There is something about people counting on you that changes how you show up. It changes what you are willing to sacrifice, how you respond to adversity, and how much of yourself you bring to the work.
Consider what happened in Houston after Hurricane Harvey in 2017. Just months later, the Astros won their first World Series. Following the Boston Marathon bombing in 2013, the Red Sox won the World Series that October. These teams had always wanted to win, but now their victories carried a significance that extended far beyond the athletes themselves.
The fans needed a win.
In March 2011, a devastating earthquake and tsunami struck Japan, killing thousands of people and destroying entire communities. Four months later, Japan’s women’s national soccer team faced the United States in the Women’s World Cup Final. Before important matches, their coach showed the players images of the destruction back home, reminding them of the people they represented. Japan had never won the tournament, but that year, against the odds, they became world champions. The players later spoke about wanting to give hope to the people suffering back home. Their country needed something to believe in, and they understood that they had an opportunity to provide it.
I learned this fact from Alex Weber, an American Ninja Warrior and keynote speaker. He said, the athletes were fundamentally the same people they had been before these tragedies. They had the same skills, the same training, and the same desire to win. But the meaning of their performance had changed. They were playing for people who needed them to succeed. Purpose changed the level of commitment players brought to the game.
Now think about how this applies to leadership. We ask employees to care about quarterly targets, revenue growth, productivity, and operational efficiency. But employees know who actually benefits when they achieve those goals. Shareholders. I’m uninspired.
That’s why it’s important to understand the customers who depend on their work, and the communities their organization serves.
Purpose, strategy, and culture all contribute to results, but purpose answers a question that taps into our soul: Why does any of this matter? When people understand the human impact of their work, accountability becomes more personal. A goal is connected to someone who is depending on its achievement. And that connection can influence the beliefs and actions people bring to work every day.
The challenge for leaders is that we tend to treat purpose as something we communicate rather than something we help people experience. We write mission statements and assume the connection is obvious. Meanwhile, employees are buried in meetings, deadlines, and competing priorities. If we want purpose to influence performance, we have to make the people behind the numbers visible. We have to tell their stories, connect everyday decisions to meaningful outcomes, and remind people who benefits from the work they do… if they do.
We don’t need a catastrophe to give our work meaning. The people who depend on our organizations are already there. The question is whether our employees understand who they are and why their success matters to them.
So the next time you’re talking to your team about a goal, I would encourage you to ask a different question alongside the usual discussion of targets and timelines: Who needs us to win?
Elsewhere In Culture
The AI Bottleneck Nobody Is Talking About | With Co-Host John Frehse We keep investing in AI, but are we building the infrastructure needed to make it useful? John and I explore the overlooked technical layer that connects business data to meaningful insights, and why this missing piece could be holding organizations back from realizing AI’s full potential.
Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ceo-daily-brief-with-dr-jessica-kriegel/id1725350421?i=1000800743904 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3ElMZI2cwOHBJkkTtjq1Cd?si=b01779baff514710
You Paid the Tariffs. Who Gets the Refund? | With Co-Host John Frehse If consumers paid higher prices because of tariffs, who deserves the refund? John and I debate whether companies should return those funds to customers, reward employees, or support suppliers. We also examine what these decisions reveal about corporate responsibility and who ultimately benefits.
Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ceo-daily-brief-with-dr-jessica-kriegel/id1725350421?i=1000800974373 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/2xxFGbOHJEYCKi5PYgCEy8?si=a68a8ceb32114f46
Should CEOs Keep Their Opinions to Themselves? | With Co-Host John Frehse I’ve long believed that CEOs aren’t the moral arbiters of our time, but John challenges that perspective. We debate when leaders have a responsibility to speak out, when their opinions create unnecessary risks, and how to balance personal convictions with the obligations of leadership.
Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ceo-daily-brief-with-dr-jessica-kriegel/id1725350421?i=1000801189578 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/7vBXExFyhzWuWuOJsWBGTF?si=95de8b5a126f4ae6
And coming later this week…
What If Your Top Performer Is Your Worst Employee? | With Co-Host John Frehse We’ve all seen high performers whose behavior creates problems for everyone around them. John and I debate whether removing toxic talent is always the right decision, especially when doing so could hurt business results. We also explore the hidden costs of keeping these employees and the leaders who absorb their toxicity.
What Keeps Unions and Management at War? | With Co-Host John Frehse The beliefs we hold shape how we interpret the actions of others, and nowhere is that more apparent than in union-management relationships. John and I explore how historical distrust reinforces an us-versus-them mentality, why fear perpetuates conflict, and how a shared commitment to culture can help both sides move forward.