Crucial Concepts #3
Why do you do what you do?
Reorienting yourself to your why can be a game changer. If you can get clear on your why, then how you operate even in the mundane matters takes on new levels of clarity.
For instance, why do you go to work? Of course, you need to make money to afford to live. But, most businesses and organizations have some higher purpose of service to the world. If you can’t seem to find that, your why in work may be more about the interactions and relationships you form and nurture in the course of doing your work.
At every single staff meeting and every single board meeting, I remind my team at the Oklahoma Parkinson’s Alliance that our mission is to inspire hope and transform life for Parkinson’s patients and families in Oklahoma. Parkinson’s patients and families are dealing with a tough and usually unexpected situation. So, we deliver support, education, effective therapy and research opportunities. If nothing else, we can greet them with love, stoke their courage and send them out better than when they came in. This is our why and it drives everything else.
Why do you care for a loved one? Not just because you have to, but you do so because of love. Through all of the complexities and conundrums of the circumstances, what is your why? Getting clear on your why has the potential to add meaning to the most frustrating and challenging moments.
Simon Sinek has emerged as one of the most articulate and insightful voices on leadership in the past decade or so. His thoughts on this very notion of finding your why are often applied to the realm of business, but are easily transferred to any area of your life. You can click here to see a clip of his talk from several years ago.
Why do you do what you do? Find your why and the how and what will take on new meaning.
Worth Repeating
If you want to feel happy, do something for yourself. If you want to feel fulfilled, do something for someone else.
-Simon Sinek
