Reawakening the Spirit in Work

"All Leadership is Spiritual," says Jack Hawley. Though that concept sounds sweeping, reading through the book the reader evolves the thought that the concept was not alien after all. The book takes the reader through elements that leadership and spirituality in such a manner that the reader keeps wondering, `Why didn't this thought occurred in my mind earlier?' Probably, that is what makes this book wonderful. The book introduces the concept of Spirit with the quote of Joseph Campbell by stating "There is a dimension of the universe unavailable to the senses". The book expresses Spirit as the Vitality/ Aliveness that dwells and also refers to Spirit as the source of energy within us and a part of us. As promised, the book goes beyond the theories of abstractness, and thus tries to explain the spirit of Spirit through the words of an IBM employee, who lives the spirit of the famed IBM Service standards and thus tries to communicate what spirit is about. The book is laden with powerful anecdotes and stories, which, in addition to opening wonderful vistas of thoughts, brings to us memories when we were "spiritual", but never realized. From Alexander the Great's march into the Kulu valley in North Western India to a lovey-dovey incident between two small kids during a birthday party, these selected incidents do help the reader to stand aside, be a witness and then to merge in the nectar of Love. The reader will be able to find a number of autobiographical elements in the pages of the book, as the author has been successful in connecting with the deep yearnings of an individual. This connection that the author develops with a reader helps the reader to engross his attention to the book. The book is divided into five sections. The first section is about Reawakening to Spirit in Management and Life, followed by the section that deals with Love and Reverence in Work and Life. The third section deals with realigning beliefs, thoughts and being, while the fourth section deals with strengthening personal and organizational integrity. The final section is about spiritual core of leadership. The book deals with various facets of a Leader like Leader as a Servant, Leader as a Steward, Leader as a Sense Maker, Leader as a Guide, Leader as a Yogi and yes, Leader as a Warrior too. The author travels 6000 years back to narrate a conversation between the warrior supremo Bhishma, who is on his deathbed, and Prince Yudhishtira, at the end of the fierce battle in Kurukshetra. The author soon takes the reader from this historical incident to the modern day business wonder of Hard Rock Café, an acclaimed chain of restaurants and its founder, Isaac Tigrett, who bought in "Spirit" and "Love" to his workplace, before leaving the company. The book speaks about the `Reverence Continuum' in organizations, a model which raised eyebrows and quizzical looks when the author was introducing the model as part of a management development programme. The book while acknowledgi