Megatrends 2010: The Rise of Conscious Capitalism

If you were to read three books that delivered the most accurate insight into the pulse of the business industry in the last few decades, they would have to be Megatrends, Megatrends 2000 and now Megatrends 2010. Megatrends, published in 1982, predicted what authors Aburdene and Naisbitt termed the "information economy". In 1990, this husband and wife team went a step further with Megatrends 2000 and forecast the massively technology-driven age of the internet and its far-reaching consequences. Megatrends 2010, written solely by Patricia Aburdene, asserts that business will not be driven by external, social, or technological forces so much as "the internal dimension of change". What she's predicting is a spiritual megatrend that will define and take firm hold of business as we know it. Aburdene's projected megatrend looks at ethics, values and spirituality in business as well as socially-responsible investing. It explains why firms are taking a stand for corporate social responsibility and why so many people are choosing to buy from companies who share or reflect their values and lifestyle choices. She sees both new-economy and old-guard companies alike, tapping into the "rise of conscious capitalism" in order to do any or all of the following: clean up the corporate image, save the environment, help the less fortunate, and, of course, boost the bottom line.?? What I find most heartwarming about Aburdene's inspired vision is the overwhelming numbers of dedicated meditation practices popping up in corporation after corporation, in large and small companies all over North America. A trend she sees growing and deepening. Ahhh...

The message of this book, well-presented and abundantly documented, is that we're on the threshold of a new era in corporate leadership. Aburdene, a veteran of authoring trends books going back to the original Megatrends with John Naisbitt, forecasts a growing movement toward socially responsible corporate policies as a counterbalance to the equally legitimate objective of earning a reasonable profit. "Welcome to the Dawn of Conscious Capitalism-a popular, decentralized, broad-based crusade to heal the excesses of capitalism with transcendent human values." Enough with the greed, asserts Aburdene. The shift will be toward spirituality, social awareness, emphasis on values, and community service-for the corporations themselves and for their employees. Citing company after company that is actively committing to operating differently, Aburdene believes that "...the quest for Conscious Capitalism-that is, integrity, transparency, enlightened governance as well as higher social and environmental standards-is regaining momentum." This orientation is good for the world, the community, the company, and its people, she says, pointing out the moral companies often outperform the market. People are changing, their expectations are changing, their behaviors are changing. People and organizations are transforming-which sounds like one of those "big bang" theories about cataclysmic change. Not so, says Aburdene. "...when we talk about transformation, it's not a shift from the profane to the sacred. What is transforming is our awareness. We are waking up and smelling the roses-that is, the presence of Spirit all around us-and the scent is both comforting and intoxicating." This is what you will read in this Megatrends book. This is the story of The Spiritual Transformation of Capitalism currently underway. I'm not sure the movement is as strong as the author would have us believe, but we are hearing more about social responsibility in the corporate world. Whether the influence is coming from Sarbanes-Oxley or CEOs with higher motivations, something is happening out there. This book will give you greater insight into the who, what, how, and even why. The presentation is well-documented, with 20 pages of end notes. I was impressed with the index-14 pages of small type entries that make this book endlessly useful. Extra value was added with the resources section in the back of the book. Provided to the reader are page of references on Socially Responsible Investing, Spirituality in Business-Centers and groups and Practitioners, and Conscious Consumption. Finally, I was impressed by the way this book walks its talk. On the back page is a message from the publisher: "For this print run, 21,000 pounds of post-consumer waste used instead of virgin fiber saved 253 trees, 11,858 pounds of solid waste, 107,557 gallons of water, 43,255 kilowatt hours of electricity, [and] 23,295 pounds of net greenhouse gases." Right in keeping with Aburdene's message. There are

I've been a fan of the MegaTrend series since the beginning.. but was apprehensive when I saw that John Naisbitt was not involved in this book. Even while reading, I kept thinking.. this isn't what I expect from a Megatrends book. Despite this disconnect.. and especially upon further reflection, I've found that MegaTrend 2010 has indeed followed the major trends and is very appropriate for today. Amazing research is sited showing that more and more people are expecting good corporate citizenship. Aburdene tells us this proves Milton Friedman wrong "A corporation exists for the benefit of it's shareholders"... though I'd compromise and say that now "A corporation exists to benefit it's shareholder according to their current values" Besides, several examples are cited where a corporation doing the right thing MAKE MORE PROFIT. That's got to benefit the shareholders. This is one of the trends. Thought provoking, important issues for our time, and great for planning ahead. If you're going to be around for a few years... read this book.

In their 1982 title Megatrends, Patricia Aburdene and her former husband John Naisbitt talked about the birth of the Information Economy; in Megatrends 2000, published in 1990, they predicted the networked, technology-driven Internet era. The coming megatrend, Aburdene asserts, will not be driven by external, social, or technological forces so much as "the internal dimension of change" that will reinvent free enterprise. And she's predicting that this spiritual megatrend will take firm hold of the American way of business by, say, 2010. In seven chapters the book identifies the major facets of the new megatrend, including: * The Power of Spirituality - From Personal to Organizational * The Dawn of Conscious Capitalism * Leading from the Middle * Spirituality in Business * The Values-Driven Consumer * The Wave of Conscious Solutions * The Socially Responsible Investment Boom Along the way, Aburdene offers many intimate portraits of the people behind the spiritual evolution in business, from meditating CEOs to value-driven consumers and socially responsible investment counselors. In "Leading from the Middle," Aburdene suggests that conscious capitalism will spell an end to the era of high-profile CEOs who are outrageously overpaid not only to provide symbolic leadership of corporations, but to take virtually all the credit and blame for their companies' fortunes. The question is what this and all the other "conscious capitalism" trends really portend for the future of American commerce. To Patricia Aburdene, this future will be one in which "the spiritual transformation of capitalism" will shift the American way of doing business "from greed to enlightened self-interest, from elitism to economic democracy, from the fundamentalist doctrine of `profit at any cost' to the conscious ideology that espouses both money and morals." If the author is overly optimistic, one hopes that she's not too far off the mark. In a time when natural disasters and accelerating environmental decline are colluding with exceptional political ineptitude to stress the great American experiment as never before, it might just be the approaching enlightenment of capitalism that illuminates a sane, sustainable path ahead for us all. -- From the Fearless Spotlight Review by D. Patrick Miller

Whether or not you agree with Patricia Aburdene's projected megatrends that include such themes as ethics, values and spirituality in business as well as socially responsible investing, the book presents persuasive evidence that the trends are underway right now. Indeed, these megatrends are taking hold so rapidly and firmly that everyone needs to be fully cognizant of these issues if they are to succeed in today's and tomorrow's business world.