How to Discover Professional Purpose

𝗔 𝗦𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗗𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘆 𝗣𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗙𝘂𝗹𝗳𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 ☀ Ever felt like your professional successes don't quite fill the void within? It's a challenge many in leadership positions encounter: the quest for genuine fulfillment and purpose that goes beyond just achieving goals. Ignoring this sense of emptiness can lead to a disconnection from your work, affecting productivity and potentially prompting thoughts of leaving your organization. A daily reflection exercise on your purpose can be key in addressing this. Here’s a streamlined approach: 💥 Identify Moments of Identity: Recall six times in your career where you felt most fully yourself. What is most meaningful to you, and why? 💥 Find the Underlying Pattern: Examine these situations closely. What connects them? Capture the common thread that made these moments feel you were most fully being yourself. The clue is in what is meaningful and why. 💥 Craft Your Purpose Statement: Turn this pattern into a deep self-concept statement. It could be something as inspiring as "To be the best in every interaction" or "To bring out the best in my people." 💥 Winning matters, but without meaningfulness it results in emptiness. So winning matters, meaning matters, it’s Both/And, not either/or. Combine going for a Big Win and your Big Purpose. 💥 Mobilize Your Purpose: Make this statement a guiding principle in your everyday decisions and regularly review its relevance to your evolving leadership journey. Carefully not on track, off track and course correct. By incorporating this reflection into your daily routine, you can start to bridge the gap between external achievements (winning) and internal fulfillment (meaning). When done well, this alignment can reignite your passion for your work, enhance your productivity, and deepen your connection to your role and team.🌀 Share your thoughts in the COMMENTS below. 🔽 #LeadershipFulfillment #PurposeBeyondSuccess #ReflectAndRedefine #AuthenticLeadership #MissionDrivenLeaders

We've all been there - myself included - when our job leaves us sick, scared, and looking for an exit. At the time, the weight of my confusion felt draining, my stress levels felt paralyzing, and nothing seemed to ignite even the faintest degree of passion in me. But even in these moments where we feel stuck, how often do we pause and deeply assess WHY? What I wish that someone had told me at that time was that the key to re-evaluating my career path was in understanding my own inner motivations and aligning them with my own actions. If this resonates, I want to share a strategy to help you understand your discontent and aspiration through my recent blog post titled "Using the 5 Whys to Re-Evaluate Your Career Path." The 5 Whys is a powerful tool borrowed from problem-solving methodologies, perfect for mission-driven professionals who are looking to find their next steps. This exercise will push you to go beyond the superficial and reach the root cause of your feelings. Here's a brief glimpse from one of my recent coaching conversations as an example: 1. WHY are you unhappy with your job? “I don’t feel engaged.” 2. WHY don’t you feel engaged? “Tasks are repetitive and don't challenge me.” 3. WHY do you want to be challenged? “It makes me feel like I’m growing and contributing.” 4. WHY is growth and contribution important to you? “They give me a sense of purpose and achievement.” 5. WHY do you need a purpose in your job? “I want my work to align with my personal values and passions.” From a vague sense of unhappiness to an eye-opening realization about alignment and values, this reflective process can be transformative. Once you've uncovered your core values through the 5 Whys, then it’s time to realign. Maybe it's autonomy or creativity that drives you. Or maybe your motivations lie in social impact. How can your career best cater to these values? Remember: your professional journey is not just about 'doing' but understanding 'why you do it'. In thinking about your own next steps, consider Steve Jobs’ advice: "The only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle." 📌 Check out the full blog post for more insights: https://lnkd.in/eHJDUqDc Not sure how to use this exercise to reflect and realign? 📞I’d love to connect with you further on a complimentary call: https://lnkd.in/dZJ2Agzq Interested in other free career insights and job search advice?  📩 Subscribe here to my weekly newsletter: www.ki-coaching.com #CareerCoaching #5Whys #CareerChange #FindYourPurpose #SelfDiscovery #CareerCoach #FindYourWhy #FindYourWhy

A client came to me wanting to make a career change but wasn’t sure where to start. It’s a common spot to be in, especially if you’ve spent years working in one area. You might think, “I should just stick to what I know, right?” Not necessarily… In an earlier post, I talked about the importance of reflecting on “Why” you want to make a change. That’s the starting point. Assuming you’ve done that, what’s next? If your goal is to find purpose and direction in your career, then you should reflect on questions prompted by the Japanese concept of “Ikigai”. 🔹 What do you love to do? 🔹 What are you good at? 🔹What does the world need? 🔹What can you be paid for? Your answers might change over time as you grow and as the world changes too. I’d add a couple more questions to think about: 🔹What are your circumstances? (e.g., financial needs, family needs)  🔹What are your values? (i.e., your non-negotiables) It’s useful to check in with yourself on these questions now and then because your answers will evolve over time. This approach has guided me in making four career pivots. And I loved all of them. Each one helped me discover new passions, develop new skills, and uncover new opportunities. Exploring these questions is like using a compass in your career journey. What questions have helped guide you to leading a fulfilling career and life?

Someone asked me how I found my purpose. Here are 7 things I told him. ✶ 1. Purpose comes from within → It’s not like finding a great-fitting job.  It’s more like a deep sense of a call-to-justice or an inner fire supplying you with endless energy. ✶ 2. Clues to our purpose repeat throughout life → In childhood, you encounter your deep purpose without looking for it.  It’s a repeating theme in your path. ✶ 3. Guides can help you find your purpose → You could receive help from a coach, mentor, or even written literature.  (I read the bible, philosophy, psychology, and history. There's also endless wisdom in fictional pieces) Sometimes, talking through it will activate those ‘ah-ha’ moments. Journaling can also guide you. ✶ 4. Your purpose is evergreen → It’s not a trend.  You don’t feel wishy-washy about it.  It’s a permanent passion inside you. ✶ 5. Only you can fulfill your purpose → People might find they have similar careers.  But a purpose is vastly different from a career.  And it is something no one can steal from them, and they can't get fired from it. It’s like spirit or light.  Your spirit is yours.  Period.  No one can take it away. ✶ 6. It might take time to find your purpose → It took me years to understand ‘purpose’, and it’s still unfolding.  (It might not take long for other people. I have a lot to learn.)  For me, I sought to understand it.  I did this through: -An internship at a church in Virginia -Completing 2 prestigious undergrad cohorts in Colorado -Extensive global travel -Gleaning from mentors across multiple genres -Taking focused, personal retreats ✶ 7. The #1 sign about purpose is that it does not require anyone or anything else other than what’s inside you → You can use that inner fire in a career or through giving back to the community, but that -by itself- is not the purpose.  That is simply a vehicle to steer your purpose. As many people are working on personal businesses, this may help confirm what you already know. ✶ ✶ ✶ TL;DR: PURPOSE, A DESCRIPTION ⤷ Purpose comes from the spirit inside ⤷ Clues about it repeat throughout life ⤷ Others can guide us to it ⤷ It’s evergreen ⤷ Your purpose can’t be stolen ⤷ It will take time to learn it ⤷ Purpose does not ask for the approval of others p.s. How do you describe purpose? p.p.s. Look in the comments for a free questionnaire that will prompt you in self-reflection