PURPOSE-DRIVEN LEADERSHIP! – LEADERSHIP THAT PRODUCES POSTIVE RESULTS!

In November, I had the wonderful opportunity to speak and serve with an incredible team of speakers, leadership educators, and student affairs professionals at Lead 365 in Orlando, Florida. The entire leadership conference was full of impressive and powerful speakers and the most impactful moment for me was when my good friend Jason Merriweather said, “The two most important days of your life is when you were born and when you discover the reason why you were born”.

I believe this statement is so powerful because I have found that great leaders are purpose-driven leaders who desire to make the world a better place. Most leaders who have made a long lasting impact in the world were driven by an inner purpose. Through my research on purpose-driven leadership, I have found that leaders who have some sense of purpose perform better than others, are more passionate about their work, are inspirational, lead others more effectively, and most importantly, make a greater impact than others in their gifted area of expertise.

For this week’s leadership message, here are four questions I believe we all must consider if we are going to experience the positive results and impact of purpose-driven leadership.

Do You Know Thyself?

 
The first question I believe every individual must consider if they are going to evolve into a purpose-driven leader is, “Do You Know Thyself?” Do you have a deep understanding about your strengths, values, passion, personality, and working environment that is most conducive for your success as a leader?

I believe this question is vitally important to consider because self-awareness enables you to learn more about the different characteristics that purpose-driven leaders possess. More importantly, the more you learn about yourself, the more likely you are to discover your purpose in life as a leader. Therefore, if you desire to become a purpose-driven leader, start first by learning more about yourself.

Have You Found Your Passionate Reason WHY?

The second question I believe every individual must consider if they are going to evolve into a purpose-driven leader is, “Have You Found Your Passionate Reason WHY?” Have you taken the time to discover the passionate reason why you have a strong desire to lead in a certain area of expertise?

I believe this question is essential for leaders to because your answer to this question is the foundation of purpose-driven leadership. One of the core dynamics of a purpose-driven leader is being able to discover the passionate reason why you have a strong desire to lead in a specific area of expertise. The second reason why this question is so important is it positions you for greatness and provides you with a supernatural ingredient to enable you to accomplish great things beyond your initial capacity. When someone answers this question, they may not know how the purpose is going to manifest or believe they can actually attain the purpose, but the power within the answer to this question will enable them do so in certain situations. This is why Friedrich Nietzsche states, “He who has a why to live for can bear almost any how” because he understood that something special happens when a leader has been able to effectively discover the passionate reason why they desire to lead in a certain area of expertise.
 
Therefore, if you desire to evolve into a purpose-driven leader, discover your WHY!

Have You Found A Problem to Solve?

The third question I believe every individual must consider if they are going to evolve into a purpose-driven leader is, “Have You Found A Problem to Solve?” As a leader, have you discovered a problem or cause that you want to solve or make better in the world?

I believe this question is important to consider because purpose-driven leaders solve problems in the world and strive to make the world a better place. Throughout my leadership journey, I have found that purpose-driven leaders solve problems and possess a heart to make the world a better place.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said, “If a man has not found nothing to die for, he is not fit to live.” He was a purpose-driven leader that fully believed that one of the core aspects of human life was to make the world a better place by finding a cause that you wanted to change for better.  
 
Therefore, if you desire to become a purpose-driven leader, make sure that you find a problem to solve in the world!

Do You Have A Vision to Change the World?

The fourth question I believe every individual must consider if they are going to evolve into a purpose-driven leader is, “Do You Have A Vision to Change the World?” Do you have clear, concise, and captivating picture to make the world a better place?
 
I believe this question is one of the most important to ask yourself because vision is the foundation of effective leadership. Without vision, it is impossible to see your purpose as a leader manifest because you don’t have a clear picture of how you want it to end. Moreover, I have found that every purpose-driven leader who has truly made an impact in the world has been able to do so because they had a picture of the final destination that they were pursuing as leader.
 
If you desire to become a purpose-driven leader, make sure that you have created and written down your vision so that you and others can be inspired to make the world a better place.
 
 Although there are many more questions that can be considered as it relates to purpose-driven leadership, I believe these four foundational questions can help you begin your journey towards evolving into an effective purpose-driven leader of the 21st Century.

Previous Page