I sometimes feel like I am moving a million miles a minute. Between family and work, football games and business pitches, the carpool and plotting out the agency’s goals for 2019, it’s a wonder I get any sleep at all!
But, even in the most rushed and crazy of moments, I often marvel at the fact that I have never lost sight of the joy and thrill I get from the work I do. I am beyond grateful and profoundly blessed to feel this way about my life and my work. I most definitely have purpose. I hope you do, as well. It is a remarkable thing when you can say you truly love what you do and that it brings your life meaning.
As a leader I am very aware of the fact that one of my responsibilities is to impart that sense of purpose to my team. Purpose is what separates leaders from managers. Purpose empowers us, it makes you decisive and brave enough to take risks. Purpose is passion, and passion is engagement.It’s also something we talk to our clients about all the time. We run workshops where we take our clients through a thought provoking mission to get to the WHY of what they do. It’s a fascinating and enlightening process…and it’s one that we as leaders need to remember to do for our teams and for our own organizations as well.
It’s a four-step process:
- Define YOUR process. It’s personal. WHY are you doing what you’re doing? What’s driving you? What gets you out of bed every day? It might take you a bit to get down to the authentic expression of your WHY, but it’s worth it!
- Find a way to bring that purpose into the world. For me, it’s Avocet, the team, and the work we do for our amazing clients.
- Communicate that purpose to your team (often!), in ways that let them CONNECT to it and feel that they are an important part of it, that it is their purpose as well.
- Mentor and help others find their purpose. Be in meaningful inspiration to your team.
Sheryl O’Loughlin is the CEO of REBBL super herb beverages, and the author of Killing It, which was launched in December 2016. She is also an advisor to the Harvest Summit, an annual gathering of innovators in Sonoma County. She was a guest on the Integrate & Ignite podcast not long ago, and she and had a wide-sweeping conversation about purpose, meaning, and leadership. She consciously “surrounds herself with brilliance” so that she can achieve that emotional connection with her team that leads to that empowered purpose. Take a listen here, and I am sure that you will be inspired, just as I was!
