How we reflect and project - 5 perspectives on purpose

As the year winds down, we often find ourselves in a reflective space. On one hand, there’s a push to close the year strong—focus on productivity, hit goals, and finish what matters. At the same time, many of us naturally begin looking back—assessing progress, evaluating past goals, and identifying areas for improvement. There’s also a lingering sense of looking ahead—setting aspirations, defining priorities, and envisioning a better year ahead. Finally, some of us just want to unplug—reset, celebrate, and reconnect with loved ones.

Our perspective on these year-end dynamics and indeed on life in general, depends on how we see life through two lenses:

1. Where am I now?
2. Where do I want to be?

Sometimes these lenses align—and that may be both comforting and challenging.

The 5S Framework for Personal and Leadership Development

The reality is that we navigate life through five progressive stages:

1. Survival – Meeting basic needs and ensuring security.
2. Stability – Achieving a sense of comfort and predictability.
3. Success – Pursuing personal and professional accomplishments.
4. Significance – Creating lasting impact through service and leadership.
5. Spirituality – Living with transcendent purpose beyond personal identity.

Most people operate within the first two stages—Survival and Stability—for much of their lives. Research on adult development suggests that 60-75% of people remain in these stages due to life circumstances, societal structures, and personal focus. This isn’t inherently negative—it’s a reality shaped by history, biology, and environment.

Why It Matters for Senior Leaders

As a senior leader, understanding both your own 5S stage and the stages your team members occupy can be transformative. It's another lens through which you can connect with your people, meet them where they're at, support and challenge them to get better. Leaders operating from Success or Significance perspectives may inadvertently assume others share their mindset. Yet many team members may still be focused on Stability or even Survival, driven by job security, financial stability, or personal struggles. Never discount the foundational value of Maslow's most basic safety and security needs.

By recognizing these different perspectives, leaders can:

• Offer personalized support: Provide tailored growth opportunities and meaningful work.
• Set realistic expectations: Align leadership goals with team members' current development stages.
• Adapt for problem solving: Each level of the framework offers a different lens through which to view a situation. Which lens is best for the problem at hand?
• Foster purposeful engagement: Help individuals connect with their unique sense of purpose, wherever they are on the 5S spectrum.

Linking Purpose to the 5S Levels

Your sense of purpose evolves as you move through the 5S stages. Purpose, in this context, is about living intentionally at the intersection of these three components:

• Passion – What you care about, believe in, are good at, energized by and enjoy.
• Impact – The meaningful difference you want to create on yourself (Me), those around you (We), and the world at large (World).
• Application – How you actively live out your purpose in daily life.

At the survival, stability and success levels, it's harder to connect with the elements above. We tend to have a narrower focus and one that sometimes by necessity, perhaps by choice, requires us to take care of ourselves, even if that's so we can take care of others.

Here’s how purpose might look across the three most prevalent 5S levels:

• Stability Purpose: "I take care of my family, pay my bills, and support my friends when needed."
• Success Purpose: "I achieve results, excel in my career, and bring others with me."
• Significance Purpose: "I create systems, processes, and opportunities that empower and elevate others for lasting change."

Your Personal Leadership Check-In

Consider these two questions for yourself and your team:

1. What 5S stage am I currently at?
2. In [X] years, where do I want to be?

There's no judgement with this. It's simply a lens through which to look at your life and how you interact with others. Once you reflect, define your purpose statement with consideration of the components above, by answering these:

• What am I doing when I’m at my best? (What behaviors or qualities shine?)
• How do I uniquely bring that to life?
• What meaningful difference does that create?

Try to capture this in 15 words or less. It should resonate deeply and feel “right.” If it feels “great,” you’ve likely reached clarity on your personal purpose.

The Ultimate Test: Are You Living It?

How often do you experience joy, fulfillment, and inspiration—the outcomes of living your purpose?

• Never
• Rarely
• Sometimes
• Enough
• Often

If your answer is "Enough" or "Often", you’re likely living your purpose. If it’s anything less, there may be a gap between your current reality and your purpose, or your stated purpose may not be as deep as your actual purpose.

Regardless of your 5S level - current and desired - getting clear on your purpose provides you both with a compass for navigating life in the right direction and a barometer for how you're doing on a daily basis.

Again, understanding your 5S stage and defining your purpose isn’t about judgment—it’s about living the life you want. People like me are here to help you get to where you want, to where you want your people to be. In order for me to do that, you first need clarity on the first two questions:

Where are you now—and where do you want to be?