You may feel compelled to shy away from who you are as a spiritual being when you are at work. Of course for some of you that might be the equivalent of deciding not to breath. You may not divide yourself into “spiritual” at home and “not spiritual at work”. Others of you may be struggling with what exactly it means to bring your spiritual self to work. I invite you today to step more fully into sharing your authentic self while at work. You just never know who you’ll impact or how.
I was in a leadership program as a participant with some government workers. For the warm up exercise we each had to say what some of our hobbies were. Well my hobbies are almost all focused on spirituality so I figured there was no way out of talking about this subject. I said that I did drumming and Sufi dances (Dances of Universal Peace). I wasn’t sure if anyone knew what Sufi Dances (Dances of Universal Peace) were so I figured I’d just put it out there and see what happened.
On the break a very large, middle aged Sheriff came up to meet me and say hello. Picture in your mind a heavy set Sheriff wearing his full gear, with bullet proof vest and pistol, approaching me. I had no idea what was going to happen next. He wore the sweetest smile when he asked me if I had been to the Coleman Barks program the year earlier at our town. Coleman Barks is the poet largely responsible for bringing the Sufi poet Rumi to a wider audience of Americans. I was surprised that this sheriff had attended the Rumi program. He said that he and his wife went to the program and that he was into all sorts of drumming. We talked for about 20 minutes about how marvelous the Rumi program had been and later swapped titles of CDs we had of world drummers. I’m so glad to this day that I took the risk to share my gifts and passion and meet with wonderful man. I believe in the process I was able to help him claim his own gifts and passion more fully.
Examine what parts of yourself you feel you need to hide at work. What holds you back and what would help you feel more comfortable sharing your authentic self at work? Are there areas of your spirituality you would like to share with others at work? Try one thing this week that would help you stretch your comfort zone and step more fully into Who You Are at work. Share here what happened when you more fully claimed your authentic self. You just never know who else at your workplace is on the same path. Here’s to the Magical Mystery Tour we all dance to.
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For more resources, see our Library topic Spirituality in the Workplace.
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Thank you for this wonderful post. One of my great life lessons relates to this. I was struggling at a former employer – great results, poor relationships – and decided to work with a coach. He asked me what was important to me. I spoke about my family, values, and spirituality. He then asked how much of that I shared at work. The answer stunned me: almost none. I had been afraid no one would “get it” and so had withheld the things that mattered most to me from colleagues. No wonder my work relationships were shallow!
mark – Thanks for this post. I love the ‘aha’ you had from your coach’s question.
So, I’m curious- did you go back and share some of your authentic self with your co-workers? If so, what was their response? Do you feel more comfortable now to share your values and deeper self with your co-workers?
hi Linda – well, I only told half the story. I have indeed become much more comfortable with sharing myself. However, I also discovered that I could no longer work at that particular company in good faith. So I left, moved to Boulder, started a consulting and coaching practice, and have devoted myself to helping others find their authenticity by sharing mine. It helps to be in a place like Boulder, where Naropa offers a wonderful course titled, appropriately, “Authentic Leadership.” It’s an ongoing journey, and very gratifying. Next up: some work with Arbinger Institute.
hi Linda – well, I only told half the story. I have indeed become much more comfortable with sharing myself. However, I also discovered that I could no longer work at that particular company in good faith. So I left, moved to Boulder, started a consulting and coaching practice, and have devoted myself to helping others find their authenticity by sharing mine. It helps to be in a place like Boulder, where Naropa offers a wonderful course titled, appropriately, “Authentic Leadership.” It’s an ongoing journey, and very gratifying. Next up: some work with Arbinger Institute. I realize now that I will forever be work-in-process, and that’s just fine with me.