Leaders, Pay Attention To Your Karma. Here's Why.

"Karma is a dish best served cold""Karma never loses an address""Karma is like a rubber band"Karma: Life's little way of saying "Let's see how you like it"Never has so much been quoted by someone that doesn't exist...well, not in the physical form at least.The truth is, we all experience karma on a daily basis...including leaders. So in case you aren't clear as to what it is, how it works or why you should care - listen up.

The Truth About Karma

Unless you are either living under a rock or an enlightened being from another planet, you can't escape the effects karma has on your life and your experiences and this includes the workplace.The biggest misconception is that karma is some type of wish you make about revenge or ill will about another person who wronged you in your life or maybe something you unfortunately experienced. This may work in the movies but not so much in real life. In fact, it's quite the opposite.

Consider karma to be the spiritual equivalent of Newton’s Law of Motion:

• “For every action, there is an equal but opposite reaction.” When we exhibit a negative force in thought, word, or action, that negative energy will come back to us.

So if this is true, wishing ill upon another person would only draw that energy back to you. We are all made up of energy and as much as we want to hang our emotions on a meme, quote or magic eight-ball, it simply is a waste of time. You will never look good trying to make someone else look bad.Here's another hard truth about Karma: it's not keeping score.It's not how karma works.You will always get what you are a vibrational match for. Whether that’s a life of happiness and joy or a depressing life of pain and misery...that's it.There is no one on the sidelines of life watching your every move waiting for you to slip up.

Why Leaders Should Care

Everything you do as a leader is linked to your karma:

• How you treat others

• How you see our own role in the workplace

• The way you use resources

• How you develop your people

Since we know Newton's Law to be true, that also means we know leaders should pay special attention to how they are showing up and who they are being in the workplace.It means operating with a degree of integrity and owning their thoughts, behaviors, and actions.

"People don’t get what they deserve, they get what they attract"

As a leader, if you want to create a dynamic and inclusive culture, then embody that.If you want to be a part of a high performing team, then embody that.If you want to have more transparency, then be transparent.See where this is headed?Be intentional, own your energy and seek to have others become a vibrational match.You own this. You drive this. You get to say how you choose to show up.

The 12 Laws of Karma For Leaders

Below is a list of the 12 Laws of Karma. Use them as a reminder on how to show up in (and out of the) workplace.

1. The Great Law or The Law of Cause & Effect: Whatever you put out into the Universe will come back to you.

2. The Law of Creation: Life requires our participation to happen. It does not happen by itself.

3. The Law of Humility: One must accept something in order to change it. 

4. The Law of Growth: All we are given is ourselves. That is the only thing we have control over. When we change who and what we are in our hearts, our lives follow suit.

5. The Law of Responsibility: We mirror what surrounds us, and what surrounds us mirrors us; this is a Universal Truth. One must take responsibility for what is in one’s life.

6. The Law of Connection: Everything in the Universe is connected, both large and small...including us.

7. The Law of Focus: One cannot think of two things at the same time. 

8. The Law of Giving & Hospitality: If one believes something to be true, then sometime in their life they will be called upon to demonstrate that truth. 

9. The Law of Here & Now: One cannot be in the here and now if they are looking backward to examine what was or forward to worry about the future. Old thoughts, old patterns of behavior, and old dreams prevent us from having new ones.

10. The Law of Change: History repeats itself until we learn the lessons that we need to change our path.

11. The Law of Patience & Reward: True joy comes from doing what one is supposed to be doing and knowing that the reward will come in its own time (ie: "patience is a virtue")

12. The Law of Significance & Inspiration: One gets back from something whatever they put into it. The true value of something is a direct result of the energy and intent that is put into it. 

IN THE END: 

Karma is real and leaders need to pay special attention to theirs. Karma is about being given the opportunity to change your vibration and energy and attract something different. The universe will always give you what you need when you need it - nothing more or less. Karma is not punishment, it’s not revenge, it’s not justice. Karma is the universe giving you opportunities to transform your vibration and simply show up and lead.