Purpose: Is it Really a Strategic Advantage?

In order to find your path in life, you must first find your purpose. However, to find our purpose we need to make sure that you’re looking in the right place.

“When you’re young, everyone will tell you what they think you should be, don’t listen to them.” That’s what I said to the student who was asking for career advice. Your path is for you to decide. I continued: “Just because you are good at something, doesn’t mean that’s your soul’s path”

When I was growing up, I was considered a fairly gifted artist. Because I got recognition and applause for it, I fairly naturally wanted to be an artist. However, even though I wanted to be an artist and went into business, psychology and leadership. Someone once asked me if I missed being an artist? My answer was “no” because I still see myself as an artist. I just work with a different medium.

As I just said; To find your path, you must first find your purpose. However, to find our purpose we need to look in the right place. As you may have guessed; most people go looking in a place they’ll never find their purpose.

Most of us have been indoctrinated with the idea “find your passion and the money will follow” and been very disappointed by the outcome. We’ve been trained to believe your passion, your pleasure and what you love is your purpose, but it’s not! In fact, it’s kind of the opposite direction to your purpose (or as I like to refer to it as “your Dragon Fire”).

Take a breath and hold on to your seat because what I’m about to reveal may at best surprise you and maybe even cause a major psychological tectonic shift:

Your purpose is NOT found in your pleasure. Your true Dragon Fire (purpose) is always found in your pain!

It’s what drives you to move forward. The courage to take an in-depth look at your pain, allows you to begin your transformation into who you want to be. To be clear, this is examining, processing and learning, it is not about packing up everything you’ve got and moving in with it!

Think of a butterfly. What is a butterfly before it’s a butterfly? The default answer is a caterpillar, but people often forget the middle stage. Before a caterpillar becomes a butterfly, it goes through a period of transition.

In the intermediate stage, you and your ego will want to “do”, even though this is not the doing phase. For this reason many find this to be the hardest of transformation into a purpose-driven leader. As a high performing individual you no doubt understand that we’re conditioned to always be doing but, we’re rarely just being. It is in the “being” where the real transformation takes place.

Everything we do is driven by something. However, not everything is done to improve or transform. For example, in this podcast, Corey and I discuss how deals can come from a place of ego. It’s essential to determine what drives us, what is our end goal. In every negotiation, I always want to determine the best possible outcome for both sides. I want to know what’s in it for you beyond the money? What in this negotiation is going to make you feel like a better person? My goal is to have a centred-self, Not to be self-centred.

Society doesn’t encourage us to act from a “centred self”.

In fact, most often in negotiation, we are often encouraged to be the opposite of “centred-self” and instead to be self-centred and “win”. Let me be clear that in order to do this, you and I must develop high levels of self-knowledge.

Furthermore, you’re not a leader unless you can lead yourself and you can’t lead yourself without self-knowledge.

Self-knowledge is an ongoing journey. We live in a goal-driven society. We focus on the deadline, but self-knowledge takes the rest of your life. This is the challenge we look at our lives with outcomes in mind rather than as life.

Where do we start this journey of self-knowledge? Whatever the situation is that’s in front of you: Ask yourself; ‘What do I believe about this?’ Write the down answer, and then ask yourself ‘What if that’s not true?’. What if all beliefs contain lies. Truth is universal, without exception.

WARNING: Every belief is made up and adapted to fit our mindset and society.

Take gravity, for example. Is gravity universal? Yes, but not equally so. If you leave Earth’s atmosphere, there is still gravity just to a lesser degree. One key to establishing your beliefs is being able to back them up. You need to be able to stand behind your beliefs, despite any challenges.

Discovering your purpose, your Dragon Fire, gives you a strategic advantage to those around you, because you will be centred in what drives you at a soulful level. Using your purpose together with an ever-deepening level of self-knowledge, allows you to look beyond what others expect of you. It puts you on the right path to begin your journey and serve at the highest possible level.

Dov Baron is first and foremost “The Dragonist”. As The Dragonist, he teaches us how to recognize, find, retain and nurture dragons (top talent) hidden within our organizations.

Want to learn more about what Dov has to offer, and how you too can become a Dragonist in your realm? If you and your leadership team are dedicated to getting the result you set out to achieve in the most meaningful manner, bring Dov in to speak to your organization about the strategic advantages of Dragon Leadership. Go here to get started?? https://www.dovbaron.com/

Copyright: Dov Baron International 2020

With gratitude,

Dov Baron…