Business is Closer to War than to Meditation
I’m an advocate of spiritual development. Stabilizing a felt experience of the true nature of reality. It leads to inner peace, love, compassionate acceptance. I believe there is no more important pursuit in life.
And yet I’m drawn to business, money, influence, power. I’ve been a founder and investor for fifteen years with no sign of stopping. I don’t know where karmic desires come from, but I believe you should follow them until they dissolve.
So I spend my days meditating, practicing openness and compassion, and also running companies, making investments, seeking wealth. The felt experiences of these two activities sit at opposite ends of a spectrum. Light side, dark side. I see why it’s easier to practice spiritual development as a monk.
To be effective in business, the skillset and mindset is closer to war than to meditation.
The more I develop spiritual openness, the more I have to consciously practice the energetics of war. It stretches my nervous system in two directions simultaneously. One way to practice: watch violent movies. I enjoyed The Last Kingdom - a brutal account of 9th century England and the battles of Anglo-Saxons and Danes. Not for entertainment (though it is entertaining), but to absorb through osmosis the energetic expression of conflict, power, alliances, winning, losing, surviving. In business you must be prepared to embody those expressions when the moment demands it. This feels nothing like the bliss of meditative open spaciousness.
With the help of wise teachers I’ve discovered it’s possible to hold both simultaneously - but it requires specific nervous system training. It’s such an odd combination that we rarely practice it in modern society. One of my teachers calls it the “loving killer.” We practice standing eye to eye with a partner, fully embodying the energy of “I will kill you if I have to.” Then we switch to love: “I will die for you if I have to.” Back and forth with increasing frequency until we can hold both at once, receiving feedback - “more killer” or “more love.” The Jedi kill, so do the Sith. But when the Jedi kill, there is love present. An open heart.
I did this practice with my father once, during a sacred plant medicine ceremony. We both ended in tears of deep masculine love and respect. We can’t deny our ancestral lineage as killers, the ever-present need to be ready to protect those we love. But we can bathe it in the light of love. We can love that part of ourselves. Perhaps the most important practice of all.