By Ranjini Manian 
21/05/2010

If Six Sigma from Japan made it as a model for the corporate world, why hasn't there been an Indian business wisdom model for the world, I wonder? It just hasn't been packaged and marketed, I suppose. This thought spurred others. What do we as Indians do differently from the West?

They call it soul, we call it Atman, the Self, and believe that the one Self in all beings is the only enduring reality. Indian philosophy holds that the rest — the body, mind, world — is of a lower order of reality, as unreal as a dream because of its transient nature.

So we function in the world, but apart from the world. We love things and people, supporting them without getting attached to them or depending on them for our own happiness. We reiterate this central idea in our daily rituals, sometimes unthinkingly. We wake up in the morning and chant a verse looking at divinity in our own palms. Next, we step off the bed and ask Mother Earth forgiveness for stepping on her each day, giving her our load to bear.

We then chant to the toothbrush saying don't just clean my teeth, clean my mind of impure thoughts and negative qualities such as jealousy and greed.

Then, we chant to the water in the bath, remembering how essential and grateful we are to it, as it represents the sacred rivers nourishing life. We light a lamp, asking the wick to quell our ego, allowing us to light up with knowledge in our daily life. We bow to each other, saying Namaste — I bow to the divine in you — greeting the real Self each time in one another.

We wear a dot or forehead mark — a reminder of the importance of balancing inner wisdom through this third eye of knowledge along with the two outer eyes which take in the world, thus helping us look inwards at who we are. We go about our jobs as duty, offering up action to the Divine — doing our part to the best of our ability without getting over attached to results, the result we accept as a blessing and as a recompense of past actions.

We give equal importance to Lakshmi, Goddess of Wealth, and Saraswati, Goddess of Knowledge, thus balancing materialism with wisdom so that we can remove life's obstacles. We focus on material wealth and legitimate desires but also work for right values and liberation (from mental disturbance). Then we Indians march off to be among the best scientists, engineers and doctors in the world...we find strength in who we are within ourselves daily, it is a way of life not a religion as you can see.

A renaissance for India

The truth is today not many Indians can explain these ideals clearly and are losing some of it as modernisation takes over. I am a staunch believer in a renaissance for Indians. It would be better accepted if we converted this into business talk which makes sense to both the West and to modern India. How can we do it? Charles Savage, well-known American leadership coach based in Munich (Germany) puts it in a nutshell — An “out of tune radio” never picks up any stations. An “out of tune person is out of touch with the energy of life.”

This philosophy can be loosely translated into a business context and condensed as follows:

• Be conscious that what you are doing is part of the Big Picture. Be aware of the Big Picture always.
• Be conscious that your business sustains you by using material resources, and you need to plough back.
• Cleanse yourself of negativity and self-seeking — think positive and act for the greater good.
• Do what you have to do with sincerity and integrity. Accept whatever you get in return as your due reward.
• Bottom lines are important but not all-important. Discharge your corporate social responsibilities sincerely. This will add value to the bottom line — profits go beyond figures.

  Thus, we retune ourselves to the One Big Signal and reap richer benefits. Would anyone like to take this forward and turn it into India's Business Code for Success?

  The author is the CEO of Global Adjustments, a Chennai-based company that specializes in relocation and cross-cultural training services. The column appeared in Business Line, the business daily from the Hindu Group of publications.