SSW@beBee

Sensational Start to the Week at beBee: SSW@beBee

I have a hive called, “What words mean to me.”

I have now added the following feature to this hive; every Monday, (sorry for this week the post falling on Tuesday) I am posting contributions related to the word “senses”. This week I offer a discussion based on: 

"The Sense of Purpose".

We speak of having a sense of community, a sense of belonging, a sense of duty, amongst other expressions. Why use the word “sense”? Obviously, there is no “sense organ” related to these words. Sometimes the word “sense” is substituted by the word “feel”. That would be clearer, in my mind, as “feeling” is related to emotions and the psychological aspects of the words involved; community, belonging, or duty. Yet we do use the word “sense”; why? I think it comes from the fact that we are sensory beings. We form meanings from our sensory experiences and then develop our beliefs and values. So how we “see” our duty comes from what we sensed originally.

In his buzz, Simple Rules Are the Anchors for Emergence, Ali Anani elaborates on the concept of purpose; “Having a great purpose expands on our horizons and allows more room for interchange of ideas."  Throughout Dr. Ali’s insightful buzz, I kept hearing the word “sense” attached to the word purpose. For me, we can’t think about a purpose or define it theoretically. Our purpose has to come from our sensory experiences and the meanings we attach to those experiences.

In the article, The Connection to Purpose: Why work matters,the author writes:

It's not enough just to be able to articulate how your personal values connect with the organization's goals. You need to be able to see evidence of that connection in your daily work.
Having a sense of purpose isn't written into job descriptions as a "meets expectations" criteria. It is a personal journey for each employee.
Igniting a sense of purpose and passion has a direct payback for both the leader and the employee. Just as the leader will reap benefits from a more engaged team, employees who take the time to link their values to their work will be rewarded with a greater sense of purpose about their work that runs much deeper than their next paycheck. (Emphasis mine.)

Thank you to Ali Anani for inspiring this edition of what makes “sense”.

Image credit: Pesticide Action Network

My Call To Action is my invitation. I invite you to send me a description of what makes sense to you.