WILLIAM Clement Stone, a businessman, philanthropist and author, once said: “When you discover your mission, you will feel its demand. It will fill you with enthusiasm and a burning desire to get to work on it”.
Philosophically, this is such an astute proclamation. Although, practically, it can pose some trouble.
Many of you will, and perhaps are, struggling with what your “mission” is. So, while it is imperative that you a have mission, because it will fuel your progress, discovering what it may be is a task that is more complex and multidimensional.
The complexity gets developed from an early age.
I remember my mission as a kid and as a teenager was very much deter
mined by my folks. The fact that I lived under their direction meant a big part of my mission was related to their philosophy.
In my late teens, as I embraced self-direction, my mission was influenced by other formative ingredients. I moved overseas to study when I was 18, and that experience made a lasting impression in me.
Being exposed to radical ideas and people at a left-leaning university created a range of emotional and intellectual thought processes in me. Engaging in provoking arguments about life, religion, sociology and politics also gave me alternative perspectives that moulded my thinking.
Returning to Malaysia after living abroad for six years and having to drastically reacclimatise to the socio-cultural norms of my homeland required severe recalibration. And once more, I found myself having to re-align my mission.
My first job, my foray into entrepreneurship, my choice of a life-partner, earning money, losing money and earning it back again, all these impacted my own understanding of what my mission was.
Therefore, the discovery process, in my experience, is quite fluid. Observing and allowing ideas to sink in is an integral part of this experience. And it is only when you immerse yourself in it that you will really grasp what motivates you.
I do have two recommendations for you through this process of discovery. They are based on my experiences and from what I have gleaned from the people I coach in my executive leadership coaching sessions.
I have been privileged to work with some very interesting and successful people. The first thing I have noticed is that self-mastery helps with mission-centricity. When you progressively become good at something, it inspires you to keep working on it. And, the best way to keep this growth momentum going is to break the learning down into smaller chunks and to become good at it, gradually.
For example, I enjoyed the reactions and responses I received when I was a debater at school and university. This inspired me to study the art of public speaking more avidly. I worked diligently to overcome stage fright, nervousness and even feeling physically sick, to keep on practising speaking in public.
I did this steadily throughout my early adulthood. I got better at it, step by step, and this motivated me to learn more. As I received plaudits for my ability, I discovered that I should leverage on this skill. Eventually, it became my mission.
Much of my professional work centres on speaking to large groups of people, with the aim of engaging and inspiring them. My broadcasting work on radio and television is founded on my public speaking ability. My training and coaching programmes require me to be articulate, lucid and coherent.
This happened because early on, I realised that I enjoyed doing this. And, in time, the constant learning and practice helped me become an expert. Of course, as I mastered this skill, I understood that being good at public speaking was something that motivated me enormously.
My next recommendation is that you become emotionally involved with whatever you do, while you are investigating what motivates you. The work that you do, and your tasks, need to engage you in an exciting way. When this happens, you will get into what many call “the zone”. This is when you are able to focus, concentrate and drive your energy to do things properly and effectively.
Earlier this week, I was invited to conduct a management engagement programme for an established Malaysian bank.
The participants were their top leaders, from their chief executive officer to 90 members of the bank’s senior management. Part of my programme included a physical activity that none of them had ever attempted before.
The activity was not overly strenuous, but it did require effort and application. Suffice to say, they all performed outstandingly well.
But, the most important take-home message from the activity came from one of the groups in the programme. This particular team did the best, and their reflection on why they were the most successful was about how they engendered passionate involvement by everyone.
They explained that their success was simply predicated on a collective decision to concentrate, get into a rhythmic cycle of getting the job done, and by making the whole process inclusive and fun.
In short, the team successfully managed to get all participants emotionally involved.
There is even evidence that indicates that it is best if you are emotionally attached to your work. In 2015, Dr Thomas Clausen of the Danish National Research Centre for the Working Environment in Copenhagen published research that found that people who reported feeling emotionally engaged and connected with their work, and their organisations, also experienced greater psychological well-being.
To discern what your mission is, you will need to be well adjusted mentally. So, work progressively on mastering that which excites you, and next, get emotionally connected with what you are doing. This will help you discover what motivates you.
Shankar R. Santhiram is managing consultant and executive leadership coach at EQTD Consulting. He is also the author of the national bestseller “So, You Want To Get Promoted?”