On June 3, 2006, Green Gulch Farm hosted Company Time, a community meeting of business professionals, including finance executives, human resource staff, attorneys, and management consultants. Everyone gathered to discuss how to integrate spiritual practice in the workplace.
Instead of thinking of work as an obligation, Company Time brought a different view of work. Work can be a means for someone to reach out and share with others, such as partners, customers, and associates.
The event began with standing meditation and stretching where participants became more aware of their bodies versus their minds. In everyday life, though the body makes up 95% of the person, and the mind only 5%, people spend more time focusing on their minds than their bodies with worries, sufferings, and other thoughts.
Next, participants engaged in sitting meditation where they became aware of their thoughts, and learned to see thoughts when they arose but to return their focus to their breath versus becoming entangled in the thoughts.
Participants learned active listening by engaging in conversations where each member spoke for 5 minutes on topics without interruptions. To provide safety for honest discussions, each member was instructed to keep discussions confidential, not to repeat anything outside of the room, or even repeat back to the person his/her statements at a later time. Such courageous conversations allowed for openness, and perhaps such openness might be brought back to each person's workplace in order to address problems and create change.
The event was meant to instill spaciousness, allowing work to someday become a means for everyone to practice becoming more compassionate, kind, honest.
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