“The role of the leader is first to inspire creative thinking about what makes you unique, how it links to purpose, and why it could be valuable—and then to encourage rigor in embedding it in your company’s core.” – McKinsey

A week ago, I wrote about one of the Top 10 articles of the year from McKinsey & Company. Today, I want to talk about another article on the list. It is entitled:

“Purpose: Shifting from why to how”

A couple of things from the article stood out to me:

1. BEYOND DOLLARS – Only 7% of Fortune 500 CEOs believe their companies should “mainly focus on making profits and not be distracted by social goals.”

2. MIND THE GAP – there is a gap between the public perceptions of business and its potential for good. And a gap between employees’ desire for meaning at work versus what they experience.

The main takeaway is that businesses need to push beyond “Why” to begin walking the talk. Moving beyond profit to become “for-purpose.”

As Graeme Newell, CSP and I shared in the 2017 book, “Red Goldfish – Motivating Sales and Loyalty Through Shared Passion and Purpose,” companies need to focus on the little things to bring purpose to life. These Red Goldfish can drive employee engagement, fuel the bottom-line, and create societal impact.