Chasing Our Purpose

Between the time we returned from our honeymoon in late April of 2000 and when we were both working exclusively in Dove Development & Consulting, we had done a lot to hone our clear purpose - albeit still not quite what we’re working to achieve today. But even the ever-evolving purpose we were focused on at any given time had enough power for us to invest the time, energy, and resources into growing however we could so we’d have a reasonable shot at accomplishing it!

As we turned our calendars to 2020, we were experiencing momentum like we hadn’t seen before. The annual full day leadership event we hosted in the fall of 2019 sold out more than a month in advance. We had agreed to speak at a few events across the country for a nonprofit Carly Fiorina was operating at the time, and we had signed our largest corporate training contract to date. Behind the scenes, things were moving just as fast. Cindy and I had contributed a chapter to a book on workplace communication, which became an Amazon Best Seller, and we were working with several organizations to become approved certification providers for the professionals holding certain credentials. On top of all that, we had just moved our website to a new platform that would allow us to host digital courses that folks could access from a computer or mobile device anytime, from anywhere around the world. 

By mid-March of that same year, the world as we knew came to a screeching halt - and so did all the momentum we had been building. Nearly everything we had booked was put on hold, much of which was eventually canceled when “two weeks to flatten the curve” turned into months and months and months… The majority of the work we had been doing to pay the bills was all but forbidden. We dug our heels in and kept working on everything we possibly could, just hoping that when the world opened back up we’d be more prepared to conquer it! Praise God for the savings we had set aside because that and our clear purpose was the only thing that kept our lights on into mid 2021; figuratively and literally!

While that eighteen month stretch where Covid put the brakes on the bulk of what we had in motion may have been the biggest, I’d be lying if I said it was the only roadblock that threatened to knock us off course. I remember a few times where we opened our arms to folks who were following a similar path to us, only to have them intentionally undermine us with organizations we had been working to earn the trust of. Although that hurt, it was simple enough to keep them at an arm’s length afterward. The thing that was harder to handle was seeing businesses where we thought we had solid relationships, and we had done business with, choosing to work with firms from outside the area for services we could have provided. It would have been one thing if we had the chance to bid for that work and lost, but it really stung when we weren’t even provided with an opportunity to have a conversation at a time where every dollar we earned made a difference. As it just so happens, most of those just happened to be companies that preach the importance of shopping local…

Make no mistake, this ain’t a sob story! All of us go through crap. If anything, it served as motivation to work even harder toward that clear purpose we had become even more focused on. Some of the most successful things we’ve created came from someone pissing me off… But without having a clear purpose driving us, the roadblocks could have easily been more than we could have handled. We did have some help with staying locked in that purpose from time to time though. One source of that was each conversation I had with my buddy Mark when he’d say, “Wes, you’ll never know this side of Heaven how many lives you’re touching. Don’t stop doing what you’re doing.” Without his voice, and a few others, we may not have chosen to keep chasing our purpose.

Confirming Our Purpose

In the fifth lesson of our Emerging Leader Development course, Cindy and I share how important it is for anyone with leadership responsibility to build time into their routine to reflect on the progress they are making. All too often, those of us who take on the role of a leader get consumed with the busyness of the day-to-day. We keep our heads down and plow through whatever it may be that’s demanding our time in the moment, checking tasks off our list as we go but not always keeping an eye on the bigger picture; that purpose we’re working toward.

I’ve never seemed to have a shortage of weaknesses. The brutal truth I’ve had to deal with throughout my career has been that I’m not naturally talented at any one thing. But where I lack talent, I’ve learned to compensate with a strong work ethic. While that’s served me well over the years, it’s also the one thing that causes me to occasionally lose focus on the clear purpose that’s been so powerful in helping through tough situations. Words from friends like Mark, and some of the things Cindy does to build time into my task-oriented routine, have played a critical role in keeping me dialed in. Every now and then though, we get feedback that confirms we are indeed on the right path and the roadblocks are worth pushing through.

I often mention the impact a hard-charging maintenance supervisor, who had recently moved to the area and had no direct oversight of me, made in my life by taking the time to challenge me to do more than stamp parts off a press for a paycheck while attempting to drink Anheuser out of business when I wasn’t at work. Terry typically brushes off my compliments when I talk with him directly, and I’ve started to understand that a little more as we’ve had similar experiences.

Since surviving the pandemic that killed so many businesses, not to mention all the families impacted by the virus behind it, we’ve had a few folks reach out to share how something they pulled from time with us helped them in their careers. We’ve seen several supervisors who completed courses with us moving from struggling in their role at the time to earning significant promotions. We’ve had a few folks reach out to share how much more productive their teams are since applying tools we’ve shared with them. We’ve seen a couple of businesses grow exponentially; in revenue, personnel, and profitability. And not so long ago, one fellow who I’ve seen as an extremely close friend for nearly two decades sent me an email eerily similar to a card I had sent Terry years before, detailing his appreciation for what he’s learned from me.

Mark Twain once said, “I can live for two months on a good compliment.” I’d have to disagree; when that compliment ties back to my clear purpose, it can fuel me for a lot longer than two months! To that end, just seeing progress in line with that purpose - especially in those times where Cindy forces me to pause and reflect on the work we’ve done - goes a long way toward assuring me that we’re on the right track. With that in mind, let’s wrap this up by looking how Cindy and I have come to know what our clear and definite purpose is - and soon we’ll work through how you can identify yours.

Understanding Our Clear Purpose

The occasional compliment and the (now far less occasional) chance to observe the impact of we’ve had in helping someone navigate the roadblocks that come with a any leadership position as they climb their respective career ladder has gone a long way in providing us with confirmation that the purpose we’re working toward makes a measurable difference in those leaders’ lives. As I mentioned before, we all want to be part of something that matters! But that hasn’t been the only thing that’s helped us know we’re chasing our true purpose…

Through this entire process of looking at the importance of leading with a clear purpose, one that drives us as leaders and a purpose each of the team members counting on us can connect with, I’ve referenced personal experiences as well as the mentors who helped me through those experiences, and how they played a role in shaping who I am today. I often think about how much different my life would be if any one of those things would have played out in some other way; if one of those mentors weren’t there or if they didn’t have the exact skill set that I needed to draw from at the time. Not only have each of the people I’ve mentioned, Cindy being the most influential of them all, made a tremendous impact on any success I’ve achieved to this point, they’ve each been a critical part of anything I’ve been able to pass on to others!

As we started down this path, I mentioned that we’re often asked why we do what we do. I generally answer that question by sharing something about how hard we’ve worked to develop the skills we needed to earn influence in positions where we were required to get results with the help of others who we had no positional authority over. Then I explain that we do what we do today so the people we work with won’t have to stumble over all the same roadblocks we did. While that’s a big part of why we do what we do, I’ve realized that this isn’t close to being our entire purpose. As I think about the ripple effect - how something someone else did to help me enables me to support another person - I see how the work we do today to help organizations increase profitability by building better leaders doesn’t stop there! So much of what we do is focused on building stronger leadership cultures within those organizations. We do indeed help the individual develop skills that will enhance their own career, but those same skills have a lasting impact on each person they touch - and each person those people touch after that! A supervisor may only have a team of ten or so employees, but each of those employees have families that are counting on them. And what about the employees any of those supervisors may empower to lead a team later on?

Our purpose has evolved significantly since we got married in April of 2000 and were doing everything we could to raise our kids. Truth be told, I couldn’t have detailed the purpose we’re working toward today just a few short years ago. And as sure as I am now about the clear purpose that drives us, I’m equally sure that the things driving me won’t be the exact things that drive you. You need to identify your own clear purpose, so that will be the final thing we work through in this process; a call to action, if you will…