Increase Team Effectiveness with Balanced Purpose

Have you ever seen a preschooler doing a prolonged wheelie on a tricycle? Short legs pumping hard to turn the pedals, red streamers flying off the handle bars while the front wheel is up in the air. No? Neither have I. Yes, it is a goofy metaphor, but we also know that if a preschooler was able to do such a trick it would not be sustainable.  Yet how many times do we provide helping services without all three wheels fully engaged?

Organizations facing limited resources and social pressures often wobble with one or two wheels on the ground while trying to serve clients. Caregivers are stretched thin finding it difficult to promote life balance and enjoy their own journey. Systemic anxieties challenge administrators to provide for everyone involved. Full engagement of administrators, staff, and clients becomes less possible. Clients or patients end up paying a price when other wheels wobble.

Look at your organization’s purpose and ask the following questions:

1) How does it promote the wellbeing of those we serve?

2) How does the purpose promote the wellbeing of our team members?

3) How does the purpose promote healthy balance at all levels within and outside of the organization’s reach?

If you have troubles answering all three questions, chances are the organization’s purpose is not balanced, but focuses on just one or two levels of organizational functioning. Taking the time and energy to reshape the purpose will create a more effective organizational culture.

Balanced purpose puts all three wheels on the ground. Groups that promote the wellbeing of everyone involved increase effectiveness and sustainable caring. I help organizations, teams, and individuals foster a purpose driven culture characterized by resilience, positivity, and decreased anxiety. Caring organizations and individuals can thrive amid the challenges of helping people in today’s world. Fully engaged, we can streak around the block with all three wheels burning rubber rather than weakly wobble a few feet.