You bring value and have a purpose. Don’t forget that.

Twenty years ago when my professional career began, we didn’t talk much then about associate engagement, or having a sense of purpose at work. If we did, I wasn’t included in those conversations because I was a front-line associate and not one of the leaders who cared about engagement and what it meant to the company’s bottom line. What I did care about was the fact that I immediately felt a sense of purpose in my job. I was providing a service whereby I was helping business pay their employees timely and accurately. I remember feeling like there might be a single mom out there somewhere being paid today and able to take her kids to the movies this weekend because I did my job. That sense of purpose also created a sense of urgency and accountability for me. When I made a mistake, I realized that a father might be forced to cancel a camping trip with his son, or someone might have to delay proposing to their girlfriend because they didn’t get paid on time and couldn’t afford to buy the engagement ring this week because of something I did, or that single mom would have to break the promise she made to take her kids to the movies this weekend, and of course the kids wouldn’t understand; they’d just exclaim, “I wish we were with dad this weekend!” The weights of those realities kept me focused and drove my performance at work, and very much still do to this day.

Years later, I realized I wasn’t engaged in my role because of some formal corporate program or because my boss had a meeting with me to talk about engagement or having a sense of purpose. I was (and still am) engaged in what I do because of what I do. I have one of the best jobs in the world. I get to work for a company where I get to help people get paid and save for their retirement. Every day I have the opportunity to help improve the financial wellness of millions of people, which helps them go to school, start a family, go on vacation, give to charity, etc… I still believe that if I do my job right, then those employees that work for the companies I serve will do their jobs better because they too will be more engaged, and in-turn, they’ll improve the service they’re delivering. I guess you could call it the corporate version of what it means to pay-it-forward. By focusing on the human element of what we do, we improve and instill that same sense of purpose in those we provide these services for.

No matter what your job is, if you look closely enough, you’ll find a sense of purpose in what you do. Remember, during a visit to the NASA space center in 1962, President John F. Kennedy noticed a janitor carrying a broom. He interrupted his tour, walked over to the man and said, "Hi, I'm Jack Kennedy. What are you doing?"

 "Well, Mr. President," the janitor responded, "I'm helping put a man on the moon." He certainly understood his purpose!