SPIRITUAL BUSINESS PRACTICES: THE POWER OF SAYING “THANK YOU”

If you do a quick search online for “secrets to success,” you’ll end up with a massive list of tips with everything from having vision to taking risks. But in my previous article on spiritual business practices, we learned from success guru Steve Siebold that “Faith in God, a higher power, or an infinite intelligence is…a trait of many champions.” (89) (1)

That’s all well and good, but how exactly does one tap into that higher power or infinite intelligence? How does that spiritual connection play out practically in everyday business practice?

Live With Gratitude

Fortunately, Siebold’s answer is simple: it’s all about having an attitude of gratitude. Here’s what he says about this:

“Champions know the ultimate creative force is located somewhere beyond our everyday consciousness, and they must tap the source to generate their best ideas. The secular sometimes refer to this source as the unconscious mind. The spiritual often call it God. Whatever label their belief warrants, few deny the power of the source, whatever its point of origin. Champions know the fastest way to connect to the source is through gratitude. Thoughts and feelings of gratitude seem to elevate the performer’s consciousness to a higher plane than is accessible through any other means. Professional writers call it being connected. Athletes call it being in the zone. Psychologists refer to it as a state of flow. No matter what name you assign it, the experience is the same…Gratitude is their mindset of choice when they need to awaken the giant and tap their genius.” (37-38) (2)

In my religion, Judaism, we start our day by saying thank you to God for restoring our soul and entrusting us with it for another day. If said earnestly, this expression can be extremely enlightening. It makes you realize a number of important truths:

• We need our soul/spiritual resources to do our day’s work
• These resources are given to us by the Creator
• They are “on loan” and should not be taken for granted

In light of this insight, I think any one of us would be led to feel appreciative and say thank you, either to God Himself or at least in general. Most certainly, we would say thank you to anybody and everybody who helps us accomplish what we do throughout our day. Just as we can’t take what God gives us for granted, we can’t take what anybody else gives us for granted either.

The Power Of Thankfulness

Robert Emmons, considered to be the world’s leading scientific expert on gratitude, found that living a life of gratitude improves mental, physical, and relational health to the point of having higher energy levels, less stress and depression, and heightened spirituality. (3) Finding ways to integrate gratitude throughout your business day can make a world of difference in your life and the lives of others.

I like to thank my employees for putting in a hard day’s work. I take the time to thank my prospects for giving me the opportunity to give them a life insurance quote. I say thank you to my vendors for excellent work in prequalification and underwriting. I like to thank my clients for giving me their business and for going out of their way to spread the word about my services.

And once you start saying thank you, your eyes are opened to everything around you that deserves your gratitude. It starts a chain reaction, and my day often involves one positive and productive interaction after another. Sure, there are ups and downs, but these expressions of gratitude keep me on track and connected. It’s a good way of “getting into the flow” in a business sense.

Thankfulness and Business

As you can imagine, there are also business benefits to saying thank you. Not only do I get a stronger work ethic out of my employees, but I also receive great service from my vendors and more opportunities to quote life insurance. Saying a simple thank you has led to more sales and referrals from my clients. It all boils down to this: if you take things for granted, they diminish pretty quickly, but if you’re grateful for them, then they multiply.

Do you live a life of gratitude? Have you reaped the rewards of this spiritual practice? Do you need some practical guidance on how to start living with thankfulness?  I’d love to hear your stories and answer your questions.

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(1) Siebold, Steve. 177 Mental Toughness Secrets of the World Class. 3rd ed. London House Press, 2010.

(2) Siebold, Steve. 177 Mental Toughness Secrets of the World Class. 3rd ed. London House Press, 2010.

(3) https://www.huffingtonpost.com/randy-kamen-gredinger/the-transformative-power-_2_b_6982152.html

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