Scott is a pioneer of workplace mindfulness programs and advancing compassion at work. He blends his experience as a Silicon Valley executive with his practice and passion as a wisdom seeker. He is the author of The Full Body Yes.

scott-shute.jpg

Scott Shute

<h4>
 SCOTT SHUTE is
 a pioneer of creating workplace mindfulness programs and advancing the
 discussion around compassion at work. He blends his experience as a Silicon
 Valley executive with his lifelong practice and passion as a wisdom seeker
 and teacher. In his recent role at LinkedIn, Scott was the Head of
 Mindfulness and Compassion programs, and he is the author of the highly
 acclaimed book, The Full Body Yes. Here, he is interviewed by
 EMILIE MOGENSEN.
</h4>

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 Q: I am super happy that Scott has kindly agreed to talk to me
 about
 conscious business and entrepreneurship. It means a lot to me in my journey
 as an entrepreneur and as a student at the
 <a href="https://innermba.soundstrue.com/">Inner MBA program</a>, where
 Scott is a faculty lead. His work on how to implement ancient wisdom
 traditions in modern work life is really cutting edge.



 In his book, Scott explains how we can learn from each other’s
 stories. His
 story really resonates with me, especially the fact he started his spiritual
 search at a very early age, and later in life became an entrepreneur with an
 achiever mindset.



 I take a few deep breaths, like he taught us in one of the
 programs. I can
 do this.



 Hi Scott!



 (The fact Scott starts by thanking me for the work I do in the
 world makes
 me grateful, because I have met a humble and kind man.)



 I am curious how a young boy in “super rural Kansas” became
 inclined to
 seek within.



 SS: Yes, I grew
 up in rural Kansas, which is the exact middle of America. I am the youngest of
 five children and went to a traditional little country church. I always felt I
 had a deep love for the Divine, but I didn’t really understand or resonate
 with our religion.



 When I was ten or eleven, I started asking lots of questions to my parents and
 pastor, and I didn’t like the answers I was getting, so I started searching
 for something different. I knew and believed there was something different.
 One of my brothers had been touring America, and when he came back to run the
 farm with my dad he kept disappearing for long weekends. Nobody knew what was
 happening. Finally, my sisters and I pinned him down and he shared that he had
 found a different path. He was going to spiritual retreats, and when he shared
 some of the teachings and belief systems from those retreats, I started
 weeping.



 It was a feeling of connection – a sort of knowing when I am in tune
 with something powerful. I knew I had come home after lifetimes of being
 separated, like two parts of a magnet that knew the other side was out there
 and finally they were together. It has been a big part of my life ever since.



 My parents were concerned and thought we had joined a cult. For some people,
 anything that is not their traditional religion is a cult. But over time they
 realized we are good people, regardless of what we believe. My mom,
 especially, has seen the growth and impact it has had on me and in what I do
 in the world.



 Q: Is it the same spiritual practice that you
 do
 now?



 SS: Yes, it is. I tend not to give the name of it, because I
 am out in the working world and I don’t want spirituality to get in the way of
 what I do at work. But I am also happy to share more about it when people
 reach out and are interested.


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 Q: Can you share what you do in your
 spiritual practice?
 Do you meditate?



 SS: It looks like meditation, but I
 don’t call it meditation. I call it
 a spiritual exercise and the purpose is to get in touch with the deepest part
 of myself. In my worldview, that is soul. I believe that I am soul,
 that is my true identity, and I have a personality called Scott. The body, the
 mind, the emotions are the things the soul uses to get around. When I operate
 from the perspective of soul, then things go better. I have deeper insights,
 more understanding, and I can be more in tune with life.



 So, there are several different practices: there is singing the word “HU,”
 which has been used in different traditions throughout history, and there are
 visualizations. If I am trying to manifest something, I do a lot of inner
 work, like the poet Rumi talks about spending as much time in the invisible
 world as in the visible world. We are creating with our thoughts, so if we
 want to be more conscious about what we create, it requires constant inner
 work. That’s some of what I am doing.



 Q: I am curious to hear more about your
 entrepreneur side.
 I’m not the right person to discuss the corporate stuff, as I don’t have
 much experience, but I have a lot as an entrepreneur. Can you say something
 about your inner drive as an entrepreneur?



 SS: Less than two
 months ago, I left LinkedIn. My vision is to change work from the inside out,
 and I mean that in the biggest way as 3.5 billion of us are in the workplace.
 My mission is to mainstream mindfulness and operationalize compassion. I’m
 trying to be of service. I was an entrepreneur earlier in life, when I created
 a start-up to help coaches get more business. Back then, I was trying to do
 good things, but I was also trying to make a living, whereas now I have the
 benefit of having done well in life, finances are less critical, so I’m really
 following spirit and what really wants to manifest.



 Each one of us has a unique set of skills that only we have. I am the only one
 in the world who is the world expert in “being me.” So, I’m trying to follow
 the path of bringing consciousness and the business world together, because
 there are very few of us who have my background with both things. I am trying
 to let the drive be less “change the work from within,” and more “follow my
 own heart and soul.”



 I think that soul is creative by nature. How does soul use personality, like
 all the skills we’ve developed? It can be as a teacher, a caregiver, a
 guitarist, or a barista. In my case it’s being a businessperson. How do I use
 those skills for the greatest and highest good?



 Funnily enough, the finances flow much more easily when I am focused on that
 rather than on the finances.


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<h4 class="has-text-align-center">
 I’m trying to follow the path of bringing consciousness
 and the
 business world together, because there are very 
 few of us who have my background with both things. I am trying to let
 the drive be less “change the work from within,” and more “follow
 my own heart and soul.”
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 Q: Spiritual entrepreneurship, how does that
 resonate? It
 sounds like you’re moving your ego to the background and surrendering to
 what has to happen?



 SS: There is a
 Japanese concept called Ikigai, which is the intersection of four circles:
 What you’re good at, what you love to do, what you can get paid for, and what
 the world needs. In building a career, the most satisfying is when you are in
 the middle of this circle.



 Had I just become a spiritual bohemian when I was twenty-two, instead of going
 into the world of business, I probably would have done some good things, but
 my impact would be limited as I would not have credibility. I created a
 skillset in my career to make a living, then tried to get closer and closer to
 what I am good at and what I like. Then, I think, the fourth one has more
 meaning to us as we get older: What does the world need?



 So now I try to live with this question in mind: How do I operate from the
 perspective of soul, and how do I make it practical and survive in this world?



 Q: To fit in where the world needs you – is
 that something
 you feel?



 SS: Yes, I absolutely feel it as being
 in the center point. We
 sometimes talk about our genius zone, where we are our best.


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 Q: Is it about working from that original
 place within,
 closest to the center?



 SS: When I talk about becoming more
 aware as soul, it’s the
 same as, “What is the truth about me?” and getting closer and closer to that
 truth of why I am here.



 Q: In many ways, being a person who seeks
 within can seem
 like a contradiction to being a busy businessperson or an entrepreneur. I
 felt this myself at times. Can you put some words to this meeting of these
 two aspects of yourself, as it somehow seems to be the essence of your soul
 purpose? How can an achiever let go and let everything unfold as it has to
 unfold?



 SS: I think it’s
 one of the hardest things, and I struggled with it for a very long time. How
 to be an achiever and be at ease? It makes me think of two stories from the
 spiritual traditions.



 The first story is of a teacher and a student. Some sort of baptism is taking
 place, and the teacher takes the student and dunks his head underwater. The
 student struggles and, just before he expires, the teacher lifts his head up
 and the student gets to breathe again. Then the teacher says, “When you
 want God or truth as much as you wanted air, then you will find it.”



 The second story goes: When you finally let go of searching for truth or God,
 you will find it.



 I was thinking: How can these two stories exist in the same universe? How does
 this work? I have an understanding of it now. We have this deep inner
 striving, and it shows up in our human form as a striving to survive. Our
 human bodies are built to survive, to make money, to make a family, and all
 that stuff, and we want to be successful in the world. That’s very important,
 but at some point we have to let go of the results. There is a very powerful
 and necessary striving,and then there is the letting go.



 In the early part of our lives and careers, we become really good at certain
 things, and our focus tends to be on them. But at some point, hopefully we
 look up and go, “Is there not more to this?” And when we finally say, “Yes,
 there is more to this, and I want to be of service,” it’s all our skills which
 allow us to be of service in the world.



 We have this inherent desire to exercise a skillset, to use what we know. And
 then we have soul, that wants to create in the world. And then there is the
 letting go of the result, which is a fine line of development. How do I do
 both things and live on the razor’s edge, in the middle of these two forces?
 That’s the beauty of life right there.



 Q: That’s very difficult!



 SS: It’s extraordinarily difficult!
 It’s a continual practice
 and the road gets narrower the further you go.



 Q: I have heard you say that we are moving
 from a
 me paradigm to a we paradigm. Can you put some words on
 how that influences entrepreneurship in the future?



 SS: Sure. Let’s think of it as
 spiritual development. We spend
 our lives thinking about “Me, me, me, my own survival, my own success, my own
 needs.” At some point we wake up and go, “There is more to this.” For me it
 was a natural process – I got married, I became a leader, and it became
 obvious that I would not be successful unless “we” are successful. This often
 happens naturally as we get older, I think, this we-orientation. It becomes
 the path towards our own freedom, when we learn to give. And I don’t think
 giving is selfless, as giving includes ourselves. This is when we start to
 orient to the whole versus just us, and we are then able to do so much more.
 Research bears this out at every level – at the individual level, the team
 level, and the company level, in terms of success.



 If you’re having a discussion with your partner, you might bully your way into
 having your own way, and it might work a few times. But if you continue to do
 this over and over again, in the long run, you won’t have a partner. In the
 long run, being selfish means you end up with less. If you think of serving
 the whole, you get it your way sometimes and sometimes not, but both people
 are happy and end up with more.



 It works in the same way in an organization, with customers and colleagues. If
 I have a deep awareness of my customers and wish the best for them, I will
 develop great service and products for them. The third part of compassion is
 the courage to take action. Sometimes I need to do what is right for my
 customers, and maybe it’s not great for me in the short term, but over the
 long term, if I balance the needs of my employees, my customers, and my
 shareholders, then long term I will be more successful. And the research bears
 this out; companies who operate this way are fourteen times more profitable.
 So, if you say you don’t have time for compassion in your organization, I say
 you don’t have time
 not to do this.



 Said in a really crass way, if you wanna build a successful company, if you
 wanna make more money, then you must work for the whole.


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 It becomes the path towards our own freedom, when we
 learn to give.
 And I don’t think giving is selfless, as giving includes
 ourselves.
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 Q: So, do you think more and more companies
 and
 entrepreneurs will start working from their soul and not their ego?



 SS: I hope so! All the wisdom
 teachings go back thousands of
 years. There is this beautiful quote in the book Atomic Habits by
 James Clear: “Our lives do not rise to the level of our goals, they fall to
 the level of our systems.” This was said by the Roman philosopher Gaius
 Acilius, 2,200 years ago. My point is, this wisdom has always been there, but
 we haven’t followed it. It seems to be the same in every lifetime; it’s the
 same with our kids, we can teach them something, but unless they go through it
 themselves, they don’t learn it.



 So, my prediction is that it will probably be the same for the rest of
 eternity [laughter]. And still, I have hope!


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To be continued.


 <a href="https://www.scottshute.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://www.scottshute.com/
 </a>



 <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottshute/" target="_blank"
 rel="noreferrer noopener">https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottshute/</a>


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<h4 class="has-text-align-center">Illustrations by ANANYA PATEL</h4>

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Mindful vulnerability

<h4>
 SCOTT SHUTE
 is a pioneer in creating workplace mindfulness programs and advancing the
 discussion around compassion at work. He is at the intersection of the
 workplace and ancient wisdom traditions, blending his experience as a
 Silicon Valley executive with his lifelong practice and passion as a wisdom
 seeker and teacher. In his recent role at LinkedIn, Scott was the Head of
 Mindfulness and Compassion programs. He is the author of the highly
 acclaimed book,
 The Full Body Yes: Change Your Work and Your World from the Inside
 Out.
 
</h4>

<h4
 id="h-in-part-2-of-this-interview-with-emilie-mogensen-he-explores-vulnerability-as-a-leadership-quality-the-value-of-an-expanding-consciousness-and-wisdom-practices-at-work">
 In part 2 of this interview with
 EMILIE MOGENSEN, he explores vulnerability as a
 leadership quality, the value of an
 expanding consciousness, and wisdom practices at work.
</h4>

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 Q: So, have we not learned anything collectively? Have we not
 pushed it to
 the extent of how far the ego can go?



 SS: Of course. I
 think we rise in consciousness, but the challenges are always there. There is
 still war and destruction, even though we know better. There are still places
 where terrible things happen, and there are places where beautiful things
 happen: consciousness, beauty and love happen. I choose to spend my time where
 the beauty happens, and change the world from the inside out, and if the rest
 of the world changes, fine. I focus on me.



 Q: So, I am getting a little personal. I noticed you used the
 word
 “vulnerability”a few times in your lectures. At the same time, I sensed a
 very interesting energy in my own being. I felt it as very vulnerable, which
 seemed really authentic coming from you. I felt very mesmerized and able to
 maintain my focus on your messages, despite being a rather impatient,
 typical entrepreneur. It was very intriguing how you use this quality to
 come forward with your messages. Is vulnerability a quality we need to be
 more curious about in the future?



 SS: Absolutely!
 First of all, as humans, we are programmed to mirror vulnerability. In other
 words, if I share vulnerability, people around will do the same – that is how
 we are wired. There is very interesting research on this.



 Regarding vulnerability as a leadership quality, we want to follow leaders who
 feel real. We want to follow leaders we can identify with. So, if a leader is
 perfect, steely, and never shows any weakness, they are distant from us,
 whereas, when we can see ourselves in our leaders, we are much more likely to
 follow them. I think that is a superpower and works for followership.



 It also serves us as leaders to build strength, because we tend to protect
 ourselves against harm. But what happens when we share with people who we
 really are? It sets us free.



 When we share our weakness and get over ourselves there is some growth that
 happens. We can’t be harmed, as we have already shared our weakness. Just like
 I said about desire versus letting go: when we let go of ourselves, we get
 more in return.



 Q: Do you think the main purpose of our work and business
 endeavors can be
 to expand consciousness?



 SS: Yes. I think
 everything in life is about expanding consciousness, and work can be as good
 as going to a monastery! Of course, I must focus on my organization to succeed
 when I am at work; but tucked away in my mind, I know it’s to develop myself.



 The most important work we can do is to develop our own consciousness. Because
 then, whatever we do, we are going to be so much more effective, we will be so
 much more!


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 Q: How would it impact the world if everyone worked with
 expansion of
 consciousness as our approach, secondary to whatever we do?



 SS: Imagine what
 that would do to the world! It would absolutely benefit the whole if everyone
 worked for the “we”instead of the “me.”



 Q: I was touched in one of your lectures, when you said that
 we use the
 word “compassion” because we are too shy to call it love. We can even take
 it a step further – we are way too intimidated to call it Divinity. Can you
 speak a little bit about that? Is there place for Divinity in modern work
 life and business endeavors?



 SS: I think Divinity is everything. Nothing is not a part of the Divine. It’s
 the language and how we talk about it that we must focus on. My job is to
 operationalize compassion – how do you develop products and sell them
 compassionately. That makes sense to everyone. But deep inside, when I talk
 about compassion, I’m really talking about love. And when I talk about love,
 I’m really talking about the Divine. So, I am consciously thinking about how
 to operationalize the Divine at work.



 We are probably not ready yet to use this language, because some people get
 confused and think it’s about religion. I’m not talking about religion at all.
 It’s the last thing I’m talking about.


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 If I practice wishing others the mindset of kindness and
 having the
 courage to take action, then I am living this divine principle of
 compassion. Work becomes the living expression of my Divinity in
 the world.
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 Q: That’s why I’m pushing a bit here. I’m very curious about
 whether these
 ancient wisdom practices can be translated and operationalized into modern
 work life, without losing a bit of their deep transformative
 potential?



 SS: I think there
 are two different things. First, is the path to enlightenment through work?
 Not exactly, but you can consciously have your path to enlightenment using
 work as a context. To get enlightened, I don’t need to go and meditate full
 time under a tree or join a monastery. I can be an executive, or a frontline
 worker, or a barista, and still have the same spiritual experiences. The
 context is just as valid.



 If I pick a religion, let’s say Christianity, I can follow the ethos of one of
 the key principles, “Treat others as you would want to be treated.” If I
 practice that at work – wishing others that mindset of kindness and having the
 courage to take action – then I am living this divine principle of compassion.
 Work becomes the living expression of my Divinity in the world.



 If I join a monastery and become enlightened, who cares? Whereas, if I
 practice these principles among thousands of people at work, then I make a
 real difference.



 Q: Yes, you have. Thank you for that, Scott.



 Can you give some tips to anyone wanting to bring
 contemplative practices
 or meditation to their workspace?



 SS: I have a few
 tips and playbooks but first, if you’re coming from a spiritual perspective
 you need to leave some stuff at the door. No gurus, no religion, none of that.
 The stuff you do at work needs to be secular. You can do a lot within that
 zone – breathing practices and meditation – but most importantly, you need to
 use the language of the environment you are in.



 What do people need? If they just need a break from their mind, to feel some
 peace, that’s great! Give them that. Second, just start. I started at LinkedIn
 in a conference room, and there was one guy present. The following week there
 were three, then five, and it grew organically from there.


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 A good thing to do at work is a 30-day challenge – people like to compete, so
 they join a challenge. Then treat it as a business, once you know who your
 friends are and you have the top of the funnel. Meet people where they are. We
 found that when we did a 30-day challenge, we had 1500 people sign up for it.
 Then we started email marketing and it kept growing and growing. We used the
 same principles as we use when growing a business. We built a community at
 work.



 Why do we do this? We do it to raise consciousness. We do it to serve the
 employees, because when employees get out of their minds a little bit, it’s
 goodness all around.



 Q: Is the world ripe for bringing wisdom practices to
 workspaces now?



 SS: Yes, this is
 absolutely the right time for us to have this conversation!



 Q: Thank you, Scott.


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<h4 class="has-text-align-center">Illustrations by ANANYA PATEL</h4>

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Scott Shute

Scott is a pioneer of workplace mindfulness programs and advancing compassion at work. He blends his experience as a Silicon Valley executive with his practice and passion as a wisdom seeker. He is the author of The Full Body Yes.

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