During the final years of his life, Steve Jobs became concerned with how to perpetuate his legacy and knowledge base inside the company. Interestingly, he didn’t place much emphasis on defining a formal company purpose.
The notion that the pursuit of economic self-interest alone cannot sufficiently motivate people to act collectively gained adherents over the years. Scholars across a number of fields recognized that humans possess inherent needs for meaning, community, and purpose. These intrinsic motivations compel us to act, not just extrinsic incentives.
You must move forcefully to put deep purpose into practice if you are to reap its benefits. Here are seven suggestions to help you translate a deep purpose mindset into leadership action.
Despite expected whistleblowing and endless data scandals, the speed technology continues to impact our everyday lives shows how much we’re prepared to invest in this era of uncertainty. Yet, despite ‘brandscapes’ often appearing fickle and callow, there are many good reasons to believe startups will make the difference we need in the world. The decent ones, at least.
How do you activate a brand’s purpose? By sparking a movement. That’s how REI took its brand purpose of ‘awakening a lifelong love of the outdoors for all’ and grew it into a cause that is working to better both people’s wellbeing and the planet.
