We have been taught that the business is a mechanism to make money, to make a livelihood. What if businesses around the world could be mechanisms to deliver love? Is that possible? I think it is! A business built from the heart, naturally becomes so!
When we start a business, the fundamental question to ask ourselves is if that business or the intention of that business is coming from a place of rational thinking and materialism, or if it’s coming from our heart, a place of pure love. There is no right or wrong answer per say, but when we have the awareness of the real intention behind why we want to build the business there is a world of possibilities, greater flow, synchronicities, fulfillment, and unexpected opportunities. Understanding and recognizing the intention behind the business brings so much joy and ease to our entrepreneurial journey.
I have built businesses in the past for many reasons, not necessary all from my heart. This scenario didn’t mean that my intention created a bad or good business or a right or wrong business. Actually, externally they were quite profitable and successful. However, now I recognize, in those instances I was not following my heart and can appreciate the flow and ease of when I do. After paying attention to my pure intention and what my heart desired, I came to understand that my whole being prefers (and yearns) to start a business from something I love. Further, when the heart connects with your mind and body, everything plays in your favor. When I say “something I love” I mean that I’m willing to listen to my intuition, I take actions driven by what I hear my heart is asking of me, I follow my passions and I feel the desire to express my unique gifts and talents to the world without fear.
When I act from this place, any expression of the business comes from love. No matter what the business is and how profitable it becomes, the business is pure LOVE. Living love is about seeing the world, others and everything in your life through the eyes of love – no judgment, no criticism, no ego. The business becomes JUST (as in only) the mechanism of how you deliver your value and how you would like to get compensated for it. Rather than to glorify one’s self, or control resources, or exert power.
I accept that building and running a business from love or from the heart isn’t easy. It’s a challenge! Learning business skills is easy, for some people it’s fast; ultimately, we humans are designed to learn skills, but acting from your heart and being love, is a different story. This hasn’t been 100% understood to this day. At least not me! For now, I understand that both require us to move from living in our head to living in our heart. But these are just words. This way of living sounds beautiful, right? So, if it is so great, why are there still so many people not doing it?
Business or Heart?
Our society today is driven by our minds, our fears and our ego. We prefer not to place as much value and emphasis on what the heart says, our passion and what fulfills. Rather, we focus on external success, money, profits, security, stability and reputation. As a result many of us do not feel that tuning into our hearts and hearing what the heart wants is important. We are too busy trying to get ahead; blindly letting our “perceived intention” of the business drive our life, our relationships and our decisions. We ignore what we really want.
Our heart is free and is driven by love. The head is practical and analytical and is often driven by fear. Your head will tell you what needs to be done to remain safe in the “business world”, to get the money you want, the approval you crave from the market, and the predictability you think the business needs.
This is why when we attempt to start a business by following our heart; our head will be very quick to manage our actions. This fearful mind will bring up all of the reasons why we cannot do what we desire, and why starting a business is a bad idea to even think about. The rational mind will trigger memories and feelings from the past of failures, hurt and rejections that add even more power to the rational case that staying where we are is just better.
The path that building a business from your heart calls you towards may be an unconventional one (most likely will be). The path may be scary and involve taking risks. Following your heart often requires us to take a detour from the well-known path, and rebel from societal or family expectations in order to find our inner fulfillment. Initially, the path you travel on can be long and lonely.
Sometimes we must be willing to look at our life honestly and really evaluate what parts of it we love and which parts we do not. Sometimes we need the same approach for our business. The business that your heart desires may not have an initial guarantee of income, or quick line to profitability. At times business success may even seem impossible or require that you go against what your family wants for you, or what your friends expect of you. The business demands that you face your fears, to courageously do what you love, yet that you are also petrified of at the same time.
The path of building a business from your heart may mean forgoing the approval you received from always doing what others wanted you to do. You will have to be different, to do things differently. You will learn to listen to a deep inner voice, rather than the loud forceful voice of the outer world. The decision to follow your heart and build a business from that place is an adventurous journey.
I come across people all the time who have amazing and beautiful dreams. BUT, they suppress and ignore the desire of their heart, telling themselves they can never have them, or make money by building a business from them. Often, they pretend to like something else to “avoid” the struggle. For most people, living in denial is much easier than actually facing what they really want. They would rather pretend they are happy with what they have, justifying that their inner dreams are not really that important anyway.
If you decide to build a business, perhaps the time has come to be honest with yourself, to dig deep and find out what you really want from this life and from your business. Isn’t time to stop pretending? Are you pretending? Why do you feel that pretending is the solution? Take a look inside your heart and ask yourself what you would love to do more than anything else in the world. To honor your business, you must honor what comes from within you and flows through you. Give yourself permission to acknowledge those feelings.
To build a business from your heart, you must begin by finding the courage to discover what your heart really wants. You may likely reveal that what your heart wants is in fact the complete opposite of what you are actually doing. For other people, this self-inquiry might be the reinforcement that what they are doing is indeed what they always wanted. Then appreciation for it increases. You may experience feelings of confusion, self-doubt and even regret as you begin to challenge everything you have come to know about yourself. If you are ready to connect and follow your heart and build a business from that place, then you will need to let go of everything you think you know. All comfort. All security. All familiarity.
Take inventory of what you love in life. These things may not necessarily culminate in a complete picture or path, but that’s ok. Simply start to connect with your heart energy. Start to get curious. Turn inwards and ask yourself if you are living authentically, truly in line with your values. Is your heart singing with passion, fulfillment and purpose every day?
In order to do this, we must be willing to be different, to do things differently, challenging the expectations that others hold of us and even those expectations we hold for ourselves. When you begin to follow your heart, you must realize that anything that is not in line with your heart’s calling will naturally start to fall away. Are you ready to let go? Consider this; sooner or later when your build a business that is not aligned to your heart’s desire, someday you will find that it starts to fall away.
If you read this article and you are happy in your life and business – great! Maybe you are already living a heart-driven life and building a heart-driven business. However, if reading this article stirs something within, births new dreams, or creates feelings inside your heart, then you know the time to listen is here. A life and business of following your heart may be challenging, but the rewards are immense. You will receive plenty and the experience will be worth the journey!
I decided to follow my heart towards the disciple of business because I saw that when people face financials matters all of their “good” intentions get left behind. “Survival mode” gets activated. The rational mind rules. Humanity lost. Business is a great territory to develop a real relationship with your heart, a context for learning, self-discovery and most importantly honesty with yourself.
I wonder – how would this world be if all people built businesses from the heart? What would be possible if people got in touch with the real definition of business and what business and doing business really means? What happens if we realize that business is just an extension of us that is manifested in many different forms, for example a family, a community, a Company, a sole proprietor small business, a Country, and so on? It’s all business. And if it’s all business, imagine the beautiful life we can create (for ourselves and others) when that business comes from a place of love.
Are you on the path of building a business from your heart?
