The ego’s desire for fame and popularity shows up in both sneaky and overt ways. I describe it as a desire to consume more than what you need. Even if you think you’re not motivated by fame, you might be surprised to learn how the fame monster lurks in all corners of our society…
Why are you an entrepreneur? To be rich or famous? Or both?
There are many successful and yet-to-be-successful business owners who want to be of service to people. But are they able to separate their desire to be of service and their desire to make money or to be recognized?
As I mentioned in my previous article, if money becomes the primary driver of your soul work, you’re actually avoiding your true soul work. And when money and survival is involved, it’s very easy to convince ourselves that we’re not in it for the success.
Success for many equals money or fame or both. Sometimes it’s conscious, sometimes it’s hidden deep in the recesses of the ego.
Unfortunately, the way business is delivered and conducted in our world panders to the ego, in fact, ego is what fuels our economy. It’s the reason we see huge marketing launches, greedy corporations, prolific and insidious advertising, and even claims by some businesses that they are ‘here to help us’ (think insurance companies, even hospitals). Are they really? Or are they trying to make money first, and help second? Or in the case of individuals, are they simply trying to be famous?
The drive for fame and/or fortune is a power trip that even shows up in the most spiritual or noble professions.
Let’s look at what has to happen in order for someone to become famous:
- They have to have a following of people, masses of people
- Masses of people have to divert their attention away from themselves and their own lives to focus on that person
- Masses of people have to give their money to this person, either directly or indirectly
What does this create?
A redistribution of resources to a single person and the people who support that person in being famous.
It funnels resources away from many people, to the pockets of a few, and what do these famous people typically do with those resources? They buy more cars, more houses, consume more of everything to justify and even demonstrate the money they are making.
When even one person consumes more than what they need, everybody loses.
If we lived in a different world, where people were self-empowered with a strong sense of their own purpose, we wouldn’t need famous people. However, in our current world, I believe there is still a place for people to be known by many in order to fuel revolution. The difference is what drives them. Are they driven by the need for adoration and power? Or is their fame a consequence of the profound impact of their service to people? Big difference.
Entrepreneurship in our culture is driven by the ego’s desire for fame and money, which is essentially, power over others.
Why is this relevant to you? Ask yourself:
When you create a new product or service, what is your driver?
To sell to people or serve people?
To be recognised or to be genuinely useful?
To over-consume resources or to simply support you in living well?
Your driver determines how you orchestrate your business, from how you market your products, to how you set up your team, to how much you charge… your driver is your intention, it colors everything you do.
The personal drive to be rich and famous undermines what the world truly needs now: for human beings to cooperate for the greater good.
Being a solo entrepreneur serves the ego well:
You have total creative control over your work
You work on your own clock
You’re only accountable to your clients, no-one else
You can make your money the way you want to make it
You don’t have to think about how your actions impact anyone else.
It’s a nice little bubble to live in, believing that we are doing our work in the world and being paid for it. But does the buck really stop there?
Collaborative relationships are the future currency of our economy, so it’s time to get on board.
By that, I don’t mean ‘it’s about who you know, not what you know’ or get out there and start networking. I mean that relationships will become far more valuable than money, and our ability to cooperate with others in a way that truly honours each individual as our equal. To do this, we’ll require a new set of skills. And we’ll need to get very clear on how we can best contribute to a team, our role based on our natural gifts and way of creating.
There are alternatives to the competitive models that make one person or a few rich. But we have to create them. It all starts with a change in our intention.
New models that support ‘collective livelihood’ are emerging, thanks to nature.
Collective livelihood is where each person makes decisions based on the wellbeing, financial and otherwise, of the whole community/team/company, rather than their own self-interest. It’s where profits are distributed fairly, and what bonds people is shared values and genuine care for each other, above endless financial growth or personal fame. This is an entirely different kind of success to what is created from the solo mindset.
Let’s first look at why nature’s ecosystems are so successful…
Nature shows us the power of equilibrium. Ecosystems support the livelihoods of many creatures of varying species all at once. Each creature lives well in the context of the whole plant and animal community, everyone is fed and no resources are wasted. What makes this possible? Here are 5 key principles that allow ecosystems to be self-supporting:
- ROLE DEFINITION – Each plant/animal has its own defined role that contributes to the whole, and it doesn’t do more or less than that. If it does, the system becomes out of balance and reform ensues.
- LIMITED CONSUMPTION – Each plant/animal only consumes what they need to survive, so there is limited accumulation. If it did, it would be taking away what is needed for other beings in the system to survive.
- SHARED RESOURCES – Waste is actively reduced and mostly recycled back into the system for consumption. If waste was allowed to accumulate, it would clog under-resource the system.
- SERVICE – Each member of the ecosystem is actively contributing to the health of the whole. If anyone were to take a holiday, the system would loose a link in the food chain and have to adapt to operating in a less optimal fashion.
- CONNECTION – The plants/animals are intrinsically connected and inter-dependent on the entire system for survival. If they were to fight it, and try to go solo, they would suffer unnecessarily.
You might notice that all of these factors are based on limitation and contribution – one needs to limit their role and their consumption in order to be of greater contribution to the whole.
All of these factors combined create harmony, equilibrium. And everyone wins.
{ Side note: In my experience there is an equilibrium when it comes to profit too. If you consume too much, make more money than you need, you end up with side effects. There is an equilibrium-based profit that supports you in living well. But that’s another blog post… }
In order to adopt a business approach that allows people to thrive together, rather than compete, the ego has to surrender, but only to a point. There are many advantages to be enjoyed from a model of equality.
Introducing the ‘Business Family’…
If we translate the wisdom of nature’s ecosystems to business models, we soon see that sustainable business is actually easier (but perhaps not on the ego). I have had many stabs at collaboration in business, some successful, but most unsuccessful due to my ego’s agendas getting in the way!
But for the last 9 months I’ve been part of a ‘business family’ of four, with three other less-conventional business coaches (we are the custodians of TAO). We are exploring new ways of collaborating that aren’t driven by profit or ‘industry domination’. We’re not interested in being affiliates of each other, or JV partners, we are interested in caring for each other as a family would, and creating something more than what we could alone.
There are some of the features of a business family, as distinct from a company or a mastermind, and the inherent benefits of each one:
- There is no hierarchy, everyone is considered of equal importance to the whole operation. This means less pressure as you all share the load of responsibility.
- Each person has a defined role that caters to their natural talents and experience in the context of the team. You get to do what you do best seeing how your contribution is valuable.
- What and how we create is an organic process born from the ‘group soul’, rather than a single person/s agenda. You get to find out what is truly possible in co-creation, beyond what you could conceive alone.
- Agreed shared values bind the group. You get to work with people who genuinely share your model of the world, what’s important to you.
- Profits are shared amongst everyone, according to their level of investment, and finances are transparent to everyone. You get to see the real fruits of your efforts, no more and no less.
- We take a personal interest in the wellbeing and livelihood of each family member, helping where we can, without expectation of return. You get to give and receive true support and caring, and create meaningful relationships that may last a lifetime.
It’s early days, and there is much more territory for our egos to navigate when it comes to these kinds of collective livelihood models. The most important thing is that we explore new ways, and don’t allow the ‘proven ways to make money’ to lead us into the future.
A sustainable economy is based on equilibrium.
There is much to explore in this emerging paradigm of unity in business, and there are so many variations of the collective livelihood approach that already exist, usually out of the limelight. I would love us to work together to bring them to the mainstream. People collaborating in teams, groups or communities in support of each other, driven by the success of the whole, will thrive in the new economy.
I’ll be sharing more about my discoveries as I go. If you have any experiences to share, please comment below or contact me here.
We can make money with soul together…
This week I’m offering a free LIVE call with my business sister, Tomar Levine, about the alternatives to solo business. Here’s some more information on how to join us.