Be a conscious entrepreneur in the changing world of business

by Robin Wheeler, February 2006

There is no doubt that, in our business and personal lives today, everything is changing fast. Our contexts and inner landscapes are pushing us to evolve.

So where is it that we find ourselves as individuals and businesses in this new economy? And what does it take to succeed in these rapidly changing times?

Some of the trends we all face are:

• The emergence of human value based commodities, and a new way of being successful in business and life
• An intensification of the opposites we have to balance to live and do business well
• A move from structure, predictability and obedience to flexibility, innovation and accountability
• Demands on us to be more intelligent and discerning as we handle the growing pressures in a sustainable and prosperous way
• Unprecedented opportunity with its accompanying challenges.

Some of the intelligent responses to these trends are:

• Aligning personal purpose with organisational strategy to increase job performance and satisfaction
• Managing ourselves as entrepreneurs wherever we work
• Becoming more conscious and, thereby, more effective and efficient
• Conducting ourselves and our relationships with integrity
• Balancing all areas of business and life for optimal responsiveness, growth and general well-being i.e. success in the truest sense.

Understanding these changes and responding to them appropriately will help you to thrive in what is a most exciting time to be alive and in business. Avoiding these changes will make your life increasingly stressful and troubled.

Knowing what is happening in the marketplace and how mavericks are operating on the crest of the wave will validate your experiences and motivate your action. Being an entrepreneur wherever you work, becoming more aware, and acting with growing integrity, will boost you and your business.

Success is largely in the stance you take, in your approach to your work, the market trends, and what your customers need. It stems from your basic presence, your state of being.

From authenticity, there are skills and techniques you can then use to function optimally in the environment and make the trends in it work for you and your business. These skills, by their nature, are not commonplace, but are available.

Organisations and individuals who are responding well are those who learn conscious entrepreneurship and stimulate it within. Gaining insights from leading innovators and acting on these will keep you out of your comfort zone and ahead of the curve.

If you are a market leader, a cutting edge company that wants more of the magic you are making, or if you are feeling left behind, needing direction and skills, and wanting to be on top, consider the above responses to global and local trends.