Chuck made use of the 9/11 tragedy for his next November newsletter.
http://web.archive.org/web/20011212153953/http://www.visionhosts.co.uk/newsletter_now.htmTHE WORLD & BUSINESS AFTER SEPTEMBER 11TH
Chuck Spezzano
September 11th was a wake-up call to Business, the West and all of us individually. Such an experience of personal and collective catastrophe depicts a mastery level test of human consciousness. We take such tests, either at a shamanic or mastery level, in an effort to leap up in consciousness. If we fail a shamanic level test it feels like our heart has been ripped out. A mastery level test is even more grave and if we don’t pass the test it feels as if our world has collapsed. These tests can either kill or gain power in consciousness for us.
In the next one hundred years the world will undergo more of a profound change than it has in thousands of years, and it is likely that Business will change most of all. This will occur because if the world is to change, and it must if we are to prevent catastrophic and cataclysmic events, Business will be both the fulcrum and the platform for this change. By giving birth to itself at a whole new level, it will become the midwife of the future.
To accomplish this level of leadership, Business must change both its ethics and its goals. It can no longer think in the short term but must take a long, wholistic view. Anything other than this will prove to be both self defeating and bad economics. When this occurs we all pay for the profit of a few.
Business can no longer afford attitudes of ‘take the money and run’ or ‘slash and burn’ economics. We must think ecologically, not just of the environment, but in terms of the whole world as one household. We must include off the ledger costs as well as those normally on it. Our new economic vision must include three generations in its outlook rather than just our own perspective. When we have included not only our children but all the children now and to come, Business will finally have the perspective that it is meant to have, not just now but one that works for all time.
The new Business, which will come from a place of high vision, integrity and leadership, will speak from a place of both common sense and right mindedness. This will be remarkably effective both in the long and the short run because it will no longer seek to take advantage or sell superfluous commodities that don’t add value. Business will maximize its effectiveness by right relationships, wholistic intent and global inclusion.
The September 11th attack was a wake up call for Business most of all. An attack was made on the symbolic center of Business, the World Trade Centre and it collapsed. This catastrophic event was carried out by terrorists, religious fanatics coming from disenfranchised people. The goal of Business in the next one hundred years is to enfranchise and include everyone. This is possible for Business in the next hundred if it first changes its attitude and goals.
To ignore the need for inclusion is a mistake of catastrophic proportion, which will gear the world toward war economies. War is always bad for Business, people and the environment. It engages in a win-lose attitude, rather than an integrative one. This produces loss and defeat in the long, and sometimes short-term, for any who continue in the win-lose way. Business must overcome what it sees as the dichotomy between profit and an all inclusive or Integrative Attitude.
The Integrative Attitude is initially a bigger challenge as it addresses the underlying quality of issues. It naturally recognizes the importance of learning and joining to find the way forward. This Integrative Attitude, which brings about new levels of partnership, also has greater ease, freedom, success and long term solutions.
Business must overcome its short-sighted, reactive approach, understand the long-term trends both in Business and Society to realize the remarkable opportunities present. Business vision must necessarily include the unfolding of world and societal progress as a major factor, otherwise it will still keep trying to conduct Business as it has always been done, which will fall far short in the coming times.
Business must become a true partner and friend to government because it will be called upon to support, help and share both the responsibility and leadership. It will instruct in better business practice and in some cases be called upon to bail-out and eventually take over many government services. It can only do this if Business’s goal changes from money and winning to wholistic, economic success and wellness. This will be not only for Business, but also for the population at large.
International companies will recognize that they are not just multi-cultural but transcultural, taking the best of all cultures into a new and unique culture, that helps people become citizens of the world.
Business will recognize itself as the key factor for unity, peace and prosperity in the next one hundred years. Business must carry the vision, keep the faith and lead the way for change.
This can only happen if there is a personal transformation of ethics. The longer Business tries to conduct business as usual, the more opportunities will be lost. Business has the potential to shorten time immeasurably in new levels of prosperity and unity. Business’s gift of taking advantage of opportunities and the desire for a greater effectiveness will be the inspiration which will initially move it to see a new and better way forward.
When we are motivated for a new vision in Business, which will work not just for those in Business but for everyone, it will occur. Whether we move forward through inspiration and truth or pain and necessity is up to us. Confucius once wrote that the smart horse moves at the shadow of the whip.
September 11th
The depth of the wound and the drama of September suggests a soul wound, something which was deep in our collective consciousness. Basically something of this magnitude comes directly from our unconscious. This means that the issue, though deeply repressed, erupts to the surface to be healed. These are parts of our own mind judged, fragmented, repressed and projected on the world outside of us.
The first and most obvious factor to be healed from the unconscious is that of shadow figures. In the last week I have heard people present Osama Bin Laden, the Taliban, President Bush and the United States Government (for bombing) as shadow figures. Obviously, terrorist shadow figures reflect both our collective conscious, and our unconscious minds. We must each find the part of ourselves that we have judged, dis-enfranchised, repressed and projected and heal them.
Our thoughts, beliefs and self-concepts that we have buried, give rise to the world around us. Within our own minds these shadows are the parts that chase us in nightmares. They just want to come home; they are the parts that psychologically need to be accepted, welcomed back and re-integrated lest there be even worse times or challenges ahead.
Western society has been collectively poised at the brink of entering a new stage of partnership for the Earth, which has the effect of bringing about new levels of peace and prosperity. When we enter this stage, we finally will have the collective courage and willingness to re-open and re-enter the unconscious mind, which as children and adolescents most of us cemented over out of fear.
The unconscious or soul level of the mind contains those elements which, like the subconscious, are threatening to the ego. In this unconscious there are levels of pain and transcendent joy that we don’t want to face. There is within our unconscious mind the power of miracles and that which can transcend the natural laws. The unconscious mind contains a symbolic, mythic and energetic world full of ‘demons,’ ‘dragons’ and ‘treasure.’ As the unconscious comes to the surface we can face catastrophic or cataclysmic events or we can experience a time of unparalleled partnership, friendship and cooperation.
If we partially succeed as seems the case with the September 11th events, we will have aspects of both catastrophe and cooperation.
What occurs in the future for better or worse depends on all of us. The key factor is whether we take a healing attitude that brings us together or a reactive, judgmental attitude that divides us. We are now in a window of healing, grace and guidance flooding the Earth. This has been going on for the last two years and will continue for at least another eleven. This is meant to be the turning point in consciousness for the Earth, a stepping beyond dissociated independence and a real step into world partnership and interdependence. This will help everyone, even those not yet at this level.
If there is fear of this next step or if we fail to see the way then there will be some sort of catastrophic undoing. This is why it is important for all of us to commit to a better way, a next step. We have all experienced ‘undoing’ in our lives, where things were going forward smoothly and then fell apart in some form of sabotage. At a psychological level, all sabotage is really a form of self-sabotage and the ‘undoer,’ the ‘destroyer’ and the ‘terrorist’ are key shadow elements of our own mind. If we don’t accept and integrate these back into ourselves then we will have to face them again later.
On an international scale, even if we defeat the terrorists it will be only a stop gap measure for the next ten to twenty years and the problem will be worse next time. At this stage our responses and solutions must become qualitative rather than reactive. We must find a way to enfranchise and help all the people of the earth or there will remain a fertile breeding ground for terrorists.
We must effectively raise the consciousness of the Earth, healing ourselves, joining in partnership, friendship and raising the standard of living for the whole earth.
For the most part what we can do personally has to do with watching our own minds. We will either be part of the solution or part of the problem. We must remain proactive through attitudes of friendship and healing ourselves or we will fall into the traps of fear, negativity and power struggle. Going forward together with confidence is precisely what we need for the world to move into this new stage of friendship, partnership and collective prosperity. A war or any type of conflict reflects a war within ourselves and it generates fear it which also reflects a fear of going forward as in any power struggle.
Our stepping up and positive attitude is the biggest contribution we can make toward peace at this time. This gives us the awareness of our need to heal and join when we get reactive, angry, depressed or fearful. We can only suffer pain or become reactive in fear or anger when we have acted negatively toward someone.
One easy way to correct our mind is to re-choose and respond to that person with love and compassion. This attitude of no-judgement doesn’t permit others to hurt us as that would set us both back, but it allows us to act and respond in such a way to always make the situation better. Only with love will a situation get better. Only with love can there be a miracle or a jump in consciousness.
What we can do is to frequently examine our feelings and our attitudes toward those with whom we work and live and those around the world. Anyone we are thinking or acting lovelessly toward is someone we could help rather than hinder. Whenever we judge someone, we don’t see them, we see the parts of ourselves that we dislike or hate. Through giving support and love we can all contribute and progress. Whatever we do, we will now do it together.
'The World and Business since September 11st' has been written for the soon to be published VISIONS magazine Volume 3, Fall/ Winter edition. If you would like
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