According to Harvard Business Review, less than 20% of leaders have a strong sense of purpose. So, what is happening for the other 80% of leaders at work?
Another exciting research fact reported by McKinsey is that nearly seven out of ten employees are reflecting on their purpose because of the pandemic. Those employees who say they live their purpose at work are six and a half times more likely to report higher resilience. They’re four times more likely to report better health, six times more likely to want to stay at their employer, and one and a half times more likely to go above and beyond to make their organisation successful. Individuals seek purpose, and organisations have an opportunity to help them find it.
The process of articulating your purpose and finding the courage to live it—is what we call purpose to impact—this is the single most important developmental task leaders can undertake.
Often I see leaders stuck in apathy or overwhelmed with “busy”. They give their entire energy to firefighting situations with a cyclone approaches. But unfortunately, this leaves them with a crushing sense of being underperforming, isolated or teetering on the edge of personal burnout—a vast, lonely space without much reward or momentum.
This daily grind has distanced them from focusing on what matters, their own and team purpose. Instead, finding themselves in an unrelenting pattern of spiral or transactional behaviours where their jobs own them. Ask themselves – “How did I get here?” or “How can I ever get back on track?”
If leaders do not have clarity of purpose, they will find it tough to channel their or team’s energy towards the desired future. The truth is, we don’t show up for our jobs as a portion of ourselves—by necessity, we bring our hearts and minds to everything we do.
We want leaders to be the captain of their purpose, lead careers and thrive in life.
If this is you or leaders within your organisation, let’s start with compassion and accept that people can positively change their reality? We need to be human-centric and inclusive in our approach to change. We are creating space to move out of competing for action and into a more reflective space of learning for insights.
No matter how lost or stuck leaders feel, they can get back on purpose.
Three key questions leaders can ask to connect with purpose:
- What is the contribution I want to make?
- What do I want to stand for?
- How can I bring my unique strengths and passions to create an impact?
Reconnecting with the why gives you clarity. Reconnecting with the why builds trust. Trust in people to be able to deliver on expectations and transformation.
Leaders that work on their inner strength stay true to their purpose.
I help leaders find and define their leadership purpose and put it to use. The purpose is an essential component of career success and well-being. It provides opportunity and inspiration to be who you are and manifest your potential.
Purpose-driven leadership requires commitment, a focus on development and building it into your priority list, so let’s get started!
