*Soul Work: Four Ways to Serve Your Cause with Heart

Whether negotiating a huge vendor contract, writing books, organizing volunteers, or making dinner for our families, women have always expressed their higher self in the form of service to the people they love. In a nutshell, that is what "soul work" really means - to create something of value from the deep space within and flavor it with a unique talent. It's about exploring your limits and maybe bringing the bottom line along for the ride.

However, achieving personal growth through work means being consciously aware of serving a cause without losing yourself in the process. How do you continue to remain positive in the workplace? Here are four important reminders that will help you feel good about what you do:

Work with a loving and generous heart. It’s good for the soul!

Spiritual teachers spanning across many mystical traditions already noted our biggest work challenge. It is to demonstrate our authentic self in our work - no matter if we're at home with five kids or running a Fortune 500 corporation. In terms of specific tasks, have good intentions for your organization and the people involved. If you cook with love, the person who eats that meal energetically receives the benefit of your positive attitude and thoughts. I think that applies to any form of work!

As a form of self-expression, work allows us to re-create ourselves as a form of living art because we are the channel for the Divine. Although that concept might be difficult to digest when we are pulling a sales call after being up all night with a crying baby, know this: when we achieve conscious awareness of what we do well, we are instruments of a higher power. We can change the world into exactly what we see fit – a vision crafted from the best of our emotions such as love, healing, forgiveness, compassion, and faith. We can educate someone, lend a hand, or teach self-sufficiency in any number of venues. Or simply create a beautiful object. No matter our job, as long as we are aware of our power to do it with loving-kindness, we are contributing to the formation of the world and the values of those who will follow after us. Never underestimate the benefit of any form of work that is done with a generous spirit.

Remember your Source. Know your true C.E.O.

No matter our wisdom tradition, when we take a moment to remember our spirit and pull light into ourselves, we experience a connection with divinity. Often, it is our individual awakening to service and the human condition. God or Goddess... there are a thousand names and flavors by which we summon our inherent power. Power is a choice. We don’t fall into it by accident, nor is it given by a secret society where only a few key members are invited. We are born empowered, as we all are individual sparks of divinity. The only difference is everyone is in different stages of awakening.

When we consciously co-create our reality with this spiritual partnership, we inevitably inspire others to open their hearts as wide as possible to the energetic fusion called "embodied spirit." Yep, hopefully you got the memo - we are not the body. We are eternal, energetic, infinite, empowered beings, with all the tools from the get-go. Our career objective? We are here to remember it all over again in a physical setting. It’s soul development school from the minute we arrive until our last day. We're supposed to spread the light! So, when the going gets tough at the office, look at the bigger picture. Know who really does your employment reviews and what you are really here to do.

Appreciate your unique specialty

Be thankful for what you bring to the world - whether it is creating jobs for others, sharing visual beauty, enhancing communication, or helping others move from crisis and poverty to self-sufficiency. Whatever your work, know that the world needs your voice. You matter, because you are an expression of a higher power. Your soul work is needed in the world, no matter the pay scale. Celebrate your calling and march proudly, wherever you spend your day.

Have a cause

Career success has paved the way for women to champion today’s most exciting causes. Women now constitute 46.6% of the U.S. labor force and hold 50% of managerial and professional specialty positions. Consequently, they are beginning to hold a great deal of purchasing power, especially in business ($1.5 trillion). Women purchase 83% of all products and services - a huge market force. Success and control over the checkbook has translated into a new form of independence called strategic philanthropy.

Whether at the office or at home, this collective spending power has an interesting effect on creating new pathways to peace and healing. Women have developed a strong voice and a big resource base to address causes that matter specifically to the female gender, such as sponsoring a sister overseas, helping homeless mothers, or creating specialty rooms for sick children. They’re translating their soul work in diverse ways and shaping the world with hands using feminine values that make sense.

Remember, doing our soul work moves us beyond our careers. We can participate in a collective spiritual partnership spanning the globe. At that empowering moment, we are taking a turn being Divine, by celebrating our path in exactly the way we see fit. Think from the heart and make certain your work is evolving into a personal truth. May you bloom and grow today, no matter where you work, and always be filled with the brightest light imaginable!

© The Goddess Network, Inc. and Charlene M. Proctor, Ph.D. 2007. All Rights Reserved. See http://www.thegoddessnetwork.com/connect.php?page=eshow for more empowering thoughts on corporate soul! Register for The E-Show, a series of enlightening lectures!