(The Sacred Business Manifesto Part VI)

Back to Part V

There’s a quote by Albert Einstein that I love which reads:

 “A human being is a part of the whole called by us universe, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest, a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.”

Disconnection is all around us; it's arguably become the default state of existence for people living in modern society. It pervades our relationship to our bodies, our communities, the earth, and nature as a whole. We are increasingly disconnected from our hearts, the people we come into contact with, and our own divinity. 

Here in the heart of the jungles of Costa Rica where I’m currently writing this, there's a natural coexistence of all nature supporting life. Centuries-oldCeiba trees, toucans, butterflies, and monkeys coexist, each essential to supporting the ecosystem’s health. 

This balance, a natural exchange, fuels life itself. Historically, our ancestors were also deeply connected to their environment, understanding their role within nature’s complex webs. We knew our place in relationship to our communities and to the land that supported daily life. 

Today, as a society, we’ve lost touch with this rhythm. Our drive for independence and personal freedom, coupled with a false belief of separation, have isolated us from so many of the systems that are meant to nurture us, leading to widespread feelings of loneliness and self-destructive behaviors. In our continued pursuit of autonomy and our mistaken views of separateness, we've exiled ourselves from almost all the systems that once supported our connection. This has led to a fragmented approach to life. 

And here are some startling facts: 

According to a 2021 survey from Harvard's Making Caring Common Project, 36% of all Americans — including 61% of young adults — reported feeling serious loneliness.

The American Heart Association says social isolation and loneliness are associated with about a 30% increased risk of heart attack or stroke, or death from either.

Furthermore, the way we’ve adopted technology and our phones has further exacerbated this sense of disconnection, making it harder to maintain our focus and truly be present to life unfolding around us. The modern world is inundated with artificial lighting, screens, and a pervasive desire to seek validation through social media.

Arianna Huffington was quoted as saying, “We live in an age of constant connectivity, yet we find ourselves feeling more disconnected than ever before.” 

And well-known meditation teacher Jack Kornfield has declared, “The greatest tragedy of our time is the disconnection from ourselves, others, and the world around us.”

Disconnection contributes to serious mental health issues, with statistics from the CDC indicating that suicide rates in the U.S. increased by 37% from 1999 to 2022.

We have forgotten how interconnected life truly is, affecting not just the natural world but our own mental and spiritual health, as well as how we foster our relationships and communities. The mind, the body, and the soul, and all the dimensions of our lives, are interconnected. 

The division fueled by our sense of separation manifests in various ways: from increasing urban sprawl that distances us from nature, to the competitive, individualistic mindset prevalent in our work cultures, which often leads to burnout and disengagement.

Many people experience disconnect from their bodies due to at least three key factors:

• Viewing the body as a "machine" made of physical matter and devoid of spirit.
• Fear of receiving messages from the body that might necessitate change.
• Experiencing physical, mental, and emotional trauma.

Thankfully, I believe the world is beginning to recognize that humans weren't meant to live this way. Many smart, conscious individuals are addressing these issues, advocating for the importance of reconnecting with our world beyond mere matter.

When we begin to tune in and connect to our inner experience, we tap into our divinity and the sacred invisible that connects us all.

Our relationship with our work and business are not immune to these challenges. 

Some people are starting to wake up to a different way of thinking, but hustle culture is prevalent still in most entrepreneurial circles. There’s a lot of people talking about things like planning your ideal day, achieving inbox zero, and the fantasy of having a four-hour work week, but all these concepts anchor upon an external viewpoint, rather than looking at one’s inner experience instead. 

And it’s entirely possible to be achieving better productivity and performance, growing your business, and generating more wealth, all while operating from a disconnected state. This can work for a while, but ultimately it’s a road that leads towards overwhelm and burnout, as well as potential sickness and anxiety. 

This was certainly my experience growing my first consulting business, which was generating over six figures a month. Everything on paper was amazing, but I was still feeling uneasy, unhappy, and unfulfilled. I had this constant feeling of needing to have “more” and that I would be missing out on something until I was able to hit the “next level” in my business, which of course is an unwinnable game. 

And when I would try to look for inspiration as to how to solve this problem and feel better about myself, most of what I would find was continuing to push this idea that we somehow need to manipulate “the outside world” to get more “stuff,” or produce a desired “result” that can be measured materially. 

And I felt increasingly isolated as I pushed myself to unhealthy limits with my work at the expense of every other aspect of my life, from my health to my relationships. 

​I kept asking myself, “If I'm not happy now, when???”

This led me to make some pretty radical shifts in my life and my business.

That’s when I made what you might call a crazy decision. I shut down my business, six-figure monthly income stream and all. Instead, I embarked on an adventure of the soul to seek out mentors who had mastered the inner game.

To be clear — I'm not in any way suggesting that the key to happiness is to shut down your business and become a monk.​

Far from it. I believe each of our paths will unfold precisely as necessary to fuel our personal evolution and take us to the places vital for our growth.

But I am here to say that if you think your business is separate from your spiritual journey, you might be in a state of disconnection, which might warrant a deeper examination.

I would propose we should be looking at our inner experience first.

And what do I mean when I say "inner experience"?

Just like humans have a soul, or spirit, an aligned and connected business will have a core essence and a deep purpose.

And if you've ever felt your business was a calling, rather than an opportunity, then you are likely channeling a higher purpose.

How does it feel in your body when you are doing your work?

Do you feel alive, empowered, and in your fullest expression of your being as you go about your days?

Or do you often feel full of fear and resistance, finding it a slog just to "show up" for your clients or engage in sales activities?

And looking back on my own journey, what I’ve found is that the patterns that keep us in our stuckness and isolation can only be broken through recognizing that everything is connected  and beginning to operate from this premise. 

According to Vedic traditions, we possess an inherent potential that manifests through nature’s laws, promoting balance and growth. 

Recognizing our part in this dynamic and the creative intelligence it entails helps us feel a deep reverence for the sacredness of life and a sense of true belonging. It’s also what helps save us from unnecessary suffering. 

And when you begin to operate from this new orientation, you begin to have a very different experience in your relationship to your business. It’s entirely possible to experience more time, money, and freedom while amplifying your results in a way that feels really, really good — and doesn’t require you to break down, to sacrifice your health or relationships, or to blow up your business because you can’t handle the stress (lesson learned from personal experience).

With this recognition that everything is connected, we decided to create an entirely new way of supporting our clients in their entrepreneurial success …

Once you understand that everything is connected and begin to work at the energetic root, everything just shifts for the better. 

It’s not that you don’t use the gifts of your mind to create powerful outcomes; it’s just that now, your mind is working as part of a greater integrated system that includes the intelligence of the body and the heart. 

And from this place of connection, you amplify and accelerate your results.

And it was from this understanding that Sacred Business Flow was born.

Carolina and I found a powerful way to combine our gifts, upleveling the impact we were able to previously make doing our individual work. 

Carolina and I met by chance at an expats brunch here in Costa Rica, and we soon knew we were being guided to work together in some way. I first began to work with Carolina in her bioenergetics practice to support my healing from my cancer scare and subsequent surgery. 

Shortly after as she became aware of my background, Carolina asked me to support her in the growth of her business, as she was in a process of reimagining it after her recent move to Costa Rica from Canada. 

And as we began to get to know each other better, we both began to realize that our collective life experiences had led us to a place of understanding that there was a different way to approach business success. 

At the time, it still felt a bit hard to put words to, as it can be hard to put a label on things that are meant to be felt and understood through direct experience.

As I began to see the effects of her work on not only my health but my levels of energy, focus, and creativity, I began to get curious about how bioenergetics could support the entrepreneurial journey.

Together, we ran a few experiments with my consulting clients and had some nice conversations about what could be possible in terms of helping entrepreneurs experience the clarity, confidence, and purpose that is required to build the profitable business of their dreams — from a place of understanding that everything is connected.

It quickly became clear to both of us that this was what we were being called forward into together, and from this place of deep inspiration and our own connection, Sacred Business Flow was born.

And as we began to go deep into combining our understandings of how to support our entrepreneurial clients, it became very clear that we needed to create a simple, easy-to-understand framework to follow. 

We also knew it needed to be accompanied by a plan of action that would allow us to share these ideas with people who were tired of living a fragmented approach to life and business and were ready to take on change.

And over a period of about six months and many full weeks exploring the intersection of our work, we began to zero in on a unique and innovative approach. 

We began to discover these key components in building a harmonious life and business. 

Carolina called them frequencies. 

For example, Connection, Growth, and Vitality.

We identified nine in total, which we would soon call The 9 Fundamental Frequencies of Sacred Business. 

Each of these nine frequencies honor both the required structures for business success as well as the innate intelligence and guidance of the heart when operating from the understanding that everything is connected.

We knew we had to bring these teachings to others, and it wasn’t long before we decided that the only way forward was to put the idea of everything being connected and the 9 Frequencies at the center of everything we would create in our own business going forward.

And as we brought this work to our initial set of clients, we began to see just how powerful our combined work was in creating powerful shifts in a very short amount of time.

Take Ed Zaydelman for instance …

Ed runs a successful business in Costa Rica called Live the Possibility where he helps his clients secure land and develop ecologically friendly projects such as retreat centers and community learning centers. Ed loves what he does, and his work has touched so many of the most well-known retreat and wellness centers across Costa Rica. 

Ed was deeply passionate about his work, deriving joy from assisting others and sharing his wealth of knowledge and experience. However, his financial return did not reflect the value he provided, mainly due to an undervaluing pricing structure and excessive time commitment. 

His disorganization and lack of consistency stemmed from a deeper disconnection, where he flowed with life without a clear, ordered approach, leading to every client interaction being uniquely tailored rather than streamlined through a structured program.

This lack of structure and clarity extended into his personal state, manifesting as anxiety and confusion, with his communication often repetitive and unfocused. Despite being proud of his spiritual journey, he was anchored to his past limitations and traumas, which clouded his self-worth and ability to receive. His outward generosity was tainted by an underlying need to feed his ego, revealing a disconnect between his intentions and actions.

His financial instability, alternating between sufficient and insufficient income, was a reflection of this deeper inconsistency. 

Can you relate? 

Have you ever thought, “I’m happy where I am spiritually, but not financially”?

This is a common thread for many heart-centered entrepreneurs, and it’s something the 9 Frequencies were designed to address.

Overthinking and a fear of missing out, driven by a need for external validation, further illustrated Ed’s disconnection from a clear, purposeful path. The chaotic state of his website mirrored his internal disarray, lacking clear navigation for potential clients to understand or engage with his services. In sum, his business challenges were deeply intertwined with a personal disconnection, affecting his ability to create a consistent, structured approach to both his life and business.

As we began our coaching work together, we not only helped reshape his business but also deepened his personal connection and understanding of the interconnectedness of life and work. 

Ed began by taking the Harmony Map Assessment to determine which frequencies were most seeking balance. He then worked through our Elevate Your Offer deep-dive process to reconnect to clarity in terms of where he wanted to take his business next and to set a proper foundation for further growth.

Ed then began to work with us on the Fundamental Frequencies of Connection, Simplicity, and Discipline by:

• Creating a newsletter that shared his unique message, employing a connection formula designed to attract and retain the ideal client base. 
• Developing a streamlined, user-friendly website that clarified the process for engaging his services.
• Developing a process for efficient email list management and crafting a signature offering, the “Land Accelerator,” to redefine his service value.
• Correcting the undervaluation of his time by introducing a paid “Ask Me Anything offer, leading to significantly increased revenue. 
• The creation of the “Land Stewards Alliance” group, leveraging his networking skills, leading to promising revenue growth with very minimal time investment. 

Structural reorganization was a major focus; we optimized his calendar and established daily routines to enhance productivity and focus. A meticulous sales call booking flow with a preliminary application process ensured that only suitable candidates would proceed to consultation, optimizing his time and energy. 

Through implementing planning rituals, we supported strategic foresight and reflection. 

And because everything is connected, the work went well beyond the business. Personal development was key; we had a strong focus on self-worth, and we were able to introduce breathing and mindfulness techniques to anchor Ed in the present, reducing his dependency on external validation. This holistic approach not only streamlined his business operations but also centered his energy, enabling him to slow down and curtail overthinking. 

The outcomes have been nothing short of remarkable!

Ed launched a successful mastermind program, established clear boundaries between business and personal relationships, and embraced a straightforward communication style. His newfound clarity and confidence in managing client and financial relationships has sparked great excitement for the future, lessened his need for external approval, and led to more stable revenue streams. 

All of this is a direct reflection of his commitment to cultivating a deeper, more interconnected state of being. 

How can your life be sacred if 90,000 hours at work is not?

​​

I recently read that the average person will spend 90,000 hours at work, which begs the question: Are you happy with how you are spending your days?

​This will end up accounting for over one-third of your life, and that’s not even taking into consideration all the time you spent preparing yourself in grade school and university.

​It’s not just you.

In fact, the majority of people report they are not happy at the place they spend the majority of their time, doing the things they spend the majority of their time on, and yet they find themselves repeating this routine every single day for a huge part of their life.

Massive disconnection from any sense of purpose!

​It doesn’t have to be this way.

Carolina and I believe that you are operating in your fullest expression when there is harmony between you, your business, and the divine.

​This becomes a sacred act of co-creation.

When you are in touch with all three and you operate from your essence, the Sacred Business powerfully emerges.

It can’t help but be an abundant source of personal fulfillment, while also being connected to something greater than you — a true gift to this world.

So this is our mission here with Sacred Business Flow.

To support you in connecting to this fullest expression of your heart's desire, and to be in touch with your essence.

And with this, you’ll no longer feel that you are alone, and you’ll realize you have the capacity to manifest all the continued support you need to move things forward powerfully and create the life of your dreams.

​Sacred Business is also a win-win mentality.

It's just just about "me"; it's about what's good for "us."

With this belief as the new foundation, it's also our mission to support you in building a road map of growth for your business that has the potential to outpace anything you’ve ever held to be possible.

We believe this is what freedom looks like.

A life free of compromise and full of joy, fulfillment, and adventure!

So what do you do with this information? How can you reach the highest expression of your heart’s desire, while connecting to your essence in spite of any level of uncertainty you might be facing in your business?