|
Finding &
Keeping the Best Talent
(adapted from
Best Practice, Richard Leider, 2003)
Keith Starcher
DayStar Consulting, Inc.
Most CEOs can clearly state
their company’s vision in a sentence or two. But many have not
thought long and hard enough about the talent they will need to
find and keep to make their vision a reality. Talented
people are mobile. They are in a seller’s market and they know
it. How can you attract and keep talented people? Start by
answering these four questions that everyone in your
organization wants clarified:
·
Where
are we going?
·
What
are we doing to get there?
·
What
do you want me to do?
·
What’s
in it for me when I do?
An organization that can provide
meaningful answers to these four questions is an organization
where employees have a feeling of purpose. The author states
that this purpose “…creates a psychological bond between
employees and the company.”
Are you working on purpose?
Are you creating a work culture
in which the best people can “work on purpose?” Are you,
yourself, working on purpose? Please take a moment and complete
the “Working on Purpose Quiz” created by the Richard Leider. To
each statement, just answer “yes” or “no.”
·
I wake
up most workdays and feel energized to go to work.
·
I have
a deep energy—feel a personal calling—for my work.
·
I am
clear about how I measure my success as a person.
·
I use
my gifts to add real value to people’s lives.
·
I work
with people who hold the same values I do.
·
I
speak my truth at work.
·
I am
experiencing true joy in my work.
·
I am
making a living doing what I most love to do.
·
I can
speak my purpose in one clear sentence.
·
I go
to sleep most nights feeling “This was a well-lived day.”
If you have fewer than five
“yes” answers, you might consider clarifying what you believe
your purpose truly is. After all, how can you create a
workplace “of purpose” if you are not convinced of your own
purpose at work?
2000+ Years Ago
Imagine the 12 disciples
leaving their livelihoods and following Jesus. Don’t you think
they wanted answers to these questions?
·
Where are we
going?
·
What are we doing
to get there?
·
What do you want
me to do?
·
What’s in it for
me when I do?
Yes, they did. And Jesus
answered these questions over and over for them. Again and
again throughout the gospels He reminded them of Who He was and
His expectations for them. You and I need to do the same. Keep
telling the story. Explain the larger purpose behind your
organization— why your organization exists—the value of your
work to those inside and outside your workplace.
It’s also interesting to think
of Jesus’ answers to each of the questions in the “Working on
Purpose Quiz.” Take a moment now and imagine the answer that
Jesus would give to each of the 10 questions.
Because Jesus worked “on
purpose,” He could attract and retain talented disciples. Here
is one example. Think of the pedigree of Saul of Tarsus. Here
was a man that was going places in the 1st century
world. Then he met Jesus and his (from the world’s point of
view) became a mess. (Read 2 Corinthians 11:22-33) How did
Jesus capture and retain this talented Saul who became the
Apostle Paul? And believe me, Paul was completely dedicated to
“Jesus, Inc.” (i.e. Christ and His church)Listen to Paul’s own
words:
“But one thing I do, forgetting
those things which are behind me and reaching forward to those
things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of
the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:13-14).
The most talented people are
attracted to places where they can work “on purpose.”
So what will you do this week
to clarify your purpose, to share the answers to the four
questions everyone wants answered, and to increase the number of
“yes” answers in your own “Working on Purpose Quiz?”
Keith
Subscribe
to these Weekly Insights at no cost at
www.daystarconsulting.com
Weekly
Insight answers to executive questions at
http://www.daystarconsulting.com/faq.asp
If for any
reason you would like to be removed from our email list, please
email Remove@daystarConsulting.com |
