So why is purposeful leadership important? I believe there is nothing more fulfilling in life than having a purpose. That’s why we love to give and help others. That’s why we give money to worthy causes. And that’s why parents find having children so rewarding, inspite of all that lack of sleep!
Having a clear purpose and mission has helped me deal with huge amounts of uncertainty in my own business. When I don’t know if I’m able to pay the rent next month or next week, my purpose is what keeps me going and gives me the resilience I need continue the work and go over and beyond what is expected of me.
When I was not aware of my higher purpose in my previous role, I would only do what is expected of me and was out the door ASAP. I was engaged but only just and my results were good enough but not great.
We all know about the rate of change impacting organisation as well as the uncertainty that it brings. To deal with constant change, having engaged employees is not enough – we need passionate and purpose driven teams who feel they are on a mission to help their stakeholders and know that they are making a bigger contribution than just doing their job. Purpose is the only constant when everything around us is changing.
This might sound pretty far fetched for most working in large organisations, but it ultimately comes down to leadership. Purposeful leaders inspire their teams beyond their tasks to constantly remind them of the difference their work is making to a stakeholder. Isn’t it great when a colleague or a clients tells you how the work you are doing is helping them? Or making their life easier? Feedback is so important so we know we are making a difference especially when things are tough.
So why do you do what you do? Have you clearly defined your purpose and mission? How have you communicated this to your stakeholders?