Working on Purpose

Defining purpose in work, life and business is not about the daily tasks, it’s about the reason for the tasks in the first place – the “why”, not the “what”. Discovering purpose allows a person to create the vision behind the tasks, and knowing that vision can dramatically change results.

For example, a chef’s purpose is not to cook food – that’s a task. The reason for this task is to help people enjoy life by having a good time with loved ones around a meal they didn’t have to prepare (or clean up) themselves.

People who are fulfilled at work know how the work they do supports the company’s vision, values and goals whether it’s their own company or someone else’s.

Knowing your purpose helps:

• Give meaning to everything you do.
• Guide you through tough times and difficult decisons.
• Encourage you to follow your instinct instead of following the crowd.
• Motivate you on your journey even (or especially) when you encounter failure or rejection.

How to Fulfill Your Purpose AND Make a Living

We’ve been talking about finding purpose in the work that you’re already doing. If you want to envision a career, based on your life purpose, try the following approach.

1. Determine your strengths: Life purpose is directly related to personal strengths and talents e.g. if communication is your strength then your purpose may be found in that area.

2. Determine your passions: Passions are the things you love to do – with or without external rewards (like money or recognition).

3. Determine your causes: Identify the causes that matter to you. Is there a condition in the world that makes you feel discontent or compels you to action?

4. Find the sweet spot: After determining your strengths, passions and causes find the overlap between them. That’s the sweet spot, where you’re likely to find the most fulfillment in your work life.

5. Your mission, should you choose to accept it… Based on the information above, write a personal mission statement – it can help guide you throughout your career transition.

It’s not (necessarily) about the money!

If you are in career transition, instead of focusing on a money goal, try setting goals that “add value” – a goal that improves the quality of people’s lives or of the earth. Whether you’re a bricklayer, a coach, a CEO or a solopreneur, it’s ultimately through helping others that we all achieve our life purpose.

Adapted from content used under license © 2011 Claire Communications

How to find your transferable skills

When you are facing redundancy or career change, you may wish to look at moving into an industry where you have little or no previous experience. In this circumstance, your transferable skills are paramount.

Consider the following three stories about clients we have coached recently:

Adam, was recently made redundant from a senior post within a financial services company.  Adam is a highly experienced programme manager, who has led multi-million, multi-national projects and has a superb track record of delivering on-time and on-budget.

When I first met Adam, he was despondent. “The whole industry is suffering at the moment” he said “how can I possibly find a similar job?”.  When we explored Adam’s circles of influence, we discovered that he had a few contacts through friends and relatives in the oil and gas industry. We agreed that he should discuss his situation with them. At our next meeting, Adam was overjoyed to discover that they were very interested in him. “I told them ‘I know nothing about the oil and gas industry’ but they said that wasn’t of relevance – they were crying out for my programme management skills and experience”.

John has recently left the RAF with the current round of defence cuts and redundancies in the armed forces. He faced his transition into civvy street with some nervousness, but when we looked at his transferable skills he was able to identify a whole range of managerial, project management, planning and logistics skills that would be valued in any industry, together with the experience of applying these in high-pressure environments.

Sally’s problem was a little different – from having been an HR business partner in a large retail chain, she took a 12-month career break to go travelling. On her return, she found that the market was tight, and so she did temping jobs for the next 6 months. When she got back into the job market, she was embarrassed by what she saw as an 18 month gap in her CV. During coaching, she looked at this period of her life differently, and enumerated the different skills that she had deployed to make her travelling successful, as well as the attributes that she had learnt during the experience. She then re-presented her CV and discovered that the “gap” was in fact of interest and relevance to prospective employers.

If you’re in a similar situation to Adam, John or Sally, then try this:

1. Look at your skills from a different angle, and try to see what someone else would find valuable in you.
2. Ask friends and contacts in different industries to tell you what parts of your skill-set are required in their industry.
3. Remember that everything you ever do adds to your kit-bag of skills and experience.  This includes career breaks, hobbies, your home life and voluntary work.

What have you overlooked in your life that adds to your worth?

How to find meaning in our work

Last weeks poll revealed that the majority of respondents are changing career to find greater meaning in their work. So is meaning found in the work itself or is it something else?

This story is of two bricklayers working alongside one another at a building site, and it highlights a choice each of us can make about how we approach our work… A man walks by and asks the builders what they’re doing.  The first bricklayer replies, “I don’t know and don’t really care. I do as I’m told, slap mortar on these bricks and pile them up in a line.”

The second bricklayer smiles, proudly proclaiming, “I’m helping to build a magnificent new cathedral.”

So if you’re heading off to work this Monday morning, which builder are you? Where is your focus?  Is it on the “what” you’re doing or the “why” you’re doing it?  Remember it’s difficult to feel passionate about something when you’re missing the meaning behind what you’re doing and why you’re here.

What Aspect of Your Career Change is Most Important to YOU?

Are you facing redundancy or maybe you’re ready for a career change?

We’ve generated a poll for you to consider what’s driving your behaviour as you work through your transition.

Take part here and let us know what’s the most important aspect for you right now.

 

If you answered “something else”, please leave a comment here and share what that “something else” is for you.

Thank you for taking part in our poll.  We’ll be writing about what drives our behaviour during career change in future posts.