The Component That Can’t Be Measured

Career With A Purpose 3.0

When professionals talk about purpose in their careers, they are usually thinking of several factors. Since we spend the greatest percentage of our waking hours engaged in some form of labor, everyone wants, first and foremost, to feel his or her completed tasks make a difference. People love knowing that their work in a given day or given week has solved one or more specific problems or has contributed value to their team, to their customers and/or to their investors.

A second major factor most professionals look for in a purposeful career is growth opportunity. The best companies are those that offer their employees continual high quality training, as well as opportunities for advancement. There is a sense of exhilaration when we are growing in competence and in the ability to add value.

Most seasoned professionals also know the value of being surrounded by other bright and competent individuals from whom they can learn and with whom they can compete. So, a culture that attracts talented people, measures achievement, and fosters friendly competition can also be of value in a purposeful career.

All of these factors have some form of a positive measurable component in them. We love to be able to see tangible results, we appreciate training that upgrades our professional value, and we benefit from competition that measures our productivity.

But I would like to propose that there is another factor in purposeful careers that can’t be measured by metrics or productivity. It’s an unusual factor in today’s emphasis on real time results, because it can’t be limited to specific time frames.

This intangible factor is impact. Even though it is difficult to measure, it might actually add the greatest fulfillment to a career. It usually involves a professional coming to see that through his or her labor, some degree of value or dignity or hope is specifically being given to another person or group of people. Impact operates in the arena of interpersonal emotions; and positive emotions motivate.

Impact might involve ongoing encouragement to a coworker; it might involve mentoring an intern or welcoming a newcomer; it might involve teaching a child to read, or helping a client have long-term financial security; it might involve coaching a team or visiting the sick. Companies that emphasize client service and community volunteerism are wise in encouraging this kind of impact.

I believe we all long for this kind of significance. The problem with impact being immeasurable is that often, we can’t see it, ourselves. We go home at the end of a long day and look only at the results we can measure. We have no way of seeing the long term effect of the kind words, helping hands, and professional expertise we offered throughout the day. But the impact is there, like seeds planted in soil that will bear meaningful fruit some day. This, too is part of a career with purpose.