I heard a story the other day that stopped me cold. In a good way. It helped me understand the power of purpose like never before. Tell me if you agree…

Once upon a time [I'll bet you didn't expect that line], way back in the Middle Ages, a traveler was walking down a rural road one warm, spring afternoon. As he came around a bend in the road he found a group of men, about ten of them, some of whom were cutting stones with hammers and chisels. And they looked bored. They were all quiet, doing their job, each one minding his own business, chipping away at the stones. As the traveler drew closer he could see them sweating a bit. Half of them were just sitting off to the side, not doing anything. The traveler walked up to one of the men and asked, “What are you men doing?” The man shot back, with a bit of anger and impatience in his voice. “We’re cutting stones. What’d you think we were doing!” The traveler thanked the man and continued on his way.

A short time later, as the traveler moved down the road, he came upon another group of men with hammers and chisels, also cutting stones. But this group seemed different. They were swinging like they enjoyed it, almost like they were dancing. They swung more rapidly than the first group, and the whites of their teeth told the traveler they were smiling. As he got closer, he heard laughter and saw them kidding with one another – and noticed them sweating a lot, too. They seemed to be having a really good time of it all. Only one of the men in this group was sitting and resting. The traveler went over and asked him, “What are you men doing?” The stonecutter looked him square in the eyes and said with pride, “We, my good man, are building a cathedral!”

…And they lived happily ever after.

Is your team just cutting stones … or building a cathedral?

“I make a difference in the lives of the people who work here, in the lives our clients, our other stakeholders, and even the folks who simply hear about us.”

What if your employees could honestly say that. Would it get you out of bed in the morning, pumped and rarin’ to go?

Imagine that your employees are proud of what they produce, and know in their bones that they have a positive affect on others’ lives. Imagine they feel like a vital member of a turned-on, cohesive team, all driving in the same direction. They count on each other, and, if they get stuck, they’re confident that someone has their back. What might be possible if the entire organization existed in an environment that was positive and optimistic?

You can achieve this. Yes. You.

At this point you may be wondering what I’ve been smoking. “What’s this guy on?” What I’m on is, I’m on purpose. My purpose. I’m passionate about transforming organizations into passionate, purposeful, difference-making teams. That’s what I’m smoking and it fires me up.

Why do I say this kind of transformation is possible in your organization? Well, I got pretty close to achieving that incredible state with the company I founded and led from 1986 to 1997. I had never run a company before. I mostly led from the seat of my pants. We delivered on our promises, our relationships with clients and vendors were excellent, people loved doing business with us, and we had a whole lot of fun.  We even made the Inc. 500 list at #144. It was a hellova company. Even the employees we had to let go along the way came to our reunion parties without the slightest hesitation or resentment. We started with a vision – a purpose that pulled us like a magnet.

Over the next several weeks and months I will share with you what I learned from that experience and others over the years. Of course, there’s more to it than purpose. I’ll show you what it takes to ignite and build a fired-up organization. You can make a significant difference in the lives of the people you serve, and your employees will be so fully engaged in the journey, you may need a fire extinguisher.

Whether you are starting a new business or you already have an established organization; whether you’re a novice or you’re seasoned, this is possible. And yes, If You Build It The Money Will Come.

Stay tuned. But only if you want to lead a fired up organization.

Sometimes I find myself thinking about a stupid thing I did, a mistake I made, or how many hours I wasted today drifting way, way off course. It really ticks me off when I do that. I say to myself, “You [2 expletives deleted]. Get back on track. Do something important!”

All that puts me in a rotten mood and it drains my energy. I may get restarted on the right path, but I move like a slug. I drag a load of “stinkin’ thinkin’” behind me. You don’t know anyone like me, do you? Oh, you do?

Not long ago I learned a lesson from a mentor who taught me how to let go of those time-wasting, negative feelings and get moving forward.

Here’s how the lesson works for me. I have this Garmin GPS in my car. It talks to me and tells me how to get from where I am to where I want to go. It speaks in a pleasant, non-judgmental voice. I call her Julie. (Julie’s not her real name; I’m just protecting her identity.)

Julie knows exactly where I am when I start out; she uses satellites to figure that out. I key in my destination, and Julie plans out the rest. One really great thing about Julie is this: unlike My Mind, Julie never says things like: How the heck did you get here? What were you thinking? C’mon already, move it!

Julie isn’t concerned about my tragic history of how I got to my starting point. It’s nothing more than a useless distraction from her mission. She knows where we are, where we’re going, and she figures out how to get us there.

So now I go around pretending I’m a GPS. (I never thought about being an electronic device before. Hey, isn’t Halloween coming up next month?) And I keep finding lots of times when being one really works. I’ll share a few, then you think of some that apply to you.

Say you’re dealing with a sticky problem and you’re spending time discussing or thinking about all the terrible results it caused. Instead, what if you just silenced that stinkin’ thinkin’, described what you want the solution to look like, and planned how to make it happen?

How about this: A subordinate or a whole team is struggling with a sticky problem, and stuck on telling endless stories of how bad and sad it is to be them. You might tell them, “see above.”

I’ll bet you begin to notice plenty of circumstances in your organization and in your life where pausing to bring forth the GPS within you will save the day.

Comments anyone?

I was out with my friend Larry recently and we were discussing children. I don’t know how we got there, but he said, “you are being recorded,” and I knew exactly what he meant. That line started a very useful train of thought for me.

Whatever we do and  say is being recorded, either consciously or unconsciously, by our children and others around us. This realization reminded me of a great book I read when first published (in 1986) by my friends Ken and Linda Schatz, “Managing By Influence”. My big take-away  was: “You Can Never Not Lead.” (The way to get that book these days is by writing to Ken at ManagingByInfluence@gmail.com.)

My next stop on this train of thought was recalling Marshall Goldsmith’s recent classic, “What Got You Here Won’t Get You There”. He asks leaders to rev up their game in order to grow into being better leaders. I love this book. Goldsmith points to habits which unwittingly hold you back, and also hold back your company. Here is one example from my own life.

Early in my career I was a computer programmer and a systems analyst. I always looked for things that could go wrong; I had to make sure my programs were able to handle anything. Fast forward several years to running my computer distribution company. It was bugging me in a creative brainstorming session that some people were being pretty negative. “Oh, that won’t work” or “that’s really risky” were some of the comments. I asked what was going on, why so negative, and one person had the wisdom to say, “Hey, Lowell, you made us that way.”
A big a-ha for me.

Of Goldsmith’s 20-plus habits that inhibit your growth, I’ve chosen just four for you to consider. For more self -awareness, see the book.

1. Passing judgment. After asking people to voice their opinion, do you express a negative opinion of their opinion? You may be stifling them. Try simply saying “thank you”.

2. Making destructive or sarcastic comments. Your excuse that your critical statement is true is no excuse. A more useful concern is whether your statement adds some value. (I have a tendency to be sarcastic myself.)

3. Withholding important information. This is common when you expect or assume your subordinate “should know” or be able to read your mind. Check in to make sure they know exactly what you want accomplished – and by when.

4. An excessive need to be “me”. Do you honestly believe you get away with “I’m just not good at returning phone calls or emails”? Nope. You are setting a pretty low standard.

Again, whether you know it or not, your actions and attitudes are being recorded and people are noticing. You can never not lead.

If anything you read here suggests a personal behavior that needs a tune-up, why not make an agreement to do something about it? Admit to the habit and send us a Comment. Tell us what you realized about yourself. You might even tell us what you will do about  it. If you want privacy, just send an email directly to me: Lowell[at]CoachLowell.com. I will follow up with you, gratis, and do my best to guide you to developing and practicing a more productive habit.

I was having breakfast in Chevy Chase, Md., last Friday with Washington Capitals’ coach Bruce Boudreau, and he told me this: “You’ve got to have passion and perseverance. You gotta push to be the best.”

“Reporters asked me at the beginning of the season, ‘what are you going for this season, Coach, 40 wins [out of 80 games]?’” He went on, “Are they kidding? We go for 80 wins! If we lose the first game, then we’re goin’ for 79. If we lose the second, it’s 78. If you go for anything less, you’ll just end up being mediocre. You have to push to be the best; shoot for the top. I don’t want to end up mediocre. It’s not worth it.“

I’ve got to be honest with you. We weren’t alone. Boudreau was speaking from the head table to about a hundred of us at the monthly TEG breakfast. I just wanted you to think that Coach and I were buds!

Bruce Boudreau, the winningest coach in the NHL today, voted NHL “Coach of the Year” in 2008 and 2009 – and likely to repeat this year: “Passion. Perseverance. Shoot for the top.” Simple, straightforward advice; not necessarily easy.

Coach Boudreau is a simple man and a very funny guy to boot. He told us about the time, three-and-a-half years a ago, when he got the call that he was selected to be the next Capitals coach. “Can you imagine what I looked like? This short, fat, bald guy jumping up and down on the bed yelling to my wife, ‘I got it, I got it!’” He shared many more anecdotes that morning, some of which shouldn’t go public. But send me an e-mail and I’ll reply with the rest of the story.

The key word for me was passion. In my experience, passion is fundamentally the single most important factor in creating and sustaining a great organization… but with this caveat:

Passion to do what you do in service of something larger than yourself

It is never just money that turns people on in a sustainable way. With that critical element of passion firmly implanted in the hearts of your team, the rest of the job you are up to will be so much easier, fun, and exciting – for you, your employees, customers, investors, and suppliers too.

Do you have it? Passion?

Think about it. Does this stir up an insight within you? A yearning to find that passion? If so, what are you going to do about it? What will you do and by when will you do it? Insights and good ideas are fascinating. But action is the only thing that will slam that puck into the net.

I would like to hear from you. It helps to tell someone what you intend to do. Leave your comment here – or send me a private e-mail if you want to keep this just between us kids.