When you listen to long-form interviews of many successful entrepreneurs, the one thing you see in them is the intense desire to succeed. This desire typically comes from childhood experiences that leave them seeking validation from parents or peers. That's why the children of first-generation migrants are disproportionately successful. The deep-rooted desire to prove their worth to family, friends, and the "world" drives most entrepreneurs.
This form of desire is dangerous because pursuing success becomes the most critical aspect of a person's life. They don't even aspire to any balance that would help them find meaning in the small joys of life. Also, once they achieve material and social success, they have no idea what to do with their time. There is a vast emptiness within them that threatens to consume everything they have built.
Hence, many successful people are trying to find their second mountain, where they start contributing their time and wealth to charities and social causes.
However, I always wonder if the journey of climbing your first mountain that leads to material success must be so empty and soul-sucking. Is there a way to achieve material success that nourishes your soul? Can you channel your desire so that it liberates you instead of imprisoning you? The two stories I share today will hopefully inspire us.
The single most crucial fashion trend today that unites the ultra-rich is Quiet Luxury. It represents a timeless and restrained approach to fashion that emphasizes high-quality clothing and accessories over overt branding and conspicuous consumption.
It would be wild to think that one of the people leading the quiet luxury revolution would be a man born into a family of thirteen and raised in a rustic farmhouse in Castel Rigone, Italy.
Brunello Cucinelli, also called the King of Cashmere, grew up in a farmhouse surrounded by fruit orchards and trees.
I can still perceive, in the senses, the scent, sounds, and lights of the farming life I was born into.
His family worked as sharecroppers, so his grandfather and uncle went to the farm owner every year around Christmas to settle the accounts. When they returned, his grandfather never discussed numbers. They just said everything went well and hoped next year would be better. The family knew they had to tighten their belts and sustain with their limited means.
Brunello has very fond memories of his grandfather donating the first bale of wheat to the community. He credits this action with helping him learn to balance profit with charity. He talks about how his farm upbringing enabled him to see the sacred meaning in daily rituals of picking olives and plowing the land.
When he was fifteen, he relocated to the city with his family. While technology and modern appliances made life comfortable, he deeply missed the blue skies, the moonlight, and the smell of animals. However, he learned to appreciate the gifts of technology and how they could lead to a better world. He also saw how his father struggled with the job as a factory worker and often came home teary-eyed with disappointment at the humiliation inflicted by his employers.
Brunello made a mental note about always treating people fairly at every stage of life. He also discovered the joys of the Italian coffee bar. He spent a lot of time listening to students discuss philosophy and the arts.
I learned to consider humanity as an end rather than a simple means and to respect the great harmony that is born between the starry sky above and the moral law within me.
He met his beloved wife Federica there and inherited his love of fashion from her as they went around shopping for her father's textile shop. He went on to study engineering. When he was 25, he saw how the elegant Italian cashmere sweaters were sold in bland colors and that there could be a market for dyed cashmere.
He borrowed raw cashmere from a trader and started a small business of dying and selling cashmere sweaters. He initially struggled with limited financial resources, so he focused on finding customers in Germany and the United States, which were seen as financially stable countries that paid promptly.
As the business grew, he bought the dilapidated 14th-century castle of Solomeo, a small abandoned village near Perugia. He began restoring it to serve as the headquarters for his growing cashmere business. The company moved to Solomeo in 1987, establishing the village as the heart of the Brunello Cucinelli brand. The unique work environment motivated employees to unleash their creative selves. As the business prospered, Brunello highlighted themes of Italian culture, village life, dignity, respect, education, and the preservation of traditional craftsmanship in their work.
Brunello never forgot his upbringing, his connection with the farmland, or the desire his family had to live a dignified life. Hence, his deepest desire was to build a successful business that showcased those values. This inspired him to come up with the guidelines to run their business. I am sharing a few with you.
We love and respect Mother Earth: we cultivate our land according to nature and welcome its fruits as its greatest gift.
We do not use more resources than is necessary or natural. We make careful use of the universe.
During work, we support fair profitability and harmony between profit and giving back to the community.
We seek harmony between fair work and human privacy.
We commemorate our forefathers. They taught us to respect the law, and our story is written in their words.
We believe in the moral and economic dignity of human beings.
The strength of your desires and intentions is revealed only when they are tested by time. Brunello's test came when the entire world was beset by the COVID-19 virus. He put forward three policies that truly showcased how deeply his desire to create a fair and beautiful world has penetrated within him.
No Layoffs: Cucinelli assured his employees that no one would be furloughed or lose their jobs, stating that the company had sufficient financial resources to sustain operations for several years. He emphasized the importance of taking care of oneself and one's family during these challenging times.
Rent Policies: Unlike many businesses that sought rent reductions during the crisis, Cuccinelli did not ask landlords for discounts on rent for his stores. This decision was part of his philosophy of maintaining integrity and respect in business relationships.
Charitable Contributions: Cucinelli initiated a program called “Brunello Cucinelli for Humanity,” which aimed to donate surplus products to those in need. This initiative was part of his commitment to humanistic capitalism, a principle he has championed throughout his career.
In doing this, he became a beacon of hope for everyone else who believed that you could create economic wealth sustainably and leave behind a better world.
Eons ago, when this world was still young, there was an extremely pious sage called Mudgala. He was deeply devoted to Lord Vishnu and meditated on him with every breath. His wife Nalayani was devoted to him, but since Mudgala was much older than her, she gradually started visualizing what it would be like if she could be married to Lord Vishnu himself. She confessed her desire to Rajarishi Mudgala and asked him to help her fulfill this desire. He smiled and told her she could never have Lord Vishnu as a consort by praying to him since Mother Goddess would never approve of it. Instead, Nalayani was better off choosing to pray to Lord Shiva since he was the only one who could make something of this magnitude happen.
So Nalayani, with her husband's permission, began an intense penance of Lord Shiva. Sage Mudgala had already told her that there was no defined timeline for her desire to manifest. She would have to commit multiple lifetimes of penance, and even that, there was no guarantee that she would have the exact outcome she desired.
Nalayani mediated for several lifetimes. She would drop her body, take birth again, discover her purpose, and continue meditating on Lord Shiva until he finally manifested for her. He smiled and told her she could not have Lord Vishnu as her spouse. She requested to at least have someone who had all his qualities. Lord Shiva told her that no single person could have all his qualities since there could be only one Purshotamma. Hence, she settled for a boon where she should incarnate as Draupadi and marry the Pandavas, who collectively had Lord Vishnu's characteristics. She would also have Lord Krishna as her best friend and continue to enjoy his protection and companionship throughout her life. The beautiful Krishnavtara by KM Munshi highlights in great detail how Sri Krishna orchestrated her svayamvara, ensured Arjuna won it, supported he through all key moments in her life, and guided her through the toughest phases.
This is precisely why my guru Om Swami says that Sadhana done by a sincere seeker always yields results. We never know what's good for us, but our Ishta always does, and they turn even our desires into ways through which we can liberate ourselves.
This article is a submission at the lotus feet of my guru Om Swami – the founder of the Vedic Sadhana app. The app helps you identify your ishta and then perform daily rituals that deepen your relationship with them. This incredible app makes the ancient rituals and practices followed by the sages of India available to you.