Have you ever experienced a feeling of your fulfillment, motivation or happiness level dropping even if you seemed to be at the “right place” in your life? I did. While working for a medical non-profit organization I felt like I found a cause truly close to my heart. I felt like just working for a non-profit was noble and fulfilling by itself. I felt I had the flexible, hands-on, travel-a-lot job everybody dreamed about. Still there were moments when I felt like all motivation to (go to) work is gone with a “what’s the point” question resonating throughout my head. How come I was not fulfilled 24/7 considering my “perfect” situation?
The answer came to me only after reading Purpose Economy written by Aaron Hurst. Aaron and his team at Imperative dug deep into this exact question. Their goal was actually to make work feel as pro-bono work, where people reported much greater level of fulfillment than in their regular paying jobs.
As a result of their years-long study they identified 3 key components to fulfillment. Three fairly simple but absolutely vital essentials one can check-up on in order to understand which one is out of balance and needs a bit of a power-up: the RIG – Relationships, Impact & Growth.
Success without fulfillment is the ultimate failure. Tony Robbins
So what does it actually mean: Relationships, Impact & Growth? How can you unlock fulfillment for yourself, your loved ones, friends and colleagues?
#1 RELATIONSHIPS
The first essential component to achieving lasting fulfillment are your Relationships. Not the number of Facebook friends or Linkedin followers, but the number of your meaningful, strong and lasting relationships. Relationship with those that deeply care for your true self, and not for your money, status or connections. Relationships with those who will always be there for you, even at times you hit the rock bottom. Relationships that give you energy, that push and challenge you to be your better self and that have your best interests at heart. And as relationships are a two way street, vice-versa applies.
So think about yourself, here and now: How do you feel about your relationships at work/in life right now? Do you have meaningful, strong and lasting relationships at work/in life now? From a scale from 1 (I don’t have any/many) to 6 (I have many), where do you stand?
Explore some power-ups to boost your relationships at work/in life:
- Be selective, choose and nurture people bringing value to your work/life
- Engage in deep(er) conversations or conversations going beyond work
- Focus on being a better listener, show empathy and ask more questions
- Be available, reliable and show commitment
- Share more of your true, vulnerable self, sharing personal experiences or thoughts
- Be the example – the role-model – and walk the talk
- Look for ways to be of value to others, be resourceful and bring them joy
- Connect beyond business: Set regular coffee / lunch meetings with your team
- Praise others for a job well done and celebrate successes of others
- Be open, welcome diverse opinions, invite challenging opinions
- Become / Seek a Mentor
#2 IMPACT
The second essential component to achieving lasting fulfillment is to having an Impact that matters. Impact on something or someone greater than ourselves. It is about arriving at the last day of your life with a smile on your face knowing you did matter. You mattered for your loved one(s), your community or contributed to making the world a better place. Scale is not so relevant. What counts is that you made a positive impact and that is your legacy.
So think about yourself, here and now: How do you feel about the impact you are making at work/in the world right now? Do you see the impact you make on your loved ones, on your community or on the society at large? From a scale from 1 (I don’t make any) to 6 (I make a lot of impact), where do you stand?
Explore some power-ups to boost your impact at work/in life:
- Reconnect with the bigger vision set at your company, understanding how does your work contribute to the positive impact on the end-customer (or even speak / interview them)
- Select a person in need: your loved one / friend / colleague / neighbor and help them with whatever they are struggling with at the moment
- Join a local / international charity by becoming a volunteer, ambassador or sponsor
- Explore ways of engagement in your local community
- Care for the world and nature around us: recycle etc.
- Smile…smile a lot!
#3 GROWTH
Last essential component of achieving lasting fulfillment at work and in life is to experience continuous growth, learning and development. It is the about achieving continuous progress. It is about continuously being stimulated to aim higher, to perform better and to explore and acquire new skill-sets. Thanks to the power and reach of technology we have immerse online channels to source knowledge and learning from, or get hold of previously unreachable people to have as mentors. It is up to us to use them.
So think about yourself, here and now: How do you feel about your personal and professional growth at work/in life right now? Do you feel as experiencing continuous learning and development at work/in life now? From a scale from 1 (I don’t experience any) to 6 (I experience loads), where do you stand?
Explore some power-ups to boost your growth at work/in life:
- Define which one skill would you like to improve on / acquire this year and get on it
- Practice getting out of your comfort zone and engage in activities that scare you a bit
- Get a mentor who can guide you towards the success he/she achieved
- Request a training or a continuous education program at work
- Step forward for leading a new project that is not fully in your area of expertise
- Read more books, write, listen to podcasts
- Try online courses / videos: Udemy, Coursera, YouTube, Linkedin etc.
- Go networking, meet new people and engage in new interactions
- Meditate and practice mindfulness, stillness, yoga, qi-gong etc.
- Set focus on your growth: setting time and adding commitment
- Travel often and explore different cultures as sources of inspiration and innovation
- Learn from your closest: family, friends, colleagues
- Try a new / Improve: sport, music instrument, foreign language
Now create your Fulfillment Strategy:
- Note down your score for today
- Review the list of general power-ups and draw very specific activities you will engage in in the next day, week and month to boost your relationships, impact and growth
- Measure progress by re-checking your score every week and follow-up on the progress made
Looking forward to your comments, thoughts and experiences.
Keep tuned to the Purpose in Action Series!
In this series I will next focus on the three drivers of purpose, followed by a deep dive on the actual implication of Purpose for individuals, teams and organizations.
