Menu
“I discovered that people are not really afraid of dying; they’re afraid of not ever having lived, not ever having deeply considered their life’s higher purpose, and not ever having stepped into that purpose and at least tried to make a difference in this world.”
Joseph Jaworski
Energy is a ‘hot’ topic across the world right now.
The use of fossil fuels.
The cost of energy.
The future of our energy sources.
Something that I believe is more important is human energy – in particular inspired energy.
As someone who spent many years helping organisations define a mission or purpose, if I’m being honest I got very sceptical. Not because the work wasn’t meaningful or relevant but because 80% of the time, it really didn’t mean anything to the people who’d hired me to help.
When it came down to reality, most of the time it was just a marketing exercise for the troops and something the leadership team are ‘supposed to do’. It was done by the head and there was no heart or soul in it.
What I learned over time is that the best performing teams over time were the businesses or teams with a genuine higher purpose and this came from one thing. A leader who had a clear sense of purpose themselves and this was wrapped up in who they were as people.
With that came a transformative sense of energy – an inspired energy.
I’m not talking about the person who irritates others by sharing proudly their purpose (usually an egotistical version of ‘I’m going to change the world’) but more the person who is quietly going about their business, but with a specific type of natural energy.
That energy is what always drives a special team in any context.
That sense of purpose wasn’t a clever slogan or tag-line, it was deeper than that – usually a deeply held set of beliefs or a sense of ‘calling’.
It is NEVER a waste of time to deeply consider your higher purpose.
This requires a willingness to commit some time to look in that direction. Most people will say they’re too busy to do that but the irony is that ANY TIME committed to this area has a massively positive ripple effect.
The most important ripple is into your own energy.
People energy drives businesses.
People energy drives positive change in life.
Most organisations don’t realise that this energy is in danger of being radically diminished because of a lack of focus in this direction.
My challenge to you, not just for this week, but for the remainder of the year is to do this:
Make time to consider your sense of purpose.
Questions like these may help:
There is more you can consider BUT the key is to make time.
In a busy busy world, that wants to take your energy, that’s always the challenge.
Shane
Do you know someone who would benefit from reading this? Feel free to share it with them. To make this super simple, I’ve included some share buttons a little further down this page.
Latest Podcast Episodes: Listen for free on my website here or on any major podcasting platform.
