I have been on a self-help course
My boss insisted on it…
It was really very good, lots of interesting insights, most of it you know already:
- If you eat a full fried breakfast expect to feel sluggish all morning
- Exercise gives you energy
- Spending more than you earn will leave you broke
Sometimes having a lecture from Captain Obvious is not such a bad thing.
There was, however, one phrase that I hadn’t heard before…
You can do anything, but you can’t do everything
Now I am not entirely sure I believe that.
I am unlikely to make it as an Olympic synchronised swimmer, no matter how hard I try.
But I don’t suppose that was entirely the point. More likely it meant pick something and focus on it. If you don’t you will never be better than average.
I started to navel-gaze, really hard…
What should I focus on? What is the thing that would make my life worthwhile? What am I here to do?
Fortunately, my self-help guru came to the rescue with two pieces of advice.
- Focus on something you are good at — no really
- Do something for others
Apparently money doesn’t make you happy, but helping others does.
Compare and contrast… Bill Gates and Whitney Houston.
Does the same logic work for organisations?
Perhaps. Everyone knows that organisations need to focus on something, but how would it be if they focused on something that helped others.
- Google are well known for wanting to organise the world’s information.
- Volvo want to be the world leader in sustainable transport solutions
- Tinder aim to be the company you turn to when you want to meet somebody
- And maybe best of all, American Standard, the sanitaryware company, are hell-bent on saving lives in the developing world.
If my self-help guru is right and you focus on something altruistic, your organisation will be happier, more people will want to work with you and you might just be more successful as well.
Author: Jonty Pearce
Published On: 14th Jul 2014 - Last modified: 13th Nov 2018
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