June
2008
In this issue...
- Focussing
on Profit: Why it Won't Make You Happy.
- The End
of Suburbia - Film Review.
- Your exploration this month.
- Quotes of the month
- Want to comment or contribute?
- Teleclasses and personal coaching
News and Events
Monday, June 9th – National
Liftshare Day. Share a car, save money and reduce
pollution. A typical Liftshare member saves themselves £1000
and 1 tonne of Co2 per year by sharing their daily car
journey. If
you haven’t already found a liftshare partner for
9th June, you can click
here to
register your journey and run a search.
Or, you could try www.isanyonegoingto.com.
Or try typing your
county or state name and “carshare scheme” into
your search engine to find your nearest scheme.
1. Focussing
on Profit: Why it Won't Make You Happy.
I’m guessing that there
are probably very few of us now who have not been affected
by rising fuel costs,
either at home or in our businesses. When the rising
cost of a common commodity grabs our attention, this
can trigger old anxieties around money. This might be
focussed on making ends meet at home or watching the
bottom line in our businesses. According to sustainable
business principles, the key to success is to operate
to a Triple Bottom Line – People, Planet and Profit.
(If you’d like a reminder of the details of this,
see my article on Sustainable
Small Business).
You might well be tempted to view the People and Planet
elements as something of a luxury when times are hard
and may well ask “What’s wrong with just
focussing on the money when things get difficult?”
The problem with being profit orientated in any situation
is that it tends to change our behaviour in the following
ways:
We won’t let ourselves be
happy in our business unless and until we make x amount
of profit.
We won’t let ourselves be
happy in our personal lives until we are out of debt/off
benefits/able to afford
X,Y or Z.
We neglect the relationships in our business and personal
lives (with ourselves, our families, employees, mutual
support network etc) and consequently make ourselves
suffer.
We forget our purposes in life and so we feel unfulfilled.
We overlook our relationship with the natural world
and so we feel disconnected and uninspired.
In other words, we let it affect
our whole attitude to our business in a way that is
not going to be helpful
in riding the storm. Our perceptions of the possible
threats of a recession begin to outweigh our enthusiasm,
inspiration and creativity – the real fuel upon
which our business and our personal happiness depend.
When we encounter any form of
stress, one of the risks to watch out for is a tendency
we humans have to revert
back to old, comfortable habits. The old comfortable
habit that we’re reverting back to when we begin
to focus solely on profit rather than the triple bottom
line stems from our being raised in a consumer society.
The economic machine that is consumerism depends on making
us feel that we are not worthy in some way – not
slim enough, not beautiful enough, not sweet smelling
enough, don’t have the right mobile phone/car/home/clothes.
We are led to believe that we can only be happy when
we meet someone else’s approval and the specification
for that approval is forever shifting with trends in
fashion. So, we’re left chasing an arbitrarily
defined set of goal posts over which we have little control.
According to consumerism, you can always buy your way
out of unhappiness. So yes, profit orientation is an
old rat race habit that we haven’t quite managed
to shed! What are we to do?
What some people who are money
or profit focussed say is “Well, that’s ok because I’ll
make sure I get my connection with nature and my fulfilling
relationships outside of work.”
The problems with that is:
Our business isn’t holistic
We don’t feel authentic in what we do at work
We don’t enjoy it nearly as much as we could
We feel compelled to work really hard on a thing called “work/life
balance”
So, when we’re feeling stretched financially,
that is the time to revisit our business purpose and
our reasons for doing what we do – our offering
and contribution to the world. It is a time to “keep
the faith”. How do we do that?
Keeping the faith is like gardening.
First you clear the ground – declutter your work and living space,
declutter your thoughts by reducing the number of projects
you’re working on, have a spring clean. Then sew
your seeds – continue to make new contacts, build
on and nurture existing relationships, learn a new skill
or cultivate a new habit, find a new way to reduce your
consumption, do something kind just for yourself, be
consistent in your marketing, stay in integrity. Watch
as the seeds you’ve sewn start to bear fruit. Just
notice synchronicities happening, act on them with gratitude
and see where they lead. Remember to remain unattached
to particular outcomes. We live in rapidly changing times
and the opportunities that arise may not emerge in the
form that you expect! Finally, have fun and be at peace
during the process.
When we “keep the faith” and focus on maintaining
our authenticity and sustainability in our business lives,
especially when times are tough, there is no need for “work/life
balance”, there’s just life.
2. The
End of Suburbia - Film Review.
Made in 2004, this
documentary examines the American suburban way of life
in the light of Peak
Oil. At the time when the film was made, the commentators
expressed their uncertainty over the exact timing of
Peak Oil and explained that this would not be known for
sure until after it had actually happened. Now, in 2008,
we think we’re just over the cusp and so I found
it interesting to view this account in the knowledge
that Peak Oil is now upon us, rather than being a scientific
prediction. So, it was enlightening and rather alarming
to compare some of the consequences of Peak Oil predicted
in the film to what is actually starting to happen now.
I was surprised that the majority
of the documentary concentrated on defining the problems
of suburban living
and oil dependency, rather than devoting a larger proportion
of the film footage to possible, realistic solutions
to the energy crisis. As a result, I fully understand
Rob Hopkins’ advice when he suggests, during his
presentations on Transition Towns, that this film be
viewed in groups of people and with sufficient opportunities
to discuss the issues it raises. He believes the messages
it contains are too alarming to be left as is, in the
absence of some balancing, creative and positive ideas
for realistic solutions and ways forward. If some, who
may have viewed this documentary a few years ago, thought
it alarmist then, then revisiting it now might reframe
their beliefs in the light of the predicted consequences
of Peak Oil which now seem to be actually taking place.
This is essential viewing, in my opinion, in order to
raise awareness of our addiction to oil.
www.endofsuburbia.com
www.transitiontowns.org
3. Your
exploration this month.
What aspects of the financial side of your life are
causing you most anxiety this month?
What are these telling you about your alignment with
your intentions for your business and your personal life?
What needs adjusting?
4. Quotes
of the month.
Angels fly because they take themselves
lightly.
G.K. Chesterton.
You can have anything you want provided you first let
go of wanting it.
Lester Levensen.
The period of
greatest gain in knowledge and experience is the
most difficult period
in one’s life.
Dalai Lama
5. Want
to comment or contribute?
If you would like to comment on any aspect of this newsletter
or submit an article for inclusion in it, please contact
me by email.
6. Teleclasses
and personal coaching.
"6 Steps to a Sustainable
Small Business"
A series of
6 teleclasses, each 45 minutes long, exploring the three
main elements of the
Triple Bottom Line of Sustainable Business Practices, People,
Planet, Profit and how to incorporate them into your business.
More details.
"How to Step off the Treadmill"
A series of six teleclasses, each
45 minutes long, exploring the elements of downshifting,
the reality of living a
sustainable lifestyle in a consumer driven society
and how to motivate ourselves to make the switch.
More details.
What is a Teleclass?
A teleclass is a straightforward,
low cost and sustainable way of taking part in a group
learning session. It's
like a conference telephone call.Each participant is
supplied with a phone number to call at the appointed
time. When you call, you will be welcomed to a virtual
classroom where you can listen to the class leader present
the teleclass material and you can participate by asking
or answering questions if you wish. So it's just like
being in a real classroom or workshop setting except
that you can take part in the comfort of your own home
without having to travel anywhere!
More details
Personal Coaching
One-to-one coaching can help you:
- let go of your old,stressful
way of life, find a new path of vitality and an improved
way of living.
- deal with fears surrounding
financial responsibilities, your relationships with
others and other consequences of making a major life
change.
- improve your health, wellbeing
and spiritual life.
- further your personal growth.
- achieve balance, clarity and
peace.
You can view further details on personal coaching here.
7. Privacy
policy
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Have a fruitful
month!
Sally
Sally Lever
Sustainable Living Coach
+44 (0)1749 674842
sally@sallylever.co.uk
http://www.sallylever.co.uk/
7 Welsford Avenue, Wells, Somerset.
BA5 2HX. UK. |
