Live Your Purpose – Strategically!

Often when working with My Tribe of Visionary Leaders, I encounter matters that can only be addressed by a clear switch from being determined to being driven; and vice versa. These shifts alter the trajectory of purpose by producing a subtle, yet significant, change in intention.  Without this change, there is no fix to the issues at hand and success is jeopardized.

Determination and drive are often treated as interchangeable; yet, I often share with those who will listen, how dangerous this is.  Determination and drive give us different things; how could they be the same?

​While both are needed, determination and drive each provide different outcomes.

DETERMINATION

There is no denying the power of determination.  It is often the difference between celebrating success and suffering failure.  Clearly determination – a “firm or fixed intention to achieve a desired end” – is useful each day as we get things done.

​Be determined when you want to accomplish a goal.

It is easy to miss the freedom that determination brings – a freedom particularly beneficial for those of us who only accept excellence!  For example, if your goal is to send your team an invitation to your holiday party, you simply must do it.  The invitation doesn’t have to be designer quality, it must have details for people to RSVP and show up – that’s it!
 
This freedom from excellence grows exponentially as your goal becomes more complex.  Mark Jamnik highlights this in his short article: “To accomplish your goal, you needed to find something that you never did before.  You needed to ask yourself questions you never asked before.  You needed to find answers you never found before.   What you lacked in knowledge, you made up in discipline to succeed.”

DRIVE

​Something that drives you can’t be shaken.  Unlike determination, it oftentimes does not register as a choice.  When you are driven by something, it is able to exert inescapable or coercive pressure on you.   Drive is what develops our gifts and talents.

​​Be driven when you want to gain expertise and skill.

Drive is what often gets us into the arena to begin defining our path, start seeing strategy in our journey, and have the insights to choose what to be determined about.
 
Drive is what compels a photographer to work on capturing light well with different sets of resources and environments.  That same photographer may become determined to shoot an a-list star within the next year.  It’s her drive that makes the determination possible.
 
Simon Marshall Jones says it best on his blog: “Having drive, or more precisely perhaps, being driven, means, in my view, that even after someone gets to where they want to go they’ll carry on doing whatever it is they’re engaged in, regardless of how far they’ve gone or what they’ve achieved.”

PURPOSE

Simply put – we can’t get far or do much without determination and drive. I firmly believe that it is important to be strategic about when to focus on determination and when to focus on drive. 

• When we are determined, we have the greatest chance of accomplishing goals that support our purpose.
•  When we are driven, we have the greatest chance of finding our purpose or enhancing our fulfillment of purpose. 

NEXT STEPS

Ask yourself –

• Am I more determined or driven?
• Do I approach professional pursuits with determination or drive?
• Does this differ from how I approach personal pursuits?
• What do I ultimately want – professionally and personally – from my current efforts:  accomplishment or development?​

​It takes time to determine your purpose because it is born of your path and journey.

What drives you is a strong indicator of your purpose.  What you are determined to do will impact your journey.  Pay attention, choose love over fear, and let what drives you, guide you to producing the determination needed to get meaningful things done.  THIS is how I define strategically living a life with purpose.

May you have all the impact and success that your determination and drive warrant!

Ebony L. Green is a certified coach who is the creator and founder of the Desire Choose Act™ signature series of coaching & training programs that help you own, celebrate, and monetize your difference.

#CoachEbonySays: I specialize in connecting people with their Whole A.S.S.™ Authentic Self. I want you to stop being ashy out here in your life - personally and professionally. I am here so you can REALLY start securing the bag of self-love, self-care, and self-shine!

If you are ready to start stepping into the shoes of your desired Future Self, schedule your free consultation today!