Are you disengaged at your job or are your employees? Gallup says between 60-70% of employees are. Why? Because the old ways of controlling people with salary, benefits, and threats of being fired don’t work. They certainly don’t get you the kind of team member you want.

What if there was something you could do that leads to more engagement, creativity, productivity, and yes – even happiness – for everyone in your organization? Research has proven there is.

The new trend is the desire for “Purpose” and it will soon be THE most important driver of employee AND customer engagement.  Research already shows that when people believe in the purpose of their company and their job they are more engaged, more loyal and much more willing to give extra effort, but recently this idea of purpose has become paramount in a growing group of employees and consumers.

It all starts with purpose. What is your company’s reason for being? What does it stand for? What difference does it want to make in the world? How does it change the lives of its customers, clients, and team members?

If this is sounding kind of touchy-feely to you, I get it. But, research from Gallup, Deloitte and others is proving that companies that have a strong sense of purpose have more engaged employees and evangelical customers. This is good for everyone, and your bottom line.

This requires a commitment from the CEO on down to the idea that purpose matters – that every job includes tasks, but every calling includes a passionate purpose.

The most important thing I learned  in grad school for my counseling psychology degree was from legendary family therapist, Virginia Satir. She said we need to look at every person we meet and imagine they have a sign around their neck that says, “I just want to count.” Every single human being on earth has that desire.

No one wants to go to work to be a cog in a machine, or just to punch a clock to get a paycheck, or just make widgets. Everyone wants to count, to make a difference, to live a life of purpose and meaning. If you can find that in your job and life and help other people find that as well, the sky is the limit.

When I started to see one of the purposes in my counseling job as letting people know they count, I knew I was making a difference in people’s lives.

When I was doing my daily radio show, I had signs up in the studio reminding me of my purpose. Talk to one person and make sure he knows he counts. Talk to him like the friend that he is. Entertain and inform him. Laugh with him. Lift him up. When I did that, everything else fell into place and I felt like I was doing what I was put on this earth to do. I did better radio. I was more creative, engaged, productive and happy!

When I use that philosophy in my coaching and podcasting it motivates and inspires people.

If you own a company, what is your purpose for your business? How will you make a difference with it? If you’re a team member, what is your purpose in your job? How does what you do serve that purpose? How do you get meaning out of it? If you look for it, you can find it in any job. The same goes for every part of your life. What is your purpose? How do you serve that purpose? It always leads to serving others as well.

Steve Jobs’ mission statement for Apple in 1980 was, “To make a contribution to the world by making tools for the mind that advance humankind.” He didn’t talk about computers, or phones, or tablets. He talked about his purpose – his WHY.

Are you just working a job and completing a task – or are you following a calling to be part of an important purpose bigger than yourself?

My mom worked at Disney World for 15 years. Do you know what the purpose of each person’s job at Disney is? To “spread happiness.” Wow. From the street sweeper, to the ticket taker, to the Characters, to the Princess actresses to the CEO. They all have different tasks, but they all have the same purpose. To spread happiness.

That’s how you count.

Here’s a simple exercise for everyone in your company. Imagine you are the customer. What are you hiring the company, product or service to do? If you were the customer, what would make a difference in your life? What would the company need to do to serve its purpose in your life? What would make you a loyal, evangelical customer? What beyond price? We don’t want to get into a price war. We want to over serve the customer to the point that price isn’t the primary motivator.

What is the purpose of each person that works for you?

What do they see as the higher purpose of their job, not just the task?

Does your purpose for your business inspire, elevate, and drive those who work with you?

Do you tell great purpose success stories that resonate with your customers and team members?

Are you providing ways for your customers, clients, and team members to tell their purpose stories so they feel even more connected and able to see how they are making a difference?

If I worked for you would my daily experience align with how I’m told my work serves the purpose of the business?

Are you leading by living out your purpose story in your daily work and not just paying lip service to it?

Whose life are you going to make a difference in today? How many moments of purpose will you experience today? How many might you miss because you don’t know what your purpose in this moment is?

Let’s GO!

Are you searching for your Passionate Purpose? Start with my free gift, 5 Steps to Finding Your Passionate Purpose.