There is a deer, the Himalayan musk deer, which can be found only in parts of Yunnan Province and Tibet, with long, coarse, brittle hair. It is a small deer, standing about 60cm at the shoulder. It produces musk in the caudal glands of its own body.
When the deer begins to smell the musk, it roams through the forest searching for the source of this captivating aroma.
Totally mesmerised, it searches everywhere.
Intoxicated, obsessed and tantalised it remains entranced by the smell.
Days turn to weeks as the deer roams the forest.
The weeks turn to months, which turn to years.
The deer spends its whole life searching for the source of this exquisite aroma, but never finds it.
The poor deer has no idea that the aroma is coming from its own navel and that the very thing it spends its whole life searching for is lying deep within itself.
The human dilemma is just like the deer dilemma.
Every day we set goals and create plans to search for the source of happiness which we have heard exists but eludes us.
But what is the happiness we are searching for?
Just like the Himalayan musk deer, we can spend our whole life searching for something, only to find it was within us all the time.
And here’s where this story touches business and leadership.
So many owners and directors I meet are chasing the “aroma” of success. Searching for the bigger contract, the next round of funding, the seemingly elusive balance between work and life. They think if they can just get the right system, the right strategy, or the right hire, they’ll finally arrive at the state of ease, clarity, and freedom they long for.
But, clarity doesn’t come from adding more layers of search. It comes from stripping back the noise and recalibrating at the source. The true eternal source is your own nervous system.
In boardrooms, I’ve watched brilliant leaders roam for years like the musk deer. They were entranced by external goals, blinded to the inner capacity they already hold. Stress mounts, energy fragments, decision-making fogs. Yet the very strength they’re seeking of focus, calm, insight, profitable thinking is hidden inside, waiting to be accessed through breath, stillness, and presence.
Your breath is the musk. It’s the constant, silent signal reminding you of what’s already within. When you learn how to use it, everything changes: decisions sharpen, profit flows more naturally, and leadership becomes less about striving and more about clarity.
The deer never finds its treasure because it never stops to look inward. My work is about making sure you do. Because the real competitive advantage in today’s world isn’t found in chasing more… it’s found in leading from within.
The answer lies within. Always has. Always will.
Contact me to discover more about recalibrating from your source and strength and find your inner calm alongside greater performance and higher profit.
Always
Gail
PS. The photograph is a beautiful deer photographed by Gail Biddulph on Eaton Estate, Chester, Cheshire, UK