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IGI & The Coronavirus Part 2: An IGI Perspective on the Big Picture

May 2, 2020 by Stephen Rodgers

This is the second part of a three-part series of posts. This post will look at the big picture of this coronavirus pandemic situation and invites you to consider how this event can aid us in discovering what is truly important in our lives as we take the big picture perspective and discover compassion and our greater unity as Human Beings.

Part One focused on the practical steps we can take in our daily lives and our business and work lives.

Part Three will address the deeper, spiritual significance of this event and how you can view it from an IGI perspective that will help you navigate these chaotic times and evolve to experience more goodness in all aspects of your life.

Sometimes life gives us our greatest gifts cleverly disguised as our worst nightmares. When adversity happens we are challenged to dig deeper within and discover who we truly are and what is important in our lives. Sometimes we need these crises to happen in our lives to awaken us from our slumber and catalyze us into a greater experience of life.

The 4 B’s

This pandemic is an event that shakes us out of the habit of our daily routine and gives us the opportunity to reflect upon our lives and re-evaluate any number of things, such as whether we are living the life we desire and whether we are taking care of our physical, mental, and spiritual health. We can take responsibility for our bodies and our minds by taking care of our physical health and staying positive without succumbing to fear.

The time and space that you may have right now as you practice social distancing and are in a state of semi-quarantine is a great opportunity to focus on what I call the 4 B’s – Body, Bonds, Business, and Being. These four aspects of our life and health that are essential for our well-being and happiness.

During this time, you can nurture your Body by taking a walk or doing yoga and stretching at home, as well as making sure you eat a healthy diet to bolster your immune system. With the extra time on your hands, you can improve your Bonds by spending time with your immediate family as well as calling friends and relations on the phone. For Business, you now likely have more time to work on your business or work without distractions and can use this time to catch up on things while connecting with your clients through the Internet. Finally, your Being can be nurtured through any number of spiritual practices or by taking time for reflection and contemplation.

What is Truly Important?

In addition to using this opportunity to nurture your total health, this pandemic offers you an opening to discover a deeper sense of vision in your life path.

I think back to years ago when my wife was unexpectedly in the hospital. I was in the middle of selling one of my companies and was very busy with emails, phone calls, text messages, and meetings up until that night when she was unexpectedly taken into the hospital. The next day, she was in the ICU unit and I wasn’t sure if she was going to live. Suddenly, everything had a completely different meaning and every email and phone call seemed so insignificant and unimportant.

I no longer cared if I responded to them or not and it completely put into perspective what was important. I delegated some of that stuff to others because people still deserve answers, but I knew it wasn’t my purpose at that time because I had a new shift in priority.

When I think about the personal crises in my life in light of the coronavirus, as much as this is life-threatening and has ended some people’s lives and will continue to do so – at the same time it is good to look at the big picture of this. What does this mean for our global planet? What does this mean to us as human beings and what does this mean for our spiritual souls?

This is something that has happened from the beginning of time. Humanity has experienced famines, floods, and diseases periodically from the very beginning. Usually, when natural disasters do their initial damage, there’s always good that comes from it in the form of innovations and learning from the past. New theorems are created, new advances in healthcare are developed, new laws are passed that benefit the people, new regulations are passed, and people innovate new ways to do business.

In the same way, this situation can lead to positive growth, changes, and innovations within a business and in our society as a whole. Changes must inevitably occur within organizations as people tighten up their belts and stop spending money on things that aren’t essential. It causes people to reach out to people they would not otherwise come into contact with as they are looking for forgiveness and a sense of unity.

While there have been occurrences of selfishness and greed, such as fighting over toilet paper, there have been far more expressions of compassion. We may see that this event has caused the world to come together in solidarity and recognize our fundamental interconnectedness.

The Big Picture Perspective

I like to visualize this fact of our interconnectedness and gain a sense of perspective with the Google Earth application. If you zoom all the way in and look at your house you can look at the roof of the house and the backyard. You can then zoom out and see the neighborhood, you zoom out again and you can see the town. You can zoom out further to see the city, then the state, then the United States or whatever country you’re in. You can keep zooming out and can see half of the world before zooming out all the way and you’re through the atmosphere and you’re through the clouds in the sky. You look down and you see the earth, this round ball that’s spinning slowly that’s got such beautiful colors with the blue in the ocean and the green and you look at it and it gives you such a different feeling, looking at from that higher level looking down onto the earth.

Anytime there are daily problems or issues within my life, my business, or my relationships, I like to say, “OK. What level of the Earth do I need to zoom this out on?” A situation that seems very grave and serious when zoomed in up close becomes much less stressful when viewed from the broader perspective which sees the whole.

We have to deal with the problem at hand and we must have hands-on contact sometimes with these issues that might exist in business or life, or in this case, the coronavirus. But when you look at the very big global perspective and the spiritual perspective from the time humanity began and into our future you can see that we are currently in a very small place in time and space in the grand scheme of things.

By seeing the big picture perspective with this pandemic, you can see how this situation can be transformed into a benefit for yourself and for humanity as a whole. You can see how you can use what life has given you and turn it into a benefit for yourself, your loved ones, your business, and the world.

Whatever will happen with the coronavirus, whether it continues for a month, two months, or six months, whatever it’s going to be, there will be these ripple effects and it will have consequences for our world long after that.

Compassion & Unity

In these trying times, we must be in solidarity and compassion with those who have lost and will lose loved ones to this illness. Many souls will likely choose this time to leave the Earth and while this may be looked on as neutral from the absolute perspective, from a human perspective there will be much sorrow and experience of loss. This is an opportunity for all of us to further open our hearts and embrace the sorrow of the whole world. I hope that this worldwide experience will assist us all in recognizing our fundamental unity with all life.

You can look at every situation as to what you are being in service to – your ego or IGI. It is an opportunity to choose between being in your IGI versus acting from your ego. Those who act in ego will find themselves isolated, alone, living in fear, and actually weaken their immune systems causing themselves to become more susceptible to the virus.

Those who invite goodness in and act in IGI create for themselves a vital state of inner health and find support and solidarity with all of humanity as we collectively meet this challenge and a great opportunity to make positive changes in ourselves and within our co-created world.

Continue to read Part Three.

IGI & The Coronavirus Part 1: Personal and Business Perspectives

April 30, 2020 by Stephen Rodgers

This is the first part of a three-part series of posts. This article focuses on the practical steps we can take in our daily lives and in our business during the coronavirus event.

Part Two invites you to consider how this event can aid us in discovering what is truly important in our lives as we take the big picture perspective and discover compassion and our greater unity as Human Beings.

Part Three will address the deeper, spiritual significance of this event and how you can view it from an IGI perspective that will help you navigate these chaotic times and evolve to experience more goodness in all aspects of your life.

Right now, everyone is getting bombarded with messages about the Coronavirus as we all hunker down in our homes and wait out this storm. In this message, I would like to share the perspective that I am taking for myself, my family, and my clients, and how you can take a wider perspective of this event in your personal and professional life. These are some tips that can help your business during the coronavirus.

The IGI Principles

As all of California has been ordered to stay at home, I am in the process of finishing my new book called The IGI Principles: The Power of Inviting Good In vs Edging Good Out. I am very excited to share it with the world and expect it to be released in the next month or two.

This book is the culmination of a lifetime of work in both the fields of business and in my spiritual path, resulting in the term IGI, or Inviting God In. IGI is the exact opposite of the word ego and represents the power of inviting God, goodness, or whatever you call the higher power, into your life rather than edging God out through selfishness and fear.

All things in our lives can be informed by this idea of IGI, and the current situation is no exception. This pandemic is an opportunity to learn to invite more goodness into your life and to see how you can turn crisis into opportunity, lead into gold. I’m keeping that perspective for myself, my family and friends, and my clients. I believe that this is a perspective that can greatly benefit yourself, your business or organization, and the world as a whole which needs level-headed people who meet this situation with Spiritual Intelligence.

Here is my new website where you can find more information about the new book and how to order it so you receive a copy when it is released. Until then, expect more blog posts and messages from me containing simple and practical IGI Principles for you to apply in your own life.

Guiding Your Business Through These Times

This virus is having a major impact on our work lives and businesses. While it is impossible to stop this pandemic from harming your business completely, there are many things that you can do to minimize the damage. If you use this situation intelligently, you can even come out at the end of this crisis having evolved in your business beyond what you could have if everything had continued as before.

There is nothing in life that is inherently negative and can’t be transformed into a positive outcome. Many who look at the virus see it as a disastrous worldwide pandemic that destroys our health and our wealth. But what if we look at it another way? What if we see what it can teach us, how it can improve our lives, and possibly even aid our business in becoming more profitable than ever?

People still need services, help, and guidance – and in fact, these things are needed now more than ever. Even though many people are taking a step back from their daily lives, the world must continue moving forward. We have the financial economy and the health economy and clearly at this time the health economy needs to overtake and take precedent over the financial economy. However, you still need to keep your businesses viable and running. You still need to keep paying your rent or your mortgage and your bills to take care of your family.

While the world is collectively retreating to their homes to ride out this storm, this is the perfect time for you to creatively utilize your talents and your skills to reinvent, remodify, and repurpose how you communicate and how you provide your services to your customers.

This may take the form of offering some new menu of services that may take some new pricing models, it may take reaching out to your customers and finding out what it is they want now and what they don’t want. In this time where many are being careful with their spending, you can find out what they’re willing to pay for what they’re not willing to pay for.

One important thing is to make sure that you are taking all the prudent things that can be done to protect your employees. This may mean that they work from home and take appropriate sick time or paid vacation. You may need to figure out what compensation plans you have for people who are going to be affected by this.

This pandemic can be a good opportunity to modify your business model during the coronavirus and perhaps increase your utilization of the internet and social media. You can connect with your clients and customers through video blogs and messages, emails, blog posts, and social media such as Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube among others to reach out to those whom you haven’t been reaching out to as authentically and as clearly and consistently as you could have.

At this time, many people are staying home and have a lot of time on their hands, so this is a great time to produce content and get it out to your audience or customers to drive engagement and sales. This is also a wonderful opportunity to share with them how you can be of value and service to them and what your unique selling proposition is that might be of value in this time of need.

This could be a time you decide that paying it forward and giving some of your services out for the greater good in a way that you would not normally do is the right thing to do. You’re being generous and figuring out how to give it to the people who need it the most.

Or maybe, you can look into reducing some of your pricing for a while so that people can utilize these products and services for the benefit of the world economy. You may take a loss right now in your profits, but in the long run, people will remember you as a business who did the right thing and helped out when times were tough.

These are just a few of many suggestions for ways you can meet this challenging situation in your business or work life and successfully navigate through the stormy times we currently find ourselves in. By applying these principles and those we will discuss in Part Two and Three, you will better be able to stay in the eye of the storm where all is calm and clear.

Check out Part 2 here, and Part 3 here!

Doing Well By Doing Good

February 26, 2020 by influexwp

In today’s world, more and more people are learning to define success not just in dollars, but in how much their work helps others and the world as a whole. The idea of “doing well by doing good” is a powerful way of inviting goodness into your company and your life as you find ways to express your gifts as an act of service for all.

In my own life, I have experienced the profound effects of having an attitude and orientation towards service. From a young age, the value of being of service to others has been instilled in me as both of my parents’ careers were defined by service – my father served in the military and my mother served as a nurse. From their humble example, I learned by their daily actions much more than their words about humble service to the greater good.

These virtues were crystallized in my own early experiences in the Boy Scouts and then in my teenage years working in restaurants where it was my job to wait on others and ensure they were taken care of.

Since then, I have continued to hold many different positions with more and more responsibility and opportunity for leadership. Yet, the values that have enabled my success remain the same, whether it was waiting tables or directing a company with hundreds of employees.

The more you do good and the more you help others – the more you personally succeed.

By paying it forward and using your talents and energies to be of service to others you are inviting good in, you are living in IGI rather than ego.

Businesses That Do Well, Do Good

The existential threat of climate destruction and the increasingly obvious corruption and injustices in our society mean that a conscious, activist mindset is no longer only a fringe value. If we don’t take action in our individual lives to ensure that our actions serve to better humanity and the Earth, then we are contributing only to more suffering and injustice in the world.

It is an old, outdated, and false idea that the way to succeed in business in life is to get ahead at all costs and to care nothing for the greater good. The world is rapidly changing, and there is no longer any place for financial success without moral integrity. In the past, these two things could be mutually exclusive. However, today, businesses and individuals must “do good” to “do well”.

Therefore, people are seeking to do business with, and buy products from organizations that are conscious and acting in integrity in all aspects of their operation – whether that be how they treat their employees, their impact on the environment, and the overall consciousness of the business.

The old paradigm believed that one had to choose either financial success or helping others and that one could not accomplish both. The business leaders of today and tomorrow understand that one does not have to choose between these two – but that the more one helps others the more personal success they and their business receive.

To do well is to do good, and to do good is to do well. These two are one and the same.

This becomes an ever-increasing flow of benefit for both which mutually magnifies the good you can do in the world and the amount of financial success you attain.

Being of service invites more goodness, which in turn, drives more success. This turns into a powerful ever-growing force of positive energy that permeates your entire company, from the management to employees and to the customers. Everyone feels good about what they are doing and so has more energy and enthusiasm.

Service to Self, Service to Others, & Service to All

Central to this is understanding that one does not have to choose between service to self and service to others. A higher understanding knows that self and others are one. Therefore, service to others is service to self, and service to self is service to others. What we are doing is service to all.

You become rich by making others rich. And not just financially. Ask yourself: How can I help myself and others become rich in all ways? In one’s relationships, in one’s mental/emotional life, in one’s spirituality, and in one’s finances.

Being of service to all implies that you understand that there is more to life than making profits and material gain. You understand that you exist on this Earth to do your part in building a better world that we know is possible, that you contribute your unique piece of the puzzle.

The new paradigm is one of universal abundance and cooperation rather than the old false beliefs in scarcity and lack. The truth is that there are more than enough resources for everyone on the planet to live in luxury and thus, there is no need to attempt to get ahead by trampling others on your way to the top of the pile.

You can succeed in business through helping others and helping humanity as a whole. These two are not mutually exclusive, and truly never were! And today, more than ever people are demanding and seeking to work with and give their money to individuals and companies that live this principle of “doing well by doing good”.

From Ego to IGI

February 26, 2020 by influexwp

The biggest shift in my life, the one that has radically transformed all aspects of my health, relationships, and work – is the transformation from living in ego to IGI.

There are many different definitions of what ego is, but the one that resonates for me is one I read years ago in a book by Wayne Dyer in which he referred to ego as “Edging God Out”. This definition simply and directly reveals how our self-obsession closes us off from the higher power and intelligence which is all around us and is the very source of our existence. We become like a tree without roots, disconnected from the very source of our own life.

My own journey has been the same as the perennial human quest to learn to transform from an ego-centered consciousness to a more expansive consciousness in which the ego is the servant of a higher power. A path I am still walking daily.

As I daily seek to live in a way that does not edge goodness out, inspiration struck and I coined a term that is the exact opposite of ego in every way.

This word is IGI: Inviting God In.

(Or Inviting Goodness In if you prefer not to use the word God with all of its accompanying theological baggage.)

Where ego isolates you from existence by the false belief that you are separate from everyone and everything else, IGI is a reminder that you are intimately connected with all of creation. Where you once pushed goodness out in your ignorance, you know invite goodness in because you understand the power of surrender and allowing your life to be informed by a deeper purpose.

My own life has been the story of moving from ego to learning to surrender into IGI. I was always attempting to fill that hole in my soul, that inner longing, yet attempting to fill it in all the wrong ways. I was living in ego, edging God and goodness out through seeking business success while succumbing to alcohol addiction and neglecting my relationships and health.

By seeking God in all the wrong places and all the wrong ways I was only reinforcing my ego. Rather than inviting goodness in and allowing my life to unfold, I was continually shutting it out. It was only when my own suffering and my impact on those I loved the most became so great that the shell of my ego was broken and a little light was allowed to enter my being.

I saw the two paths that my life could go. Down one path I saw a broken old man who would die unfilled, down the other I saw a healthy man full of life and joy. When the consequences of my way of living were seen so directly, I had no other choice but to radically change. Since that day, my life has completely been transformed as I practice every day the discipline of remaining in IGI.

Now, my daily mantra when I am faced with a decision is to ask myself: “Am I in ego or IGI?”

This brings me back to what is truly important, back to my inner orientation. Taking a moment to be inwardly silent and tune in to the energy behind my actions is a constant reminder to act in IGI.

All too often, individuals in their ignorance believe that ego is “bad” and needs to be eliminated. However, a healthy ego is a good thing and an entirely necessary aspect of being human. It is good to love yourself, to take care of yourself, and to seek your own happiness. If you didn’t have an ego, a separate sense of self, you wouldn’t be able to feed yourself or protect yourself from others who may take advantage of you.

However, the ego must be in its proper place. It must be the servant of your heart and mind, never the master. The ego only becomes a problem when it becomes a tyrant and serves to “edge God out”. That is, when it sees itself as God, sees itself as the greatest power in existence. The person acting in ego pushes God out by believing that they are God – that they are the center of the universe.

Essential to transitioning from EGO to IGI is learning to let go and trust. Like myself, individuals who are seeking success in business are often highly goal-oriented and like to be in control. They operate under the belief that they must do everything themselves and make everything happen.

This attitude can serve you as you learn to be self-sufficient and understand that success won’t fall into your lap without your hard work. However, there comes a time in our lives when we come to understand that along with our hard work and attempt to realize our goals, we must also learn to surrender our personal will so as to open ourselves to an intelligence that transcends our own.

By moving from ego to IGI we learn that by “inviting God in” we gain more than we could ever possibly have by acting alone. We surrender our egoic separate self and open ourselves to being supported and inspired by a force that is infinitely more wise and powerful than our limited, thinking self.

Many see surrender as a giving up of one’s power. However, surrender is not giving up your power, but surrendering to the power you already and have always contained but didn’t even realize. We are suggesting that by inviting goodness in one surrenders their false, pseudo-power for their true power which they tap into when they allow themselves to follow their heart and be in service to the whole, rather than a selfish, separate self.

If we can do this, we may find that things magically fall into place better than we could ever have imagined. That when we relax our expectations and insistence upon a particular outcome, something better than our wildest imaginings can manifest. The fact is that we don’t know what the best possible outcome is, and by relinquishing our white-knuckled grip our lives can naturally and spontaneously provide us with exactly what we need.

EGO is Edging GOod Out
IGI is Inviting GOod In

The IGI principles I am daily learning and applying have transformed my life. I encourage you to use this same simple word to remind yourself to forgive, surrender, and be in service in your life.

I think you will find, just as I did, that the peace and fulfillment that you so deeply seek is already yours and present always. You just need to get out of your own way and open yourself to your true purpose of being on this Earth.

Try incorporating IGI in your own life as you shift your inner orientation from edging GOod(ness) out to Inviting GOod(ness) in!

Turning Inwards to Explore Your Hidden Capabilities

February 26, 2020 by influexwp

All human beings have a similar amount of inner capabilities when they are born in this beautiful world. However, some are able to channel their energy and use their mind in the right direction to produce results. While others are not able to maintain the right balance and struggle with everything that they do in life.

Have you ever wondered why it is so? It is because people are too busy with the distractions all around them that they never pay much attention to themselves. We, as a piece of life, have every little detail within ourselves that can help us to explore our strengths and capabilities. But due to lack of attention, we often keep rotating in the same habitual circles.

Seeing the Inner Potential

There are several methods and techniques that can be used for internal growth and realizing your inner potential. These methods have the power of making a person realize their true capabilities. Ancient Indian texts teach self-knowledge through yogic practices and Zen focuses on the development of self through meditation. Most of the time, a person needs external help from a counselor, guide, or a guru that helps in seeing the right path for them. But people today are so involved in their little world that they do not even consider exploring spiritual teachings or finding a teacher.

By limiting the mind, one destroys the possibilities of what can be achieved, and that is a big loss to humanity. By accepting the help of a professional and exploring the inner dimensions, one can grow to the extent that they have never even thought of before.

The mind is an excellent tool and if one knows how to control and use it consciously, it can help in creating wonders. But sadly, most people are suffering within their own minds by constantly and compulsively thinking and imagining. When one understands how to use their mind, they invariably produce the best results – not only for themselves but for the world around them.

Some of the benefits of turning inwards are:

Better Decision Making

Your level of awareness decides the quality of your decisions. When one focuses on finding themselves from within, they can then truly comprehend the situation and know their options. A good decision is always made when you see things the way they are without any prejudices or opinions.

Unlimited Access to Happiness

The best thing about turning inwards is that you discover real inner happiness that does not depend on outer circumstances. Whatever may be happening around you, your happiness will be decided by you and you will never lose opportunities to stay happy.

Freedom from Fear

We all have missed many good opportunities because of some fear within us. When we turn inwards and realize the potential of being human, we set ourselves free from these fears and then experience positive results.

Building Character

Once we are able to look at things with an honest heart, we create a character for ourselves that brings well-being for ourselves and everyone around us. This is very important, as with the right attitude you can do the things that you find most important in your life. These are the things that in doing them you find true fulfillment.

Final Thoughts

So, by looking within and understanding the true meaning of what it means to be human, a person can do things in a completely different manner. This enables the hidden capabilities of a person to be expressed as we make significant changes in the world and in ourselves.

Why Do People Struggle in Deciding Their Purpose?

February 26, 2020 by influexwp

“A soul without a high aim is like a ship without a rudder.”
– Eileen Caddy

Having an aim or a purpose in life is extremely important for living a happy, peaceful, and fulfilled life. Your aim in life is what helps you build an identity as an individual. However, there are millions of people who struggle in deciding their aim. All these people are living their lives by accident and constantly looking for someone or something to blame for things happening in their lives. This is one of the main reasons that people feel anxiety, stress, and tension in their life.

When one decides what they want from their life, they become committed to it and do whatever possible to make it happen. They start prioritizing their work according to the importance of things in their life. While fulfilling their vision, people get the strength to do things that they wouldn’t have imagined themselves doing and that is what makes their life more fulfilled.

Reasons Why People Struggle to Find Their Purpose

There are various reasons why people struggle in life to find their aim. Below are some of those reasons:

Lack of Introspection

People are often too busy fulfilling the dreams of others and never pay much attention to what makes them happy. If they introspect, they will understand the meaning of life and what is best for them to do. Once they figure this out, they won’t waste any time in deciding an aim for their life.

No Priorities

One of the most prominent reasons why people struggle to find an aim is that they do not have priorities in their lives. People just relentlessly keep on going in their lives without deciding what is important and what isn’t. It is essential for human beings to make priorities in life because once priorities are made, they start looking at the ways to fulfill them. There are a wide range of people who do not have any priorities set in their life, which leads them to various forms of suffering.

Refrain from Asking Help

Many never consider asking for help from their friends, family, or a professional. Some of them are egoistic and think nobody knows more than them, which destroys the many possibilities in their life. Some lack confidence and are not able to ask for help. Many such people fall into the trap of depression over time.

Too Afraid of Career

Many people make their career such a big thing in their minds that they often get buried under the pressure of it. From a very young age, due to their surroundings or environment, people make their careers such a big thing that the only thing in their mind is earning a living. They get so involved in making money, that they never open to the option of exploring what is best for them to do.

Conclusion

Every human has come with a limited amount of time in this world. So, each one of us must take some time out of our daily life, leaving behind all the compulsions, and figure out their true purpose. When one figures out what is best for them to do, they are able to find a purpose and live a joyful and accomplished life.