Meaning and Purpose

Consider what you want from your career.

If we don’t think about it much, we might say something about “professional success” or “financial security.”

And those are pretty generic, and they are achievable for many people.

But what gives your career MEANING and PURPOSE? How will you make a DIFFERENCE in the world?

Find that “why” in your work. Are you creating structures that will help your community? Are you building an organization that helps members of your team support their families? Are you growing the unique talents of creative people? Are you driving technical development? Are you making people happy and reducing their daily stress?

We all work for the income. That’s why everyone in the company gets paid. But your life—and the lives of your people—will be more fulfilling if you have a purpose beyond the paycheck. Remind yourself and your team why what you do matters.

Simon Sinek has a story he shares to demonstrate that bigger purpose. When you ask the guy putting stones into a wall on the construction site what he is doing, he can say, “I’m building a wall” or “I’m building a cathedral.” One guy is there for the paycheck; the other also gets paid, but has greater inspiration, motivation, and job satisfaction. “We don’t want to come to work to build a wall, we want to come to work to build a cathedral.”

(image source: https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=26300410402880988&set=gm.25049904154659623&idorvanity=715592125184165)