On Purpose, Mission, and Identity
tl;dr: If there’s no group identity, the mission isn’t clear. Which means the group will likely fall short of great things.
At a certain point in life, each of us wants to feel like there’s a point to it all.
That our lives have some meaning beyond making money, consumption of material. Sure, in many cases, family can be that, but whether it’s an idea that society has planted in our head or a natural human yearning, we feel like there has to be “something more.”
We want to be “part of something larger than ourselves.”
But how to do that? And what is required?
For me, I’m starting (albeit really slowly and with reluctance) to see that it’s not what I originally thought was required.
Purpose
Many people think, or at least I think, that we need a “purpose,” some larger divinely inspired calling. Peter Diamandis sells it as a “Massive Transformational Purpose.”
At the same time, the absence of that feeling can be the cause of concern or consternation, even depression.
However, in “Nature’s Flow” Woo Myung writes:
“Human life is
the life man lives.
Man lives following the passage of time
ignorant of his purpose.
But there is no one in this world who is able to give him an answer.”
“Attachment” by Woo Myung
Mission
So, if we can’t get an answer as to what the purpose is, what are we supposed to do?
Again, Myung:
“Listen!
Commit yourselves to the work of this world
without any attachments.”
“Attachment” by Woo Myung
And what is the “work of this world?”
I think it’s the mission you choose to accept at that moment.
Mission + Purpose
So, here’s what I’m deducing.
It’s less about getting that “purpose” and more about “choosing the mission.”
And the mission can be as fulfilling as the purpose when it is done in service of a goal that, in no way, could you achieve yourself.
LeBron’s “purpose” may be unknown, but his mission is “win the NBA title every year.”
However, he can’t achieve that mission without the rest of his team.
And the team can’t achieve its mission if it’s not clear on what the mission actually is.
And then, it seems like there is one more component, “Identity” as in: what do we stand for? and why does it matter?
Identity
I sometimes (ok most of the time) confuse purpose (forward looking and visionary) with identity (grounded in principles today).
But while purpose is vague, identity can be grasped today.
But group identity is tougher to forge, yet when done fully, that is when massive transformation is possible.
In Discover Your Genius, Gerald Sindell writes:
“In the development of powerful and authentic teams, there is no greater force than clarity around identity.
If everyone on a team is driven to achieve goals in the world that are also coherent with the goal and drives of others in the team, and if that identity fits with the actual task at hand, the team will be capable of creating wonders.”
In Are all problems the same? I started to explore this, thinking that the problem is about “coordination,” whether it’s a traditional company or a decentralized cryptoeconomic network.
Then, I thought it was about “alignment,” as that’s a big thing in the OKR world.
Sindell talks of this power (as does Doerr in Measure What Matters) when he writes:
“Alignment of great forces often means that things can or will happen.”
but now I am coming to the conclusion/realization (maybe obvious to everyone else) that alignment without mission clarity is impossible.
Which means clarity of mission and clarity of identity (particularly challenging in a decentralized network, but tough in any group setting) will be the determining factor in the success or failure of an organization.
- What do we stand for?
- What are we trying to accomplish together?
It may seem simple and obvious, but I guess those are the questions that everyone and anyone should be able to answer.
Or at least I need to.