Conscious Capitalism. John Mackey

Significantly outperforms traditional business model on financial and other criteria Compatible with traditional leadership Requires conscious leadership

      A Way Forward

      Every human being is born relatively undeveloped, but holds the potential for virtually unlimited personal growth. Likewise, business and free-enterprise capitalism can also evolve to richer purposes and extraordinary positive impact. Conscious Capitalism brings our rapidly evolving consciousness together with a keen appreciation for the core principles that animate capitalism. It enables us to better use this great system of social cooperation in ways that will transform our lives for the better and bring opportunity and hope to the billions on the planet still living with poverty and deprivation.

      In the early years of the twenty-first century, we are becoming acutely aware that our natural resources are finite. But we are also coming to realize that there is no limit to our entrepreneurial creativity. When we learn how to manifest our creativity on a mass scale, when many more of the seven billion of us are enabled to blossom and empowered to create, we will discover there is no problem on earth that we cannot solve, no obstacle we cannot overcome.

      Just as splitting the atom unleashed the awesome power hidden inside that seemingly inconsequential particle, Conscious Capitalism offers the promise of tapping into human potential in ways that few companies have been able to do. Businesses must view people not as resources but as sources.¹⁶ A resource is like a lump of coal; you use it and it’s gone. A source is like the sun—virtually inexhaustible and continually generating energy, light, and warmth. There is no more powerful source of creative energy in the world than a turned-on, empowered human being. A conscious business energizes and empowers people and engages their best contribution in service of its noble higher purposes. By doing so, a business has a profoundly positive net impact on the world.

      We believe that the way forward for humankind is to liberate the heroic spirit of business and our collective entrepreneurial creativity so they can be free to solve the many daunting challenges we face. Our world does not lack for business opportunities: there are billions of people whose basic needs are not being adequately met, and we need to rethink how we can continue to meet the needs of the already-prosperous in a more sustainable manner. Companies that recognize this and unlock the natural human creative spirit to address these challenges and capitalize on these opportunities will flourish for a long time.

      This journey starts with the discovery of a company’s unique higher purpose, an idea that we will explore in the next two chapters.

      PART ONE

      THE FIRST TENET

      Higher Purpose

      What are the two most important days of your life? Author Richard Leider asks this question of every audience he addresses. The first one is obvious: the day you were born. But the second is not so obvious. It is not the day you die; that is the end of the story, not a high point. It is not the day you graduate, get married, or have your first child—all significant milestones, of course, but not life defining for most. Richard’s answer: it is the day you realize why you were born.

      Not everyone experiences that day; many of us don’t even know to ask the question. But for those who do, that day becomes a major fulcrum in their lives. Nothing is ever the same once you discover your true purpose, your calling. The complexion of daily life and of work changes. You are able to draw on reservoirs of energy and inspiration that you did not even know existed within you. Work becomes truly fulfilling, a source of satisfaction and joy.

      One of the most successful books ever published is The Purpose Driven Life, by Arizona pastor Rick Warren. Since its publication in 2002, the book has sold tens of millions of copies. It has caught on in such a big way because it touched something very profound in people, a spiritual yearning and hunger for meaning and purpose in their lives. Meaning and purpose have always mattered to people, but they have taken on more urgent resonance with a growing proportion of us in the present times and will continue to grow in importance as society ages and we collectively become more conscious.

      For companies, purpose matters because it energizes them and allows them to transcend the parochial concerns of individual stakeholders. When all stakeholders are aligned around a common higher purpose, they are less likely to care only about their immediate, narrowly defined self-interest. Having a higher purpose is the starting point of what it means to be a conscious business: being self-aware, recognizing what makes the company truly unique, and discovering how the company can best serve. Having a compelling purpose can also galvanize a company to strive for greatness. As Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon.com, says, “Choose a mission that is bigger than the company. The founder of Sony sets the mission for the company that they were going to make Japan known for quality.”¹

      Walter Robb, co-CEO of Whole Foods Market, speaks eloquently of our company’s purpose: “We are not so much retailers with a mission as missionaries who retail. The stores are our canvas upon which we can paint our deeper purpose of bringing whole foods and greater health to the world.”

      Core values constitute the guiding principles the business uses to realize its purpose. Whole Foods Market’s core values succinctly express the purposes of the business—purposes that include making profits but also creating value for all of the major constituencies. Our business talks and walks our values; we share them with our constituency groups and invite feedback in the form of dialogs. The core values are these: selling the highest-quality natural and organic products available, satisfying and delighting our customers, supporting team member happiness and excellence, creating wealth through profits and growth, caring about our communities and the environment, creating ongoing win-win partnerships with our suppliers, and promoting the health of our stakeholders through healthy eating education.

      CHAPTER 3

      Purpose: The Corporation’s Search for Meaning

      Voluntary exchange for mutual benefit creates the ethical foundation of business, and that is why business is ultimately justified to rightfully exist within a society. But what is its purpose? The cofounder of the medical devices company Medtronic, Earl Bakken, has long been a tireless evangelist for the company’s reason for existing: “The story of Medtronic is one of men and women who have dedicated their lives and careers to helping real people overcome pain and disability to lead more normal, happy lives. It’s a story I never tire of hearing or telling.” Bill George was CEO of Medtronic for ten years, during which time the medical technology company’s market capitalization grew from $1.1 billion to $60 billion. One of George’s first actions was to bring the inspirational cofounder back to the company. In a conversation with us, George recalled the power of rediscovering the company’s purpose:

      Earl used to do these mission events for employees that were just wonderful. He talked for an hour and then gave the employees a bronze medallion with the symbol of the company—a person rising off the operating table and walking away to a full life. Medtronic’s philosophy under Earl had always been that we were not putting a pacemaker into someone’s body; we were restoring them to full life and health. After giving someone the medallion, he would say, “Your job here is not just to make money for the company; your job is to restore people to full life and health.” At every holiday party, we would hear from six patients about how a Medtronic defibrillator or a stent or a spinal surgery with a stimulator had changed their life. That’s what we all lived for. It was the backbone and the heart of the company.¹

      What Is Purpose?

      Every conscious business has a higher purpose, which addresses fundamental questions such as: Why do we exist? Why do we need to exist? What is the contribution we want to make? Why is the world better because we are here? Would we be missed if we disappeared? A firm’s purpose is the glue that holds the organization together, the amniotic fluid that nourishes the life force of the organization. You can