First, Seek Mind Control

Buddha taught:

1. First, seek mind control
2. Learn the essential nature of this world of life and death
3. Make good use of this life
4. Ever radiating thoughts of goodwill and compassion

It should be self evident, that if you don’t have your thinking straight, you won’t get anything else right. That is why the Buddhist system starts with Perfect Thought.

Buddha taught that a person, any person, each person’s mind may make them a Buddha or a beast.  We have the choice to make; create either one of the extreme results of Buddha or beast or anything in between for our lives.

Seek mind control is about taking charge of your mental activities.  This is the step that allows you to proactively decide to implement the rest of the system.

You have to learn to understand and truly appreciate the essential nature of this world of life and death to understand the urgency with which you must implement the system.  One of my favorite movies is the old Harrison Ford movie “Blade Runner”.  At the end of the movie he is driving off to space with his robot girlfriend who by the nature of her programming has a definite and certain end to her “life” but they don’t know what it is.  The Harrison Ford character properly points out the fact that this is true for all of us.

Meditating on the absolute certainty that this life has a definite end point and we don’t know when it is and therefore must always be prepared for it ignites the urgency to “Make good use of this life”.

Buddha’s commandment to accomplish the goal of making good use of this life is to be ever radiating thoughts of goodwill and compassion.

What methods do you utilize to achieve mind control?

Like Minds - George Carlin "The paradox of our time in history"

The below offering from the late, great George Carlin is yet another example of modern day wisdom challenging our 21st Century focus and priorities:

The paradox of our time in history is that we have
taller buildings but shorter tempers, wider
freeways, but narrower viewpoints. We spend more,
but have less, we buy more, but enjoy less. We have
bigger houses and smaller families, more
conveniences, but less time. We have more degrees
but less sense, more knowledge, but less judgment,
more experts, yet more problems, more medicine, but
less wellness.

We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too
recklessly, laugh too little, drive too fast, get
too angry, stay up too late, get up too tired, read
too little, watch TV too much, and pray too seldom.
We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our
values. We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate
too often.

We've learned how to make a living, but not a life.
We've added years to life not life to years. We've
been all the way to the moon and back, but have
trouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbor.
We conquered outer space but not inner space. We've
done larger things, but not better things.

We've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul.
We've conquered the atom, but not our prejudice. We
write more, but learn less. We plan more, but
accomplish less. We've learned to rush, but not to
wait. We build more computers to hold more
information, to produce more copies than ever, but
we communicate less and less.

These are the times of fast foods and slow
digestion, big men and small character, steep
profits and shallow relationships. These are the
days of two incomes but more divorce, fancier
houses, but broken homes. These are days of quick
trips, disposable diapers, throwaway morality, one
night stands, overweight bodies, and pills that do
everything from cheer, to quiet, to kill. It is a
time when there is much in the showroom window and
nothing in the stockroom.

Remember, spend some time with your loved ones,
because they are not going to be around forever.

Remember, say a kind word to someone who looks up to
you in awe, because that little person soon will
grow up and leave your side.

Remember, to give a warm hug to the one next to you,
because that is the only treasure you can give with
your heart and it doesn't cost a cent.

Remember, to say, "I love you" to your partner and
your loved ones, but most of all mean it. A kiss and
an embrace will mend hurt when it comes from deep
inside of you.

Remember to hold hands and cherish the moment for
someday that person will not be there again.

Give time to love, give time to speak, and give time
to share the precious thoughts in your mind.

AND ALWAYS REMEMBER:

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we
take, but by the moments that take our breath away.

What paradox's do you see?  How do you measure life?

Like Minds - Forbes Magazine "The Pursuit of Happiness"

I am not the only voice calling out in the wilderness for the pursuit of happiness at work nor is it just a modern 21^st century notion. 

Forbes

The below was first printed in Forbes magazine on September 15, 1917 and was reprinted in their Flashbacks section in 2007.

The Pursuit of Happiness:

Business was originated to produce happiness, not pile up millions.  Too many so-called “successful” men are making business an end and aim in itself.  They regard the multiplying of their millions and the extension of their works as the be-all and end-all of life.  Such men are sometimes happy in a feverish, hustling sort way, much as a fly placed in a tube of oxygen is furiously happy until its life burns out.  But they have no time for the tranquil, finer, deeper joys of living.  They are so obsessed with the material that they cannot enjoy the immaterial, the intangible, the ideal, the spiritual – quiet thought, self communion, reflection, poise, inward happiness, domestic felicity  What profiteth it a man to gain uncounted riches if he thereby sacrifices his better self, his nobler qualities of manhood?  Mere getting is not living.

I would like to see articles like this in Forbes today.  How about you?

Perfect Thought, Perfect Word & Perfect Deed

Knowing that there are causes for all human suffering and there is a way by which they may be ended is only useful if you know how to do it.

Fortunately, Buddha did not leave this process to chance and provided a specific system that has been being used for 2500 years to reduce suffering in the world.

            Perfect Thought

            Perfect Word &

            Perfect Deed

Perfect thought is about the paradigms that frame your world.  If your paradigms are imperfect, you will not be successful in reaching enlightenment.  An example is the previous step where we talked about the “stuff happens” people vs. the “stuff happens for a reason”.  Unless you hold the thought that “stuff happens for a reason”, you will not successful in removing all suffering from your world.

This is the reason the successful people, families and organizations have mission, vision and value statements.  It makes sure tat everyone is focused on and thinking about the same things and hopefully the right things. 

Perfect word is all about communication.  In Buddha’s time, word was the only way to communicate.  Today, perfect word means using all communication tools currently available to make sure that everyone is engaging in perfect thought and perfect action.  Perfect word is an essential leadership tool.  The following is a quick list of basic communication tools:

·        Email

·        Voice mail

·        Podcasts

·        Intranets

·        Internet

·        Memos

·        Individual face to face verbal and body language

·        Conference calls

·        Video conferences

·        Group meetings

           

Perfect deed refers to our actions.  These are the choices we make with each present moment of our lives.  We literally create our future by the choices we make in each of our present moments.  We can create a future of enlightenment or a future of suffering through the cumulative effect of these decisions.

Buddha taught this about our actions and deeds:

My actions are my only true belongings.  I cannot escape the consequences of my actions.  My actions are the ground upon which I stand.

The power of the system comes though the synergistic and interdependent nature of the three distinct components; perfect thought, perfect word and perfect deed.

You, your family and your work organizations must be mentally focused on the same things and the right things to remove suffering and create happiness.  In order to get everyone on the same page and going in the same direction, you will need perfect communication.  If you have engaged in perfect thought and communicated these thoughts effectively, you then need perfect execution or actions to create individual and organizational enlightenment or perfect happiness, the removal of all frustrations or sufferings.

How do you engage in Perfect Thought, Perfect Word & Perfect Deed?

The Three Wrong Viewpoints

Buddha taught that in this world there are three wrong viewpoints.  First, some say that all human experience is based on destiny, second, some hold that everything is created by God and controlled by his will, third, some say that everything happens by chance without having any cause or condition.

If the first view were true, both good and evil acts are predetermined, good times and bad predestined, nothing would happen if it was not to be and there is no way you can influence the future through your present moment choices.  This flat out makes no sense.

The same point is true of the other two wrong viewpoints.  If everything is in orchestrated by God’s hands or completely dependent on chance, what hope has humanity except in submission.

Buddha taught that all three of these viewpoints are wrong and that everything is a succession of present moment events brought about by an accumulation of previous causes and conditions.

I don’t believe that the above is inconsistent with Christianity.  Buddha did not take a position on the question of did God create all things.  He only contends that God purposely does not control all things.  What would be the point of our human existence if he did? 

The great purpose of this precious human life is to see how we independently perform in this all too “real life” existence.  We can ask for God’s guidance and study his word.  However, in the end what we make of this life and this earth is 100% up to us and a product of the accumulation of choices we collectively make as a human race.

What is your viewpoint on the three wrong viewpoints?

Are You a Victim or Are You Accountable?

The Buddhist system is based on their Four Noble Truths:

1.      Suffering exists

2.      There is a cause for this suffering

3.      There is a way out

4.      Perfect thought, perfect word & perfect deed

The system begins with a recognition that suffering exists in our lives, our organizations, profit, non-profit and governmental, and in our world in general.

To this point, I have never received a credible argument against the Buddhist system.  I never met anyone who claims that there is a lack of suffering in this world.

The next step in the system is the key to the entire paradigm.  To acknowledge there is a cause for the suffering sets up the possibility that the causes for the suffering could be removed.

You have to choose between the following two viewpoints:

1.      Stuff happens

2.      Stuff happens for a reason

You must choose one or the other.  Either everything that happens is random and we are subject to one uncontrollable event after another; or, everything that happens in this moment was set into motion by actions taken by us or someone else in a previous moment.

If you choose the stuff happens paradigm, you never have to take personal responsibility for what is happening at home or at work.  However, you also have to conclude that you are helpless and hopeless to effect any change in your life or work circumstances.  This is a paradigm of defeat, plain and simple.

If you believe that “stuff happens for a reason”; then this is a double edged sword as well.  You must take some personal responsibility for what is frustrating you in your life and work. On the other hand, you can be filled with optimism and hope that you can change your actions somehow and reduce or remove some or all of these frustrations over time.

What type of person are you?  Does "stuff" just happen, or does "stuff" happen for a reason?

Eliminating Worldly Desires

I don’t think I will get many arguments on the point that our objective ought to be to remove suffering; to remove suffering in our souls, our organizations and the world in general.

But what about desire; why would our goal be to eliminate desire?  Isn’t that the basis of our capitalistic, entrepreneurial western culture?  Isn’t this the real rub between the west and Buddhism?

First of all, let’s define our terms.  So, what is desire?  According to Merriam-Webster Online it is as follows:

A conscious impulse toward something that promises enjoyment or satisfaction in its attainment

Buddha believed that desire in its noun form defined above leads to suffering.  He believed that the two concepts were inextricable linked together; one follows the other, suffering follows desire.

Buddha taught that we live in a world of causes and conditions.  Suffering is a condition that is cased by desire.  Therefore to remove suffering you must remove desire.

The question is what desires must be removed.  The key to understanding the power of this principle is to differentiate between desires of the heart and desires of the senses. 

Buddha had desires.  He made four great vows:

1.      To save all people

2.      To renounce all worldly desires

3.      To learn all the teachings

4.      To attain perfect Enlightenment

Based on the above, you can see that you can have goals and still eliminate suffering.  The desires that need to be eliminated are the worldly desires.  Noble purposes or goals will not create suffering, only worldly ones.

The other important point to make is that we do not all have to take a vow of poverty to reach enlightenment.  We can enjoy the fruits of a well lived life in whatever form and volume they may come to us without causing suffering.

Suffer comes from two sources:

1.      Worldly desires

2.      Grasping and clinging to the fruits of the world we attain on the road to noble goals.

So it’s not the fruit, it the grasping and clinging to that fruit that creates the suffering.

Lastly, my case for Enlightenment must include a modern day definition.  Buddha lived 2500 years ago.  Therefore, there is always a possibility for the meaning to be lost in translation over the years. 

The leader of the Tibetan Buddhists is the Dalai Lama.  His teachings and writing in today’s language is the best resource we have to understand the meaning of the Buddha’s original writings.

According to His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama’s official website; http://www.dalailama.com/page.2.htm:

All human beings are the same.  We all want happiness and do not want suffering.  Even people who do not believe in religion recognize the importance of these human values in making their life happier. 

Therefore, in modern day terms, the goal is to create happiness by removing suffering.  This is the bottom line process that will ultimately lead to Enlightenment; continual strive to remove suffering and therefore come closer to the goal of happiness.

Happiness for us, our families, our organizations, our customers, our supply chains, our communities and the world at large.

How are you creating happiness at home and at work?

Are You Purposeful?

This purpose of this blog is two-fold:

1.      To raise the bar of what we should be trying to achieve organizational and individually in our work and personal lives.

2.      To provide the action steps and related tools to attain the new goal.

So, what is the bar?  Why are we here on earth in general and why do our organizations, profit or non-profit exist; to attain perfect Enlightenment.

What is enlightenment?  According to Merriam-Webster Online it is as follows:

Buddhism: a final blessed state marked by the absence of desire or suffering

I believe this is the goal; the absence of desire or suffering.  My first objective is to inspire you to share that vision with me.

What is your purpose individually or organizationally?


How high do you set the bar?