Non-striving in business

[jrcjamesc]

Hello fellow practitioners. Hoping you'll share your thoughts.

I truly believe that following mindful principles can greatly benefit employee experiences in business organizations equally as much as they benefit our personal growth journeys. Yet, there are some concepts in mindfulness that seem contrary to the basic assumptions we face in business contexts. In particular, the notion of non-striving. This principle has thwared my ability to describe to leadrship and apply with teams in the software company where I work. I cannot find clear, cogent, compelling explanations of non-striving in terms that leadership might accept. Making software, and other products, seems to be founded on a foundation of firmly setting and doggedly pursuing goals. When goals are missed, as is inevitable in reality, repercussions, recriminations and negative judgments follow. These dissipative energies do no inspire, but rather tire their recipients: departments, teams and individual contributors.

I would appreciate any thoughts from this community on ways to frame notions of a non-striving mentality in such a fashion that does not put this basic mindful tenet so much at odds with traditional corporate values such as proscribed achievement targets, defined production goals and expectations of employee drive.

Thank you.

[JonW]

Hi jrcjamesc,
Welcome to the forum.
That's a truly excellent question.
Please allow me to ponder.
All best wishes,
Jon

[Innerchatter]

i would say its possible, rather then to none-strive, i guess it would be more liking striving mindfully. In that you know what your end goal is for the project or whatever and you trying to get the outcome/result you can, but you don't focus on that because its in the future, instead you focus on the day to day, and in doing that in the best way you know deep down that the goal will be achieved well.

when striving for something, there are usefull thoughts and un-useful thoughts, the useful ones being the way to better achieve the goal, the un useful ones, fixating on the goal before it has happened. so being mindfull I think you would engage with the useful thoughts and ideas, and when you catch yourself fixating on the future or other un-useful thoughts you bring yourself back to the present and carry on with the task in hand.

As an example, right now after many years of not knowing what to do with my career, i have finally decided that I want to be a process engineer. I am currently in process of trying to realise that dream, and its hard. since making this decision to become a process engineer, I have obsessed on it, if i think about it, the day where i become one couldn't come sooner. Im at work seeing vacancies for this role, wanting to fill that vacancy but knowing that I cant. I'm not ready yet. So its incredibly frustrating at times. this is one of the reasons that I have turned to mindfullness.

anyway through all the dreaming and wishing and striving to become a process engineer, I cant until have done some serious learning in the form of a HNC. so it doesn't matter how much i think about it the only solution to problem is to do this course and learn the necessary theory.

So thats where I am, doing the course, if have created the path that I need to walk on, and all I have to do is walk it - its all i can do. so if ever I find myself getting frustrated with the process, or how long its taking, or caught in the desperation for things to move faster, I note that I'm striving or thinking, put the thought down and carry on with what I'm doing - studying.

its actually getting easier now, I still get lost in these thoughts but not nearly as much. in general i am a lot more chilled out about the whole thing, and yet outwardly, i still give the impression that I'm driven, even though I'm not stressing about it, the that fact I'm engaged with my learning shows the drive.

and I think this is the same far any work project, if your engaged with the present you show the commitment that people want to see and you are also ensuring that the project moves as smoothly as possible. so its a matter of creating that path and focusing on the path, knowing that goal will happen.

you could also liken a work project to a meditation practice itself. checking on the projects progress and planning could be a bit like a body scan, and the keeping your attention on breathing is like focusing on the task in hand, all the way engaging with the good ideas and moving away from the ones that sidetrack the project or are unhelpful.

[jrcjamesc]

Thank for sharing your thoughts, InnerChatter. Your insight that there are both beneficial aspects to striving as well as detrimental aspects is intriguing. I sincerely hope you achieve your objective of becoming a Process Engineer.

[Gareth]

Having goals, ambitions and measures of success is not at all at odds with the core principles of mindfulness. Where we start to become unstuck is how we attach ourselves to these goals, and how we treat ourselves when these goals aren't met.

I'm sorry I can't go into greater detail myself. Busy day at work today.

[japa.guru]

Having goals, ambitions and measures of success is not at all at odds with the core principles of mindfulness. Where we start to become unstuck is how we attach ourselves to these goals, and how we treat ourselves when these goals aren't met.

I'm sorry I can't go into greater detail myself. Busy day at work today.

I completely agree with Gareth here. It is the attachment as opposed to actually having goals. If we are so attached to this 'striving' or goal achieving then when something does not go to plan, or equally when something goes exactly to plan then we can lose ourselves and be caught up in that.
If we can allow space for awareness in the achieving of goals then this will foster a healthy attachment.

[Kukurijek]

Very interesting subject and thoughts, especially as I am pulling 12 hour days for few weeks now. Will respond with more thought when I am through the storm.

[jrcjamesc]

My continued thanks to this community for the thoughtful and insightful responses.

I am gleaning that the path to apprehending this topic hinges on some of the following:
- Goals are acceptable, and perhaps inevitable to the human mind.
- Goals become dangerous when we develop preconceived attachments to outcomes. Aka: goals become expectations.
- Expectations become detrimental to mindful behavior when they become objects of pursuit unto themselves. When we are chasing the arrow instead of the target.
- Goals and expectations are toxic when if we allow failure to achieve a goal to affect how we value or respect others. When we compromise lovingkindness.

Still, in a business environment, there seem to be certain conditions that make the above difficult
- Organizations set expectations so they can plan their strategy.
- Organizations attach great significance to outcomes, because they make commitments to customers and shareholders.
- Organizations attempt to shape their employee’s behavior by establishing rewards and accountabilities for behaviors – meeting goals results in reward, missing goals results in punishment.

For me, anyway, it’s very difficult to reconcile the conditions that appear required to support growth in business environments with the assumptions that seem necessary to allow personal mindfulness to develop.
How would consumers react to a corporate vision something along the lines of, “We will work hard, but make no promises. We will retain and love our staff even if they fail to deliver.” I’d love to work at this company, but would I buy their products?

[arguseyed]

I have been struggling with this as well, not necessarily in a business context, but an individual context. Should I just stay in my less than fulfilling job because I will always be discontent no matter where I go or should I quit despite one of the possibilities being not able to find anything else. Should I just go with anyone in a relationship because I will be unhappy even if I find an ideal partner?