How Clear is Your Purpose?

Having looked at the importance of putting our purpose to words and showing the impact a purpose can have on pushing through some of the tougher times we’ll face when we accept responsibility for leading - through a high level look at how my own purpose has changed and grown over the last two decades - let’s put rubber to road. How clear is YOUR purpose?

Please know that anything I’ve shared about my own purpose to this point, be it the gimpy purpose I had for bidding on that first training position offer the manufacturing floor just before Cindy and I got married or even the one that helped us charge through to mess that was Covid despite only being able to bill for a few small gigs in the last half of 2020, as being a perfect purpose - or even something that would ever keep anyone else pushing forward. Those were mine, I don’t expect them to resonate with everyone else. I did, however, share them with hopes of providing you an example so you can continue developing an acute level of clarity around your own!

I remember working through a coaching exercise with a mentor nearly ten years ago. He was challenging me on my purpose, or at least what I thought my purpose was at that time. As the conversation progressed and I felt like I was dialing in on my purpose more than I ever had before, he emphasized that I needed to be able to picture what I was working to achieve with as much specificity as I could provide in detailing my most recent meal. As I write this, my most recent meal was three extra large eggs; scrambled with shredded cheese melted in, and lightly peppered. (Thanks Cindy!) I also have my big, blue Contigo mug filled with coffee. It was on a small plate with a small fork, both of which I had just gotten out of the dishwasher. And the dogs looked at me like a lamb chop the entire time…

I could go as far as to tell you what I was wearing, what Cindy and I talked about as we ate, and almost exactly how long we were at the table - but I think you get my point. So I’ll ask once more, how clear is your purpose? Can you describe with the same level of detail I just shared about our meal? Truth be told, I was nowhere close to being able to do that when my mentor first challenged me to do it! In complete transparency, it was stinking hard to get there - especially for someone as fast-paced as me who struggles to sit still… I’ve realized that it’s every bit as difficult to keep even the clearest purpose top of mind on a daily basis, and that’s even more of a challenge when the stuff begins to hit the proverbial fan. But that’s exactly when we need that clarity the most!

With my personal examples fresh in your mind, I’ll ask one last time: How clear is YOUR purpose? Can you, with extreme specificity, picture the impact you’re working to have on, with, and through the team you’ve accepted responsibility for leading? If so, Well Done! If you’re not quite there, keep at it. Either way, you’ll also need to come to terms with what you’re willing to do to achieve it - and that’s what we’ll look at soon…