| MASTERCLASS COACHING ONLINE Join us on June 24 at 12pm ET for our next LIVE 1-hour masterclass / coaching session via ZOOM online. Topic: Positive Leaders Drive Positive Change. We'll share the foundations for creating positive change within your team and organization, including how to create a Shared Vision and Purpose and embrace Positive Conflict to Overcome Challenges. Get details and sign up here. |
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| Working for a Bigger Purpose |
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What if work wasn't just work? What if work was a vehicle to live and share a bigger purpose?
I believe there's flawed perception in our society that in order to live a life of purpose we have to leave our jobs and go solve world hunger, feed the homeless, go into ministry or start a charity.
While these are all noble causes and many are called to do these very things, for many of us our bigger purpose can be found in the here and now, in the jobs we have, right under our noses. And when we live on purpose with purpose it will provide the ultimate fuel for a meaningful life.
You may not build libraries around the world but you can find the bigger purpose in reading to your children. You may not feed the homeless every day but you can nourish your employees and customers with a smile, kind word and care. And while you may not start your own non-profit organization you can begin a charity initiative at work. After all, "charity" means "love in action." You can make a difference every day and touch the lives of everyone you meet.
While these people may not be starving because of a lack of food, you can provide them with a different kind of nourishment that will feed their souls and feed your own in the process.
I heard of a janitor who worked at NASA and even though he was sweeping floors he felt his bigger purpose was contributing to put a man on the moon.
I met a bus driver whose purpose is to help kids stay off drugs.
I met an administrative assistant who has become the Chief Energy Officer of her company.
I received an email from a woman in the mortgage business who sees her job as a way to help couples save their marriages by keeping their homes.
I met a Popeye's Chicken employee named Edith in the Atlanta Airport who makes thousands of air traveler's smile each day. The list goes on...
Ordinary people with an extra-ordinary purpose.
In any job our purpose waits for us to find it and live it.
I can't tell you what your purpose should be but I can tell you that every one of us can find a bigger purpose in the job we have.
I can tell you that every job, no matter how glorious or boring it may seem, will get mundane if we let it.
Purpose keeps it fresh and when we are filled with purpose, we tap into an endless supply of energy.
Don't wait until you go on a mission trip to start living with a mission. Don't wait until the weekend to feed people who are hungry. Bring your mission to work, start working for a bigger purpose and nourish others in the process.
-Jon
P.S., If you want to develop more purpose at work for yourself and your team, read my new book with Coach P.J. Fleck, Row the Boat: A Never-Give-Up Approach to Lead with Enthusiasm and Optimism and Improve Your Team and Culture. |
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| You can now get several of Jon's bestselling books via boxed book sets. Great gifts for dads, grads and others in your life! |
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| Inspiring Quick Reads Set
Includes: The Shark and the Goldfish, The Positive Dog, One Word, Life Word, The Coffee Bean, The Garden, Stick Together |
| | | Inspirational Fables Set
Includes: The Energy Bus, The No Complaining Rule, Training Camp, Soup, The Seed, The Carpenter |
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| Be Your Best Set
Includes: Hard Hat, The Power of Positive Leadership, You Win in the Locker Room First, The Power of a Positive Team. Relationship Grit |
| | | Children's Book Set
Includes: The Energy Bus for Kids, Thank You and Good Night, The Hard Hat for Kids, One Word for Kids, The Coffee Bean for Kids |
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