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This is going to sound funny, but I startled myself with the thought today that I am a small-business owner and an entrepreneur.

It sounds funny because I was asked if I would like to compete on a request for proposals. I said “I don’t compete” which is true, because I am a one-man show and I CAN’T compete against firms with offices and slick marketing materials and secretarial support (all of which it seems is designed to make the firm look credible enough to win the bids it needs to support the infrastructure it has…I believe Buddhists call this samsara)

I have found that trying to assemble a team of my associates to compete in bidding processes takes up too much unpaid time, and I have been burned once by having ideas in a proposal stolen by the client and used by the winning bidder. That in itself was funny, because if they had asked me if they could use my process design ideas, I would have let them.

That’s because, I discovered today, my business model is one of service. Truly being in service. It is important to me to provide services to clients who are doing good things. Sometimes I even donate these services. Very often I give away knowledge about Open Space Technology (after all, Harrison Owen set the trend by refusing to copyright the process). If you want to shadow me on an Open Space gig to learn more about the process, all you have to do is ask. I run training programs, for which I charge, but if you are really interested, and you want to ride shotgun with me, you are more than welcome to come along.

Likewise there are a few clients for whom I work for free. This has included in the past my home community of Bowen Island, for whom I have facilitated Open Space meetings and participated in citizen engagement initiatives. I kind of see this as my civic duty. I have also worked for free for some First Nations simply because I believe strongly in what they are trying to do.

When I first left university and entered the workforce, I had a strong sense of my role in the world as modeled on a somewhat traditional role of Elder’s Helper, common to many Aboriginal societies. Basically the Elder’s helper acts as a companion for an Elder, running errands, cooking food, taking care of the person’s needs so that the Elder can deliver his or her teachings and contribute wisdom to the community. The helper gains a great deal in this role, including an opportunity to be exposed to teachings and wisdom in an intensive way.

That has always been my business model. The people and organizations I work for have inherent wisdom and much to teach the world. My interactions with them as a facilitator are intended to make it easier for them to do that work. In return I get paid, but more importantly, I get exposed to a huge range of teachings and learnings, many of which find themselves back to this blog.

Now I don’t mean to say that this business model makes me morally superior to those for whom competition is the the key. But it just occurred to me today, that after four years of being in business, that it is possible to run a successful business in a capitalist economy without competing. My business is based on offerings. I offer something to the market, I try to do a good job and if people like it, they hire me again. I am not perfect, and I make mistakes. I always vow to learn from my mistakes and my clients, like the good Elders they are, are generous in forgiving me.

So it sounds funny to say that I am a successful small-business owner and entrepreneur. But I am going to reclaim those words anyway, because today I learned that it is possible to be that while staying away from the samasara of competition.