THE AGE OF CONSCIOUSNESS IS NOW
In the 1920s American poet Max Ehrmann wrote the famous esiderata which included these immortal lines:
“Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery. But let this not blind you to what virtue there is. Many persons strive for high ideals and everywhere life is full of heroism. With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world.”
These words could easily have been the motivation for the Conscious Companies Awards. egardless of the sham and drudgery in this vast muddied pool of humanity; regardless of the corruption, an inept government, paralytic inaction where rapidly changing conditions see us lurch from one crisis to another such as loadshedding ; regardless of the looters, the grafters and the inexplicable lack of accountability while fighting our way back from the captured swamps of dishonourable leaders, we soldier on regardless.
And even though a deeply rooted indifference permeates most of our global leaders, both in business and the political space, it is all the more critical to find cause to celebrate decent, conscious and ethical human beings and to explore the nature of leaders and why they do what they do.
The Conscious Companies Awards was born out of a need to set into motion a stream of consciousness and a different way of being within the corporate space.
Leaders who operate with a sense of personal ownership and collective accountability, and who place humanity at the core of everything they do, is why the Conscious Companies Awards exists. It provides an opportunity for leadership to deepen the understanding of consciousness, as it is my belief that only a conscious leader can shape and define a conscious company.
The quest to uncover conscious leaders and conscious companies, has over the years, become quite an adventure as we discover a new wave of men and women who quietly go about making a meaningful difference with integrity, ethics and courage. They may not be perfect – none of us are – but they have given of themselves in ways that require an understanding of who they truly are.
So how do we find these conscious leaders
Because that is the need of our time; That is the need of our society. Conscious, ethical responsible leadership and that is the need of business - to serve both it’s stakeholders and humanity.
If ESG is the new trend then consciousleadershipisthenew
frontier... It is the future
The awards ceremony is the culmination of a three month journey to uncover these leaders and their companies. The Top 10 finalists have all embraced the arduous and meticulous process of the evaluation, displaying a great deal of courage in doing so. It takes valour, after the nominations, to open yourself up to scrutiny and embark on this rite of passage. Some opt out once they understand the commitment and transparency that it required.
This evaluation process is what makes the Conscious Companies Awards unique. It means something to become a finalist and a winner because this recognition is not transactional.
Michael Judin, one of the judges, said that there are three faces to a human being: one that he or she shows to the public, the other to his or her family and loved ones and the third one that is full of secrets.
From a lawyer’s point of view, he may be right!
It is the integration of all of these three aspects and also about being transparent, vulnerable and courageous enough to show up as whole human beings – unafraid to reveal who they truly are.
There is also something else that we look for that is intangible and that is those who are aware of an alternate reality. By that I mean – regardless of their wealth, positional power, status and asset base – they are aware of something that is larger than themselves and they are willing to embrace new realms of understanding that is deeply humane.
This is not always the language that business buys into – well researched views on leadership are about skill set and the bottom line. That is important too, but to take leadership into a new age of consciousness, we need leaders who are bound by a state of being – of social ownership, of honour, justice, responsibility and oneness to seek solutions for the greater good.
rom a Conscious Companies point of view, it’s not the si e of the organisation, nor the turnover, it’s all relative nor the metrics nor analytics or ESG modelling, tick box compliance or any external processes can give you a breakthrough of what consciousness and conscious leadership is. Only a conscious leader can bring to life all of the elements I have shared with you.
But why is it so critical to grasp and understand consciousness at this time in the history of our planet. Let’s look at our evolution as human beings.
uring the agricultural age, physicality was critical to success: Tilling the soil, harvesting and all round agricultural activity was hard work that required physical ability.
Then we had the industrial age where mental ability shifted societies from an agrarian economy to a manufacturing one; where products were no longer made solely by hand but by machines and through invention and creativity.
Then through innovation, came the age of technology and, with the introduction of the personal computer digital genius and invention thrived. The subsequent technology provided the ability to transfer information freely and quickly around the planet. Now with the advent of AI, it has taken us on a whole new and exciting tangent but plagued with uncertainty about the future. As members of a global society in an age of ama ing technology, we have never been more aware of our inter-connectedness, yet we are also more aware of the painful partitions of a divided world.
AI can overtake human intelligence but what we have going for us is our consciousness and energy. The age of consciousness is the future but because of the lack of understanding, the resistance to change and the courage it takes for men and women to find the time to look into their own selves and explore an internal state of being, it is blindsided.
It is easier for business to embrace ESG as the new trend rather than conscious leadership – but consciousness is not a trend. ather it is the new frontier and, sooner or later, we will realise that this is the only way to change how we do business and look at life.
We have, knowingly or unknowingly, chosen to deprive ourselves of the kernels of transformation rooted in each one of us. The leaders we unearth as finalists are willing to grow and engage with processes that are transformative and have the potential to instil true, authentic leadership power.
A power that can never be found externally to you!
Conscious Companies was born to create conscious leadership capacity in a world in dire need of it. The power of a new way of thinking and being in the world is beginning to work and show dividends as we have built an ecosystem of some incredible leaders and human beings who get that conscious leadership matters.
The 202 finalists are worthy torch bearers for their contribution to their people, business, and society in this country. or those who are willing to prioritise and live with the values of responsibility, integrity, right action and walk a path of noble ethics - remember that a candle loses nothing by lighting another.