The Leadercast simulcast from Atlanta to host sites across the U.S. this year focused on the theme “Powered by Purpose.” This year’s speakers included Andy Stanley, mega-church planter and author; James McKelvey, co-inventor of Square; Daniel Pink, best-selling author; Suzy Welch, best-selling author and wife of Jack Welch; Tyler Perry, successful director/actor, author, and entrepreneur; and Henry Cloud, best-selling author and leadership expert.
From these presenters and three others on the stage in Atlanta came a great deal of wisdom and insight about the impact of purpose in one’s life and work. From my notes during the six-hour day, I have captured these nuggets to share with you:
- Studies indicate that, when people can clearly see the reasons/impact/purpose for their work, they are much more engaged, productive, and satisfied. There are two kinds of purpose: a life purpose, which is making a difference, having meaning, and transcending; and making a contribution in your day to day work, which is important to your ongoing psychological well-being.
- To take action on your purpose, think and talk about the ‘why’, rather than the ‘how’. Thinking about the end of your life, determine how you want to write the sentence that describes who you were, what you did, and how you fulfilled your purpose. This will bring clarity to your sense of purpose.
- Your purpose is wrapped around problems you encounter in life. Working toward a clear solution provides internal satisfaction. That is, knowing you’ve solved a problem, even when no one else knows about it, provides a sense of fulfilled purpose for you.
- Purpose is a means to an end, a path to meaning, and not the outcome. (Would you rather be the shovel, or the hole?) Those who devote themselves to themselves will have nothing but themselves to show for themselves. However, if you devote yourself to more than yourself, you will ultimately have more than yourself to show for yourself. Your starting question should be, “who am I here for in life?”
- Look at what you currently do through the lens of ‘means’, the process of getting to a desired end. Your greatest contribution may be through someone you raise, rather than yourself. Pay attention to what stirs your heart, and surround yourself with ‘on purpose’ people.
- To create meaningful work, you are not forced to choose between making a living and making a difference. Create the work you wish existed, learn as you go, and execute with purpose (not perfection).
- Be authentic—there’s no such thing as a happy, phony life. Bit by bit, presenting your false self to others drains the joy out of your life.
- Great leaders do five things well: cast a vision for the desired future state, engage talent, develop a strategy/plan to get there, measure the right stuff and hold people accountable, and fix and adapt as problems arise.
- The truth about feedback: a wise person adjusts himself to the feedback, a fool adjusts the truth of the feedback, and an evil person attacks you for speaking the feedback.
- Correction and compassion need to walk side by side when you are leading others and providing coaching/feedback.
- In business, never despise small beginnings, because great things can grow from these.
- What happens along the way on your leadership/life journey is more important than the outcome. It’s the little moments that can create big outcomes in our lives.
- Selfishness and selflessness are both contagious; the point of your purpose is to determine how you will serve others, how you will contribute to them—not how you will serve yourself.
What kind of leader will you be in 2017, in order to live out your purpose?