There is no crisis! A new economy is here.
Via: JuicyLivingTour.com
Lilou Mace interviews Paul Efmorfidis, Greek entrepreneur and Ivo Valkenburg, Dutch author and consultant at Spirit in Finance. Their lively conversation offers a new perspective on the financial crisis in Greece and Europe. They discuss how following your heart, living with passion and purpose can translate into work that is not only rewarding, but will allow for deep creativity that can help transcend the economic and political crisis.
According to Valkenburg, “Greece (referring to the crisis) is an illusion. Happiness is from the inside out. This is a big opportunity to wake up and see what we can add to the world and make a positive difference. If we have 1 million people with no money, we have 1 million people with passion, with talent, with creativity. ”
Efmorfidis agrees, “Greece is a crisis of habit. I am very allergic to banks.” He explains how when he started his business, he got a loan from a bank. Once it was paid off it cost him four and a half times the original cost of the loan. Since then, he has vowed never to use banks.
“I may not be the biggest, but I am the happiest. I don’t have to wake up in the middle of the night and worry. If you are a money-maker the speed is so fast. I don’t want to be so speedy. I want to enjoy what is around me. Two people without money can always come up with a creative idea.”
Efmorfidis established COCO-MAT in 1989. It is now a leader in natural sleep products, bed linen, towels and furniture for homes and hotels. They manufacture their products in the most sustainable way possible. They products are hand-made and everything is reused in their process. His business practices are unconventional, to say the least. That may be the reason why his company has thrived, despite the economic drama that is taking place in his country. When his hotel clients couldn’t pay, he bartered with them, accepting free rooms in exchange for his products. “I have 9,000 free hotel nights. Now my potential customers can try out my beds, with no obligation, in a beautiful hotel.”
He also nurtures the heart of his organization – his employees. He encourages all his staff to play football (soccer) together with him. “Football is a means to put people together,” says Efmorfidis. “It is simple and popular. It is like marketing the heart of your workers and colleagues. Everyone can participate, even the disabled. It is fun.”
Valkenburg, “If we read the papers…we might think there is no future anymore. There IS a beautiful future.
It is a Greek word ‘paradigm’. We are in the middle of a paradigm shift. We should shift now and go to the love to the creativity. Often they tell me,’you are a dreamer’. That is why I look for people like Paul who are also successful, not using this as a marketing tool. This is a very challenging time for many of us. If you can find peace and inner happiness. You find it in the silence the storm. And realize it is illusion and the only real thing is love. What ever you hate, what ever you are against (bankers, crisis) it makes it worse. If you love, love your problems in life and your enemies. You get fresh ideas, creativity. You meet the right people and the right opportunities.”
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