There are many aspects of business success which over the years have been written up, studied, dissected and disseminated by gurus and consultants everywhere, however one area I believe needs a lot more attention by those of us in business is the power of having a strong sense of purpose. This is about the beliefs associated with why you are doing what you do, and why your employees turn up to work every day. Various surveys and reports highlight the fact that less than 25% of employees feel engaged in their work. The lack of purpose is evident in so many companies and yet those who have strong values and a reason, a purpose, to work are significantly more likely to succeed than those who don’t.
In order for your business to function independently of you, it is important to discard outdated thinking. Vision and Mission statements are what I am referring to here. How often do you see the “experts” preach the importance of them, but at the same time, not able to recite their Vision or Mission.
I challenge any organisation to survey their staff to determine how many can, at a moments notice, recite their companies Vision and Mission. I doubt many employee’s would be able to, let alone know what they are, what they mean, or understand the impact they are supposed to have on the organisation’s reason for being.
However, if you have a clearly stated Purpose, every employee, can and should understand it. Take Disney for example. Disney’s purpose is not to have the best theme parks in the world, but simply it is to “Make People Happy”. From the person selling tickets at Disneyland, to the guy sweeping Main Street, all the way up to the Hollywood producer, if they are not making people happy, they are not ON PURPOSE, and must immediately stop what they are doing and re-evaluate their reasons for being there at all.
Another great company that understands the reason for being ON PURPOSE is Apple. When Steve Jobs returned to the company the most important thing he did was reaffirm and give a voice to Apple’s purpose: to be a counterculture maker of “insanely great” computers. Wrote Kevin Maney for USA Today in 2000. And the rest is history!
So how do you discover your company’s purpose? The simplest way is to start by listing your strengths. Then list your passions. Once you have a comprehensive list of your strengths and passions, and this can be developed through a workshop process, go down your strengths one by one matching them with each of your passions. When you come across the combination that resonates most strongly with your vision, this will be where your purpose resides, to create your vision.
Find Your Purpose
Purpose is why we do what we do
I believe that when you know Why you are doing something; the reason behind your activity, then the How follows quite naturally. For example, if I know I’m getting up and going for a run in the morning before breakfast because it will help my physical and mental agility for the work I need to do each day, then this purpose drives me to keep running even on wet or frosty winter days. If my company is to launch a new software programme for retailers, my whole team needs to know that the purpose for doing so is to Innovate the way our customers operate, to make them more efficient and profitable.
So what’s your purpose? And how does it impact your team? How is what you do significant in the lives of others?
I propose that you gather with your team, order in some pizzas – or maybe meet with your executive team and put aside a few hours to really get clear on your purpose.
Start by evaluating your strengths and passions – both individually and collectively – as outlined in the above exercise and then get consensus on what your company purpose is. Once you have that agreed to, then play with the words to really find how you can articulate your purpose, position it within your company so that everyone understands it and believes it. Total buy in is really important here. Then tear down any remnants of wordy mission and vision statements you have on your walls, and replace them with the clear and concise words you have agreed to. Whenever a team member is performing an action that is not aligned with your purpose, it is much easier to point out and ask them to stop.
What you’ll notice when everyone on your team is working ON PURPOSE is that team work is easier, focus on the projects undertaken is sharper, and the community spirit extends more easily to the customers who are part of that purpose.
