AUTHENTIC CAPITALISM

"The inherent vice of capitalism is the unequal sharing of blessings; the inherent vice of socialism is the equal sharing of miseries." - Winston Churchill

“Authentic capitalism is the only way you can build an organization that benefits its customers, employees, investors, communities, suppliers, and the environment. .... Just as people cannot live without eating, so a business cannot live without profits, but most people don’t live to eat, and neither must businesses live just to make profits.” (p. xii) John Mackey, Raj Sisodia Conscious Capitalism

What makes capitalism balanced, conscious, and authentic is that we base business not on exploitation or coercion, but on cooperation. People then exchange goods, services, and information on a voluntary basis. They exchange and engage in trade voluntarily for mutual gain which is founded on the principle of win/win. What is presupposed in this that some “leftists” seem to oppose is personal responsibility, the lack of entitlement, the need of all to contribute, etc. Again Mackey and Sisodia describe the benefits of this socially: “Free enterprise, when combined with property rights, innovation, the rule of law, and constitutionally limited democratic government, results in societies that maximize societal prosperity and establish conditions that promote human happiness and well-being– not just for the rich but for the larger society.” (p. 4) “Business leaders can liberate the extraordinary power of business and capitalism to create a world in which all people live lives of purpose, love, and creativity—a world of compassion, freedom, and prosperity. This is our vision of Conscious Capitalism. (8-9).

When we think through what we are doing and when we make capitalism conscious and authentic, we can create a world of compassion, freedom, and prosperity. This is noble to the extent that it elevates our lives as human being and it is heroic to the extent this system is what has and continues to lift people out of poverty.

What of the assumptions behind Socialism is that all resources should be shared fairly and equitably and we need an agency powerful enough for force this fairness. “Much of today’s animosity stems from a misconception that we need to share all resources fairly and equitably.” (Mackey, p. 17)

Business can be ethical. When it is based on voluntary exchange, then our truthfulness, honesty, and character play a role so that we can be in the market for the longer term. When a market is open to everyone who wants to participate—it provides opportunities for all. Ed Freeman wrote:

“Business is not about making as much money as possible. It is about creating value for stakeholders.”

Creating an Authentic Conscious Business How does this come about? Mackey and Sisodia argue that “You cannot have a conscious business without conscious leadership.” (p. 34). Ah, now there’s the rub for many companies! They do not have conscious leaders. Their leaders may hardly be conscious at all. If they only have one bottom-line (money) then they will operating to the far left on the continuum and closer to predatory and crony capitalism.

Self-Actualizing leaders who are conscious and authentic have at least two and usually three bottom-lines: profit, people and purpose. That’s what I wrote about in Unleashing Self- Actualizing Leaders and Companies.

Profit: The business has to be profitable, making money, financially viable. People: The business has to first and foremost take care of their people. All of the business occurs by and through people. Do they feel valued, respected, cared for.? Is the business a good place to work? Purpose: Does the business have a purpose that people can take pride in and feel inspired by?

A self-actualizing company does not only work for the stockholders, it works for all stakeholders. That’s because it meets human needs from the bottom of hierarchy of needs to the top; from survival to the social to the level of values and higher purpose. And to do that it has to create a coaching culture— one of trust, accountability, transparency, integrity, locality, egalitarianism, fairness, personal growth, compassion, meaningfulness, etc.

This brings into the enterprise the human aspect. That’s because people need more than survival; they need to be recognized, to grow, to learn, to make a difference, to contribute, and to do what’s meaningful. The problem is profit-only capitalism by leaders who make money the primary purpose of business. Now given that every business revolves around customers— someone buys what is offered, then one immediate higher need is creating value for customers. And in capitalism this is where competition helps. With competition we focus on getting better, improving our products and services, innovating new things. In this way we create a demand for what a market of customers will buy. Ludwig von Mises said: “The market system brings prosperity to those who satisfy the desires of others in the best and least expense way. Wealth can only be attained by serving the consumer.”

The point? Fred Kofman says, “Service drives the market economy, not greed.” That’s why when business is conducted with a high level of consciousness, everyone involved no longer finds a false dichotomy between ethics and business. Business must be inherently ethical if it is to succeed in the light.

Conversely, if a business produces shoddy products, or worse, harmful products, if it exploits employees, cheats suppliers— in a free enterprise that business will not succeed in the long run.

Because the business is not a responsible one and not responsible to its customers, demand for what it offers will eventually dry up either because the products are of low quality or the enterprise itself is viewed with contempt.

Business is also fundamentally about people working together. We bring people together into a business so that cooperatively they can create value together. How they work together then is a critical factor. How they experience each other and especially how they experience the management and leadership relationships. Ignore any of this (which so many leaders do) and things can get into a mess pretty quickly: conflicts, dis-engagement, thief, secrets, silo mentality, etc.

Mackey and Sisodia say that “Conscious businesses seek to eliminate fear” and that’s because fear prevents people from fully developing which, in turn, prevents organizations from realizing their potential. Fear is also deadly for creativity and innovation.

To move to mindful, conscious and authentic capitalism— self-actualizing capitalism, we need great purposes, inspirational meanings, honorable service to all, truth that eliminates secrets and lies, the beauty of striving for excellence, the heroic courage to step forward to be a contributing influence in the world.

References: Mackey, John; Sisodia, Raj. (2014). Conscious Capitalism: Liberating the Heroic Spirit of Business. Boston, MA: Harvard Business Press. Kofman, Fred. (2006/ 2013). Conscious Business: How to build value through Values. Bounder CO: Sounds True.

Neuro-Semantic books Unleashing Leaders (2009) The Collaborative Leader (2016) Games Business Experts Play (2001) Inside-Out Persuasion (2012) Political Coaching (20150