Life is a series of struggles. That’s just how it is.
How much better is it when those struggles have a purpose?
Good Leadership training teaches the importance of setting your north star. Your compass bearing. Your mission…
Good leaders know more – they recognize that choosing their mission is not an isolated, abstract thing, it’s a key part of their team’s struggle.
Choosing your mission becomes part of your struggle when it defines what you’re struggling for.
Which is why your mission can’t just be nice words – it has to be real.
Setting abstract missions like “becoming a world class operation” doesn’t define your struggle like “selling more pizza”.
It starts with you.
Choosing your own personal mission, choosing what your missions are at work, then ensuring your team has a real, long term mission. All a leader’s job.
The fight against survival mode demands you lift your sights. If you’re not aiming long term you’re not aiming.
Without a long-term goal the short term and the urgent will always win.
One way to know whether survival or mission are winning is the sleep test. When you’re losing sleep over tomorrow’s target or problem, you’re in survival mode. We all do it. When you’re waking up because you’re thinking about that big project you’re in mission mode. We all lose sleep over short term problems, but it’s the long term mission that gets us out of bed.
If your worries are all about short term goals, is your mission real? Is it too small? Or have you conceded defeat?
“..Choosing your mission…defines what you’re struggling for…”
Which do you do?
In your self, in your work, in your team?
You can’t set the personal goals of your team members but you can hire people who have personal goals.
Do you?
You can‘t do their work but you can talk to your team about what their own work missions are.
Do you?
You can’t force alignment but you can make your team’s mission inspiring and real and long term. You can define what their struggles are against.
You can give purpose to your team’s struggles.
Do you?
Are you Surviving or on a Mission?
.
.
“I might be wrong, but at least I’ve thought about it…”