State-Of-The-Heart

As we were walking on the beach for our morning meditative walk, there was an unusual number of 9-pointed starfishes on the ground – and the following came to me.

When we speak of excellence, of state-of-the-art —of achieving the very best we can in life—it all comes down to one essential question: In what state are we operating? Because ultimately, it depends on one thing above all else: our state of being.

If we harness the mind, focus our thoughts, and apply relentless determination, we will get results. This is the power of the will. Work hard, master the techniques, stay consistent, and eventually you will succeed.

Whether it’s becoming wealthy or excelling in a sport, mind-power delivers. It’s effective. It works.

But let me suggest something else—something much greater.

If we aim far beyond personal success, we must access a different kind of power: the state of the heart. A space of openness, kindness, tolerance, love, and deep authenticity.

From this place, we don’t need to push for outcomes. It’s effortless. It’s as if the universe conspires with us, gently arranging circumstances, people, and events in ways that far exceed our own striving.

So, which path is easier?

That depends. Most of us have tasted both states—perhaps without naming them—but we know the difference. One requires force and control. The other invites us to surrender and alignment.

Yet make no mistake: the heart’s path is a difficult path. To stay in a state of the heart is to maintain a continual state of truth, love, and generosity, which requires constant inner transformation.

It demands us to remove what no longer serves—wounds, negative beliefs, cultural conditioning. This is a path of subtraction, not addition. We are not building something new: we are uncovering what has always been there.

Where the mind needs more—training, discipline, tools—the heart asks less and less, a stripping of all that get in the way of what is in fact our natural state, the one we are born with.

It is a way back to our essence: the joy, curiosity, and purity we once had as a child.

That simple radiance has the power to uplift a room, heal conflict, and magnetize the support of others. It is an irresistible force—and it requires no effort.

In this light, if we want to build meaningful projects, resolve conflicts, create influence, and leave lasting impact, we don’t need to do more. We only need to become more ourselves.

The work is within. It’s an inside job.

Consider Saint Francis of Assisi, one of the most universally admired figures in history. When he stripped off his clothes in the public square, he wasn’t just renouncing wealth and status—he was shedding everything that wasn’t essential. At the end of his life, sick and cast out from the very community he founded, he died at 44. And yet, ten centuries later, there are more than 3,500 Franciscan monasteries and 650,000 members of his order.

He never organized all this —he only embodied the state of the heart, not only towards humans, but also towards nature. And that alone had – and still has – an enormous impact onto the world.

I believe that for entrepreneurs, leaders, politicians, a gradual shift of perspective from mind-power to heart-power is what can provoke a very big shift in the world.