Now, Go!
Now, Go!
Now, Go!
Now, Go!
Experts and thought leaders agree — to do your best work you need to know, believe, and live-out your highest purpose as you go about your daily responsibilities.
Experts and thought leaders agree — to do your best work you need to know, believe, and live-out your highest purpose as you go about your daily responsibilities.
Purpose Matters
Purpose drives performance. In a recent issue of Harvard Business Review (HBR) there are a series of articles under the theme Making Purpose Real. In the lead article the authors of What Is the Purpose of Your Purpose? note that, “Today’s business leaders are under pressure to come up with a corporate purpose, much as they were challenged to develop vision and mission statements in the 1980s and 1990s.” The article continues, “BlackRock’s CEO, Larry Fink, and other major investors are urging executives to articulate a role for their companies beyond profit making, implying that doing so will affect their valuation.” The article is clear — purpose driven organizations perform better. (1)
Yet, while purpose is good for business the authors’ first major point is, “Don’t Rally Around a Cause Unless You Actually Have One.” As leaders, we are susceptible to choosing our organizational purpose without enough thoughtful reflection and employee input. The impulse to quickly implement organizational purpose without proper reflection must be restrained.
You cannot force purpose on employees. Another article in the series is a case study on Unilever's purpose driven approach — we learn you can’t force purpose on employees. “Purpose starts with the individual. It may sound like a paradox, but creating a shared purpose requires that individuals first understand their own raison d’être…For example, it would be unproductive to encourage skills renewal for an employee whose career ambitions lie well outside the company, because she won’t invest to keep pace. Moreover, dictating change from above can lead to resistance.” (2)
You can’t fake purpose and you can’t force purpose. Today’s employees and customers can quickly tell the difference. Since the pandemic, people are increasingly making career decisions and product decisions based on their values. HBR’s advice aligns with God’s Word and what we are teaching at The Center. You must discover and live-out your true purpose. The place to start is God’s Word. (See God Gives You Great Purpose).
The Way
Followers of The Way have a distinct advantage in knowing, understanding, and living out their purpose. This extraordinary advantage is useful in all areas of life. Leaders led by Jesus are also best equipped to lead their families, teams, and organizations to discover and live out their purposes. Followers of Jesus are better equipped in the marketplace than those who are not, because they have the most meaningful and purpose filled job description.
Yes — you can be a high performer at your job and point people to Jesus, but to do so you must flip the way most people think about it. Your highest responsibilities are to love God with all of your heart and love your neighbor as yourself (Matthew 22:37-39). Jesus described the ultimate way to live and work in what is called the Great Commission — to go and make disciples (Matthew 28:18-20). (See Are You Ready?) However, to carry out the great commission at work we must first look to the only example who did this perfectly, Jesus.
The Example
Part of the distinct advantage that followers of The Way have includes a model from our leader and Lord — Jesus. Jesus holds three distinct offices on earth and in heaven. Those offices are prophet, priest and king (Hebrews 1:1-3).
Followers of Jesus have these offices too, and are called to live them out in the workplace. To make these roles more approachable and practical we have named them the following: Communicating (Prophet), Caring (Priest), and Modeling (King).
Now, Go!
To be effective at our main purpose — and the daily responsibilities we are given — we must move past knowing our purpose, believe our destiny, and fully deploy our gifts in life and work. A purpose driven life is not just a mental and/or spiritual exercise. People learn the most by doing. Our purpose becomes clearer as we do what we are made to do.
Here are three case studies, each of which highlights a distinct aspect of leadership that is patterned after the three roles/offices of Jesus.
Communicating — Coaching A Team Member Who Is Struggling
First — Let your coworker or employee know how they are doing compared to expectations. With empathy and care, ask them what is keeping them from doing the job well. After listening, you understand their issue is a fear of failure. They say, “I am so worried about failing that I am afraid to pull the trigger on my duties.”
Next — Look for ways to infuse God’s truth into the situation without being overtly religious. You might say, “you know I have suffered with that in the past too, but I came to realize that worry is a waste of time and each day has enough trouble of its own” ( Matthew 6:34). The coworker then asks, “how are you so confident, why are you not afraid to fail.”
Ideally — You ask permission to share what guides you and gives you confidence. If they accept, you explain how your faith guides you, “I came to a point in my spiritual journey where I knew I was a failure in what matters most (Romans. 3:10 & 3:23) and, by the mercies of God, someone introduced me to Jesus and I learned God loved me and offered my salvation from my sins. I even learned the purpose of my work.”
Core truth - “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith---and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” - Ephesians 2:8-10
Caring — Helping The Team Hit A Goal
First - You consistently put the needs of team members before the organization’s objectives and before your own preferences. Team members primarily want to know how to do their job better. You go out of your way to explain and demonstrate what it means to add value in the context of their responsibilities. Someone mentions, “You seem to care more about our team than you do getting ahead yourself.”
Next — You mention, “I used to think work was about my personal advancement, but over time I realized that it is much more satisfying to see others do well.” (Philippians 2:3-4)
Ideally — They ask, “What led you to realize this?” You say, “I love to study leadership. So, I read a lot and experience is an excellent teacher.” You then ask for permission to share more, “But, I’ll tell you, my faith has made the biggest difference. Would you like to know more?” They say of course, and you go on to explain how once you realized you were a child of God (1 John 3:2-3), it allowed you to live more like Jesus — knowing that the aim of your life is not here (Philippians 1:21).
Core Truth — Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God. - Hebrews 13:16
Modeling — Helping Others See That Rest Is Good For Them
First — Your workplace tends to be an “always on” culture, but you don’t answer emails during family time each night, and you don’t answer non-urgent emails on Sunday.
Next — A stressed out coworker snaps at you for not answering his email from 6:30 last night until 9:00, but then your coworker does something that surprises you when they say, “but you know I respect your priorities.” You say, “Thanks!” and explain that you do your best at work, but your family, faith, and God come first. You explain, “On Sunday I don’t touch email until after worship and lunch with the family and then I only answer if someone else is in desperate need or under duress (Luke 14:5). But, I never work on Sunday for my own agenda (Exodus 20:8-10). You tell them, “You know, I’ve tested this over the years (Romans 12:2) and found I am much more productive when I rest from work once a week.”
Ideally — The coworker says something like, “Isn’t that old fashioned?” You say, “I find God’s Word more useful the more I study it.” You ask, “Would you like to know more about how God’s Word applies to every situation we face?” You invite him to learn more with you and some friends.
Core Truth — “For anyone who enters God's rest also rests from their works, just as God did from his. Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will perish by following their example of disobedience. For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. - Hebrews 4:10-12
Of course, these case studies are not meant to be a formulaic playbook, but instead are examples to get us thinking about ways to do our work as we strive to live out our main purpose. We have so many opportunities! The key is to point people to Jesus in word and deed (James 1:22) and then trust the Holy Spirit to guide us as we go (Acts 8:29-34).
To read an example of how an entire company thrives when holding true to its purpose see Work Is Redemptive.
Sources:
(1) What Is the Purpose of Your Purpose? Your why may not be what you think it is. by Jonathan Knowles, B. Tom Hunsaker, Hannah Grove, and Alison James in Harvard’s Business Review
(2) Use Purpose to Transform Your Workplace, Unilever’s values-based approach to difficult talent decisions by Leena Nair, Nick Dalton, Patrick Hull, and William Kerr in Harvard’s Business Review
Experts and thought leaders agree — to do your best work you need to know, believe, and live-out your highest purpose as you go about your daily responsibilities.
Purpose Matters
Purpose drives performance. In a recent issue of Harvard Business Review (HBR) there are a series of articles under the theme Making Purpose Real. In the lead article the authors of What Is the Purpose of Your Purpose? note that, “Today’s business leaders are under pressure to come up with a corporate purpose, much as they were challenged to develop vision and mission statements in the 1980s and 1990s.” The article continues, “BlackRock’s CEO, Larry Fink, and other major investors are urging executives to articulate a role for their companies beyond profit making, implying that doing so will affect their valuation.” The article is clear — purpose driven organizations perform better. (1)
Yet, while purpose is good for business the authors’ first major point is, “Don’t Rally Around a Cause Unless You Actually Have One.” As leaders, we are susceptible to choosing our organizational purpose without enough thoughtful reflection and employee input. The impulse to quickly implement organizational purpose without proper reflection must be restrained.
You cannot force purpose on employees. Another article in the series is a case study on Unilever's purpose driven approach — we learn you can’t force purpose on employees. “Purpose starts with the individual. It may sound like a paradox, but creating a shared purpose requires that individuals first understand their own raison d’être…For example, it would be unproductive to encourage skills renewal for an employee whose career ambitions lie well outside the company, because she won’t invest to keep pace. Moreover, dictating change from above can lead to resistance.” (2)
You can’t fake purpose and you can’t force purpose. Today’s employees and customers can quickly tell the difference. Since the pandemic, people are increasingly making career decisions and product decisions based on their values. HBR’s advice aligns with God’s Word and what we are teaching at The Center. You must discover and live-out your true purpose. The place to start is God’s Word. (See God Gives You Great Purpose).
The Way
Followers of The Way have a distinct advantage in knowing, understanding, and living out their purpose. This extraordinary advantage is useful in all areas of life. Leaders led by Jesus are also best equipped to lead their families, teams, and organizations to discover and live out their purposes. Followers of Jesus are better equipped in the marketplace than those who are not, because they have the most meaningful and purpose filled job description.
Yes — you can be a high performer at your job and point people to Jesus, but to do so you must flip the way most people think about it. Your highest responsibilities are to love God with all of your heart and love your neighbor as yourself (Matthew 22:37-39). Jesus described the ultimate way to live and work in what is called the Great Commission — to go and make disciples (Matthew 28:18-20). (See Are You Ready?) However, to carry out the great commission at work we must first look to the only example who did this perfectly, Jesus.
The Example
Part of the distinct advantage that followers of The Way have includes a model from our leader and Lord — Jesus. Jesus holds three distinct offices on earth and in heaven. Those offices are prophet, priest and king (Hebrews 1:1-3).
Followers of Jesus have these offices too, and are called to live them out in the workplace. To make these roles more approachable and practical we have named them the following: Communicating (Prophet), Caring (Priest), and Modeling (King).
Now, Go!
To be effective at our main purpose — and the daily responsibilities we are given — we must move past knowing our purpose, believe our destiny, and fully deploy our gifts in life and work. A purpose driven life is not just a mental and/or spiritual exercise. People learn the most by doing. Our purpose becomes clearer as we do what we are made to do.
Here are three case studies, each of which highlights a distinct aspect of leadership that is patterned after the three roles/offices of Jesus.
Communicating — Coaching A Team Member Who Is Struggling
First — Let your coworker or employee know how they are doing compared to expectations. With empathy and care, ask them what is keeping them from doing the job well. After listening, you understand their issue is a fear of failure. They say, “I am so worried about failing that I am afraid to pull the trigger on my duties.”
Next — Look for ways to infuse God’s truth into the situation without being overtly religious. You might say, “you know I have suffered with that in the past too, but I came to realize that worry is a waste of time and each day has enough trouble of its own” ( Matthew 6:34). The coworker then asks, “how are you so confident, why are you not afraid to fail.”
Ideally — You ask permission to share what guides you and gives you confidence. If they accept, you explain how your faith guides you, “I came to a point in my spiritual journey where I knew I was a failure in what matters most (Romans. 3:10 & 3:23) and, by the mercies of God, someone introduced me to Jesus and I learned God loved me and offered my salvation from my sins. I even learned the purpose of my work.”
Core truth - “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith---and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” - Ephesians 2:8-10
Caring — Helping The Team Hit A Goal
First - You consistently put the needs of team members before the organization’s objectives and before your own preferences. Team members primarily want to know how to do their job better. You go out of your way to explain and demonstrate what it means to add value in the context of their responsibilities. Someone mentions, “You seem to care more about our team than you do getting ahead yourself.”
Next — You mention, “I used to think work was about my personal advancement, but over time I realized that it is much more satisfying to see others do well.” (Philippians 2:3-4)
Ideally — They ask, “What led you to realize this?” You say, “I love to study leadership. So, I read a lot and experience is an excellent teacher.” You then ask for permission to share more, “But, I’ll tell you, my faith has made the biggest difference. Would you like to know more?” They say of course, and you go on to explain how once you realized you were a child of God (1 John 3:2-3), it allowed you to live more like Jesus — knowing that the aim of your life is not here (Philippians 1:21).
Core Truth — Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God. - Hebrews 13:16
Modeling — Helping Others See That Rest Is Good For Them
First — Your workplace tends to be an “always on” culture, but you don’t answer emails during family time each night, and you don’t answer non-urgent emails on Sunday.
Next — A stressed out coworker snaps at you for not answering his email from 6:30 last night until 9:00, but then your coworker does something that surprises you when they say, “but you know I respect your priorities.” You say, “Thanks!” and explain that you do your best at work, but your family, faith, and God come first. You explain, “On Sunday I don’t touch email until after worship and lunch with the family and then I only answer if someone else is in desperate need or under duress (Luke 14:5). But, I never work on Sunday for my own agenda (Exodus 20:8-10). You tell them, “You know, I’ve tested this over the years (Romans 12:2) and found I am much more productive when I rest from work once a week.”
Ideally — The coworker says something like, “Isn’t that old fashioned?” You say, “I find God’s Word more useful the more I study it.” You ask, “Would you like to know more about how God’s Word applies to every situation we face?” You invite him to learn more with you and some friends.
Core Truth — “For anyone who enters God's rest also rests from their works, just as God did from his. Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will perish by following their example of disobedience. For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. - Hebrews 4:10-12
Of course, these case studies are not meant to be a formulaic playbook, but instead are examples to get us thinking about ways to do our work as we strive to live out our main purpose. We have so many opportunities! The key is to point people to Jesus in word and deed (James 1:22) and then trust the Holy Spirit to guide us as we go (Acts 8:29-34).
To read an example of how an entire company thrives when holding true to its purpose see Work Is Redemptive.
Sources:
(1) What Is the Purpose of Your Purpose? Your why may not be what you think it is. by Jonathan Knowles, B. Tom Hunsaker, Hannah Grove, and Alison James in Harvard’s Business Review
(2) Use Purpose to Transform Your Workplace, Unilever’s values-based approach to difficult talent decisions by Leena Nair, Nick Dalton, Patrick Hull, and William Kerr in Harvard’s Business Review