Purpose: The Key to Happiness at Work

Over the last several months, we have talked about five levels of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. We are now at the top of the pyramid, transcendence. Transcendence is a fancy way of discussing our sense of purpose in the world, and we’d suggest that putting purpose at the peak of the pyramid is a little misleading. At INCITE, we believe that purpose is foundational to everything we do, not just something that we get to when we have achieved everything else.

All of us wonder where we belong, who we are, where do we fit in, and whether our lives make a difference. In short, all of us strive for a sense of purpose and meaning in our lives.

This is true at work too, particularly in our industry, where people choose careers because they want to help people, and choose organizations like yours because they want their work, whether being a social worker or accountant, to be making the world a better place. Loss of purpose and meaning is one of the major causes of giving up on jobs, careers, relationships, and other long-term commitments.

Having a strong sense of purpose is important to our happiness and well-being. As Bill Murray noted in the insightful film, Lost In Translation, “The more you know about who you are and what you want, the less you let things upset you.”

A strong sense of purpose reduces the “noise” in our lives and helps us channel our energy in ways that enhance our well-being. Purpose clarifies our values and standards, supports good decision-making, and increases our personal effectiveness.

A strong sense of purpose moves us towards hope and optimism and reduces anxiety, depression, and rumination. It fuels forward movement on the job and in life. If you’re interested in assessing your own strength of purpose, the Purpose In Life Quiz can help. How Strong Is Your Sense of Purpose in Life? (berkeley.edu). With purpose, we have a stronger probability of success in life and at work. Here are a few suggestions for leading a more purpose-driven life.

1. Develop a personal mission statement. Most companies have an organizational mission statement that describes the purpose, values, and priorities of the company. Each of us would benefit from our own personal mission statement. What is yours (note, it doesn’t have to have anything to do with work! And there’s no wrong answer.)? Spend some time developing a personal mission statement that identifies the things that are most important to you and the values that guide you every day.
2. Identify energizing and draining activities. Journal about the things in your life that give you meaning can help you to identify more opportunities in your life for greater purpose, and on the flip side, journal about the parts of your life that drain your energy and you want to spend less time doing. Learning about what energizes you and what drains you will help you make better choices about doing things that you find meaningful.
3. Learn your signature strengths. All of us have our own “superpowers.” We all have different combinations of character strengths like our curiosity, creativity, kindness, humility, leadership, perspective, persistence, etc. When we use our signature strengths, we feel more like ourselves and have deeper meaning in our lives. You can start by identifying your own “superpowers.” The Via Character Survey is a valid, reliable, and no-cost method of finding out more about your own strengths. Find Your 24 Character Strengths | Personal Strengths List | VIA Institute | VIA Institute (viacharacter.org), or try one of our personality profiles, Predictive Index and/or Working Genius (create new links).

Review, revise, and renew your personal mission. We grow and change across the course of our lives. This means our own sense of purpose and meaning, our personal mission, may change over time over time. During our 20s and 30s, we may find deep purpose in exploring and experimenting with the many options in front of us. During our 40s and 50s, we may find purpose in building our career and family. In our 50s and 60s, mentoring the next generation may become our priority. In our senior years, focusing on our legacy may be the thing that motivates us. As our sense of purpose in life changes, the activities that give us meaning will evolve as well. Reviewing and revising your mission statement, identifying the activities that really energize you, and checking in on your current superpowers are all important as we grow and evolve.