1: Viktor Frankl’s book Man’s Search for Meaning has sold over ten million copies and been translated into twenty-four languages.
It’s not your typical best-seller, however.
The topic? Viktor’s experiences as a prisoner in Nazi concentration camps.
“Wondering why some prisoners survived and others didn’t in an atmosphere of hopelessness and despair, he concluded that those who made it lived with a greater sense of purpose,” Carolyn Dewar, Scott Keller, and Vikram Malhotra write in their book CEO Excellence: The Six Mindsets That Distinguish the Best Leaders from the Rest.
Why has the book proven to be so popular?
Because “it deals with a profound human truth,” Carolyn, Scott, and Vik write: “Having a sense of meaning is essential for surviving and thriving in the world.”
Man’s Search for Meaning has been named one of the “ten most influential books” ever written by the US Library of Congress. Viktor writes about the prisoners who walked through the huts, consoling others, even giving away their last piece of bread.
“They may have been few in number,” he writes, “but they offer sufficient proof that everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms–to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s way.”
2: Our search for meaning is essential to the human condition. It is a primary driver of how we show up in life. Including our professional lives.
“But where do humans find meaning at work?” Carolyn, Scott, and Vik ask. The research shows at least five sources of purpose and motivation.
They write: “The first is themselves—their development, their financial and nonfinancial rewards, and their freedom to act.
“The second is fellow employees—feeling a sense of belonging, caring for one another, and doing the right thing for the group.
“The third is the company—achieving industry leadership through creating best practices and beating the competition.
“The fourth is the impact on the customer—making life easier and better for them by providing a superior service or product.
“The fifth and final is their impact on society,” they note. “Making the world a better place.”
The research shows that most people find meaning in all five areas. But typically there is one area that is a primary motivator.
“Research also shows that in any given population,” the authors write, “there’ll be a roughly equal number of people who gravitate to each of the five as their primary source of energy at work—a fifth are most motivated by their own development, a fifth by their fellow employees, and so forth.”
Which means that as leaders, we need to speak to all five motivators.
“A speech that talks only about how the company will beat the competition, for example, will connect deeply with only 20 percent of the audience,” they explain. “By articulating each of the five whys, CEOs can tap into the primary motivations of everyone in the company.”
3: Consumers and job seekers are also paying attention.
“Today, 87 percent of US customers say they will purchase from companies that support issues they care about,” Carolyn, Scott, and Vikram write, “and 94 percent of those entering the workforce say that they want to use their talents to benefit a cause.”
Companies are taking note of these trends.
The authors write: “In 2019, the Business Roundtable, a lobbying group composed of 181 leading CEOs in the United States whose board included JPMC’s Jamie Dimon, GM’s Mary Barra, Duke Energy’s Lynn Good, and Lockheed Martin’s Marillyn Hewson, changed the definition of the ‘purpose of a corporation’ from the decades-old capitalist goal of maximizing profits at any cost to a more holistic goal of looking out of the well-being of everything and everyone the company’s actions affect.”
The best CEOs, however, were already ahead of the curve.
“Research shows that over the last twenty years companies with a clear social purpose have significantly outperformed the S&P 500,” they note.
“Their superior financial performance was driven by the multiple benefits of stakeholder capitalism,” the authors explain. “These companies enjoyed increased customer loyalty, better efficiency (through reducing resource usage), motivated employees, a lower cost of capital, and the ability to spot and mitigate risks earlier than others because they were closer to their constituents.”
This type of leadership, while impactful, is still the exception. “Despite all of the evidence that having a social purpose is good business, however, most companies don’t make it a practice,” Carolyn, Scott, and Vikram write. “While 82 percent of companies affirm the importance of purpose, only 42 percent report that their company’s stated ‘purpose’ has much effect.”
More tomorrow!
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Reflection: Is my organization a purpose-driven enterprise?
Action: If yes, journal about the benefits of being so. If not, what is in the way? Take action. Today.