“The critical role of leader is to create the environment that releases the magic.” – Hubert Joly, former CEO of Best Buy
The above quote is from a seminar in which I heard Hubert Joly speak. He spoke about how the purpose of a company is not to make money. Money is only an outcome, not a goal. He shared how the turnaround that happened at Best Buy was through keeping a focus on the people connected to purpose. The profits then were simply an indicator that their focus on a human approach was working.
The same is also true in the nonprofit world. This is captured in a blog, where Richard Perry states, “And if the core objective is getting to know the donor, the core strategy needs to be centered on capturing the donor’s heart and understanding their passions. It is NOT about getting the money.” As we connect to donors relationally through shared values, there becomes a natural fit where they want to be involved through giving.
Yes, money is a critical part of an organization, whether for-profit or non-profit. However, what motivates and gives energy for the organization to reach its mission is the important component of keeping focused on your purpose and keeping people aware of their shared connection to this purpose. This is key to creating the magic of a powerful culture.
What keeps us from the magic of purpose?
Frustration is a powerful emotional source of energy. The problem with frustration is that if it is not properly handled, it can lead us to distraction. It becomes a ball of pent-up energy that is focused only on obstacles and what is not happening. This energy is then translated into impatience and a thought that we just need to do something and tackle what seems like the immediate obstacle. For example, lack of money can be an immediate obstacle. But if all our energy goes into the money or making the numbers, we lose sight of the purpose. People are not motivated by numbers. They are motivated by the purpose and the why.
What keeps us towards the magic of purpose?
Turn your frustration into passion for the purpose of your organization. Frustration is a consuming energy on what is not; Passion is an overflowing energy on what is and is to come. When you feel frustration, use that energy to refocus it into passion. How can you use your passion to focus your energy and your team’s energy?
A leader noticed he was feeling tremendous frustration when his team did not meet their key performance indicators. This led to all his focus, communications, and emotional reactions being about the numbers. However, this was not motivating his team. Team morale was poor, and his own personal satisfaction was suffering.
This leader decided to make a change. What if he turned the frustration into a passion for his people connected to purpose? He developed a personal purpose connected to his leadership that directed how he showed up at work and gave him purpose for his work. This led to him implementing strategies to develop his team members and noticing their incremental indicators with growth as their measurement of immediate feedback of success. It was also an energy put into patience that the numbers would follow. It was a belief that passion connected to purpose would lead to sustainable results because it was an energy of multiple people aligned to purpose rather than on one person’s sole brute energy to make it happen.
Hubert Joly discussed that the power and magic happens when you connect the purpose of what drives each individual employee to the purpose of their work. Are you redirecting frustration into passion for purpose to keep focused on long-term people strategies that leads to sustainable results? Are you engaging the magic of purpose to create an energy that multiplies?