Report #2 from the RipeGlobal conference in Chennai, where Im speaking at a series of 5 conferences under the banner of Positive Universal Consciousness. Sundays session was on the Human Heart of Business, and featured corporate executives and students from three business schools. In my presentation I encouraged the attendees to leverage their rich spiritual heritage in their efforts to succeed in the Material world. I shared with them that, while the West seems mighty and powerful materially, it is weak spiritually, We have chased God out of our institutions and He is not allowed in Government nor in business. I explained that by inviting God into their work and into their businesses Indian companies can generate a competitive edge that will enable their growing nation to eclipse the material success of the West. Most importantly, I touched on a point that I had learned in the previous days session - that by 2020 India will have more children than any other nation on Earth, and thus the future leaders of India need to become the future leaders of the world. I stated that the Association of Soft Skills Trainers, ASTRA, which is a co-sponsor of the event, was really in the business of leadership training, and that my focus was on creating the passion and vision within the students in attendance to become Global Leaders, able to lead the West away from the perilous worship of the false God of Materialism. This is the meaning of the Human Heart of Business. My comments were inspired by the energy created by the Youth of Madison and our local cluster, whose burning passion generated by the announcement of the Global Bahai Youth Conferences, and the fire of their enthusiasm and radiant spiritual energy, upon their return, spontaneously came to my mind while I was presenting. This spiritual energy in turn infused my own speaking, and the crowd was ignited by the realization that the assets of their cultural and religious heritage were already theirs, and they did not need material assistance from the West to develop their country - that they could tap into the source of all wealth, with whom they are already connected. I also addressed the concept of Customer Service and Customer Satisfaction, considered a primary driver of business success, encouraging them that from the moment I landed they had evidenced an attitude of service that transcended the transactional material nature of customer service as understood and taught by the business schools of the West. Rather, the service already in evidence in the hearts of all the attendees was a spirit of service to their fellow man, and to Humanity itself. Here again, I emphasized the superiority of what they already have to any script the West can provide them. In business terms, I explained, this is an insurmountable competitive advantage, which they should leverage as they build their companies, infusing them with the human heart that is needed to transform the global economy from its current unsustainable destructive nature to one which can transform the world into a Rose Garden. These points were anchored by quotes from the Master on the benefits and uses of wealth, and the source of one quote, The Secret of Divine Civilization, became a banner for the university students - as the future Global Leaders destined to make major contributions to the dream of building a new, global, Divine Civilization. This theme of Global Leadership was picked up by the keynote speaker from the East, who followed me on stage, and his presentation on the power of the Upanishads, Vedas and other ancient wisdom texts, was also infused with a new life and power. In short, the day was an unqualified success, made all the more powerful by the most important component. I had reached out to the friends in Chennai with an offer of free passes to the event, and I believe 8 of them were in attendance, with me rounding the number up to 9. They brought a beautiful card and a bouquet with the favorite color flowers of the Bab, Bahaulla and Abdul Baha to honor me for having received the lifetime achievement award in Human Resource Development, and also gifted me with two beautiful posters of the Bahai Temple in New Delhi - in appreciation for the invitation and opportunity to attend. One of the Bahais who attended was Mr. Lateef Rasheed, who is an NSA member in India. I invited Mr. Rasheed to open my presentation with a prayer, to which he graciously assented, delivering a Unity Prayer in English. I invited two of the other friends to participate during my lecture, which helped animate the crowd to participate as well. At the end of the day Mr. Rasheed, who had originally planned only to stay for my presentation, but who ended up staying for the entire day, was invited up to give his impressions on the proceeding. His comments and encouragement were the icing on the cake of an amazing day. Mr. Rasheed and I are already in email discussions about connecting RIPEGlobal and the Institute for Global Prosperity, an organization founded by the Universal House of Justice in 1999. And speaking of email, my inbox was flooded with facebook friend requests from the university students who attended the sessions. This may be an opportunity to connect some of them to the Bahai youth of India, and I would welcome any contacts or assistance that might be provided to assist me in facilitating these connections. This lengthy report only covers the highlights of a day that I will never forget, in which divine confirmation on the importance and opportunity for the people of India to contribute to the welfare of humanity were flowing in such measure that everyone who attended left with their cup overflowing. And as this post is overflowing with words, and I need to get to work on finalizing my presentation for today, Ill have to update you on yesterdays session another time. Allahuabha to the friends back home :)
Posted on: Tue, 04 Mar 2014 01:18:27 +0000
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