In the last decade of her life, my mother-in-law talked a lot about having a purpose. Not so much for herself, but that she wanted her children and grandchildren to all have a sense of purpose. She was convinced that our purpose would guide us to good decisions.
I agree with her.
But, for me, having a purpose isn’t enough. Even if you add autonomy and mastery. (See Dan Pink’s Drive, or Edward Deci’s self-determination theory.)
I need meaning in my life, too.
But I think that many of us think our meaning has to be Important. Or Big. Or have some kind of Major Societal Impact.
Not so. Often we recognize our meaning as we work toward our purpose. The more we make progress to support our purpose, the more we recognize our meaning.
There’s a cycle:
- “Work” to fulfill your purpose. This does not have to be paid work, as long as you define goals to clarify your purpose. (That’s part of the reflection.)
- Assess the meaning after you finish some work. (Progress toward your goals.)
- Refine any of your purpose or goals, based on the meaning you made from your previous behaviors.
Here’s how I’ve seen others change their purpose and meaning to adapt to their new thinking:
- Several of my technical colleagues have moved partly out of their technical roles and into roles that allow them to address the issues of climate change. They changed their purpose from “Support product development teams” to “Tackle the issues of climate change.”
- I continue to move “around” the organizational hierarchy to address product development issues I see.
- Some of my consulting colleagues have moved their business focus from business-to-business (B2B) to business-to-consumer (B2C). That’s a purpose change.
I’ve also seen people’s lives change their purpose and meaning.
Purpose Evolves as We Live
When kids are little, we ask them, “What do you want to be when you grow up?”
I’ve always wondered about that question. I have no idea what I said when I was a kid, but about the time I was thirteen, I realized certain people had societal power: professionals. Most of them were doctors. Some were lawyers, managers, or people who owned their own businesses. All of them were men.
I didn’t care that they were men. It was clear to me that I would have many opportunities to succeed. So, when I was thirteen, I decided to be a neurosurgeon. Why? Those doctors seemed to have the most power, professionally and personally. I have no idea what the “top of the food chain” is in medicine these days.
But I didn’t want societal power. Instead, I wanted the power to live my life the way I wanted.
Once I was in college, I realized I could choose any number of careers to have that personal power. (Which is good, because I did not have perfect grades!)
My purpose started with creating a life that allowed me personal power. As I worked, my purpose evolved to creating a better environment for projects, people, and the organization in general, a form of adaptability. Now, my purpose is to share what I’ve learned about adaptability with you, my dear readers.
I use meaning every time I write, speak, or interact with others. And I improve my adaptability every time I reflect on my purpose and meaning.
That’s the question this week: How can we use purpose and meaning to improve our adaptability?