Finding Peace Under Pressure – (Leading Beyond Fear Part 3)
For vitality, I did the unthinkable from my former hustle and grinder self. I took 3 days off at a meditation retreat a few days before the event. I felt so refreshed coming back.
My daily 2 hour meditation practice did wane down to an hour (didn’t beat myself up though) and I did have some super late nighters (I swear its my ADHD), but overall, I kept up on continuing my workouts, eating well, and not working harder when I needed rest.
So instead of being a hot, frantic mess days before the event, there was ease. Those two words “event” and “ease” were never in the same sentence before.
3 Ways to Train Your Brain for Equanimity (Lead Beyond Fear Part 2/3)
For vitality, I did the unthinkable from my former hustle and grinder self. I took 3 days off at a meditation retreat a few days before the event. I felt so refreshed coming back.
My daily 2 hour meditation practice did wane down to an hour (didn’t beat myself up though) and I did have some super late nighters (I swear its my ADHD), but overall, I kept up on continuing my workouts, eating well, and not working harder when I needed rest.
So instead of being a hot, frantic mess days before the event, there was ease. Those two words “event” and “ease” were never in the same sentence before.
Lead Beyond Fear: Without Burning Out
For vitality, I did the unthinkable from my former hustle and grinder self. I took 3 days off at a meditation retreat a few days before the event. I felt so refreshed coming back.
My daily 2 hour meditation practice did wane down to an hour (didn’t beat myself up though) and I did have some super late nighters (I swear its my ADHD), but overall, I kept up on continuing my workouts, eating well, and not working harder when I needed rest.
So instead of being a hot, frantic mess days before the event, there was ease. Those two words “event” and “ease” were never in the same sentence before.
Master Relaxation to Perform Higher
For vitality, I did the unthinkable from my former hustle and grinder self. I took 3 days off at a meditation retreat a few days before the event. I felt so refreshed coming back.
My daily 2 hour meditation practice did wane down to an hour (didn’t beat myself up though) and I did have some super late nighters (I swear its my ADHD), but overall, I kept up on continuing my workouts, eating well, and not working harder when I needed rest.
So instead of being a hot, frantic mess days before the event, there was ease. Those two words “event” and “ease” were never in the same sentence before.
3 Questions to Embrace your Shadow
What times in life did you embrace your fear?
What demons turned out not to be so scary after all, once you faced them?
How can you love your demons, your fears, and the things you “hate about yourself?”
When I was 4, my mom made sure I never was an “evil character” for Halloween.
Anytime someone I knew was going to be a “bad character” I silently winced inside cursing Halloween for celebrating evil. Why give our energy to that?! Anytime my son might ask to be a villain, I was a heck no to that and would steer him another direction.
However, what you resist, persists.
So when my 10 year old asks to be an orc from the Lord of the Rings I decide to stop “my control train.” Just go with the flow.
It didn’t work at first. I still resisted: I decided I wouldn’t dress up with him as I always had since the day he was born. I felt anxious and broody just watching Leo make Eli his war costume. Why the violence?! I would think to myself. I cursed the slave trade chocolate and candy. I could not relax and dreaded the night while still silently organizing a trick or treat with a few of his friends.
As his friends arrive to trick or treat, in one moment, I give in. I simply decide to surrender. In fact, I’m suddenly inspired to create a costume in 15 minutes flat.
Why fight against the tide? I play along. First off, my son’s an awfully cute orc. It’s all so meaningless to him–it’s just a costume!
Walking into my closet, I look at what materials I have on hand…a lot of white things. A cloud costume? Hmm…Every year we as a family have a theme. One year Eli was yoda, I was Padme, and Leo was Obi Juan. Another year he was a Kracken, Leo a boat, and I was a pirate.
I look to Eli for ideas, “Who dresses in all white in the Lord of the Rings?” I look in the mirror–and a light bulb goes off as Eli says “Saruman the White–an evil wizard.”
In that moment, everything clicked. I saw how my fear was killing off fun and connection.
How my fear was causing suffering.
How my judgment was making no difference in having fair trade chocolate being given to children.
I embraced my shadow. And just like that, something magical happened.
Everything became light again.
The evil character costume was just that–a costume. When we were done playing that part, it got tossed into a corner and disposed of. There wasn’t any real threat.
I saw how evil characters aren’t real. They are funny illusions we create to have fun. I saw how fun it was to simply make a costume without assigning unnecessary significance and heavy energy. While I was trying to use my judgment to shield myself and family from evil, I ended up embodying fear–the very thing I wanted to avoid.
By embracing my shadow, I was embodying creativity, light, and joy.
What energy I embodied is what mattered most.
Just like fear, your shadow side longs to be seen. Believing that at the core of any fear–is still purity or light–you can even learn to “love your fear” and embrace it. Even welcome it!
Here’s a quick litmus test: Who would you rather be around?
Someone being light, fun, and joyful making a villain costume?
Or someone silently judging and condemning you in the name of light?
If in doubt of who you’re being, simply tune in and feel your body. Do you feel more heavy or light? Contracted or expanded? Fear or love?
As an entrepreneur, which way of being will attract the right clients? You guessed it.
Here’s a blog I wrote a year ago that still holds true today on Transforming Fear into Love that breaks down the 6 steps to transform fear into love.
Back to the inquiries:
What times in life did you embrace your fear?
What demons turned out not to be so scary after all, once you faced them?
How can you love your demons, your fears, the things you “hate about yourself?”
Take a few moments to reflect and would love to hear from you!
A wonderful song from a dear colleague sums it up best here.
Ten Days of Silence: Vipassana Meditation Retreat
What if you were able to get to the root of your own ego’s misery and end any suffering? What would this inner peace of mind look like?
Does sitting meditation for hours at a time sound daunting?
It does for most and I started right where you are. Sure I could do longer sits of meditation at a retreat with no distractions or responsibilities. But whenever I came home, chaos would ensue.
After hearing from my friend how great this ten day Vipassana silent meditation retreat was, it took my twenty years to actually commit. I could never make the time for it in my already full life as a mom and business owner. But I won a lottery seat eighteen months into the pandemic.
The retreat is ten days of silence, 100% offline from your devices. Rising at 4am from the gong bell, you meditate twelve hours a day in stillness in bed at 9pm.
On breaks you agree not to write, read, dance, exercise, make eye contact, gesture with others, or bring in any other spiritual practice–to give this type of meditation a fair trial in its purity and establish your practice. I shuddered thinking about whether I can handle this–yet was up for the challenge.
While this may sound like hell for many, I got what I came for and much more.
Why I Came
No matter how much I accomplished, I still felt empty. I’d feel a temporary “high” from the accomplishment as I returned back to real life. I’d create another vision board, accomplish it, then always be left wondering to myself “Is this it?”
This was maddening.
I should stay happy given how good my life was. How dare I feel ungrateful? Why couldn’t I experience the joy of being alive? Why was I so bored?
I was at peace about death and wasn’t interested in going through the motions, experiencing the inevitable roller coaster of pleasant and unpleasant emotions, misery to joy, then dying.
Simply being happy wasn’t enough of a reason for me to live. I wanted inner peace. To trust and surrender to my Highest Self, Source, God, a higher power. To feel the elixir of being alive–the preciousness of life on planet earth. To fulfill on my purpose to its highest expression, revealing my best path to express that in this lifetime.
Basics of Attending a Vipassana Meditation Retreat
First, you agree to a code of discipline for the duration of the meditation experience before applying that includes no killing, stealing, lying, sexual misconduct, or substance use.
At the start, you turn in your smartphone so you can remain 100% offline with no devices or anything to distract you.
From 4am to 9pm you meditate in 2, 3 or 4 hour chunks at a time, with 1.5-2 hour breaks in between for meals and resting your body.
On the breaks between meditations, there’s no gesturing to others, eye contact, writing, reading, journaling, yoga, jogging, other spiritual practices, or three meals a day. There is a vast beautiful meadow complete with frolicking deer and rabbits you can stroll around or eat your meals in. This design is so you can get established in the Vipassana practice and give this approach to meditation a fair trial.
For meals, they are vegetarian (and quite delicious and nutritious!) served at 6:30am and 11am sharp for a precise window of 30-45 minutes. Dinner at 5pm is a piece of fruit with tea.
The retreat is free, including room and board, and there’s an opportunity to give a donation at the end only if you received value.
Your bedroom is spartan–a simple bed, shelf, and end table. Nothing else. You can take up to a five minute hot shower per day to help conserve water.
You can ask questions to the teacher each day at noon or 9pm for five minutes. Every evening at 7pm, you also listen to a recorded discourse from Vipassana’s original teacher on how to master the meditation technique.
Results from My Vipassana Silent Meditation Retreat
Impermanence
I discovered impermanence. Impermanence was an intellectual concept and became an undeniable, “as lived experience” in my body. Experiencing impermanence in all ways was the source of my soul’s liberation.
Discovering impermanence was also the root of my ego’s misery. My longing to escape this world from boredom and feeling empty no matter what I accomplished or my clinging to feel bliss permanently was one in the same in different forms.
I learned through my body how the mind is always in one of three places–clinging (wanting more pleasure and getting attached), aversion (avoiding what you don’t want), or ignorance (being unconscious of the source of your misery and stuck in reaction). All three roads of clinging, aversion and attachment lead to misery. I experienced this in my 100 hours of meditation.
Now I realized that focusing on craving lasting fulfillment was entirely based on ego and was impossible to ever feel settled from that place. By practicing being equanimous, calm and unattached to either cravings or aversions, I found true inner peace that can last. Free from the bondage of the ego mind.
Purification
After the realization of impermanence, meditation now becomes an access to purify my mind, allowing me to master my mind’s reactions by rewiring my neuronal pathways and fixed patterns.
I can clear out all reactive responses and triggers of the mind that gets created in my body, bit by bit, layer by layer, through every cell of my body.
Instead of craving bliss or avoiding boredom, I can choose to fly free like a bird than react in ignorance.
My two wings are 1) awareness in equanimity (non judgement, detached, seeing pain and pleasure as they are) as well as 2) feeling body sensations of physical pain or pleasure I’m experiencing in the moment.
By feeling body sensations of pain and pleasure with an equanimous mind, this becomes my access for purifying all defilements of my mind.
No longer must I rely on a person, place, or thing outside myself to access lasting inner joy and peace. Simply being the Observer, the Witness, to whatever is happening whether I like it or not is where I experience inner peace.
In Summary
Experiencing impermanence at the cellular level, I’m now settled in my life’s work. Rather than constantly try to figure out what I’m supposed to be doing that makes the best use of my genius, I’ve surrendered to and expect myself to constantly shift HOW I’ll play out my purpose: to liberate a leader’s soul expression in this lifetime.
This allows me to finally experience the joy of being alive each time I am able to fall back into equanimity when all is awesome or horrible or anything in between.
This is just the beginning. Establishing myself in this practice showed me it IS possible to rewire unconscious reactions in the human mind so that all thoughts that arise are pure.
Whether scratching an itch at night unconsciously to judging someone silently to snapping at your kid–the root or these reactions dwell as a cellular experience in the body. By focusing your mind’s awareness on the body sensation, then practicing responding equanimously, you can rewire your neuronal pathways.
If you want to learn how to get to root of your misery, end suffering, and experience inner peace no matter what life throws at you–learn more and attend a Vipassana Retreat.
It could change your life.
Success is What You Say No To
How do you define success?
Whenever I ask my clients what their definition of success is, they give me goals of what they want to achieve. It typically falls into 3 buckets: more money, more time with family or themselves, and more freedom to travel to pursue other pleasures and passions.
But if you pause and listen within, I invite you to take a moment to ask your heart: Where did that definition of success come from?
What influenced you? Is that success dependent on something outside of yourself?
These questions will help you get to the heart of what success really means to you.
Here’s an exercise to help you define success:
Close your eyes. Imagine you in your current life and business as it is today. Then one day, unexpectedly, you find out you have a life threatening illness. The doctor says “You have 3 months to live.” Assuming all your affairs are in order (with your will, life celebration planning, etc.) really feel what you would spend the last 3 months of your life doing.
- Who would you see?
- What would you say?
- Where would you go?
- What would you experience?
- What would you do or stop doing?
- What would you accomplish?
The picture you see gives you clues to getting to the source of what success really means for you.
Now open your eyes. Journal what comes to mind. Then allow yourself to inquire into the question “What matters to me? What is true to myself?” This may take you a few days, weeks, or months to contemplate. Keep journaling what opens up.
Success from the Outside In
Meeting hundreds of conscious leaders, whom the world would consider at the top of their game (they have billions, they’ve won multiple oscars, they have successful kids, etc.) I’m continuously surprised that a common thread among them all is that when they finally reach a pinnacle they’ve strived for–they feel empty. It feels just like it was a moment ago.
They find themselves asking “Is this it?”
Consider, their success is often defined by society or their ego, not their heart.
Often your ego clings to various desires, wants, and past memories of success that don’t allow you to fully experience the present moment. You’ll worry, analyze and live in future dreams.
Rarely will you be present for more than a few minutes at a time. Rarely will you get to enjoy the fruits of your labor as you rush to the next achievement that will end up feeling awesome for a split second, then empty again.
Success from the Inside Out
Rather than look outside yourself for success, define success from the inside out. Studies suggest that the biggest regret people have when they pass is not being true to themselves.
When you define success as what’s being true to your Highest Self–unspeakable states of joy, bliss, and peace become possible.
That’s what happened for me attending a 5 day silent meditation retreat. By the end, I unexpectedly fell in love with myself.
Unlike experiencing happiness from a vacation, or the pleasure from escaping day to day chaos, this was distinctly peaceful bliss from the inside out. I was literally speechless because words would only distract from the glory I felt in the present moment.
All I wanted to do was be with myself, please myself, nurture myself. I felt no craving, no desire, no wish for anything outside myself whether that was family relationships, possessions, accomplishments, or recognition. I felt at peace with death even if that were to happen the next moment. I was triggerless.
It lasted for weeks, even after a jarring return home to chaos. It was the “being part of yet outside of the world feeling” that I’ve wanted to return to ever since.
Now I coach my clients in discovering for themselves their own inner bliss in our work together as they grow their business. Once you’re clear on what success from the inside out looks like, you can now put into practice your definition of success in real life.
The Opportunity of No
Last year alone, during the pandemic, here are a few surprising places I’ve said no:
- Speaking at the same event as Deepak Chopra, a world renowned thought leader in my field
- Being invited to be a contributor to a book that became an international best seller
- Partnering with a renowned coach who’s good friends with a high level influencers
If I had defined success from the outside in, obviously I would have said yes to all three.
By defining success from the inside the answer was clearly no. I knew that if I had said yes, that meant too many projects once, working late nights to meet deadlines, missing out on family time, and kicking myself for saying yes to too many things.
However, in the short term, saying no felt scary. I worried I missed out on a huge opportunity. Instead, I trusted myself knowing I’d avoided a huge distraction from my vision that would ultimately serve me much better in the long run.
For me, success is loving myself unconditionally, surrendering to my Highest Self, while experiencing joy in simply being alive in the present moment.
Saying no in real life was the opportunity to tune into my intuition, take actions consistent with trusting my inner wisdom, and transforming FOMO (fear of missing out) energy into JOMO (joy of missing out) energy.
3 Ways to Know When to Say No
It’s hard to know whether to say no to an opportunity if you have no clear methodology or approach.
Here are a few ideas for ways to say no:
- Consult your Inner Advisors.
Brian Whitaker authored Yes, Yes, Hell No, shares 3 inner advisors you have called Intuition/Gut, Logic, and Fear. Ask yourself, “Should I say yes to X opportunity? Then listen to what each advisor has to say to weigh in. Just remember that if you get a Yes from intuition and logic but a NO from fear, that’s likely still a go. It simply means your ego is super threatened and by moving forward you’ll be breaking through a glass ceiling. In other words, it’s a biggie transformation. - Core Values Filter
What is your criteria for saying no? Do a values exercise, to understand your top 3-5 values that filter and ask yourself if this seeming opportunity aligns with all your core values. - 5 Question Criteria
Create a list of questions customized to your decision making process that allows you to understand all sides. I’ve created a google spreadsheet of
This set of 5 questions is from one my business mentors, Roger James Hamilton. Each time you need to make a decision, he uses this criteria before saying yes to an opportunity.
- Does it follow my path? Does it fit my goals and objectives for this quarter? If not, give opportunity to someone else
- Can I add value doing this? The opportunity won’t last long if no value is being added.
- Are you able to leverage the opportunity for the company? For example, can you help team members grow what they are doing?
- If it fails, am I still motivated? In 6 months, will I still have gained valuable learnings, connections, and skills even if I lost time and money?
- If it succeeds, am I inspired? Sometimes you can succeed in a project and you’re not left inspired. Make sure your highest self aligns and purpose aligns with the opportunity so it’s creating more energetic flow in your life.
If you say no to any of the first 3 questions, it’s a distraction (off course) or disruption (slows you down).
Now What
What are decisions that you’ve said no to in the past you would have said yes to? How did that pan out? Did you regret or let go? Did new opportunities arise?
Whether in business or life, consider that each decision you say yes or no to alters your future trajectory, creates new connections, ideas, and learnings that otherwise would not have happened. You only have so much time left on planet earth. Choose wisely.
By taking the time to define success from the inside out and knowing what to say no to, you’ll establish your true north to make decisions with more ease when opportunities arise. You’ll uncover the opportunity no can unexpectedly bring.
Keep testing your true definition of success from the inside out the next time an opportunity comes your way and build the muscle for living a life true to yourself.
It’s worth it, I promise.
I’d love to hear what your definition of success from the inside out looks like for you and what happened when applying it to real life.
Please add your comments below.
The Note
Ever wonder if you’re actually following the right path?
A trio of teenage girls passed away in my spiritual community from a car accident a few weeks ago. I didn’t know them personally.
It’s moments like this I stop and ask myself this same question:
Am I living my life to its fullest? Or playing it safe? Am I following my heart or my head?
Last Friday, I had such a moment. I was on a call talking to Amber, a book launch expert about my book.
I haven’t even been public about the book. What if I don’t finish it? What if it flops? What if it distracts me from my business? It’s all been said before.
Yet for the past year or two, there’s been a yearning DEEP WITHIN to simply write, write, and write some more. To vlog (video blog) and share my life and what I’ve learned.
Being an author didn’t tie in neatly with my strategic business plan. Or tie into my 2021 business goals or make money for a future marketing campaign.
So the book became a side project that “made no sense revenue wise” and was my pet passion project I wanted to do for the sake of just feeling the joy of writing.
As Amber and I start brainstorming the book content, I start sharing about my 16 day road trip. I can feel my energy growing, my face breaking out into a smile.
“There would be 10 hour days on the road with no wifi! In that silence–with nothing to distract me, I ended up composing my first song.
My voice lesson teacher who’s an ACTUAL musician said it was like…a legit song! Like a good one. It felt Divine Inspiration flowing through me.
I started with a catchy tune that came from within. Then it grew into lyrics, the chorus came–and boom–created my first song “You are ok.”
As I bashfully complete sharing the joy it was to write that song (my head saying “Get back to business!) I mutter with a slight smile quickly saying “So yeah…just as a side note.”
Amber interrupts me saying “No, Anna! No!
It’s not a side note.
It’s THE note!”
I swear to you, my life flashed before my eyes. I saw a series of scenes playing music, moving my body, being a digital nomad going on a global tour speaking to thousands of schools and organizations. I felt the freedom my business was to grant me when I first began.
It was never to build my business into a money making empire. Never.
As returned to The Note, I realized my own blindspot in my business.
I had given up on centering my business in what brought my joy after a number of failed attempts.
So I created the next best thing. A business I enjoyed that had moments of 100% fulfillment helping clients and knew would serve people making a great impact.
I know that sounds awesome still, but there was something missing.
Throughout the whole frickin pandemic, I never figured it out. In fact, I circled back to the same “goal” that didn’t quite resonate even after a year!
While I became more aligned, still hadn’t struck the right chord or Note quite yet.
The Note being what made my heart sing. The Note being what naturally aroused my aliveness within.
This message is dedicated to The Note.
The Note that threads throughout all our lives and is the energy line that lights you up with resonance.
The Note gives you courage to free yourself of what others thinks.
The Note allows 100% of the real you to show up publicly, boldy, with no apologies.
The Note harmonizes away, shedding layers of all the should’s:
Don’t write that! That could offend so and so. What will people say?
You may not have a name for The Note.
You may be satisfied with what you think The Note may be.
You’ll know when you find The Note because there’s a vibration you cannot deny. A high level frequency that penetrates to your heart and soul whispering to you “There is no turning back, Anna.”
The Note presences your soul, surging in your veins to finally take that leap you were meant to take.
What’s The Note you’ve been pushing aside “as a sidenote” in your life?
I offer this inquiry for today.
Discover your Note.
Ping me what you discover by replying back.
Unstoppable Joy
Look in the mirror: Do your eyes sparkle with the joy of being alive?
If you were stripped away of everything that brings you joy and left with absolutely nothing–would you be a hot mess or quite elated in bliss?
Here’s the before and after shot after a 3 day Unstoppable Joy course with 1000 conscious human beings around the world.
Can you tell the difference?
If you were stripped away of everything that brings you joy and left with absolutely nothing–would you be a hot mess or quite elated in bliss?
Here’s the before and after shot after a 3 day Unstoppable Joy course with 1000 conscious human beings around the world.
Can you tell the difference?
It’s subtle.
In the left shot, I’m artificially creating a smile. My eyes are a bit more dead. In short, my joy was dependent on the outside.
In the second shot, my eyes sparkle a bit more. I’m experiencing joy from within–shining out.
For years, I’ve searched for that missing “note” I spoke of in last week’s email. The sparkle inside that lights you up no matter how dark it gets.
If you want a never ending energy source for lighting up your life–here’s my very vulnerable sharing on my joy journey.
When I was 18, I “had it all” on every possible level: a good family, respect from peers, leadership in the school, a strong church community, scholar athlete, winner of many awards, and a hot boyfriend.
Yet I STILL FELT EMPTY!!!!
It was crazy making.
It’s not like I could go complain “my life is too good” so I kept quiet. I just kept searching and searching for what was missing.
I even wrote a children’s book “Aida and the Duke of Doubt” in a vain attempt to answer that question so little ones wouldn’t have to suffer with this longing for something more that never went away.
At the time I concluded, if you focus outside yourself solely on making a difference for others–you can forget your ego self and feel fulfillment.
While that can still be the case–it didn’t fill that empty hole.
(Mind you this was after being asked to leave the leadership team of my church because I was teaching the “mountain” theory of may paths to God…and at 22, left the church and all that I knew that had given me purpose yet still felt empty)
I tried a gajillion personal growth trainings for nearly 2 decades. Had MASSIVE transformations in every area.
Again, obtained everything on my “vision board” again and again.
But there comes a point where you stop caring about accomplishing more. The game gets old. You wonder “is this it?!”
Cause think about it, you accomplish a new experience. The it gets normal again. You accomplish again. Then it normalizes. You accomplish, it gets old, then eventually you die.
In the course, I suddenly realized how I’d been operating:
If I had more travel, then I can have joy.
If my husband Leo and I are more intimate, there would be more joy.
If my son Eli listens well or laughs, I’d feel joy.
If I put music on and dance, I’ll access joy.
Yet, travel, music, family–you name it!–all rely on looking for joy from the outside.
The missing note?
Joy comes from within.
Joy is a choice.
Joy has no reason.
I leave you with some inquiries:
How often do you feel joy?
What gives you joy? Is it outside yourself?
What does joy from within feel like?
What would being a joy generator for no reason look like?
Try looking in the mirror again: Do your eyes sparkle with the joy of being alive?
If they don’t, that’s ok. Meditate on the questions above and listen to your heart. Quiet the noise from the outside.
One thing I can promise: Is the day you can say “YES!”–without a doubt–“My eyes ARE sparkling!”, is the day you’ll experience a deep unconditional love for yourself in the face of all your imperfections, mistakes, and messiness.
Tears will stream down your face from an inexplicable joy.
I love you.
Thank you to everyone who responded to my last email–how wonderful was that?!
Please, share your thoughts by simply replying back to this email!
Or comment in this 7 minute Unstoppable Joy video I recorded RIGHT in the moment after the weekend…
***
Anna S. Choi, CEO and Founder of Conscious Business Coaching, TEDx Speaker, and Forbes Author, is committed to elevating humanity’s consciousness by empowering high achieving, six-figure conscious entrepreneurs and business leaders to prevent burnout while scaling their company.
As a broke art major with zero experience or connections, she started and sold her first financial planning business grossing six figures by age 25. Burned out from the hustle and grind, she pursued energy mastery since 2014 as a taekwondo martial artist, body and brain yoga instructor and educator, and flow consultant now helping her high achieving clients grow in flow through energy mastery.
If you’re interested in growing your business with balance not burnout visit www.annasunchoi.com.
Beyond Profit: Future Trends in Human Centered Business
As the future remains unknown a year after the pandemic (and consider the future has always been uncertain), have you noticed a shift in how business is being done?
The last two decades I’ve focused on social enterprise, socially responsible, business, conscious business, being a changemaker, etc. As new trends and nomenclature emerge, has anything really changed since the pandemic? Is a new business paradigm emerging?
Below are business trends I’ve noticed have magnified during the pandemic:
- From transactional relationships to true caring relationships
- From war language (“crushing it” “dominate your market” “defeat the competitor!”) to love language based on impact, collaboration, and doing what’s right
- From “bro marketing” of fake urgency, 10x-ing results, and manipulative sales calls to heart based sharing that cares first about LONG term outcomes
- From the hustle and grind to paying attention to your online self than real self to the Unhustle Movement where it’s encouraged to go OFFline
- From biased human surveillance social media designed for profit to humane technology designed consciously
- From fear based, divisive news to love based dialogue and understanding
No judgment or shame on the old paradigm.
Truth be told, I’ve used the old paradigm. I was trained in the old paradigm as a new entrepreneur.
It took a solid year for me (and counting!) to trust myself and my own inner wisdom and wean off the tactics I’ve been taught from many online programs and experts that no longer served.
Can’t tell you how many times I’ve invested thousands in a program, only to find when looking “under the hood” that these 7 figure, multi 7 figure companies were in the red!!
These 7 figure companies weren’t in the red because of the pandemic. They are because they are in the old paradigm–focusing on new sales and churning new clients versus delivering on customer care and renewals.
I admittedly used to be wowed by big revenue numbers in placing my trust. Or wanted access to their network.
Now I just don’t care. I want to do business that I trust because they care, are competent, and have my best interest in mind.
(Pro tip: If you simply ask “what percentage of customers renew with you?” you’ll learn a lot! I strive for 50% or higher. Some companies are less than 15%. This *can* be a sign of customer churn.)
What’s even more fascinating is that small, teeny revenue businesses actually can profit the same or MORE than these huge companies…!
Knowing all this, you might sometimes feel like you’re the only one who cares in standing for a world of peace.
Well, you’re not alone.
Our company has made a huge migration of our online Community of Conscious Entrepreneurs off Facebook to a more conscious platform on Mighty Network.
A community free of becoming addicted or comparing yourself with others.
A community where you won’t be subtly led down a rabbit hole to be profited on.
A community where your brain won’t be unconsciously manipulated.
(Here’s the brain science of how social media platforms are designed intentionally to exploit human weakness ie. inciting fear or rage to want you to share, or spread misinformation because it’s profitable but toxic for creating division, etc.)
It’s time to take a stand for the love of humanity.
As the future of business shifts priorities from solely the bottom line at the cost of human well-being, our planet, and focusing on what matters most in our life, what actions can your business take to become more conscious?
How is your company paying attention to leaving a digital footprint that positive impacts the world ?
What companies do you support in using their products and services? Are they conscious? Does that matter to you?
Vote with your click. Vote with your dollar for the world you want future generations to be born into. Their lives depend on it.
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Anna S. Choi, CEO and Founder of Conscious Business Coaching, TEDx Speaker, and Forbes Author, is committed to elevating humanity’s consciousness by empowering high achieving, six-figure conscious entrepreneurs and business leaders to prevent burnout while scaling their company.
As a broke art major with zero experience or connections, she started and sold her first financial planning business grossing six figures by age 25. Burned out from the hustle and grind, she pursued energy mastery since 2014 as a taekwondo martial artist, body and brain yoga instructor and educator, and flow consultant now helping her high achieving clients grow in flow through energy mastery.
If you’re interested in growing your business with balance not burnout visit www.annasunchoi.com.
