Two Birds in a Tree

11Leading as a Sage

By Being’s sacred sound,The wise reach that which isPeaceful, beyond aging and death,Fearless and ever supreme.PRASHNA UPANISHAD

For the lower bird, the journey to the higher bird holds yet another possibility: the ability to fly directly to the trunk near where the higher bird rests. In the case of business, we have considered three different ways in which Being-centered leaders lead by example: as an inclusive materialist, as a humanist, and as a steward. But these ways can also be integrated within the same person, much like the tree trunk integrates all the tree’s branches. Also, this integration often spans a long portion of one’s life, much like the tree trunk spans the tree’s life.

The key to such integration is a concept ...