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Be in the room as Congressman Neal addresses the Greater Boston business community.
11/13/2025
2:45pm - 4:00pm
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Consider the successful mid-career leader who calls it his “nightmare” to wake up in five years and be the SVP of his division – and knows that’s right where he is headed. Or the lawyer in a high-profile public-sector role supporting COVID response. She tells me, “This job looks great on paper. And it’s important work. But I’m not sure it’s the work I want to do.”
It’s not unusual for leaders to find themselves toiling away at jobs that aren’t tied to purpose. And yet, research has shown that leaders are more effective and more resilient when they are connected to purpose. I have seen time and again how leaders come alive when they stop talking about tasks and start talking about purpose. As Steve Jobs put it, “We try to use [our] talents … to express our deep feelings, to show our appreciation of all the contributions that came before us, and to add something to that flow. That’s what has driven me.”
It’s not unusual for leaders to find themselves toiling away at jobs that aren’t tied to purpose. And yet, research has shown that leaders are more effective and more resilient when they are connected to purpose.
Are your talent, time, and effort aligned with your own purpose? Do you like what you’re adding to “the flow”? Here are some ways to check.
· Be deliberate. Make time and space. Block your calendar, find a place without distractions. You may have email to read, meetings to prepare for, performance reviews to write – but isn’t that always true? There is always something else to do. For one moment, choose to do this.
· Create structure. Ironic as it seems, structure can open the mind to creativity. Schedule a phone call with a trusted friend or colleague, create a pro-con list or do some other writing for yourself, take a run or bike ride to let your mind play with the question, or engage a leadership coach.
· Check your metrics. It can be tempting to measure success by what others have achieved. Look for your internal compass, not an external comparison. How do you want to spend your time and energy? As one leader phrases it, “what am I on this earth to do?” Let that be your guide.
· Notice your reactions. Our bodies can be great barometers. When you think about your work, does your mouth start to smile or do your shoulders start to clench? Do you feel a surge of energy or the start of a headache? One leader noticed she had dragged her feet before signing onto a project which turned out to be a very negative experience for her. Looking back, she now believes that her slow response was her intuition telling her to beware, and she has resolved to tune into those signals in the future.
“Who do you choose to be at this time? – Margaret Wheatley
We choose every day how to use our time and talent. While it may seem risky to ask these questions, it’s a bigger risk not to. If you don’t want what you’re striving for, wouldn’t you rather know that as soon as possible?
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