This episode is part of the Guided Series, where Chela explores the key Guiding Principles in her work and business. Post-Capitalist Business is the exploration of that as a possibility. She invites us into this conversation of imagination and experimentation, unpacking what is seen – how our planet is ravaged by capitalism and those values are deeply ingrained within us – and what she cannot yet fully see – what would a post-capitalist World look like? If the whole system is not to crumble entirely in our own lifetimes, what is possible now, and what small steps might we boldly take towards answering the brave question of ‘What World do I want to belong to?’

Listen in, as she talks about…

[01:04] What she can see – a Planet ravaged by capitalism and the values of capitalism ingrained within us – and what she can’t yet fully see – what does it mean to live in a post capitalist World? Chela invites you in to imagine and experiment within this question.

[06:05] What has been passed down, and what will we pass down? How we may not yet see the entire system crumble in our lifetime, but what is possible now? What small moves can we make or capacities can we build that will set the tone for a regenerative, rather than extractive, future?

[08:29] The distinction between anti-capitalism and post-capitalism and why that is important when imagining and experimenting with this new possibility.

[10:53] The challenge of imagining something else, especially when on a mission to be anti-capitalist, and how someone, in an attempt to solve the inequities of the World by overgiving, can end up feeling in a state of self-extraction.

[14:50] The possibility of post-capitalism being about sufficiency, rather than our current way of operating. She looks at the hungry ghost of progress seeking endless growth with an internalised embodied expression of profit at the expense of anything else.

[19:25] The capitalist norm that productivity is God, competition is default and how this can make us look at others from a metrics-only perspective. How our value and worth in the World gets wrapped up in our ability to produce, as well as the results we are going to get. What would it feel like instead to feel like we belong, are valuable and are part of an elegant eco system that we contribute to?

[25:18] How the capitalist machine continually lures us back into consumption through urgency and emergency via harmful marketing practices, and what might be some little ways that we can flip the script by sharing our offerings in a more calm, nourishing, honoring ‘You’re enough’ way.

[32:55] The complex capitalist systemic problems which allow policies to favour those with power and wealth. She explores what we may be advocating for as a business owner and invites the question: are you spending in places you would like to see grow? 

[38:52] How orientating to the collective whole and considering the question ‘What World do I want to belong to?’ is the ultimate exploration here. How we must both acknowledge that there is something destructive happening, while also acknowledging that we are woven into it and made of it in so many ways.