Book Description

This is a book for people who want to understand how spiritual ideas can help humanize business. Within, Paul Gibbons, a founder of the workplace spirituality movement twenty years ago, suggests that spirituality touches on every aspect of the human experience at work, on every aspect of human capital, and on the purpose of business and the capitalist economic system.In Meaning, Joy, and Purpose he explores how we can recruit spiritual ideas to help humans find greater meaning and purpose in their work and to improve business practices - that is, to make business more human.The first volume covers individual-level topics only: meaning, work, workaholism, vocation and purpose, happiness, mindfulness, altruism, motivation, engagement, and leadership. The second volume (tentatively called Culture, Capitalism, Sustainability) turns first to talent, employer brand, ethics, service, culture, values, and profitability. Then it turns to 21st century capitalism with its great triumphs and some of its limitations, exploring how spirituality might help us create a more human-centered version of capitalism more fit for the 21st century.To that discussion, Gibbons brings two decades of scholarship in philosophy, psychology, and spirituality and four decades in business from the perspective of an investment banker, consultant and adjunct professor of business. I also bring my perspective as (former) CEO of a start-up founded to bring spiritual principles to development of senior business leaders and their teams.Here are the questions Gibbons tackles in Volume I:?What do we mean by "spirituality"? How is it different from religion??What is the relationship between religion and science??Is the world becoming more or less spiritual??What is the historical relationship between spirituality and work? Where does that leave us today??Can we prove workplace spirituality is of value? What is the evidence??What are the benefits of private prayer or meditation at work??What insight does spirituality give us into human motivation??What is the purpose of purpose??How do we create purposeful lives and organizations??What is the link between leadership and spirituality??Can spiritual experiences at work be cultivated??What would a spiritual consulting firm look like?