Grits

Enron and you

Well. It took 4-1/2 years from the beginning to the end: Enron CEO Jeffrey Skilling and founder Kenneth Lay were found guilty in federal court of the biggest corporate conspiracy and fraud case in the US.

Skilling was found guilty on 19 counts of conspiracy, fraud, false statements and insider trading and Lay was found guilty on all six counts of conspiracy and fraud.

The jury found they misled the public about the true financial health of Enron, whose collapse in late 2001 triggered the tsunami of corporate fraud that swept the United States. Enron's collapse marked the first of the high-profile corporate scandals, followed by WorldCom, Global Crossing, Adelphia and Tyco. And there was a ripple effect that hugely impacted accounting firms and corporations. All this fraud led to passage of the Sarbanes-Oxley law that tightened oversight of how American companies are audited.

Phew. To be honest, it is a bit anti-climactic. I hope it is not because I am inoculated to the outrageousness of the crimes. These crimes cannot possibly be minimized just because they are so-called "white collar" crimes. The Enron leadership (Skilling and Lay et al.) built a house of cards on lies, greed, selfishness and malfeasance that collapsed and buried thousands of innocent employees as well as scores of investors, many of whom had invested their life savings. How much? Enron's collapse took with it more than $60 billion in market value, almost $2.1 billion in pension plans and 5,600 jobs.

Ahhh, here it comes... I am feeling that same wrath and rage when the news first hit in 2001.  At the time, I remember thinking, Don't "we the people" have oversight through multiple impartial processes, like regulations and regulators...the government, accounting firms, the 4th Estate? Where was everybody? How could this happen? Was anyone doing what they were supposed to be doing?

After 4-1/2 years of investigation we now know that a whole lot of people were either incented to go along or look away...and others were so bamboozled by the intricate shell game they missed the fraud entirely.

The question really should be, "How did Enron get busted?" After all, weren't these guys "the smartest guys in the room"?

Turns out that in the months prior to Enron declaring bankruptcy, several employees at the company stated concerns about accounting practices and dubious partnerships. One employee, Sherron Watkins, who was VP for corporate development, courageously raised her voice loud and clear. She wrote to Ken Lay and management of improper management (yeah, she held a mirror to the crooks!) and accounting practices that threatened to destroy the company. She saw the pattern of behavior and what was at stake. And took a stand. Not just in the "privacy" of the company...she went public.

Sherron and others like her in Enron prove that the best and most effective "regulation" comes from "within" to be reliable: from the hearts and consciences of people who naturally turn to a principle, a code, a higher value system to guide them, no matter what the situation might be. Many relate this principle to a higher wisdom, a guiding Spirit. I know I do.

An organization is not a mindless machine, it is an orchestration of mentalities -- people whose daily thoughts and decisions shape and regulate a company. How important, then, for companies to encourage all of their employees to discover and develop those spiritual values that best promote goodness, honesty, integrity, compassion. Imagine what the force of everyday workers calling on their spiritual nature to do what is right could do for their companies, their investors and the public. There would be far fewer Enrons, and far more examples of the goodness of spiritual power.

"Honesty is spiritual power. Dishonesty is human weakness, which forfeits divine help," wrote spiritual thinker and businesswoman Mary Baker Eddy, who founded a global publishing and communications company in the 19th century that still exists today.

Anyone of us, wherever we work, may be presented at any time with an ethical choice: to rely on a higher wisdom, recognize and act in accord with our spiritual nature and do what is right -- or go along with a prevailing practice that is less than honest. If anyone is in doubt, the convictions of Enron management should reinforce proper behavior. But the fear of punishment cannot ensure ethical practice.

What the Enron example really illustrates is the power of a few good people to act in accord with their spiritual nature and do what is right. If you are faced with the choice, will you stand with these few good people? You will be expressing your true spiritual nature...and standing with spiritual power.

Too much work? What to do next

Any given workday, most people have more to do than time to do it in, right? Then add family responsibilities and any kind of community work -- how in the world can one person do it all? Hah! How about just picking what to do next?

Sometimes I think this 24/7 world is a crock...I mean, it gives the illusion that we can do more, when all we've done is just added to the list of things we think we should do every day. But the issue of having too much work and too little time has simply expanded with the clock. Hasn't gotten better, in fact it has gotten worse for a lot of people.

But I think I have figured out for myself how to prioritize the activities -- and time -- better. I stopped micro-managing the clock and the list and instead looked at what I was doing from a higher perspective.

Sure, I could do practical things to decide what to do next, like projects that are on deadline and GOTTA be done right away. And maybe I could pick stuff that is easy to do so no biggie, just do them and cross them off the list. And then there are those things that other people are relying on me for -- I am part of a team so I don't get to pick the time to do the work.

Hmmm, this is how it ALL gets demanding, with no clear direction on what to do next that satisfies everyone, me included. Which is why I needed to find a better "decision-tree" on prioritizing activities.

During a particularly stressful period in my life -- running my ad agency AND managing key clients, volunteeering several hours a week for my church, helping out with my extended family needs -- I spent a LOT of time staring at my "to-do" list. I would make a dent here and there, usually because circumstances (i.e. deadlines) screamed loudest. But I felt like a hamster on a wheel, not really getting anywhere. And certainly not feeling at all satisfied with my work. Where was the joy in all this?

At one point, it got to a breaking point: stupid mistakes were happening in the agency work and I felt totally out of control --  now it looked like I had to ADD double-checking my staff's work to my list. In desperation, I called a good friend of mine who is a spiritual mentor and wailed, "What do I do? I feel totally helpless!"

Right off the bat he asked me, "Are you devoting enough time each day to your spiritual study?"

Aaaack! No! He didn't get it! I needed tips on how to order my list and get it all done each day....oh, and by the way, the first thing that got knocked OFF my list was the spiritual study -- no time.

Fortunately, I didn't say these things out loud. Haha, he probably could tell by the look on my face that he wasn't getting any traction yet! So he went on to explain it more specifically.

"The most important part of your day is communing with the Supreme Being, the intelligence that orders the universe. Then you know without a doubt that you are in Her service this day." He went on to say that if my FIRST PRIORITY, my heart's desire, is to express spiritual qualities then I was truly in Her service. And that this would have a practical effect of knowing what was important to do that day. Because: it would be the thing that would advance my spiritual growth!

OMG, I can't tell you how FREE I felt at that moment!! I mean, I finally felt like I had the foundation, the core principle of how I needed to approach each day, each decision, each activity.  I walked back to my office smiling and feeling lighter than air. Seriously. It was like my whole life had taken a right turn. And it changed the way I approached every single day, then and to the present.

Here's what I learned:

First, I commit to spending a portion of the day in spiritual study and communion. For me, that is best in the early morning before the events of the day start crowding in, demanding attention. And it "sets up" the day in the right way. Usually, there is one spiritual insight that particularly means something that day -- and throughout the day, whatever decisions are to be made, I relate that insight to my thinking at that moment. It never fails to clarify the next step.

Next, when I look at activities or projects, I ask myself: Am I doing it because it is easy to do? Or I feel like I am the ONLY one who can do it? Is pressure forcing me to take action?

Divine Spirit should be guiding me, not pressure or time or perceived responsibility. When that is my northstar, I am confident that right decisions will be made and all will be blessed because we are all in the ordered, harmonious universe of Spirit. And maybe there is someone else who should be taking responsibility for the project that fell on my list. I must choose that which helps me grow spiritually...perhaps there is something on my list that, while easy for me to do, will help someone else grow spiritually? Lots of times this means I pick the bigger challenge to do :-)

Years later, the net result of this daily approach hasn't minimized my work load -- in fact I actually think I do more. And I am definitely accomplishing a lot more. It doesn't mean that every day is smooth sailing, but whenever I feel like there is more pressure than joy and freedom, then I know what I have to do next. Nope, not check the list. Look to my spiritual preparation and find peace. THEN I can check the list!

Stress at work? Here's a thought...

Stress, stress, stress...it's everywhere: on the job, at home, in school. Everybody talks about it. Everybody seems to be affected by it at some point -- some people on a continuous basis. I have been working on the strategy for a new company (secret! can't tell yet!!) that required me to do a LOT of research on stress, particularly in the workplace. What I read blew me away.

Did you know that 40% of workers feel that their job is very or extremely stressful? (Is that a surprise to you? Was to me.) And that in 2004, 70% of workers believed that employees in their workplace are more stressed out than they were the year before. But here is the really bad news: the Journal of Environmental Medicine reports that there is accumulating evidence to suggest that stress plays a key role in several types of chronic diseases. In addition, 60-90% of doctor visits are stress-related. 

Phew! So stress isn't just simply depressing thoughts -- it can have major physical effects if not treated. This has made me think, ok, if stress which is mental is the cause of many physical illnesses, then if I can modify my mental state -- like, make it more peaceful instead of in turmoil -- I should be able to change the physical effect, no?

A couple of years ago I was engaged in several task forces at work, in addition to overseeing a 24/7 website. All the work, including the website, required collaboration with other managers and departments and often we didn't see eye to eye on many levels. It was like trying to navigate Rubic's Cube: many issues, many agendas, many objectives. I would come home from work very late, eat dinner and fall into bed. Then up early and start all over again. Oh, and this would usually entail weekend work too.

Not only was the work challenging, the relationships were too. I remember many times during the day feeling very ticked off at someone -- usually many someones! It was like sloshing through quicksand to get anywhere. As I look back on it, the bigger challenge was the people part, not the work part. But at the time it felt like this big blob of work just sitting on me.

This had been going on for a few weeks when early one morning I woke up with a major pain in my urinary tract. It was so uncomfortable I could hardly move. But I forced myself to get up (gee, that seemed like what was happening a lot every morning!) because I had a big presentation to give that day. I had to be at work.

Every function of getting dressed was a pain. Finally, standing at the kitchen counter wondering what I should do -- go to work and be in pain, or stay home and be in pain? I said out loud, "This is such a PAIN!!!"

All of a sudden it hit me -- like a thought coming into my head sideways: "This is all about the pain at work: the people not seeing things your way, the projects not working, the stress of trying to drag everyone along with you!"

This was a VERY humbling thought. At that moment I realized that the HUGE annoyance I felt toward everything was the sum of the stress I had been carrying around. In other words, this annoyance could be at the root of my physical pain.

Amazingly the pain I had been feeling for a few hours became somewhat less acute. Huh! Maybe there was a connection here I needed to dig a little deeper into. OK, if the mental annoyance and turmoil is at the root, how can I change that? This negative mental state can be changed into positive thoughts. For me, the most effective positive thoughts are those that are spiritual. These are based on how I think of the divine Spirit, who is all powerful to me, and how I think of my fellow beings.  How can I get rid of the ticked-off feeling about them and align my thinking to the Divine?

Well, I have learned that when I really see myself AND other people as creations of the one Spirit, then my feeling about them turns to the positive. So here was definitely the time to do that!! How could I be annoyed at a creation of Spirit? If Spirit is good and love, then the creations must be good too. I really had to change my way of thinking about them as "causing" my annoyance to seeing them as people of integrity, kindness, caring -- after all, they were giving their best effort to this work.  How could I possibly think I was the only one working hard?

Bottomline, I needed to be GRATEFUL for each one of the people that I was working with. I needed to care about them as children of the one divine Love. In that way, I was seeing myself too as a loved child of the Divine Spirit. They couldn't possibly be annoying and I couldn't suffer the effects of annoyance! I really had to see what was the only substantial cause -- Spirit -- and what was the only effect: good.

I thought a LOT about these spiritually-focused ideas and more over the next hour...because it made me feel SO GOOD! The burden of all the work just kind of evaporated away and I was actually looking forward to going to work. And yes, the pain dwindled away too. In a couple of hours it was gone, but the best feeling I had remained: a feeling of bouyancy, happiness. I hadn't felt that in a long time.

And my relationships with the fellow managers improved significantly -- we finished the projects we were working on, but I the lesson I learned about seeing the good in my colleagues continued. Many times over the next couple of years, when I was tempted to fall into the trap of annoyance, I remembered to be grateful for my co-workers' efforts. Can't be annoyed and grateful at the same time!!

What is stress? In a way it is thinking that you have no control of the situation, whatever it might be. What I learned is that I CAN control my thoughts...and if they are the cause of the stress, then I can change them to be positive, to be in line with spiritual thoughts. And that can change everything.