Purpose is a Good Place to Start

Changing something by choice and design is different than change that is mandated by another. Organizations make decisions to change some aspect of structures, processes or systems all the time. Those changes are declared by a leader and the organization then sets about to implement the change. Most of these efforts fall short of the intended outcome but we can take that issue up later.

Personal choice to make a change is a powerful starting point for a person. But it is only the start. As mentioned yesterday, the challenge of change is that the rewards are in the future and the hard work is immediate. The gap between these two elements frame the challenge. Our ability to cross that gap defines and reflects much about who we are in the moment.

Purpose for change is a useful conversation to engage. As I write this entry, it is almost the middle of 2009 and in reviewing my goals for the year, I see that I'm hitting some and missing others. Mostly I feel like I am more in response to events than I am designing and producing outcomes. My tendency is to lose contact with the big picture when the events of today become turbulent. If the first part of 2009 has been anything; it is has been turbulent. In all of this chaos, I see that I've not so much lost my way as I have been exposed for not having a more clearly defined purpose. Without a clear purpose, I have been seduced by "other" events. Then boom, the time slips away and impact is lost.


I believe a focused purpose leads to big results. I realized a few weeks ago that I was attempting to do too much, be too much and sought too much. Too much of anything is a move away from focus. I think that the economic turbulence is a perfect opportunity for clarifying purpose. It is essential to determine what aspects of my life, how I spend my time and energy, needs to be eliminated now?


So in re-addressing my purpose, I have started to eliminate projects, type of work, and activities that do not support impact and distract me from my purpose. As a consultant to individuals and organizations, my usefulness is to reflect, integrate and facilitate the best change practices and processes for my clients that build their community. Relationships are central and everything else is derivative.

Before you get moving too far down your change path, get clear on your purpose. What is your purpose for being here? Who benefits from you being on purpose? What are the consequences to you and others when you lose your way? These are questions that need to be addressed and answered. Much has been written in the last year about how we have lost our way, that our priorities have been lost, our values mixed up. That could be so. Getting back on track starts with being clear about my purpose.

Why Changing is a Challenging

Changing anything is difficult for several reasons. A reason: the reward we seek is in the future, sometimes way out in the future and what we have to do and experience (discomfort, frustration, work and daily persistence) must start immediately. We are not a society of delayed gratification so for most of us, changing something about ourselves starts as a challenge within a challenge.

Another reason: We are giving up something we know well when we change. Generally we don't resist the change (it usually makes logical sense to us), we are resisting loss. The stepping from the known into the unknown.

Another reason: We have a pretty good idea that this step into the unknown must be permanent if we are to achieve the coveted change. Permanent; that is like forever, for all time. When we fully understand that time concept, it is not logical, it becomes emotional. Permanent loss is not something we think, it is something we feel. It can cause much resistance, denial, anger and pain.

Another reason: Getting across the "goal line" takes longer then most of us think. A common fail point of change is people's grossly underestimating the time and effort it will take to make the change. We stop too soon. Often we stop within sight of the goal.

So in the face of these reasons why change is challenging, how can we navigate the process? That is the next post.