The greatest gift of being an entrepreneur is the ability to be free and chart our course, guided by a moment-to-moment trust in Divine guidance. This idea is central to Krishna’s teaching. In Stephen Cole’s book The Great Work of Your Life, we are reminded of the gift of following our Dharma. The Sanskrit word “dharma,” as used in the Bhagavad Gita, is so full of meaning that it is impossible to grasp its full scope through a single English translation. In his classic Introduction to the Study of Hindu Doctrines, Rene Guenon comes as close as any author to the meaning of dharma, as we will use here. Dharma, he says, is the essential nature of a being, comprising the sum of its qualities or characteristics and determined by the tendencies or dispositions it implies, how this being will conduct itself, either in a general way or about each particular circumstance.
The word dharma refers to the peculiar and distinctive qualities of each of those essential qualities that make us somehow what we are. Discovering our Dharma is central to the entrepreneur's journey; a straightforward example of honoring your dharma in that your vocation would be to be involved in a vocation of love. For example, one of my mentees reported having a revelation of sorts about her previous roles in organizations. She described the industry she had worked in for more than three decades; her voice while describing her position was lifeless. She explained at first that she loved the work, the people, and the teams and still became increasingly uncomfortable with the pressure and expectations placed on her to perform at higher and higher capacities. She reported that one day, even though nothing in her roles had changed, she felt an immense amount of inner pressure, and when it felt like too much, she said, It just got to be too much, and I quit.
As she explored her dharma, she sensed something was calling her to express it differently. This is the junction between doing what we have always done and changing to embrace our peculiar and distinct qualities; peculiar, at its root, is defined as something that belongs to a specific person. The word distinct at its root is described as recognizably different.
These two aspects are the fundamental bedrock of living one's dharma. It is individual. The path to expressing our dharma in our business or vocation is about knowing when to act and refrain from action—evaluating the right action, what is wrong or not working, and what brings security and triggers insecurity.
When we are in line with our distinct attributes and qualities that honor our nature, we align with our nature, and decisions become more evident. We are placed in an objective position to evaluate when to act and refrain from action. A good example might be if your guiding attributes are freedom, joy, and self-expression; expressing in an environment that is structured, serious, and requires you to conform to already established norms may prove to be an unhealthy environment for you to strive in.
Once we are explicit about our attributes, we recognize these qualities are not new. They have always been there, albeit hidden from view; we can think of it as uncovering the most authentic aspects of our being and rediscovering the dharma of our soul. Self-deceit begins to take a backseat to self-honesty, becoming the driver. Evaluating the right action differs from seeing what is wrong or not working. The right action keenly evaluates whether this action supports my dharma, those attributes at the center of my soul. The act of change will forever prompt us to ask, Do I feel secure? The answer may not be what we want to hear, but the fact is that when we change, it ultimately triggers insecurity.
The highest ideal is to honor our innate desire for freedom and release what brings bondage to follow our dharma, which is less about our outer world and more about our inner world. Here, our attributes are rediscovered, qualities that make us beautiful and unique, qualities we may find challenging to own because to own who and what we are requires living from the inside out, not the other way around.
A good step towards embracing your dharma is to ask, How is my soul? Listen and let your inner voice answer; your dharma is always soul-centric and yearning to guide you.
Zina Kacha is a progressive and certified spiritual educator and entrepreneur with three decades of experience supporting women to thrive with their businesses.
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