What a decade it has been!!!

In June 2000 when Corporate Druids first began it’s work, I must admit that we didn’t have a very clear path nor very ambitious goals. However I had some very strong intentions that I unwaveringly held on to on the kind of influence Corporate Druids wanted to have in the world we lived in.

I could not have imagined the kind of journey that brought Corporate Druids here, nor this wonderful place that we are at.

Standing here, stepping in to 2011, I reflect on the last ten years of our work and review the lessons we take forward, with me personally and with us professionally as Corporate Druids, into the next decade.

Have strong intentions – Don’t be too attached to plans

When we started, I strongly believed that I wanted to be doing work that would help people and organizations learn and transform themselves to be the best that they want to be. We didn’t always know how we would do that. But life presented opportunities that aligned with our intentions.

I reflected on one of my earlier posts http://bit.ly/gEUVLJ that “Getting stuck in to rigid plans, contains us and cripples our ability to respond intuitively and strategically to changing complex landscapes. If we allow ourselves to be tuned into the complexity and accept that we really have only a very limited view and understanding of what is really happening at any given time, we are more open to seeing things.” Sometimes it is the wild card that has made all the difference.

Be vulnerable

This has been the most difficult and valuable lesson I have had to learn. Being vulnerable means to acknowledge your fears and to allow others to see those fears and weaknesses.

It has taken me sometime to realize that being vulnerable is to be human and authentic. Still this is never an easy thing to do. We are taught from an early age to be strong and not to show our emotions. But we can’t be selective about the emotions we suppress [Please listen to the latest post I shared on my website, http://bit.ly/g9SKpm where Brene Brown explains this so beautifully]. Being vulnerable is not just for people, it’s for organizations too. Organizations spend millions of dollars in PR campaigns to hide and defend their mistakes, when if they have been authentic and open to their weaknesses from the beginning they would not have to hide costly mistakes later.

“Lean in to the discomfort of your work”

A phrase I loved from Brene Brown’s TED talk http://bit.ly/g9SKpm on being vulnerable. This is something Corporate Druids has learnt to do pretty well. We have thrived on challenges that our clients present, pushing our own boundaries of knowledge and competencies, and have come out excelling at it, delivering results and deepening our learning.

If you don’t explore your own boundaries and take steps in to the unknown you will never grow, and we can proudly say that we have grown.

Be graceful

‘Grace’ comes from Latin gratia, meaning to be pleasing and thankful. One lesson that I have learnt well is to be grateful to the bounty of the Universe and to be graceful with life’s little ups and downs.

On some days it is more difficult to be with grace, but then I remember the wonderful journey we have come on, the amazing people we have come to know well, the clients we now call our friends, and friends and family who have supported us in many ways. There is abundance and joy in the world.

Delight in the outcomes and be less attached to them

One thing about life that you can be certain is that you cannot be certain about life itself. For all the careful planning, strategizing and controlling that we do, life dishes out some surprising outcomes.

The ability to respond with grace and humour and acceptance defines strength of character. Being attached to the outcomes stifles our creativity and we get stuck in disappointment. Learning to pay attention to, and enjoy the journey is as important, and helps us adapt our actions towards our goals.

You are powerful in your actions

Sometimes we feel small and ineffective in our ability make change and influence the world we live in. This is not necessarily true.

You may not always be in control of the outcomes but you can certainly influence the process, thereby the outcomes.

I learnt to make gentle action as explained my in my post http://bit.ly/f3W2pv and not to be stuck in being unable to always make big bold actions. The ‘I Can’ project http://bit.ly/e3Lj5O, which I was part of, working with school children in inspiring and empowering their ability make change, is one such gentle action.

I’d like to think that Corporate Druids has been able to make many gentle actions in the world and influence people and organizations.

Learn. Evolve. Transform.

We have never stopped learning. Every client, every project has been an opportunity to learn.

Our success has been this ability to constantly learn, evolve and transform ourselves. Sometimes this has been quite disconcerting to those close to us, as we never seem to fit a particular ‘box’. We either kept expanding the definition of who we are or adding new dimensions that very definition. But throughout we have kept our core values and intentions strong.

Above are a glimpse at some of the reflections I shared with you on our website corporatedruids.com through the past year. I am excited by how our website has evolved to be a place where I can share what we have been doing and learning through my blog posts and shared links. I hope you will visit our website often to find out what we have been writing and sharing on topics relevant to you. I also hope that you will keep in touch with us and follow us either through our RSS feeds, Twitter @corporatedruids and @mihirini, or our Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/corporatedruids.

On a personal note, the last decade has been an enormously life defining journey for me. I have learnt to be open to new challenges and often found the courage to look myself in the mirror and ask hard questions. I’d like to think that I have grown in the last ten years and that I take with me invaluable lessons as I look forward to the road that lies ahead.

You have been part of this journey. You have pushed my boundaries and prompted my learning and growth. You have been an invaluable partner in my journey and I feel blessed to have had the opportunities you have given me and for life’s abundance.

As we step in to the next decade, we want to continue to be by your side in your own personal journey.

Wishing you abundance and grace in the New Year.

Mihirini