouraging glances. He never competed with his colleagues for attention, limelight or prestigious projects. He was sharp and knew who to trust and who not to. Provocations rolled right off his back. I once recall that just as he was going to cross over, a junior colleague impudently put her foot across so he would trip. He immediately stopped, folded his hand in a namaste, and said, “I cannot walk over your foot.” She had no option but to withdraw her foot and let him go on. Amidst the hurly-burly of office dynamics, Sanjay Singh was like a yogi, calm and perfectly centred. What Sanjay has done, we can too. All we need to do is to apply the laws of spirituality at the workplace. These laws are structured to help us flow with life, to resolve our problems with the other, and to expand in strength, efficiency, dynamism, endurance and acceptance. In short, spirituality will enable us to handle any and all problems with wisdom and discrimination. It will even guide us to quit when a situation is untenable. Rule No 1: Take responsibility If we want to be happy at work, we must take responsibility for our happiness. This is the most powerful principle for change. Instead of blaming the boss or the colleague, we look to see where we have gone wrong. Instead of fretting and worrying about a mistake, we see how we can make amends. Instead of wilting in a toxic work environment, we take responsibility for changing it. When we do this, situations stop pulling us down and instead become instruments of growth. Instead of becoming discontented, demoralised or indifferent, each negative situation actually becomes an impetus to growth! This is alchemy, and our capacity to use this in all situations is a measure of our spiritual maturity. Ruhi Aggarwal, an analyst in a Delhi-based IT firm, was unable to get along with most of her colleagues. After starting a spiritual practice, she discovered that she too had been responsible for the situation. She had been unable to draw her boundaries with insolent behaviour. She had either snubbed those who put her down or simply ignored them. Taking responsibility for the situation by changing her behaviour resolved her problems at work. Says she, “When my project leader overlooked me for promotion even though I had performed well, simply because I had refused to go on a date with him, I resisted the temptation to react. Later on, I requested my senior boss to change my project. When he asked why, I told him the truth in a very impersonal way. Not only did he change my project, but also sent me there with a promotion.” In her new office, she is much more careful with her judgments and reactions. She draws her boundaries with politeness and deference, and is liked by others. Ramesh Varma, an engineer in a US-based optical fibre firm was a shy and reserved person. He was advised by his peers to change himself and be more dynamic. In the meantime, his company received a project about which nobody had any knowhow. His boss dumped the entire work on his shoulders. Ramesh took it as a challenge, but soon found that he needed assistance. Afraid of appearing inadequate, he refrained from talking about it, until with his wife’s encouragement, he had an open conversation with his superior. He told him politely that the expectations from him were far bigger than his capacity, and that he could not do what he was asked to with absolutely no help. “After that, he appointed six people to help me with the project. My relationship with him improved and so did my self-confidence. I understood the value of pro-active behaviour, acknowledging my limitations, and expressing myself to my seniors with diplomacy. Thankfully, my future is now safe in the company.” Rule No 2: Get your priorities right What exactly are you looking for in the workplace? Is it money, career prospects, prestige, or self-expression? Do you feel called upon to do something to serve humanity? Once you know why you are here, you will be able to better adapt your expectations. Quite often, when we have many responsibilities, we do not have the luxury of doing work that we want to do. For the sake of our dependents we must plug on. Such awareness will give us the patience to stay at the workplace and work harder to resolve our issues. If however, that is not the case, and what we want is not what the workplace can give us, we can look for something better adapted to our needs with a clear conscience. Azim Jamal, author of Corporate Sufi, says, “If our life’s purpose is not aligned with our professional purpose, we experience tension and unhappiness. When the two are aligned, we find that we are performing optimally in our work life and are using our innate gifts.” Make it a practice to regularly reflect on the big questions of life: Do I know my purpose in life? Do I know the purpose of my corporation? Am I finding meaning and fulfilment in my work? If I were dying today, what would be the one regret I would have? Do I have a personal vision and mission statement that is aligned to both family and corporation? Siddharth Sthalekar, an IIM graduate from Mumbai, decided that he wanted to walk the path of serving humanity after serving in an investment banking firm for a couple of years. Along with a few likeminded friends, he started an initiative called Moved by Love, where people are encouraged to offer their services as a gift and in turn, receive what they are given as a gift ( read Trading in love on Pg 62 for more details). Stephen Covey: Respond instead of reacting Delhi-based Purnima Dewan worked for an insurance firm that hired and fired at will. Her unstable tenure wore her out. Each day, she would trudge to her office wondering if this would be her last day at work. Basically a creative person who liked to paint, embroider, and design with fabric, she asked the Universe to help her find her perfect job. Gradually, she found herself slipping into the role of a designer and coordinator of a boutique started by her daughter. “Since my daughter had not quit her job, somebody needed to be present at the unit. I easily and seamlessly fitted into the role,” she beams. Rule No 3: Never react No matter what the situation, refrain from off-the-cuff reactions. Our reactions are inevitably controlled by emotions and emotions are good servants but poor masters. It is reactions that expose us to bad karma and trap us in unpalatable situations. This was the Buddha’s great insight, and it forms the crux of his solution. If we respond instead of react, eventually we will overcome our karma, both good and bad, and free ourselves of the cycle of birth and death. Not reacting is that important. In his Seven Habits, Stephen Cover paraphrased this principle in his 1st Habit, which was about being pro-active: “Between stimulus and response, there is a space. In that space lies our freedom and power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and happiness.” Obviously since we are not born Buddhas, we will react on occasions, but at least when the matter is serious and may involve our future or our reputation, we need to be able to control our reactions and operate out of wisdom. Always take time out. As far as possible, sleep over it. The next morning will bring more clarity, guidance and detachment. Says Ritu Bose, a former general manager of a chain of five-star hotels in India, “Whenever someone else took the credit for my job, or I faced injustice, I would tell myself that it was natural in a competitive environment. This allowed me to not take it personally. I would
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