Crisis of Purpose

Almost everyone I've spoken with in this past week is having some sort of crisis of purpose. This is a leadership issue. This is a personal, individual issue.

What am I doing? Why am I here? Does any of it really matter in the big scheme of things?

These are great questions. We know that there are things we're supposed to be doing. We are in a huge a cultural upheaval and we've felt the effects of what's called quarantine fatigue. All of this is important. All of this is necessary, and all of this leads us to a place of questioning what’s next and what the end result will be.

For some, the question is about why we can't just get on with it. That’s shorthand code for wanting this all to just be over. The good news is that, in my lifetime, I’ve seen starts and stops of cultural redefinition multiple times and this is the first time I’ve ever felt like we’re headed somewhere positive. It feels like work. Taking a personal stance on this, ask yourself whether it’ll all be worth it, individually and culturally.  

The crisis of purpose is a question posed at the individual core level: what's my part, and does it really matter? 

Does it really matter? And the answer is yes. Again, your part in all of this matters your part in the cultural change that we're experiencing, that matters your part in the the shutdown and the rebuild that we're all experiencing - that matters. No one knows what it's going to feel like in a year.  It may feel awesome for some. For others, it is going to feel very, very, very disconnected. 

And that's where this concept of the crisis of purpose comes in. 

THE QUESTION: do I know that what I'm doing matters?

Leadership becomes the key. We ask our leaders to make sure that anybody that you're engaged with knows that their work is purposeful. If you are a leader (and by the way, if you're in a family, if you're in a relationship of any kind, you are a co-leader at the very least), start letting the people around you know that their efforts make a difference to you and to the organization (family, organization, community, or personally). Doing that has gigantic ripple effects. Letting someone know that they matter helps them to feel like they have purpose. And it also puts you in a place of recognizing that they actually are contributing. And when you're in a space of judging contribution, not good or bad, but that it mattered, it puts you in a very different mindset. 

Think about this, do this exercise in your head right now, think about the last person who did something with you or for you, and whether that was having lunch, making lunch whether that was someone like the grocery store checker. They had something, they did something for you. Think about what it would be like if you were deliberate when you said, “Wow, you know what, thank you. That lunch you made was really awesome. Thank you for bagging my groceries that way. Thank you.” By doing so, you do make a difference. When you engage with someone and you talk to them about the difference that they're making, they feel better too. It sounds so simple.

Simple isn’t always easy.

Think about the last time you actually validated somebody. Sure, they know, they know they're doing great. They don't; they don't, unless you've told them. We long for meaning in our lives. We ache for acknowledgment. And yes, money matters, but it's not the top motivator for most people, which is why right now we have a crisis of purpose. The way to snap out of your own crisis of purpose is to help somebody through theirs. You know, that thing you did that really matters. You know, that podcast you made that made a difference. You know, that a report you sent that was important, you know, that whatever it is, you tell somebody that it had an impact on you. And if it's your children, same thing, “You know, when you cleaned up your dinner dishes that way and just did it without a fuss, that was really important. You know, it makes our family just run so much more smoothly. Thank you for that.” 

It sounds simple. And sometimes it sounds ridiculous. And yet it matters. We find purpose where we make it. Your job dear leader is to highlight meaning and underscore purpose. 

When you step into your Powerful Presence™, you own your space differently. You stop asking for permission to be bigger. You support others as you communicate in a way that acknowledges, elevates, and engages.  

With that said, you are invited to enjoy a deeper dive into these concepts.  Click the link below to be my guest at my no-cost (yes, it’s FREE) Powerful Presence™ Masterclass at 11am pacific time on June 26th.  Register Here!