After IQ and EQ, the new quotient that has captured the interest of corporate India’s is SQ, or Spiritual Quotient. And its advocates say it’s here to stay.
With the Indian economy growing at over seven percent, the tempo is high. But with it comes higher stress. And New Age gurus are offering SQ as a stress buster for business people.
“If by spirituality we mean awareness, then it is the most important aspect of business. Most businesses are based on a very false premise that the purpose of business is to make money and increase stockholder value. That is a byproduct. The real purpose of business is to serve the needs of society like survival, safety, self-esteem, love and sense of higher purpose. And when these are introduced, the business does very well,” said author and philosopher Deepak Chopra, who has a cult following in business circles.
For every cynic who thinks this sounds too perfect and implausible, there are people who think otherwise.
Information Technology companies have taken to spirituality in a big way – almost every firm has a meditation room. Transcendental meditation is in thing.
Over 120 companies have opted for Maharishi Mahesh Yogi‘s courses and 4000-plus executives have signed up for the Art of Living Corporate program.
“It is good to aspire to perfection always knowing it’s a journey and not a destination. You never actually get there. If you have the aspiration, then you get somewhere. You should always stretch higher than you can reach,” said Chopra.
And there is good news for women in the work place – the spiritualists say women are more capable of spiritualism and therefore of true success.