The value of purpose goes beyond job satisfaction alone. So, how do you help your team find their purpose? Here are four ways to create a purposeful pursuit of purpose in the workplace.
1. Highlight the company’s mission, vision and values.
Start by sharing a clear and inspiring mission, vision and values statements for your operation. What is it that your company does, what is your purpose for existing and what are you aiming to achieve today and into the future? Values should represent how you ideally work together to achieve your mission and vision together. Having a clear sense of direction can excite and provide direction for your team. When they believe in the mission and vision of the organization, they’re able to better align their actions, goals and personal sense of purpose to help achieve it.
2. Encourage pursuit of purpose in non-work environments.
While developing and understanding your purpose at work is essential for happiness and productivity, don’t underestimate the value of encouraging pursuit of purpose in non-work settings as well. Having balanced pursuit of purpose in all areas of life will prevent burnout and reduced satisfaction in everyone at your organization. Take some time to encourage your team to think about what they want to become both in and outside of work, what their goals are, what they are truly committed to and passionate about. This information is excellent for setting individual goals, and can help uncover strengths that can be connected and utilized for achieving organizational goals as well.
3. Promote a healthy work-life balance.
We’ve all seen that person who is obsessively dedicated to work. We see them sending late night emails and working most weekends. What we don’t see are the missed recitals, forgotten anniversary celebrations and skipped personal development opportunities. Over time, this leads to burnout and role conflict. In today’s workforce, it is essential to encourage balance and parallel pursuit of purpose in all domains to retain talent and promote better job satisfaction. Start by simply talking to your team. Encourage them to make family a priority, to be at the recital, take their aging parent to their doctor’s appointment or use that vacation time to visit family or friends. Your organization will ultimately benefit from happier, more balanced employees.
4. Get involved in the community.
Challenge your team to think about their purpose in the community, and share it with others. They may be passionate about church, volunteering with children, fostering animals or riding with a cycling team to raise money for a local charity. You may find that several share interests and you can use these to create team-building activities—such as volunteering at a local food pantry or collecting donations for those in need. This balanced pursuit of passion can spark creativity, enthusiasm and happiness. Just imagine what proud, energized and refreshed employees could achieve both individually, and for your organization.
So remember that purpose goes beyond a job description and the daily grind at work. Extending the value of purpose at home and even in the community can lead to a healthier, happier—and more productive team.
