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Why is Purpose essential to stay relevant, meaningful

and drive change in the modern world?

We hav about 30,000 days on the planet

We have about 30,000 days on the planet. 

We each have gifts talents and abilities, many of which were not identified or cultivated at school and growing up. 

We have Values which tell us what's important and how we want to live. For most people these are nebulous or unexpressed. 

Living a meaningful life means making a contribution that inspires us and makes a difference in our world and in the world. 

All these together = our Purpose. When we live it we become relevant to the world in a new way and we feel that we are living the life we were meant to live. 

ORGANISATIONS

 

I have worked with hundreds of organisations across the world and the same issues show themselves everywhere.... 

- high numbers of sick days,

- meetings that are drawn out, dull and don't go anywhere,

- presentations where people feel uninspired,

- toxic internal politics,

- low levels of creativity and innovation,

- lack of personal responsibility,

- resistance to change,

- silo mentalities,

- policies and K.P.I's which are mechanistic and lack humanity... I could go on. 

 

ALL these issues... All these issues are resolved through people knowing and applying their Purpose collectively and personally. Organisations need to have and authentically live their Purpose if they are to engage their people, connect with their customers, clients and stakeholders at a new level. We have come out of the Information Age. We are now in the Age of Meaning. 

 

Purpose isn't just a mechanism for solving problems, it is a springboard to the next stage in evolution.  The moment someone engages with their Purpose, previously untapped gifts, talents and abilities come to the fore, new connections and partnerships are made  and their impact is felt on a deeper level. It is exactly the same with organisations, especially in these days of instant access, when every movement and policy is under the microscope of public scrutiny... which means scrutiny of one's customers, clients and peers. When an organisation serves a Purpose bigger than itself it becomes a beacon to it's industry and a magnet for talent and opportunities.  

When an organisation serves a Purpose bigger than itself it becomes a beacon to it's industry and a magnet for talent and opportunities.  

Purpose is not a "nice to have". It's essential to stay relevant, meaningful and drive change in the modern world. 

INSTITUTIONS

Institutions such as government bodies, the U.N, the E.U, N.G.O's  have a purpose... but they lose sight of it in the day to day activities of busyness,  admin,  bureaucracy, 'not invented here' and cultures which are slow to make decisions.  The upshot of this is that people become slow, jaded and disillusioned. Great hearts and great minds join these organisations because they want to make their working time - that's 40% of life - mean something; only to find that the way the work is done is so uninspiring that they either leave to start their own venture or worse, they stay and accept defeat. That's tragic. 

 

For 25 years people in these organisations have been telling me "things happen so slowly around here - it takes ages to change anything" but it doesn't. Change is quick and people and institutions who make their Purpose more important than preserving the status quo make dynamic progress and they change the world. 

 

Institutions need to reconnect with the Purpose. They need to put it at the forefront and outset of every project, meeting and intervention, both internal and external. For Purpose to live and have it's transformatory effect it needs to become part of the institution's interpersonal operating system.... meaning that it is central to every meeting, every one to one conversation, every presentation, every email, every new hire and every handshake. Purpose = 'reason for being'. 

 

Clarity of Purpose saves time, eliminates waste and brings a new level of effectiveness. 

 

It's not a 'nice to have', it's essential to stay relevant, meaningful and drive change in the modern world. 

 

Purpose is your heartbeat. Can you live  without it? 

PURPOSE TURNS THE LIGHTS ON

 

I have seen people live their best selves. I have seen that moment when they step into what they truly mean, what says YES to them most and what they believe in regardless of what the world or anyone else thinks. I have seen how the lights come on in them, as if a switch to their soul has been flicked. Their eye contact, body language and voice changes. They become magnetic and hypnotic. Their words become articulate and powerful. When they are in that state, ignited by what is most important to them, they are unstoppable. 

 

What is that thing that ignites them? Is it a mood or a state or… is it something deeper? And if so, how do we connect with that not occasionally, not once in a while but as the constant theme in our lives? 

 

That’s Purpose and that’s why I developed the 7 Questions… so that people can ignite themselves to their highest possibility and make the changes that most inspire them a reality. 

Organisations, especially corporates are the new nation states. Their work and products touch billions of people on a daily basis. Most of them are too scared to "step out of the norm" and be perceived as anything other than their carefully manufactured image. But a few… a precious few do. And they ignite millions. Their products become symbols of the company’s Purpose. People feel like they are making a positive choice every time they reach into their pocket and spend their money with them. In turn those companies treat people and the planet as we would all like to be treated, with respect, with dignity and aiming to leave the world a better place than we found it. They are not perfect, none of us are, but they strive to do good and to give more and who could do more?

 

I believe that corporations and businesses who live for a Purpose greater than themselves are a force of good and can not only change the world but change the times we live in. If a corporation the size and scale of Coca Cola were to live purely on Purpose what might change?… their advertising, their packaging, their contents, the way they work with their people and suppliers, the way they interact with farmers and purveyors of raw materials, the way their goods are transported everything. Their eco system would evolve and… not only that but every other major drinks company would have to follow suit. What changes then?

 

If the drinks companies change, wouldn’t the food companies follow suit? You see where this is headed? One company on Purpose leads thousands of others to do the same. How many does it take to shift the planet beyond recognition? Probably between 8-12%. Out of the Fortune 500 companies on the planet that’s 40-60 companies. Not many eh. Sometimes though, it takes the smaller companies to show the bigger companies the way to go. 

What else is possible?

BUSINESS PURPOSE SESSION

BOOK AN ONLINE BUSINESS

CONSULTANCY SESSION WITH ME!

Purpose solves a host of organisational issues, in the way your business operates and with your people.This introductory conversation will help understand what key issues are going on, how they can be effectively and scalable solved. Developing a purposeful organisation is perhaps the most dynamic movement you could make. This 45mins introductory session explores how.

The 45mins introductory session is free - Richard's fee are £5,000 per day and £2,500 half-day.

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THE IMPACT OF PURPOSEFUL ORGANISATIONS

Purpose-driven organisations have 9% of the HR costs of non Purpose-driven organisations. Why?  How do you become Purposeful? How does that affect you, your people and the wider world? In this free audio, Richard calls on 25 years experience designing award winning culture change programmes to address these questions and more.

 

The answers are simple and compelling. 

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PURPOSEFUL PROJECTS

PURPOSE AT WORK

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