Noticing a new flavor…..
I just saw a commercial on television for an on-line University (you know the one- “rising from the ashes”-)- that was pretty refreshing, and spoke to the changing flavor of some traditional business approaches. This happened to be an advertisement for receiving an MBA and the jist of the whole thing was that typical MBA programs teach future business leaders to pretty much focus on the bottom line only (or at least most of the time!), and that the result of that is a very negative effect for our planet. (this was graphically shown by a long line of slow-moving traffic on a freeway with a great deal of obvious exhaust and pollution). What made this MBA program different was that the learning environment was focused on surrounding future leaders with people who want to make a difference in the world , and that helps students to feel as though they can solve anything.
I really liked the “feeling” I had watching it (of course I have to remember it is a sales pitch), but nonetheless, I have to assume the consciousness behind it was authentic, and spoke to the beginnings of a shift away from the idea that the bottom line is the only important thing in business. How often do we hear the line ”well, all that really matters is the bottom line”…how true is this? If we only focus on the bottom line, or the end “product” we often miss the “process” and all we have to learn from that. Many of the most successful women in business have almost an obsession with customer preferences, and spend a great deal of time connecting with these customers….when we connect authentically with others, and in this case our market, we begin to actually feel their pain, and think as they do which certainly helps understand what they need, and in this “process” will increase profits (the bottom line). Additionally, because women tend to have a strong desire to be a part of something meaningful and contributory, they will work extremely hard to make a difference in the lives of others (it is kind of the way we are hard-wired)…by doing so, again, bottom line profits are increased, but it is also the satisfaction of contributing that is the greatest reward for these women. As we begin to apply more feminine principles in business, and balance those with the appropriate masculine energy, we can be assured that this combined energy will bring amazing results!
