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Seminar
Overview
Following is a
quick overview of the material presented in each of the volumes
and chapters of the seminar.
Virtue: The
Importance of Personal Character in Business
Volume
I
Chapter 1:
What is Character?
Part 1:
The Heart
Part 2:
A Definition
Part 1
of this chapter brings thought and character together.
There is nothing magical about our character; it is based on our
daily, minute-to-minute, thought processes in which we engage.
Since thoughts are shaped by our experiences and our musing, it
then becomes important to take care about the experiences and
thoughts with which we surround ourselves. We need to
understand that both right and wrong, good and evil, exist all
about. It is our goal in life to select wisely our
surroundings and our thoughts.
Part 2
puts some color into the word
character by presenting selected aspects of character and b y
posing some character centered questions.
Chapter 2:
Knowing Yourself
Part 1:
Some Thoughts
Part 2:
Some Ideas
Part 1
of this chapter is an assemblage of ideas that are intended for
the reader to become more sensitive to what is happening about
him/her. The ideas are specifically related to scriptures
taken from the Bible. The “idea-grams” are used in an
attempt to give visualization to the ideas presented. Some
random thoughts are used at the end of this part with the idea
that they will get the reader to think about their own unique
abilities.
Part 2
is a collection of ideas taken from published writers. The
intent of this part is to get the reader to realize that
numerous studies have been undertaken that each help us gain
insight into w3ho we are and how we absorb information
from the world surrounding us.
Chapter 3:
Worthy Mentors of Character
Part 1:
What is Mentoring?
Part 2:
Some Worthy Mentors
Part 1
of this chapter takes a quick look at
what mentoring might be, together with a quick summary of the
five (5) mentors that are presented in Part 2 of the chapter.
It is important to realize that we are all mentors as well as
attaching ourselves to those select few whom we select as our
mentors.
Part 2
looks at the lives and the character of five (5) worthy mentors
in more detail than was presented in Part 1. These five
(5) are: Gandhi, Tolstoy, Lincoln, Schweitzer, and Buffet.
The first four focus on the importance of service in our lives.
Buffet illustrates the role of stewardship in our business
lives.
Volume
2
Chapter 4:
Why is Character Important?
Part 1:
To Reveal Greed—The Case of Enron
Part 2:
Greed’s Work—U.S. Industry
Part 3:
Greed’s Work—Three “Bubbles”
Part 1
of this chapter discusses and defines
“greed.” It is presented as one of the seven deadly sins,
each fatal to one’s spiritual life. Character places
boundaries on and helps define greed. Some would say that
capitalism is, by its nature, greed centered. We, however,
maintain that since self interests are driven by one’s own
ethics and spirits as well as law, then capitalism can have very
positive aspects on the environs within which it is developed.
Several examples of greed are identified through historical
individuals. There are some commonalities represented in
the character of each of these individuals. Some amount of
time and space is spent detailing the case of the U.S. company,
Enron.
Part 2
of this chapter looks at the U.S. economy. The focus is
the decade of the 1990’s—the technology revolution in the U.S.
Over $4 trillion of mergers occurred in the U.S. alone, more
than the previous 30 years! Investors lost nearly $9
trillion in value from 2000 to 2003 alone. A short
overview of the five biggest scandals in the U.S. is made—Enron,
WorldCom, Adelphia, Tyco International, and ImClone.
Insight is next
presented of several major economic events, in an attempt to
portray a pattern of greed in times of plenty. Prior to
the 1990’s there was the crash of 1987, brought on by over
speculation of junk bonds in the U.S. With deregulation of
banks in the 1970’s together with an increase in the price of
oil and gas, banks and savings and loans panicked for a piece of
the action. By the time is was all over, the U.S
Government was forced to bail out financial institutions in the
U.S. in the amount of $250 billion, the largest bailout every
undertaken at the time. Turing the decade of the 1960’s
the U.S. stock market reached heights never before imagined let
alone achieved. Wall Street became a financial force to be
reckoned with in the U.S. economy.
Part 3
places the U.S. experiences in perspective by presenting three
cases of monumental scale. Three national “bubbles” are
examined: 1) The Tulip Mania of 1634-1637 (Dutch), 2) The
Mississippi Company of the early 1700’s (French), and 3) The
South Sea Company of the 1720’s (British). Entire
economies and national governments were involved in these
scandals.
Chapter 5:
Future Nature of Work and Business
Part 1:
Work
Part 2:
The Future of Business
Part 1
of this chapter focuses upon the changing nature of work.
As the workplace becomes more and more focused upon
providing services, the person is becoming more important in the
workplace. Jobs, as we knew them during the decades of the
industrial revolution, are disappearing. The old
manufacturing jobs are being replaced by knowledge based work.
The old rules of success in the workplace—company loyalty,
quotas, bosses, defined tasks, structure—are being replaced by
personal initiative, self governance, multiple tasks, no
structure, and creativity. Work today is characterized by
openness, no job security, allegiances to self, open ended work
time, flat organizations, self governed and self motivated.
We need to see ourselves as living and being fulfilled at work,
since that is where most of us will spend most of our
time. Work needs to be seen as an opportunity for us to be
“spiritual.” We need to learn to be comfortable with
change and change at an every increasing speed.
There are notable
paradoxes in our workplaces. Value is placed less and less
on the intrinsic value of what is being produced as we produce
more and more services with our time. Big is not
necessarily the best. Although we must think long term, we
must act short term, which affects long term. We must each
“see” ourselves in the future and work toward that vision.
Our actions impact and shape the future. Leaders must have
vision, but lead today! Work and play will often be
difficult to distinguish.
Part 2
of this chapter focuses upon the future of business.
Companies have specific reasons why they fail and why they
succeed. The new company is shifting from a capital
intensive company to a knowledge based company. They must
be able to develop memories of the future—building what they
see. They must become more tolerant of diversity in their
own culture. And they must be financially conservative.
Businesses today are in the imagination business—creativeness is
a core competency for any business to compete in a global
economy. Technology is changing the very notion of what
business is all about. The network is a foundation for any
business today.
Volume
III
Chapter 6:
Your Spiritual Life
Part 1:
Your Purpose
Part 2:
Lives of Service
Part 1
of this chapter takes a look at what constitutes your purpose in
life. Answers to questions such as: “Who Am I?” or
“Why Am I Here?” and “What Must I Do With My Life?” reside in
recognizing that we are created by God in His image. We
are spiritual beings and as such we must live spiritual lives in
order to feel a sense of completeness.
Since we are each
going to spend so much of our time at work, we must learn how to
connect our spiritual lives to our workplaces. We each
have a calling that we must discover individually that is based
on our God given talents and abilities.
We find purpose
only through lives lived in the Spirit. Purpose is not
about us individually. Our lives were formed to glorify
God. Until we understand this, our lives will make no
sense. He wants us to be with Him for eternity. The
path to that destination starts here and now.
Part 2
focuses upon our lives as lives o service. First to God.
Then to others. To serve we must learn to listen. We
must be quiet. We must be! Service is about finding
yourself in the lives of others. Our success in life is
found only in the success of other’s lives. We are all
servants standing in need, daily.
Virtue: Four
Traits of Personal Character
This separate
volume presents the four personal character traits:
Courage, Forgiveness, Truthfulness, and Gratefulness. Each
of these traits is discussed, some facets of each is presented
to the students, and some thoughts are shared about how these
traits can be cultivated in our personal lives. Stories
that exemplify each are discussed and application of each in our
personal workplaces is presented.
We
Are
Spiritual
It is important
for you and I to recognize that we are spiritual beings created
in the image of a very personal God. We did not create
ourselves. Nor did we emerge from a pit of slime and ooze.
God created us! And, He created us in His own image!
God is spiritual.
Being created in his image makes us spiritual. Not only
are we spiritual, but the most importance part of our being
rests in our “spirituality.” Our personal character or
virtue derives from the spiritual part of who we are. It
is the core of who we are. However, because of the demands
of day to day living we frequently overlook the truest part of
who we are. Although we possess physical bodies and mental
attitudes, ultimately our deepest connection is to our spiritual
nature. It is here that we truly identify ourselves.
Through time our
physical self will change, often to the extent that in our later
years, childhood friends who have not seen us for years will not
recognize us. We modify our thinking through education and
living experiences; we acquire knowledge. Our
soul, however, is ours throughout eternity. It is
important that we recognize our spiritual selves, that we
realize how important and integral a part it is of who we are.
And, we must let it be the source of expressing ourselves.
Spirit is the
source of all life. The mind focuses that energy into
creative or destructive avenues of expression. The choice
is ours. Our choices eventually find expression in the
tangible or real world by the actions we take. These
actions reveal our personal character, the essence of who we
are. People cannot read our minds or see into our hearts,
but they can see the actions we take when we react to
circumstances that occur in our lives. Our actions reveal,
then, our inward character and illustrate what is or is not
important to us.
Work
as
Spiritual
For most of us
work will be a constant part of our daily living. How we
live, daily, then, is critical to what we have to say to the
world about our own nature. For those of us who work, work
lends expression to our nature, to our character. Work
becomes the vehicle through which we express who we are and it
reveals our spiritual being.
There is a sacred
dimension to work. Work is an expression of the soul, of
the Spirit that resides within each of us. Through the
Holy Spirit, Paul relates this to us in his letter to the
Colossians when he states;
“Whatever you do,
work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for
men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from
the Lord as a reward.” Col. 4: 23, 24.
So, we must be
careful to choose that work which reflects our nature, our
character. To do so will cause us to be true to ourselves,
to the Spirit that resides within us and to our God who created
us. When work is done with commitment and caring, purpose
and passion, the best parts of who we are is summoned forth.
Others can easily see who we are and can witness the Spirit that
resides within.
We must also
choose work that reinforces our character. Our
surroundings not only reflect, but reinforce. If we
approach work in this manner it is not a means of earning a
living but rather a vehicle through which we are able to express
ourselves. Because work and living are woven together,
work becomes a living, moment-to-moment process in which meaning
is every-present. There is value to everything we do!
We are constantly caught in the moment! We are fulfilled
in being! True work is an expression of
following our inner voices, of understanding that we are
spiritual. And from making this connection between our
inner self and the world about us, we gather passion for what we
are doing. We are not working for men. We are
working for the Lord! We are looking to an everlasting
life. In this context, work has sacred meaning. It,
at once, reflects and reinforces our inner, spiritual being.
Work is not only a responsibility, but absolutely necessary to
understanding ourselves and to our becoming who we are meant to
be.
When we understand how temporary this earthly
life really is we can begin to focus upon what is important.
In finding work that expresses our spiritual being, we find joy
in everything we do. This includes not only those mountain
top experiences where everything is going perfectly, but also
those dark valley journeys where it seems the whole world is
against us. As spiritual beings there can be joy in
suffering for we can see purpose in those moments of agony.
After all, our growth takes place only in the midst of
adversity, not when we have everything going our own way.
It is not easy to pursue your dreams, to follow your heroes, to
follow that “inner voice.” But
we must!
A
Sense
of
Ministry
The following
quotation is taken from a young lady who begins to understand
her spiritual role in life through her work. This is part
of a letter received after she had been employed by a small,
regional business for several months.
“…let me start by
saying that God is good all the time. It’s
honestly been a rough year for me, but God has been with me
every step of the way. You see, the people at my work
aren’t exactly like people in… Most of them are very
bitter and don’t help you nor contribute to get the job done.
However, I am praying that God may use me as His instrument, for
I believe that my job is my “mission field” at this point in
time. My “work-mates” also have the need to be loved and
they need to know that God loves them.”
In this instance
she sees her work as an opportunity of conducting a ministry. In
addition she was the only person in a position to conduct the
ministry. She saw an opportunity that could easily have
been perceived as a huge problem, one to which she had the
solution. She became a minister, having the Spirit to
share God with others.
Instead of living
good corporate lives that are in total and unequivocal
compliance with corporate leadership; instead of idly watching
and following; instead of finding solutions with a more severe
effort we need to see ourselves in the role of minister.
We have a limited set of abilities. Together with limited
talents and limited time/energy. Within these limitations
we must create the greatest positive effect among those with
whom we live each day. We must be good stewards of what we
have and control, holding in trust those abilities God has given
to each of us.
We must be ministers at work and
stewards of everything over which we have control!
As stewards we
must be willing to be accountable for the well-being of the
larger organization of which we are a part. We can do this
by serving rather than controlling those around us. We
must be accountable without control or compliance. This
service is found when we empower people to act responsibly for
the well being of the entire community of which they are a part.
Service takes place when everyone joins in defining the purpose
of the community and when everyone is involved in deciding the
kind of culture that the community should become. Finally,
service is enjoined when rewards within the community are shared
in a balanced and equitable manner.
Within the
corporate setting stewardship must include matters of the
spirit, the well being of the company, and the well being of the
customer whom it serves. As ministers we must learn to
meld these purposes. We must see people as being spiritual
while simultaneously understanding that these same people are
the backbone of the company’s profits. We must see people
as having a need to integrate their spiritual selves with their
work lives.
Evidence
of
Character
at
Work
Our personal
character is demonstrated at work in a number of ways. We
want to work with someone who has the courage to stand up for
what is right and the decency to express that opinion with
courtesy. When a team mate is willing to lend a helping
hand they develop a sense of cooperation within the team that
can often lead to accomplishments far beyond those possible when
working alone. A small amount of genuine praise for work
well done can go a long way to building strong relationships at
work. High productivity comes not only from having good
technical skills but it is also drawn from good personal
relationships among co-workers.
Workers with
strong personal character show up to work on time and they are
prepared to undertake their daily tasks. They can be
relied upon to do the work to which they have committed
themselves and which they have been assigned. They accept
tasks which they know they can accomplish. When they say
yes to assignments they mean yes without excuses. They
know they are responsible for their actions and they are
confident in their abilities. They know how to say “no”
gently and firmly without creating disharmony. They can be
trusted to deliver.
Spirit centered
workers understand how to get along with other workers.
They know the importance of recognizing ability in others.
They are able to motivate others so as to nurture their talents
for the good of the community within which they work. They
hold no grudges toward others. They are a beacon of light
that supports and expands productivity in the workplace.
They are constantly wearing a smile. They are constantly
looking out for the well being of their co-workers. People
want to work for and with the spiritual centered co-worker.
Workers who seek
to improve the working conditions of fellow workers have strong
personal character. They are willing to put others above
themselves in order to create a more harmonious work place.
They look for ways to improve working conditions so it is a
safer place in which to work. They are proactive in
assuring that rewards are fairly and equitably awarded to all in
the workplace. They are encouragers, finding good—and
recognizing it—where others do not see it. They find
reasons to say thank you to the people with whom and for whom
they work.
Strong personal
character derived from the spiritual side of who we are and
based on solid core values is important in the workplace.
We are not minions following orders. Rather we are people
created in the image of God who have been given talents to
glorify Him through our work. By recognizing and utilizing
our God given talents we have the ability and the responsibility
to make the work place a better place in which to live and grow.
Simultaneously, through our character, we create value in the
work place for ourselves and for our employers.
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