Today, I have the great pleasure of being the host on Day 6 of the Virtual Blog Tour for the book, “Healing the Corporate World” by author Maria Gamb. This is a subject near and dear to me, as I had to leave the corporate world 14 years ago to avoid my Spirit getting irreparably squashed. So, I’m pleased to see Maria blazing some new pathways for the shifting of old, outdated corporate paradigms.
A former Fortune 500 executive, Maria spent more than 20 years trailblazing businesses valued at upwards of $100 million. Healing the Corporate World is a cutting-edge book examining the deep, and usually unspoken, ailment of the modern corporate world, offering solutions for healing at a personal, financial and even spiritual level. By showing the reader “the four cycles of transformational leadership,” Maria provides business leaders, from solo entrepreneurs to corporate senior executives, practical answers on how to transform their organizations from the inside out, and become “Change Agents”, consciously creating their own reality.
Yesterday, Maria visited Lynn Serafinn at http://bit.ly/cVXD0x . For today’s stop on the tour, I decided to ask Maria some questions about what she covers in the book.
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Geoff: How do you define “change agent” and how does one operate differently in a corporate environment versus a personal/social environment?
Maria: An individual’s role as a leader within any business is very important because the change starts with you. You are the one who must change before anything or anyone around you will change. A change agent is someone willing to take personal responsibility for themselves and the world around them, because they know they have been a part of creating that world. More and more employees at every level are realizing if they want things to change, they must be the catalyst. In the personal and social arena this is also the same principle. There is no difference in the base concept of being the change they want to see, however, the applications are in different contexts. In the work arena, being a change agent means challenging the status quo because the old ways don’t work anymore. It means being a person who is adventurous and courageous to bring new ideas and concepts into the world, which includes cooperation and collaboration while diminishing competitiveness. In one’s personal life, the key to successful, happy relationships are the same: removing the competition which provokes insecurity in others, creating a structure where others are able to be open, free to express themselves and collaborate or share.
Both environments do require boundaries.
There are twelve distinctions to being a change agent that you can find in the book. This is called the Change Agent Manifesto. Any of the 12 can be easily converted and applied in one’s personal life to achieve change and success.
Geoff: Resignation is one of the biggest difficulties for many in the corporate world. How can one overcome organizational/employee resignation and still be able to make a positive difference AND be re-inspire?
Maria: I agree! Resignation IS a huge problem. People feel unable to make a different or why even try to. This is very indicative of the “winter” period within the cycle of transformation. This period is called “The Reveal”. This is where many people are today. In this period they’ve looked back at their results and the actions, decisions and thought processes that brought them to this point. Usually there’s a lot of Monday-morning quarter backing going on in terms of what should have been done instead. Looking back and reassessing is important but when you go into judgment of yourself and others it feeds into despair and ultimately hopelessness.
Here’s the way out: hope. Without hope, there is no end to the pain and suffering. In order to believe there is hope a sense of reinvention and opportunity that comes with it must be communicated. As a culture we think in a linear manner – which is that there is a beginning and end. That’s it. However, the way shifts are made is by looking at things from a circular perspective. Something begins; it goes through a series of phases, no unlike the seasons I’ve mentioned, where one phase leads to another to a desired result. But the cycle never stops. Just as we will always have spring before summer and autumn after spring – no matter how long of short those periods may be. In business that means understanding and accepting that this is part of evolution process. We’ve all being through challenges before and the only way OUT is to connect to that hope that it can be different. You’ve done it before and moved through it. In this regard, referencing past experience is important as a bench mark that it is possible.
Geoff: What is the Law of Reflection that you refer to in the book?
Maria: This law is positioned in the book to offer a new way to look at people and circumstances that are often times challenging, and let’s face it, out right frustrating. It provides insight into “why” your team may not be working. Or “what” it is that’s “missing” which any manager, leader or colleague may need to address. This teaching tool provides the reader with an easy way to do this rather than feeling like a victim, which is a tough place to come from.
The law of reflection is a teaching tool that I have always found fascinating. It is that which you see in others, sometimes it’s an annoyance or impatience, is actually a reflection of a same or similar issue that you need to resolve within yourself. That’s actually why you have a reaction to it! You may just have your own special way of delivering it but it’s the same core issue that may need to be addressed. Likewise, the law of reflections provides us an opportunity to celebrate what is inside of us that we see in others. When you admire someone who is kind and caring, you are actually viewing those attributes in yourself.
Geoff: Why is the subject of your book so critical now, after years of other attempts to reconcile corporate mentalities with spiritual/social concerns and values?
Maria: We’ve not gone through an economic upheaval such as in 2008 since the Great Depression. For many this is all very new as the depression generation participants are few and far between today. So in some ways this is very new for all of us yet not unfamiliar.
When chaos comes into any situation, it means that there IS an imbalance between the values of the people that are involved and the system that has been put in place. In scientific terms, this is called bi-furication. In this phase, we are asked to make a decision: breakdown or breakthrough. The chaos doesn’t stop until the decision is made. A breakdown is resistance to change, being slow, or stuck in outdated thought processes and institutions. However, a breakthrough means making Internal and self-created changes in the way people relate to one another and their environment. This includes rebuilding foundational structures and relationships.
That last part is critical to understand the link between businesses; it’s people and their spiritual nature because the book offers the reader the opportunity to re-look at their beliefs, behaviors and results again. But this time, measure them against what they value most. Is it the need to express their spiritual side, their higher self? Simply put that is to be loving, compassionate and accepting. Or are they willing to continue with the behaviors that contributed to the current state which are those of the ego which are fear, lack and insecurity? Because of the crisis we’ve experienced, there is a need for rebuilding our foundations again. These foundational areas are relationships to ourselves, others, and what we value or believe. If you’re spiritual, then “be” that person of love, compassion, and acceptance. We’re all being asked to walk the talk. The book gives insight into exactly what that means and how it looks in the real world of business.
I hope you enjoyed this interview with Maria Gamb and that you’ll check out her new book, Healing the Corporate World, which is coming to Amazon on Tuesday, October 12, 2010.
You can receive a complete library of beautiful personal development gifts when you buy the book on the day of its launch, including one from me:
In addition, Maria is hosting an exciting FREE 4-day telesummit entitled “Transforming Business from the Inside Out” on October 4th – 7th with a distinguished panel of 9 of today’s most innovative authors and speakers on becoming the ‘Change Agent’ in your business, in your life and in the world!
If you’d like to attend, all you have to do is request a “launch reminder” about the book, and you’ll receive all the information to attend. If you cannot make the live event, you can download the audio at your convenience.
To find out how to buy Maria’s BOOK and receive these gifts, including the FREE pass to the 4-day online telesummit, go to http://www.healingthecorporateworld.com
AND you can read all about the TELESUMMIT and the guests at http://www.healingthecorporateworld.com/telesummit.html
Be sure to follow Maria tomorrow when the next stop on her Virtual Blog Tour is Caron Goode’s blog at http://coachingparents.wordpress.com/.
As usual, please do feel free to share your comments and thoughts below. I love reading your feedback.
