Love, Fear and Prayer

The price of love of fear of loss.  If we wouldn’t be sad by the loss of a loved one or by being rejected by someone we deeply love, love would have no bond, no intimacy, and no joy.  To love is to risk the vulnerability of our inner most being.

At least that’s what the most genuine and delicious level of love requires.  Some love is virtually involuntary.  It seems you have no choice but to love.  To love without restraint.  One case where this is most potent is with young grandchildren.  Love from a grandchild is unpolluted from typical parental responsibilities or the duties of discipline.  The relationship between a grandparent and grandchild is like dessert.  When you surrender to a chocolate lava cake or two scoops of gelato in a waffle cone you are unconcerned about protein and fiber.  Balance is out the window in the face of unrestrained enjoyment.

But…our tenuous vulnerability is always lurking.  This past 4^th of July my six-year-old grandson, Antonio, was run over by a float in a small town parade.  The wheels of a 12 foot steel snowmobile trailer carrying 12 other children rolled directly over his head ripping his scalp away from his skull.  Antonio does not suffer from a lack of confidence or a shortage of what-can-I-do-next ideas.  As the parade was coming close to its finish he decided to join many of his cousins who were riding in the trailer.  In one ugly instant he slipped directly in front of the trailer as it began a turn, then he tripped and there on the ground he later said he saw the tires rolling toward him.  He froze and closed his eyes while scores of eyewitnesses began screaming, some already crying, the trailer rumbled directly over him.  The children on board later said they all felt the bump.  As blood flushed over his face his uncle leaped forward and picked him up carefully, holding Antonio’s skin on his skull.  Everyone was terrified.

Except Antonio.  He said,

“I don’t have any broken bones.  Clean me up and bring me back.  I don’t want to miss anything.”

You see Antonio had broken his arm a few years ago and he somehow remembered what that felt like.  The paramedics were there almost instantly because their emergency vehicle had been in the parade.  As they put Antonio inside, he said, looking at no one in particular but in the form of an announcement, “No shots.”

What transpired over the next twelve hours confirmed the impossible had happened.  Although several eyewitnesses said Antonio’s head should have been crushed like a grape, he instead was fine.  Of course he had to have over 100 stitches, mostly under his scalp and thankfully not across his handsome face, but after CAT scans and many neurological tests there was no permanent or even critical injuries.  No cracked skull, not even the sign of a concussion.  Lots of swelling though.  The next day, still in the hospital with his head the size of a Halloween pumpkin and one eye swollen shut, he was playing a video game with his 12-year-old girl cousin.  He was overheard telling her,

“I am 6 years old with one good eye and I can still beat you.”

Ah, my sweet little Antonio.

So how can I explain a miracle?  I can’t.  The whole of reality is like trying to explain art using only technical analysis.  Describing the science behind our optic nerve or the chemistry of paint pigment tells us nothing about the experience of a breathtaking Monet or the wonder of the Mona Lisa.  I don’t know why and certainly not how Antonio’s life and health was spared.  What I can tell you is that the experience of love and gratitude brings me to a sense of meaning far deeper than daily life, the evening news or my trivial complaints.  It also fills me with compassion for the scores of good fellow human beings who every day desperately need miracles to save their child or grandchild and don’t get one.  I don’t know why.  But I pray for them.  I pray because I am humbled by what I don’t know.  What I don’t understand.  I pray because I feel in some way connected to something bigger than I can understand.  I pray because I believe that personal and collective energy of compassion somehow matters.  I pray because it fuels my optimism.  I pray most of all because it changes me.  It changes what I desire.  It changes how I see things.  It changes the quality of my everyday encounter with life.

And the next time I get frustrated or fail I will think of my grandson Antonio’s words:

“Clean me up and bring me back.  I don’t want to miss anything.”

The American Dream–Stop the Suffering Caused by “Atlas Shrugged” Economics

Ideas fuel a society.  Ideas ignite vision.  Ideas form the language of the logic that drives decisions and establishes priorities.  Yet I wonder if the ideas that we Americans consider are ones that open our minds to something greater than what we have become.

Some of the biggest ideas in America today seem dominated by Ayn Rand, who championed radical self-interest–something she proudly called selfishness. Followers of Rand claim that 400,000 copies of her political-economic novel Atlas Shrugged are sold every year.  A book of the month club national survey showed that Americans rate the most influential books of their lives as first the Bible and second Atlas Shrugged.

It seems very strange to me.  The Bible and Atlas Shrugged? Jesus Christ and John Galt?  They just don’t seem to go together.  Maybe I am missing something, but what I understand Christ taught was treat everyone the way you want to be treated and love your enemies.  He criticized all forms of materialism, elitism and coercion.  He heatedly criticized ruling religious hierarchies who claimed that following their rules was mandatory.  He castigated the arrogant and judgmental.  He embraced the poor, educated, sick and outcast.  He ate with tax collectors, rescued adulterers and accepted gifts from prostitutes.  He talked to and taught women, slaves and people considered to be from inferior races.  Perhaps his most radical message is that all of us are equal, all of us are welcome.  This all-inclusive embrace of humanity is perhaps Jesus’ most amazing message in a world that divided itself in groups of chosen people, castes, peasants and slaves.  But that’s not all.

He also taught that we have an obligation to help people who don’t deserve it.  His Samaritan paid for the health care of a stranger.  His beatitudes set a much higher standard than the Old Testament’s Ten Commandments.  While the commandments focus on don’t, the beatitudes focus on do’s.  They speak of peacemaking, empathy, humility, tolerance, acceptance…a very high standard.  One message that seems clear is that the purpose of life is all about “we” and not about “me.”  In fact the very way we develop a character fit for heaven is to serve others.  Especially others beyond our families, tribes and friends, even people we may otherwise disapprove of.

Maybe I shouldn’t be surprised that CEOs consistently rank Rand’s book as the most important book they’ve read.  Her influence is more than minor.  Alan Greenspan, the father of deregulation and asset bubbles, was a friend and fan.  It’s not surprising that Glen Beck and Rush Limbaugh often recommend her novels or that her narcissist-capitalist hero, John Galt, is often found on posters at Tea Party rallies.  What’s curious about Americans fascination with Ayn Rand is that her objectivist philosophy is routinely embraced by church going Christians.  And now this sweet and sour mix of materialist Christianity is becoming a major political movement.

In the past 50 years many Americans have embraced a philosophy of survival of the fittest.  Its economic roots come from Friedrich Hayek’s Road to Serfdom and most especially Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged, a 1957 novel whose hero, John Galt, is the mouthpiece for an economic system that rewards winners and ruthlessly punishes losers without restraint.  Ayn Rand was a Russian-born avowed atheist who endorsed child labor while she supported unfettered abortion rights.  She also apposed anti-trust regulations. It seems that for Rand, big banks are good because the men who run them are ruthless capitalists.  She opposed public education and all environmental laws.  Most famously, she proposed that selfishness is the highest virtue of men and that any influence of morality on law making should be, well, illegal.  She expressed outrage that compassion or charity were considered virtues.  (If you think I am overstating Rand’s philosophy just check out Ayn Rand at wikipedia and see for yourself.)

In Atlas Shrugged her hero, John Galt, divided humanity into two groups.  The “Atlas’s” who like John produced things of value (like steel, oil and chemicals) while all others were “freeriders” who were the parasites of the wealthy.  Her novel is the story of the wealthy going on strike.  John Galt and his industrialist friends quit working in order to create an economic collapse so they will be begged by the rest of us to return and give us and our children jobs.  Rand’s view may not be that different from Lloyd Blankfein, Goldman Sach’s chairman who last year declared that he was “doing the work of God.”  In fact Atlas Shrugged is the chief argument as to why we have the same bankers today even though they caused the financial crisis.  They successfully claimed they were the only ones smart enough to run our “private” banking system.  Whatever.  Maybe I am confused but when I read Atlas Shrugged, John Galt seems to be the ultimate immoral narcissist.

So what’s the point?  Randism is the meat and potatoes of the Libertarian movement that today is driving much of the Tea Party movement (No regulation!)  and the Republican economic agenda.  Republican congressional nominee, Rand Paul, says we’re being too hard on both B.P. and coal mining executives who ignore safety rules that kill people.  He says “accidents happen.”  He’s serious.

Libertarian Republicanism has a long history preceding Barry Goldwater and Herbert Hoover that goes back to the first oil and steel cartels of the 19^th century and the pre-Civil War cotton plantations.  This strain of thinking elevates property rights above human rights.  Today Libertarians have asked us to reconsider legalizing racism allowing public businesses to refuse service to people not because of bad behavior but because of race.  Huh?  If the fruit of Libertarian economics is immoral laws and the protection of a financial aristocracy, John Galt can stay on strike.

But what’s the choice?  The “Progressive” left doesn’t have practical answers.  We know that welfare robs people of their inner dignity, self-esteem and self-determination. We also worry that our governments (state and federal) have way too many employees with guaranteed jobs, healthcare, and pensions the rest of us cannot afford to pay for.  Having a federal government workforce that on average enjoys 30% more wages and benefits than comparable private sector workers (USA Today) is not sustainable, wise, or fair.

I am pretty damn frustrated. Our founders clearly wanted to create the society envisioned by the great thinkers of enlightenment where every person had a legitimate opportunity to pursue happiness.  We know that the increasing concentration of wealth and power is corrupting our democracy.  And I don’t believe that private charity can scale up to systematically stop the suffering caused by Atlas Shrugged economics, racism or the exploitation of low power, low resource citizens. Our broken education system, health care and banking systems are problems far greater than thinking-as-usual and politics-as-usual can solve.  We have to get beyond where we are.  We must.

We all want change.  But not incremental, this-is-the-best-we-can-do change.  We need big vision change based on a new understanding of what’s necessary for a sustainable, abundant future.  We need new 21^st century ideas to propel our highest ideals.  So what’ the solution?  No one can say with certainty, but these are my thoughts on creating new institutions to solve our most difficult problems.

Something powerfully is rising.  It’s called “social” entrepreneurship, or Citizen Enterprise.  These are not old-fashioned charities but brand new enterprises or company spin-offs using the energy of innovation and urgency of competition to solve human problems like poverty, illiteracy, environmental healing, and pervasive health problems. Some Citizen Enterprises are organized as non-profit, others are for-profit but privately owned. The common concept is they seek to be financially sustainable rather than rely on charity or value-free capital markets.  Worldwide, the number of citizen organizations has skyrocketed since 1990 by over 400%.  Employment in the citizen sector organizations has grown two and a half times faster than the overall world economy.  Millions of us are now earning our living in the citizen sector.

Why?  Because we now realize that we can use innovative ideas and business discipline to ramp up save-the-world solutions faster than ever.  Faster than governments can ever do.  The evidence is in our face: entrepreneurial models work best for solving most problems.

That’s because governments are not good at delivery of direct services.  Bureaucracies are poor at value delivery because there is little competition and few rewards.  Governments are best at creating conditions of security, justice, and opportunity.  Life and Liberty.  That’s the first job of government.  And they need to do a much better job of it.

Citizen Enterprise is a quickly emerging “third force” in society. This citizen sector often collaborates with government and private enterprise to create new sustainable solutions.  The size, effectiveness, and growth of this force are unprecedented in world history. This is how it looks.

Government, the public sector, is the “first force.”  It provides laws, policies and resources to provide conditions of life (security) liberty (freedom/responsibility and equality/opportunity) so that we, you and I, can pursue real happiness with gusto.

The private sector is the “second force.”  It is the world of business and commerce and  creates opportunities to increase our material wellbeing and social mobility.  It does this by producing and delivering products and services.  As long as there are free, competitive, non-corrupt markets of voluntary exchange it does its job better than any system yet devised.

The citizen sector is the “third force.”  It provides solutions to problems of social justice, poverty, environmental destruction, public health and more.  It does this also by developing and providing products and services with a sustainable business model. (See PlayPumps, Grameen Bank, Nike’s Livestrong Clothing Collection, etc.)

Both the private and citizen sectors thrive when markets are free and fair because effectiveness and efficiency is rewarded. But there is one big difference that enables citizen sector organizations to do what private enterprise cannot.  Private enterprise is beholden to their shareholders.  They must be profitable in both the short and long term and the more profitable, the better.  That’s why oil company executives can still look at themselves in the mirror even if their profit strategies cause single moms to feed their kids baloney sandwiches so they can fill the gas tank to get to work.  That’s why drug company leaders increase older drug prices even if my mother is choosing between her pills or heat for her house.  The point is businesses are not directly accountable to single mothers or grandmothers who aren’t shareholders.

This also explains why some of the government’s experiments in privatizing prisons has resulted in operations that look like human chicken farms and many for-profit Charter Schools excel by focusing primarily on wealthy, smart kids.  It explains why using private sector government contractors to run our government only ends up in corrupting it.  Private enterprise is not designed to serve the common good.

On the other hand, Citizen Enterprise can be revolutionary because it provides the services that focus on maxing-out the value to “all customers” because the citizen enterprise is accountable to…. us.  Citizens!  We are the customers.  In exchange for tax-exempt status and the ability to compete for increasing pool of patient capital, citizen enterprise is free to focus on just getting the best results.  The best for all of us.  This is what makes Citizen Enterprise the most powerful force for positive change.  Perhaps it is the new institution of the new future.

Indeed, Atlas has shrugged.  The Atlas’s have dropped the world on its ear.  It’s up to us to pick it up.

SoCal Surfer gets an escort from a 30ft Minke Whale!

*This is a story that was sent via email. I do not have the original source. Once I track it down, I will post the source.

“When Southern California surfer Jodie Nelson set out Sunday to standup-paddle nearly 40 miles from Santa Catalina Island to Dana Point, she hoped it’d inspire her best friend, who has been involved in a long and exhausting struggle with breast cancer, to keep fighting.

Nelson, 34, whose mother and aunt are cancer survivors, also hoped her nine-hour test of endurance would raise money for two cancer charities and heighten awareness about a plight affecting millions of women.

What Nelson could not have known was that a 30-foot minke whale would swim alongside her 14-foot board and accompany the surfer as she stood and paddled for two of those nine hours, thus joining the cause.

“It was a day that all of us involved will never forget,” Nelson said, in reference to Angela Robinson, her best friend, and the rest of a crew aboard an escort boat.

Minke whales are not commonly seen off Southern California, and those spotted by boaters are often elusive. So when a mammal Nelson named Larry joined her endeavor to become the first woman to make this long paddle, she took it as a sign.

“To me it was a total God thing,” the San Clemente resident said. “We prayed at 4 that morning that God would reveal his beauty and creation and nature, and allow me to endure this long trek, so for me it’s not such a huge surprise that this happened.”

Larry did not merely swim close to Nelson. He rolled around repeatedly alongside her and blew bubbles beneath her board. A film crew was on the escort boat and CNN, Fox News and ABC are just some of the networks she says are interested in the story and footage.

Alisa Schulman-Janiger, an American Cetacean Society <http://www.acsonline.org/>  whale researcher, said minke whales can be friendly but added: “This type of quality encounter is highly unusual.”

Nelson raised only about $6,000 in advance of the paddle, disappoingtingly short of her target of $100,000 for the Keep a Breast Foundation and Boarding for Breast Cancer <http://www.b4bc.org/> . A few of her celebrity friends let her down, she said, but when this story reaches a national audience she expects the pool to grow considerably.

“I thought, ‘I don’t need so-and-so,’ ” she said of a particular celebrity, whom she declined to name. “Because I honestly feel like Larry is going to help us reach the $100,000 mark with our fundraising effort.”

Larry or no Larry, completing a standup paddle over 39.8 miles of ocean and sharks speaks volumes about Nelson’s strength, stamina and determination.

Larry took her mind off the task for two magical hours, but her mind never strayed from the cause. “I can’t even begin to compare what I did to what cancer patients are going through,” she said. “But I wanted to put myself out there in a dangerous and scary, overwhelming situation; something that was big and just to show people that you can win that battle with that big, scary thing called cancer.

“I wanted to draw some kind of parallel and just encourage people to keep fighting.”

Those wanting to help Jodie with her mission can do so via her page on the Keep a Breast Foundation website <http://firstgiving.com/paddlewithpurpose>.”

Goodbye Corporate Social Responsibility, Hello Corporate Sustainability

I read an interesting article today in the Wall Street Journal called Good Intentions. It addresses the fact that 1/3 of companies cut their corporate social responsibility (CSR) budgets in 2009 and corporate philanthropy fell by 8% in 2008. While just looking at the numbers this may appear to be a great setback, the article discusses how it’s actually not such a great loss because random acts of corporate giving and marginal initiatives are not enough to alter corporate behavior. What’s needed is corporate sustainability.

Will Marre, CEO of Realeadership Alliance, agrees. He states, “Business is not just about making a profit anymore; it’s about creating a sustaining business culture that energizes employees, creates a unique profit edge and makes a positive impact on humanity and the environment. Anything less is a waste of valuable time and resources we need for a sustainable future” (See Leadership Development Speaker, Will Marré, Trains Business Leaders for the Future). So what exactly is the difference between CSR and corporate sustainability? The WSJ article quotes Scott Beaudoin, director of cause marketing at MS&L in Boston, who says: “Companies are asking how they can be socially responsible in a way that also moves the business forward. It’s no longer about having one corporate social responsibility guy who is supposed to be the moral compass for the company, like a chaplain in an Army regiment. It’s about making sustainable business the standard operating procedure.”

Corporate sustainability, according to Wikipedia, is “a business approach that creates long-term shareholder value by embracing opportunities and managing risks deriving from economic, environmental and social developments…Unlike the other phrases that focus on “added-on” policies, corporate sustainability describes business practices built around social and environmental considerations.”

A huge driver of sustainability rather than responsibility is innovation. Corporate Sustainability—It’s About Attitude discusses a paper by BT and Cisco, “A New Mindset for Corporate Sustainability.” It discusses the limitations of CSR thinking, “namely an attitude that these practices are costly to business, inhibit growth and negatively impact the bottom line.” Sustainability, on the other hand, is a catalyst for innovation. It gives ten steps companies should take to drive innovation via sustainability. Some are 1) Make innovating for sustainability a part of your company’s vision, 2) Formulate a strategy with sustainability at its heart, 3) Embed sustainability in every part of your business, and 4) Walk the talk (actions speak louder than words).

A new study, Why Sustainability is Now the Key Driver of Innovation, also discusses the mindset of sustainability. It states, “Sustainability isn’t the burden on bottom lines that many executives believe it to be. In fact, becoming environment-friendly can lower your costs and increase your revenues. That’s why sustainability should be a touchstone for all innovation.” It continues, “In the future, only companies that make sustainability a goal will achieve competitive advantage that means rethinking business models as well as products, technologies, and processes.” The paper goes on to give a five-stage process in becoming sustainable.

Marre, who has long been changing the phrase, Corporate Social Responsibility, to Corporate Social Opportunity, discusses in New Leadership Training for Strategic CSR Announced by Will Marre how business has gone through three phases of CSR. The first was the mandate for businesses to remove the toxic processes and impacts from their operations. This included practices such as eliminating pollution and labor exploitation. Phase two has been to embrace sustainability and contribute to the community. Sustainability practices have yielded huge cost savings as waste is being eliminated from core business processes. Corporate philanthropy has also become increasingly important to promote brand reputation.

Marre even takes it a step further. He says that as good as these initiatives are, phase three is a “quantum leap” in creating strategic business value for companies who see that helping humanity and healing the environment are far bigger opportunities than stopping bad practices or polishing a corporate reputation. Phase three of the CSR revolution is socially strategic leadership that unites a 21st century leadership paradigm, business models and EverGreen™ innovation to create unique value.

According to Marre, “Reinventing the world to be sustainably abundant is the greatest economic opportunity in history.” The possibilities are indeed endless for those who move beyond business-as-usual and embrace the challenge of changing our future. CSR make way for corporate sustainability.

Social Enterprise is the Wave of the Future

We live in an exciting time.  Boundaries are blurring between business and philanthropy like never before, and the result is radical new social enterprises that are taking on the world’s problems with new innovation and sustainable solutions.

In her speech, You Are the Future of Philanthropy, Katherine Fulton discusses the exciting changes in philanthropy inspired by the entrepreneurial spirit.  She calls it a democratization of philanthropy in which the average person has more power than at any other time in history to make a difference.  She explains five categories of new philanthropy: mass collaboration, online philanthropy marketplaces, aggregated giving, innovation competitions, and social investing.  She states, “I’m hopeful because it’s not only philanthropy that’s reorganizing itself.  It’s also whole other portions of the social sector, and of business, that are busy challenging ‘business as usual’….There is a new moral hunger that is growing.”

Leadership speaker and expert, Will Marre, in Social Enterprise: How to Save the World and Grow Your Business at the Same Time, also discusses the changes in philanthropy and business with the rapidly emerging trend of social enterprise.  He explains how social enterprise is enterprise that incorporates the efficiencies, disciplines and rewards of for-profit business with the broader interests of directly solving humanitarian and environmental challenges. 

Marre believes that social enterprise is the future of both business and philanthropy because as he states, “They can grow steadily and produce abundant profits, they are often market leaders, they reward their employees, offer meaningful work and personal growth, benefit their communities, and improve the environment––all at the same time.” 

Marre concludes, “Reinventing the world to be sustainably abundant is the greatest economic opportunity in history.  It is exciting to be at the beginning of our new future.”     

Isn’t this the kind of enterprise you want to be a part of? 

Socially Responsible Leadership and Wise Leaders Who are Investing in the Future of Humanity

It’s easy to be outraged at the incompetence and greed apparent in business leadership. Titanic ethical failures like Enron, failures in judgment by General Motors and greed-induced insanity by our major financial institutions have caused millions to suffer. Leadership failure is so bad the Economist magazine reports that only 2% of consumers worldwide trust business leaders to do the right thing if it costs them profits. With business institutions having the most trans-global power on earth, that is breathtakingly bad.

But there is a strong minority of courageous and wise leaders who use their resources for much more than self-interest. More needs to be known about these wise companies who lead their industries, embrace sustainability and are investing in the future of humanity.

Take FedEx and Johnson & Johnson for example. They have partnered with Heart to Heart International, a health-based nonprofit whose main focus is to get life-saving medicine and supplies to victims in crisis. Their work has never been as important as now as they rush to get much needed supplies and medical support to help save Haiti earthquake victims.

Fed Ex and Johnson & Johnson make these efforts possible. Not only has FedEx provided significant financial support and transportation services to Heart to Heart, but they also have created Forward Response Centers—FedEx warehouses full of relief supplies that are ready to go to virtually any disaster zone in the world quickly and efficiently. These centers take up valuable space in FedEx warehouses, but they do it because they understand that business is about more than money. When the tsunami hit Thailand in 2007, FedEx planes were among the first to land medical supplies. These Forward Response Centers have made it possible for Heart to Heart to be among the first responders to the Haiti disaster.

Johnson & Johnson is one of the main generous providers of these supplies which include The Ready Relief Box, otherwise known as the portable pharmacy that contains such items as pain relievers, antibiotics, vitamins, first aid supplies and doctor’s essentials such as a stethoscope and digital thermometer; The Medical Surge Module, which can increase capacity at healthcare facilities by providing enough medical supplies for 2,000 patients; and The Personal Hygiene Kit, which provides hygiene care for up to two weeks and is vital after a disaster to prevent contagious diseases from running rampant.

And wise leadership is not limited to a few visionary corporations. Today the non-profit Grameen Foundation is focusing their efforts on economic recovery—both short- and long-term. In partnership with Sèvis Finansye Fonkoze (a Grameen Foundation microfinance partner in Haiti), the Grameen Foundation will build upon their existing efforts in Haiti of using microfinance and technology to help Haitians, especially women, move themselves out of poverty and build a more self-reliant future. The President of the Grameen Foundation, Alex Counts, states, “Please help us help the nation recover from this recent disaster and try, as hard as it may be to imagine, to help our local partners build a Haiti that is more prosperous than pre-earthquake conditions.”

So what’s going on with these enterprises? What drives their leaders to do what others refuse to do? In my 30 years of working with senior leaders I can only conclude it is, at its core, one thing. Wisdom. Plato defined wisdom as “a knowledge of the Good and courage to act accordingly.” He further described wisdom as the commitment to seek the right balance between “all that exists.” What we today might call sustainability. At the core, wisdom is moral courage. As philosophers from every culture, across time have noted, it is not enough to know what is Good. We must also act on that knowledge. The responsibility of today’s business leaders to act from wisdom is essential for our future. We are all increasingly connected and to act only on self-interest is poisoning the water that our children drink.

Sadly, nearly all leadership failure I have witnessed up close has been the result of many small decisions that compromise the wise choice into simply an expedient one. Too many leaders are driven by fear. Fear of being criticized by the Wall Street money-changers or fear of being second guessed by their own hard driving executive team. Fear makes leaders stupid. The neurobiology of fear literally extinguishes creativity, open-mindedness and moral reasoning. We need leaders who have the everyday courage to act on the “Good” as a way to create more value for all. When I counsel senior leaders I often ask them, “How much good can you do, right now? When I get a response I simply say, “Do that.” You see doing the best thing you can imagine in a sustainable, wise way always creates value that makes you and your enterprise stand apart. So it not only ends up being wise but also smart.

Most of the few great companies that are doing the most to restore environmental balance and benefit humanity don’t toot their horns about it. (Who knew FedEx planes were landing in Haiti full of medicine?) No, that’s not a good thing. In 2003, I founded REALeadership Alliance to do just that; help leaders and companies become clear on the good they can do. The wisdom of courageous leaders needs to shine as a beacon to inspire those who fear to wake up and get busy saving our world. It’s actually just wise business.

So what’s the best thing you can do? Transcend your own fear. We are all leaders. All CEOs of our own lives. Be wise. Stand for something that matters. Speak up every day for the best thing you can imagine. Everyday courage accumulates. Our consistent small acts of integrity change the future. We all need to lead.

A Purpose Beyond Self-Interest

Yesterday, I went all the way to Santa Barbara to meet with the founder and CEO of the World Business Academy, Rinaldo S. Brutoco. We are working together to accelerate a movement towards a new form of business leadership worldwide. He’s been leading this organization since 1986. His experiences have been nothing short of remarkable, and he is on a first name basis with many of our world’s most powerful people. I think we are going to cook up some amazing things!

One thing that Rinaldo and I agreed upon is the kind of leadership we need in the 21st Century is a purpose that is beyond self-interest. All of us are driven by a prime motive; that background music that is constantly guiding us in the decisions we make. If all we are interested in is maximizing our pleasure, security, safety, and well being, we are going to end up exploiting others and the planet. The model that the best possible world comes from human beings being the most selfish is the most wrong-headed notion ever foisted on us. It also robs us from our essential dignity, and our highest creativity.

Peg Ross and The Grameen Foundation are Saving the World

I’ve been talking to Peg Ross, who is in charge of Human Capital Development for the Grameen Foundation.  Human Capital is truly a “Save the World” idea.  In most developing countries there is a shortage of trained leaders.  They simply don’t have the decades of history that we do in America of training leaders in business schools or on the job.  Peg has developed a leadership/management curriculum ranging from performance planning to decision making.  Things as basic as setting and achieiving goals as a team are likely to accelerate the effectiveness of a whole new generations of leaders in countries where the poorest of the poor live.
What impresses me so much about Peg is she is a wife and a mom who lives in suburban San Diego when she is not traveling to Bangladesh or India to “Save the World.” She is another one of those seemingly ordinary people doing extraordinary things that it simply blows my mind.

The Gap Does More Than Set Fashion Trends

I recently came across The Gap’s social responsibility website. I was quite impressed and wanted to give a shout out to their efforts. While their contributions to Project Red and their stand against child labor are more well known, what I was most impressed with is their dedication to employee involvement in their CSR initiatives. Some of their initiatives include:

• 2000 employee community leaders who organize company-sponsored service events and act as ambassadors for their work in the company and the community.
• In 2008 alone they donated $10.3 million in employee-driven community investment.
• Their Money for Time program provides a $150 grant to nonprofits for every 15 hours of employee volunteer time.
• Their Take Five program offers exempt corporate employees five hours of paid time off to volunteer each month, or 60 hours per year.
• In Action Days are events organized by employees of Gap Inc. brands to provide local volunteer opportunities. Thousands of employees have participated, dedicating hundreds of hours to a wide variety of projects.
• Team Grants support employee team projects. When at least three store employees spend 25 hours volunteering with a nonprofit that supports underserved youth or women, Gap Inc. provides a $250 grant to that organization. Each store receives an annual grant budget based on store volume. Since the program began in 2006, it has grown significantly, increasing from 220 team projects in 2007 to 723 in 2008.

Will Marre, leadership expert, is a huge proponent of employee involvement in CSR initiatives. In “Personal Social Responsibility Drives Employees to More Deeply Commit to Their Organization’s Success” he cites research that reveals that 93 percent of American employees say it is important for their companies to provide them with opportunities to become involved in social issues, and 72 percent want their employers to do more to support a cause or social issue. Marre believes that the best way to engage employees and create deep loyalty is to provide them with opportunities to make a difference in their community. He calls this Personal Social Responsibility.

Gap Inc. is a great example of Personal Social Responsibility. On their website it states, “We see a direct connection between our employees’ volunteerism and their commitment to Gap Inc. Engaged employees deliver strong business results, which is good for the community and our company. In a 2007 employee survey, nearly all respondents said it is important for them to work for a company that invests in the community. Studies also show that when a person is emotionally connected to a cause, giving is related to positive emotions and personal happiness. The bottom line: volunteering makes people happy, and happy people make better employees.”

Personal Social Responsibility is indeed becoming the new trend of CSR. As Marre states, “In the real world organizations are finding success by transforming a paternalistic paradigm of CSR into a launch pad for inspired employees to “save the world” right where they are.”

Top 10 Things Every Business Leader Should Know About Strategic Sustainability

1. Sustainable Abundance is good for business. Every product and every service needs to be re-invented to create a sustainable future.  This is the greatest economic opportunity in history.  (Consider automobiles, light bulbs, airplanes, energy…. everything.)
2. High Sustainability Standards and Maximizing Human Benefits can generate “leapfrog” designs to invent new products and new business models.  (Toyota was creating the Prius while other car companies slept.)
3. Sustainability Thinking saves money. The relentless challenge to improve durability, re-use parts and eliminate packaging brings bottom line innovation. (91% of old Xerox copier parts are reused in “new” Xerox machines.)
4. Removing the Bad attracts new customers. Consumers and business customers are stampeding to choose the benefits of non-toxic, no-waste products (Clorox’s non-toxic Green Works Cleaners is their fastest growing product portfolio.)
5. Create a Cause Bigger Than Your Brand. Over 80% of consumers say they choose brands that support good causes because it makes them feel like they are “voting with their wallet.” (ClifBar’s brand in the manufactured nutrition bar business repeatedly earns the highest loyalty rating.  They famously support the organic sourcing and the buy local food movement as well as women and fitness initiatives.)
6. Sustainability Obliterates Costs. When smart people consider how to satisfy a need or want without waste or even cost, new business models spring to life.  (When Apple designed the ipod, eliminating the cost/waste of CD manufacturing, shipping and distribution was the natural outcome.  The ipod led to the iphone, greener product design and tens of thousands of digital apps which create user loyalty without more cost.)
7. Sustainability Drives Game-Changing Business Models. When leaders consider solving huge problems in sustainable ways, new thinking creates breakthrough businesses.  Before the radio, who would have thought of music with a band?  Before the light bulb, who would have thought of light without a flame?  (Today micro-entrepreneurs are installing solar panels on huts in the world’s poorest areas because solar generated OLED light is cheaper than kerosene.  Power without the grid.  Is everything possible?)
8. Sustainability Creates Smart Marketing.  Engaging your customers in the benefits and breakthroughs of your green and sustainable products requires a new level and a new type of communication.  It’s called smarketing.  Marketing that makes your customer smart.  (GE recently asked design students to come up with creative ways to use GE’s new organic LED lights.  Tens of thousands have seen their video on YouTube and the product launch is still months away.)
9. Sustainability Attracts Top Talent. The best science, engineering and business schools report that top graduates only want to work for companies that are serious about making a difference in creating a sustainable future.  (Ask any college recruiter.)
10. If You Don’t Fully Embrace Sustainability, You Are Toast. The debate over green is over and green won.  Consider the failures of GM and the transformation of Wal-Mart.  It’s better to ride the wave than drown in the rip tide of change.

For information on the speech or seminar, “Leading for Sustainability,” email candie@willmarre.com.

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