Imagine riding in a car whose four cylinder engine is working on only three cylinders, and whose gasoline is diluted with water. The car will struggle along, using only a part of its inherent power. It might still get you where you want to go, but with difficulty (and probably not up the steep hills!).

At work, if we are running on only the power of mind , body, and emotions, we're running on only three cylinders. And if we find ourselves reacting to situations with anxiety, agitation, or anger - and feeling "there's not enough time to do our best" - we're using diluted fuel. What's missing?

See also: Spirituality At Work, Work As A Spiritual Practice, Spiritual Based Leadership)

In February of 2000, we began writing an in-depth programme for working people which explores five human values that are found across all spiritual traditions: Truth, righteousness, love, peace and non-violence. The title is Human Values in the Workplace: Making Spirituality the Inner Context for Your Work.  [1]  

We were inspired to write this programme because our collective business experience showed us that these five human values were the fundamental roots of a healthy, vibrant, viable organisation - and of healthy, vibrant, viable individuals.

See also: Spirituality At Work, Work As A Spiritual Practice, Spiritual Based Leadership)

"We are all spiritual beings first and foremost, we exist beyond our bodies'', say Debra and William Miller, an American couple who have launched an international research programme on spiritual-based leadership in business. William began his spiritual journey at Puttaparathi in 1982 under the guidance of Sri Sathya Sai Baba, and made frequent trips to India thereafter.

But after marrying Debra in 1999, "we have come home to India, leaving our home in the US''. In an interview to Mahendra Ved, they say that they believe it is their dharma to help awaken spirituality in business, "and India is the best place to grow in our ability to do this'':

See also: Spirituality At Work, Work As A Spiritual Practice, Spiritual Based Leadership)

In the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna explains the virtues of detached action. As a professional manager, I find that there's a lot in the Gita that makes me a better practitioner of the art and craft of management. It is, I have discovered, a work on the philosophy of work.

My favourite shloka from Chapter II contains the essence of the Gita: "You have the right only to action, never to the fruits thereof; let not the fruit of your action be your motive; nor let there be any attachment to inaction."

(See also: Spirituality at workplace, Faith and Belief, Spiritual Guidance, God and Religion, Peace on Earth, Peace of Mind, Love and Happiness, Life and Beyond, Body Mind and Soul)

Does the recent interest exhibited in non-fiction titles such as The Soul of Business, A Spiritual Audit of Corporate America, The Stirring of Soul in the Workplace, The Three-Minute Meditation etc in the US point to the possible evolution of the "enlightened corporate sector"?

Do Indian managers, born in a land that has offered "yoga and meditation" to the world corporate sector (to overcome stress), have the "first-mover advantage"? These are the questions that should interest "enlightened" managers in "progressive" Indian corporations.

(See also: Spirituality at workplace, Faith and Belief, Spiritual Guidance, God and Religion, Peace on Earth, Peace of Mind, Love and Happiness, Life and Beyond, Body Mind and Soul)

If you are a corporate leader and you would like to include spirituality in your organisation's culture, you are not alone.

Business leaders we've met, and management students sometimes ask us if it's really possible to make spirituality an overt and explicit part of an organisational culture - without causing religious conflicts or being inappropriate to an otherwise secular way of operating.

(See also: Corporate Spirituality, Faith and Belief, Spiritual Guidance, God and Religion, Peace on Earth, Peace of Mind, Love and Happiness, Life and Beyond, Body Mind and Soul)

There's this story about a writer who drifted into journalism. Sent to a distant island to cover a civil war, he happily lazed around in a beach house, watched spectacular sunrises and breathtaking sunsets, and occasionally heard the distant 'musical' rumble of guns.

He faithfully recorded all this, and was promptly sacked for missing the 'big story'. But while he was an utter failure as a journalist, wasn't he an astute observer of the relative truth of the waking state?

(See also: Spirituality and Journalism, Faith and Belief, Spiritual Guidance, God and Religion, Peace on Earth, Peace of Mind, Love and Happiness, Life and Beyond, Body Mind and Soul)

All religions are unanimous in denouncing the amassing of wealth. The Bible declares: Easier indeed it is for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter heaven. "Wealth undoes a man" - artham anartham, said Adi Sankaracharya. Fakiri, meaning voluntary poverty, is a way of life highly commended by the Sufi saints. Aparigraha, non-possession, is a value emphasised by the Bhagavad Gita.

(See also: Spirituality at workplace, Faith and Belief, Spiritual Guidance, God and Religion, Peace on Earth, Peace of Mind, Love and Happiness, Life and Beyond, Body Mind and Soul)

See also: Spirituality At Work, Work As A Spiritual Practice, Spiritual Based Leadership)

In this article we will explore truth , the first of five human values found in all spiritual traditions (truth, righteousness, peace, love, non-violence). Most people think of truth as simply being honest. However, the spiritual essence of truth reveals much deeper implications as Sathya Sai Baba, a spiritual teacher explains:

Truth is not merely telling the facts about what you see or hear or know. These are temporal truths. Truth relates to the unchanging reality. It is changeless in all three categories of time: past, present, and future. That is Divinity.

See also: Spirituality At Work, Work As A Spiritual Practice, Spiritual Based Leadership)

In this article, we will explore righteousness, the second of five human values (truth, righteousness, peace, love, and non-violence) found in all spiritual traditions. "Righteousness" is one of the most common translations of the Sanskrit word "dharma," which in essence means to act in accord with divine law, moral principles, and the unity of all life.

Righteousness, from a spiritual basis, is acting in harmony with the Divine nature that is inherent in yourself and all creation. This spiritual basis of righteousness is well expressed by Dena Merriam, Vice-Chairperson of Ruder Finn, an internationally prominent public relations firm:

See also: Spirituality At Work, Work As A Spiritual Practice, Spiritual Based Leadership)

In previous articles, we've shared inspiring stories of people who have found their "true calling" in their work. Another way that some people have walked this path is to deepen their calling as their career progresses.

The story of Peter Pruzan , Professor Emeritus from the Copenhagen Business School - and one of our colleagues in researching and writing about spiritual-based work - exemplifies that kind of deepening.

See also: Spirituality At Work, Work As A Spiritual Practice, Spiritual Based Leadership)

As you explore how to work from a spiritual basis, it is natural that you might have some concerns or reservations about its' "practicality" in your work environment. Your concerns might be challenges you face in integrating your spiritual ideas with your work, and your reservations might include doubts or hesitations about working in a spiritual way.

For example, some people are positive about business and sceptical about spirituality:

- "Business and spirituality just don't mix."

- "You can't really be competitive in business if you're spiritual."

See also: Spirituality At Work, Work As A Spiritual Practice, Spiritual Based Leadership)

When Debra managed a software development department years ago, she often gave her employees the motherly advice that "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." This wise, old saying is most applicable when it comes to tuning in to our conscience. Unfortunately, most of us are not aware of our conscience until it "bothers" us. By then, we are typically engaged in difficulties that require extra time and energy to clear up. And yet, it is possible to pro-actively tune in to our conscience, allowing it to be our daily friend and guide.

Why should we bother to tune in to our conscience at work?

See also: Spirituality At Work, Work As A Spiritual Practice, Spiritual Based Leadership)

The ways of discovering our calling are as diverse as our personalities and aspirations; just like spiritual enlightenment itself, there is no "one size that fits all".

In our last article, we explored the difference between "having a career" and "following your calling". After reading it, our editor asked us:

How can anyone find out what their calling is? Is there any one way, or is it just a matter of waiting in silence for the heart to speak up?

See also: Spirituality At Work, Work As A Spiritual Practice, Spiritual Based Leadership)

Harming others is never necessary for success. As we are aware of the Divinity that is in everyone, we can face our own tendencies to cause harm, even subtly, and discover non-violent ways of responding to our work situations.

Have you ever experienced...

Being in a tough competition with someone for a promotion you really wanted?

Having someone oppose your strongly-held point of view?

Struggling with another company to get or keep a customer?

See also: Spirituality At Work, Work As A Spiritual Practice, Spiritual Based Leadership)

Fred Schwettman, former president of the circuit technology division of Hewlett Packard, once told us:

We had a discussion one time about values and beliefs in our staff meeting. I think one of the most important things we can do is to articulate what our personal purpose is - really trying to understand what we're doing to grow, and to work on that. An example could be for me to know God or to find love associated with God and to practise that in whatever I do.

See also: Spirituality At Work, Work As A Spiritual Practice, Spiritual Based Leadership)

Imagine what your workplace would be like if it fostered service, sacrifice, balance, good order, endurance, attentive regard, sharing, kept promises, courageous respect for others, and a check on the appetite for excess.

Have you ever noticed that sometimes your parents can be a great resource of ideas for your work, especially in ways you least expect? We experienced this when William's mother recently sent us an article entitled Finding Spirituality in the Workplace . It was written by a Jesuit priest named William Byron, and published in the Texas Catholic (USA) magazine.

See also: Spirituality At Work, Work As A Spiritual Practice, Spiritual Based Leadership)

One day a devotee asked his spiritual teacher what to do in a situation he was facing. His teacher gave him very specific directions. The ardent devotee paused for a moment and then said softly, "But Swamiji, I can't do that as it would go against my conscience." The teacher smiled and replied, "Good. Follow your conscience."

On hearing this story we were struck with wonder. We began to ask, "What is this conscience that holds so much power within us? What might be possible if we were to follow our conscience at work?"

See also: Spirituality At Work, Work As A Spiritual Practice, Spiritual Based Leadership)

As we began to write this article on peace , which is the fourth of five human values we've been writing on (truth, righteousness, love, peace and non-violence), two things came to mind. The first was a Christian scripture that has meant a lot to each of us since childhood:

And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds .

See also: Spirituality At Work, Work As A Spiritual Practice, Spiritual Based Leadership)