This week has been emotional challenging for me. Many of the people I've invested in were released from their positions, not for performance necessarily, but due to changes in the business model. I've spent a lot of time grieving for these wonderful, awesome people in the last 48 hours.
On a personal note, my dream job was eliminated, my role changing back to a front line producer. And had my employment at my company been completely terminated due to those same business model changes, I would fully support the decision. A business is not a person with feelings or empathy. It's a non-living entity that keeps it's own survival and growth as the top priority.
In the past, I've made the mistake of being completely devoted to the organizations I work for. One of my VP's made a comment that resonated when he told me never to be blindly loyal to something that can't/won't be loyal back.
That epiphany really help me change my perspective and priorities when it comes to my job. My job is NOT my purpose, it's a mechanism (that should always be thought of as a temporary means) to convert my time and energy into providing finances that in turn provide food & shelter for,me and my dependents. A job does not define you. I know several people who've fallen apart because they lost their jobs. They are so emotionally bound to their place of employment and have let it define them. Huge mistake.
Your purpose in life has nothing to do with where you work or your job title. You can fulfill your purpose no matter what your social standing in your community. Your purpose must be bigger than you and everything you do, consciously or unconsciously needs to drive you toward fulfilling that purpose.
Your purpose (or your WHY) is so much larger than a job, although a job can be a means to helping you accomplish it. One more thing... your purpose and WHY has to tie to helping others. I've read mission and vision statements from 100's of companies & individuals and every one are powerful, but I've yet to see one that encapsulates their purpose in a simple statement.
My purpose statement is just 3 simple words that embodies what I want to be remembered for after I'm gone. No job role, financial or social status can prevent me from accomplishing what God put me here for.
It's bigger than me, bigger than any circumstance. I can accomplish my purpose anywhere, anytime. I am constantly on the lookout for the opportunity to act on it.
In the end, my purpose probably won't change the world, but hopefully will change a life or two as the big blue ball spins through space and time. If not, then I'm having a blessed life trying to fulfill it.
My purpose... MAKE A DIFFERENCE
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