The Double Bind of the Spiritual Entrepreneur

Fir ring mandalaMy audience is largely made up of “lightworkers” – healers, spiritual practitioners, intuitives, creatives…

And despite the fact that many of us are “in business,”  we (I include myself) are not actually motivated by money.

We are inspired by a vision, a desire to give and help others, to create, and to contribute to a better world.

Many of us have a strong inner knowing that we’re here to contribute to a major transformation in the world, what’s been called the Global Shift or Great Turning.

We know in our hearts we’re here to help bridge Heaven & Earth.
(Some of us have known this for a very long time.)

We’re very comfortable working our craft and skill, giving our gifts.
But when it comes to the business side of things we’re on shakier ground, and are caught in a double bind.

All kinds of terms have sprung up to describe us – spiritual entrepreneurs, soulpreneurs, conscious or heart-centered business owners. 

But for the people in my tribe, the truth is, we’re not really entrepreneurs at all. Not by nature.  

We’ve never identified with that term, although we’ve gotten used to it.

In the old days healers just said we had a healing practice, or were self-employed.
When I was an exhibiting artist, none of us thought of ourselves as being in business.

It’s a foreign idea that’s been imposed on us and makes us itch a little.

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A true entrepreneur is someone who loves to create businesses, to come up with new ideas and try them out, loves creative challenges, enjoys thinking about the marketplace and their place in it, gets a rush from the game of it and from playing with ways to make money.

Most of the spiritual practitioners and lightworkers I know have an uneasy relationship with money, at best.

We’re not comfortable with it, don’t trust it, may blame it for what’s wrong with the world, may feel incompetent or inept about money. We may have judgments, resentments, fears, or feelings of unworthiness about money.

We often don’t feel like we belong in this hyper-competitive, materialistic culture that is dominated by money and values the rich, famous, and successful.

At the same time, we are in a field (and in a world) that requires that we master some basic skills of survival.

If we have embarked on launching our work in the world, and have started learning about business – especially on the Internet – we’re probably being inundated by aggressive marketing pitches telling us how we’re supposed to go about it – or else!

A whole industry has arisen of Business or Marketing for Heart-centered or Spiritual Entrepreneurs, usually offered by mentors who also call themselves spiritual.
(Although, in most cases, I’ve noticed that the Law of Attraction is what passes for spirituality, and what it too often teaches is how to use energetic laws to do the bidding of the ego.)

You would think that an industry designed to teach “soft” selling practices for the tender-hearted soulful business owner would have a gentler, more compassionate approach. But in actuality, it is often a “wolf in sheep’s clothing,” espousing spiritual principles while using manipulative fear-based tactics to sell high end programs to make us all (supposedly) rich.

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The double bind we find ourselves in is that on one side we feel disempowered by our low self-esteem and poor conditioning around money.

And on the other side we’re pummeled by these aggressive and manipulative marketing messages that not only overwhelm and confuse us (and often persuade us to part with large sums of money), but often blame and shame us for not being ambitious enough, big enough, impactful  enough, rich enough, successful enough – or for not even wanting to be.

In a word, those messages are also disempowering.

So we’re disempowered if we do, and disempowered if we don’t.

How do we get ourselves out of this double bind?

To answer that, I’ve been wondering about two questions:

Question !. What would it mean to become truly empowered? Not from the ego’s perspective, but from the soul’s perspective.  How can we access the true power and infinite potential that is our birthright as sovereign souls?

Question 2. How can we create a viable, thriving, sustainable business model that works for who we are and what we want?

Years ago I had the idea to create a High-Five Club, to counteract the insistence on 6 or 7 figure incomes as the only measure of success, and to assert the rightness of a human-scale livelihood.

True success (in my book) is being able to give our gifts, live our purpose, and provide for our needs in a way that brings us joy, ease, harmony, and creative growth.

Most of us don’t want to create empires or to maintain the complex structures and responsibilities that go with that. And most of us are not motivated by the desire to amass a fortune.

(By the way, the new justifications for focusing on high incomes by those who are selling their “think big and get rich” programs are:
a) you can do more good by contributing to worthy causes if you have lots of money;
b) the more money you make, the wider your reach and the greater your impact.

Clearly they use these arguments to persuade those who are not motivated by money but who want to do good and help lots of people. The latter argument has definitely been proven untrue – just look at the influence and impact of Charles Eisenstein, or many other thinkers and writers, for that matter. Or of my friend George Kao, whose influence grows, the more content he gives away for free, maintaining a modest income.)

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So these are the 2 questions worth considering:

First:
How to become truly empowered on a soul level?
Which is to say, how to free ourselves from the trance of scarcity, limitation, separation, and inadequacy that most humans live our lives enslaved by?

What would it mean to access the actual power and potential of our true  identity, our unlimited Essential Self?

And how can that be achieved?

In fact, there are many methods that dissolve and transform the bondage of our limiting beliefs, karmic imprints, and soul contracts, most of which are unconscious. These unconscious bonds create the delusions we take for Reality.

We can methodically release ourselves from this bondage, but it takes conscious intention and effort, as well as knowing how. (And having a gifted guide helps.)

This is part of the great work before humanity at this time – liberating ourselves from the delusions that have kept us in fear, limitation, and separation.

It is this transformation that humanity must achieve if we are to create the world we all want to live in, a world that can actually survive and in which all beings thrive.

We cannot achieve a healed world  in the same state of consciousness that created this seriously ailing one (to paraphrase Einstein).  We must raise our consciousness.

As we do the personal work of liberation we contribute hugely to the transformation of the entire human field of awareness. Each individual has enormous power to affect the whole.

Second:
How can we create on our own terms a flow of giving and receiving in which we honestly offer our gifts to the world and receive what we need for our support in return?

How can our attitudes about the transaction of offering and receiving, and the relationships we wish to establish with our audience, lay the foundation for a sustainable living business that brings joy to all?

In its  largest scope this is a question about what a new economy, new way of doing business, and new societal structures might look like. This might include a Universal Basic Income, a gift economy, and more. It may involve a shift from competing solo endeavors to more collaborative, improvisational, and playful ones, from isolated units to fluid networks of association. 

But for now we are considering what we can do in our own lives right now.

For instance: How much is enough? And how do we ask for what we need by offering to others what they need and long for, and by creating a space for them to enter that they are searching for?

How do we ground this relationship in a genuine sharing of heart energy, wisdom, guidance, support, and intelligent resources? How do we offer the magic that is our soul’s unique gift, and allow our souls to reveal even more than we know in the process of service?

How can we simplify this process so it’s as clear and basic as an offer of food to those who are hungry?

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As spiritual entrepreneurs we don’t have to be motivated by money. It is enough to be  motivated by our soul’s highest vision.

But to bridge Heaven and Earth, we also have to be grounded in the practical realities of the Earth plane that come with human incarnation.

We need to be responsible to our own human vehicle as much as we are to those we serve.

There is a middle way. It is the way of true empowerment and freedom. It is the way of our personal and global evolution. It is a vision both grand and humble.

As we embrace this way, we will discover ourselves to be both far grander than our ordinary sense of self and far humbler than the grandiose delusions of the desperate fear-based ego.

And our soul’s highest vision – the purpose we took birth for – will also be furthered by following this path. For as we start to create our own personal Heaven on Earth, we will be bringing that potential closer for all.  

 

Akashic Records on a “Divine” Business Plan

I asked the Akashic Record guides to comment on the question of having a “divine” business plan. Here’s what they said:

You who are reading these words will know that there is a deep and profound connection, an eternal and everlasting connection, between those of you on the Earth plane and the fields of light that embrace you.

And you should know that not only is there guidance and protection but that at this moment in your Earth’s unfolding there is being made available to you increasingly high vibratory light which you can utilize in clarifying your purpose, connecting to your true identity and uplifting the energies of the environment you live in.

Therefore going forth in your work on Earth – your walk on Earth – it is most encouraged that you use a “divine business plan” and not just the one your society’s mental and egoic agendas have devised.

Put before anything else that which most deeply matters to the life of your soul and your world. Put before all else the bringing into creation of the new marvelous realities that we see shimmering on the horizon for you.

Put before everything else your own inner connection to your personal guidance system, your own inner attunement to your higher nature, your own divine self

All has been prepared for this moment and nothing impedes your progress unless you do not step forward. 

Now is the time that you are being urged to step forward and live the light of your soul in all the ways of your life –  be they in business, in family matters, in ease of living and partaking of the pleasures of every day – it does not matter.

Who you are as you move forward has every opportunity to be lifted to a higher framework, from which everything you see is changed.

Do not let the constrictions of the fear/loss/scarcity model of dwindling resources constrict your breath. That is not the reality we see nor is it the one we wish you to be stuck to.

Open yourself to hear within your own being the eternal voice of the deliverer who brings only wellness and wealth to the heart that is lifted to hear.

A “Divine” Business Plan?

The other day I decided it was time once more to get some guidance for my life and business.

I got out one of my favorite decks of Oracle Cards –  Sonia Choquette’s Soul Lessons & Soul Purpose – and pulled cards intuitively till I felt complete. That was after card #10.

When I looked through them I saw I had been given the equivalent of an inspired business plan – starting with Earth and ending with Heaven. (Above are the first and last of those cards.) So of course I wanted to share this “divine business plan” with you – with my comments.

Here are the cards I chose, in order:

1. .Build on Solid Ground . To me this means to make sure your values and your vision are rock solid, built on a firm foundation. Not pie in the sky, not inflated fantasies. But solid values, integrity, and trust-worthy practical principles. Are you fully grounded? Does your plan make sense? Is it do-able? Do you have what you need to go forward?

2. Choose Friends Wisely. Who are your companions on this journey? Who are your mentors? Starting a business can be lonely, and we need the support of those who understand and share our passions. There is great support available, both from peers and advisors. When you find the right ones, things can really take off. But the wrong friends can also take you off-course.

3. Make Necessary Sacrifices. This is a biggie – and has been hard for me. We all know that to make room for something new we have to eliminate something old – right? Information and shiny objects overwhelm and distract us. We all have cozy habits that no longer serve our purpose. Focusing on what you truly desire makes it easier to say no to what’s in your way – or so they say. (I’m still working on it.)

4. Love Your Spirit. To me, this points to the central inspiration of your business – that which your soul is here to do. Continuing to align with that, loving the purity of the impulse at the heart of your work, and allowing that love to infuse what you create will bring beauty and magic into everything you do. And it will keep replenishing your energy each time you return to your biggest Why.

5. Work With Devotion. There is a lot of work in building a business. We have to be able to dedicate ourselves to our work with love, curiosity, creativity, and willingness.Think of how an artist works with devotion – or how a child plays with total absorption. Love lifts work to a higher level. Devotion plus discipline lead to success.

6. Accept What Is. This is a big challenge for most of us – saying yes to just how things are. But we can’t move forward if we’re fighting with reality, because that hooks us and keeps our energies embroiled. Only by assessing your situation realistically can you know what your next steps must be. Learning to see with open eyes, without rejection or critique, without insisting that things should be different, frees reserves of energy needed to create your life.

7. Take the Lead. This is essential when you start your own business. You are the leader of your own business and your own life. Learn to be pro-active, to initiate, to move boldly. Let your light shine freely, for your soul came here to go beyond fear into the power of co-creation. As you start to risk and take actions beyond your comfort zone, you will be amazed at the miracles you see.

8. Be Patient. Just as you must be pro-active and bold, don’t expect to always see instant results. The biggest reason why businesses fail is that people quit too soon. Every birth must go through a gestation process first. Have faith in the rightness of your direction and keep putting one foot in front of the other.

9. Make a Plan. This may seem obvious, but it’s easy to lurch from one piece of advice to another, hoping to hit on what works. It takes a while to discern what is truly right for you. When you get clear about who you are and what you’re here to do, and for whom, then it’s time to envision what would make your business joyful and satisfying. This will naturally lead you to develop a plan. Though not written in stone, it will make everything you do flow a whole lot better if you have a map to follow.

10. Trust the Divine Plan. This may seem a contradiction to making your own plan, but it’s really a question of alignment. When you intend to align your will with higher intelligence, you will discover the best business guide there is. At the same time, trust that there is a higher plan for you and your purpose, and accept what happens as evidence of that plan – or feedback if you’ve gotten off-course. The more you stay connected to Divine Source and open to the voice of your intuition, the more you will find your business a revelation and a healing to you and to those you serve.

That’s the divine business plan the cards gave me. Does any of this resonate with you? Do you have anything you’d like to add? Do you have a divine business plan of your own? How do you relate to having a business plan? I’d love to hear.

And if you’d like help designing the right business plan for your Sacred Work, contact me here: https://tomarlevine.com/contact/