How Spirit Drives Creativity, Innovation and Success
Monday, July 11th, 2011
Terry Murray thinks the difference between a company that's surviving to one that's thriving isn't buried in their bottom line, but rather, it's hidden in their hearts. Murray, an executive coach for Fortune 1000 companies, entrepreneurs and startups believes that companies that are driven by inspiration and positive emotions become inherently more successful than companies that focus exclusively on the profit-loss statements.
"Business and the human spirit are not mutually exclusive," said Murray,author of The Transformational Entrepreneur - Engaging the Mind, Heart, &Spirit For Breakthrough Business Success. "In fact, the integration and alignment of taking a mindful approach to business is an accelerant towards success in today's volatile marketplace. It cultivates authentic presence, positive communication, full engagement, adaptability, and taps into the creativity of human beings."
Murray's view is that the human element is oftentimes the spark that separates good companies from great companies.
"The competitive dynamics of business have changed," he said. "Today and in the future, the source of value creation for companies is, and will continue to be, the efficient commercialization of intellectual property. Because of this, human beings, and their creative input and adaptability, are more important than ever. Fully cultivating and leveraging human talent requires engagement on an entirely new level - of engaging the mind, heart, and spirit. Research from Applied Behavioral Economics also reveals the importance of engaging customers emotionally and cognitively. Doing so requires a new level of consciousness to emerge in business, one that authentically aligns and integrates leadership, strategy, and culture."
Moreover, research is showing more and more that creativity in corporations- where the next big ideas come from - is linked to how good employees and managers feel about working there.
"The competitive parameters of global markets are also changing rapidly and in unprecedented ways," he added. "This demands adaptive change and creative solutions to maintain competitive advantage. As an example, the 2010 IBM CEO survey indicated the single most important attribute CEOs are looking for in future leaders is creativity and the ability to cultivate creativity throughout the organization. Yet they continue to lead and manage in very traditional ways that disengage associates. Gallup's study on employee disengagement showed that 73 percent of employees are disengaged or activity disengaged with their employers and only 27 percent show up with any passion or excitement. Some managers might say, 'So what?' Well, in a study conducted by Gallup and published in the Harvard Business Review, companies that engage both their employees and their customers on an emotional level enjoy a 240 percent improvement in financial performance. So, making your staff feel good about their work is clearly very good for your bottom line."
