Creating Vibes (and Value) at Work: Purpose

IKIWIFI (icky-wiffee): I Know It When I Feel It.

I’m talking about good vibes at work. 

In every job I’ve ever had, the best vibes emerged when 3 things were true:
-> I believed in the purpose of the company – it felt personal

-> My role was a platform for growth

-> The people were awesome to work with

Good vibes are a universal feeling, but how we create them differ in every company and for every individual. It’s sort of like karaoke.  People love it. But if you don’t, you may struggle to feel those good vibes. Does that mean there is something wrong with karaoke?  Absolutely not.  It’s just not the right fit for everyone.  

If you are building a workplace for good vibes, start with these three things:

• Communicate your purpose so that people truly understand your why.  
• Design roles as a platform to challenge and develop your hire appropriately. 
• Define expected behaviors– whatever “awesome” means for your people.

Purpose is the first ingredient of good vibes at work.

Purpose is why your company deserves to exist. It attracts the right people, inspires, and motivates them. When work feels like a worthy cause, energy to win follows.

I think back to my first real job with a W-2: Lifeguard at an inner city pool.

At the time, I was offered a pretty cushy job as a lifeguard at the beachfront compound of a VIP.  Everyone knows this person’s name and their family name. It would come with prestige and perks, and likely little chance of much action in the water. Protecting a VIP was certainly a reason to exist for someone, but it just wasn’t mine.

I turned that job down to work at a dingy inner city pool. A pool where at least one of the locker room attendants was under investigation for murder. There were no metal-detectors in those days, so the city stationed police at the foot of my lifeguard chair to protect me. And several times when I jumped in the water to save someone, I was attacked in the water by someone who thought it would be fun to drown the lifeguard.

Call me crazy, but I loved it. 

These pools exist to foster healthy, happy communities.  They not only make those hot summer days more bearable for often marginalized and impoverished communities, they teach important water safety skills, create social connection, and provide space for sun-filled exercise and fun (well, minus the murder investigation.)  

To be fair, I didn’t think about my purpose in my decision-making process. I was only 17, and no one had ever talked to me about purpose. But I did feel something. One opportunity would certainly impress others, and likely earn a coveted letter of recommendation for college.  The other would speak to me, even if other people thought I was nuts.

Every job I’ve ever had felt like a worthy cause, a reason to join.  Like deciding to join Salesforce. Most people would say their business is CRM.  But it felt bigger than that.  It was a platform for change, and I wanted to be part of that.  

At Tough Day, I ask my own team to check in with themselves on purpose. Do they believe in our company's purpose? Does it align with their own?  Because if this alignment isn’t there, we may be able to do good work, but it won’t be our best work. And there is work somewhere in the world that will move them, that needs them, their passion and their powers.  And as a leader and advocate, I want to help them do that.

If you haven’t defined your personal purpose, check out https://mypurposefinder.ai/ by Peter Diamondis of Abundance360 to work on it now.

But good vibes at work don’t come from purpose alone. Even with a cause you believe in, the wrong role can kill the vibe. In my next IKIWIFI post I’ll unpack “Platform”.