A common theme that comes up in my coaching conversations is the tension that can exist for people between the concepts of Position, Purpose, and Potential. These three elements—while often interconnected—can also take us in very different directions. The key challenge is understanding which element is in the driver’s seat of your decisions and the trade-offs that come with prioritising one over the others.
Let’s explore each element, its benefits and challenges, and the implications of letting it drive your career and life choices.
Position: The Path of External Progression
When Position drives decision-making, the focus is on titles, responsibilities, and external recognition. For many, climbing the ladder is seen as the natural next step—after all, promotions and prestigious roles often bring financial rewards, influence, and career visibility.
Benefits of Position-Driven Decisions:
- Positions open doors to influence, resources, and career opportunities.
- They demonstrate clear progression and often provide a sense of external success.
- They offer structured paths to develop expertise and capacity.
Challenges of Position-Driven Decisions:
- A role misaligned with your Purpose can lead to dissatisfaction, even if the position is prestigious.
- Pursuing higher positions may result in overextension or burnout.
- The focus on external validation can overshadow internal fulfillment.
Trade-Offs: When Position takes priority, Purpose may be neglected, leaving individuals feeling unfulfilled, and Potential may be underutilised if the role doesn’t challenge them fully.
Purpose: Living with Meaning and Alignment
For others, Purpose is the guiding force—the internal compass that aligns actions with their calling, values, and vision. Purpose-driven decisions prioritise meaning over external measures like pay or prestige.
Benefits of Purpose-Driven Decisions:
- Provides deep personal satisfaction and fulfillment.
- Aligns work with personal values, contributing to a strong sense of legacy.
- Creates a sense of direction and clarity in decision-making.
Challenges of Purpose-Driven Decisions:
- May involve financial sacrifices or limited recognition.
- Requires resilience, especially when external validation is lacking.
- Pursuing purpose can sometimes feel isolating in environments focused on results.
Trade-Offs: Choosing Purpose over Position or Potential may slow career progression and limit opportunities to grow into your full capacity. However, it ensures that your decisions resonate deeply with your core identity.
Potential: Unlocking What’s Possible
When Potential drives decision-making, the emphasis is on growth and maximising your abilities. This approach values self-improvement and taking on challenges that push you toward your highest capabilities.
Benefits of Potential-Driven Decisions:
- Encourages continuous self-improvement and personal development.
- Helps uncover hidden strengths and talents.
- Prepares individuals for greater challenges and opportunities.
Challenges of Potential-Driven Decisions:
- Can lead to an overemphasis on growth at the expense of meaning or alignment with Purpose.
- May foster comparison or ambition that feels hollow if disconnected from personal fulfillment.
- The relentless pursuit of improvement can become exhausting over time.
Trade-Offs: Prioritising Potential may leave Purpose underexplored if growth is pursued for its own sake, and Position may be sacrificed if development doesn’t align with organisational hierarchies.
The Dynamics Between the Three Elements
One of the most important insights to recognise is that these three elements—Position, Purpose, and Potential—are not inherently opposed to each other, but may act independently of each other. In fact, the ideal scenario is finding an intersection where all three align. However, achieving that balance will likely require intentionality and strategic thinking. Here are some key dynamics to consider:
Position and Purpose:
- For some, their Position is inherently tied to their Purpose—they’re “born to do” a specific role, such as heading an organisation or climbing a mountain.
- For others, their Position is merely a means to an end, and their Purpose exists outside of their role (e.g., providing for their family or contributing to their community).
Purpose and Potential:
- Pursuing Purpose may unlock Potential, but it can also limit opportunities to grow if the focus remains narrowly on what feels meaningful.
- Conversely, chasing Potential can help you grow into your Purpose—but it risks becoming disconnected from deeper fulfillment if done without reflection.
Position and Potential:
- High-level positions often demand individuals to stretch their Potential, building capacity and expertise.
- However, taking a position simply because it’s the next step can leave people wondering if they should have paused to evaluate alignment with their Purpose.
Internal vs. External Measures:
Understanding whether you use internal or external measures to guide your decisions is crucial when navigating the interplay between Position, Purpose, and Potential. Each element tends to align more naturally with one of these measures:
Position: External Measure
Position is inherently tied to external markers, such as job titles, authority, salary, or organisational status.
Purpose: Internal Measure
Purpose revolves around a personal sense of meaning, fulfillment, and alignment with your values or calling.
Potential: Dual Measure
Potential sits at the intersection of internal and external measures. It’s about maximising what you’re capable of, developing your abilities, and expanding your capacity.
Choosing Who’s in the Driver’s Seat
The key question is: who’s driving your decisions—Position, Purpose, or Potential? Each element has its own merits, but it’s critical to evaluate what trade-offs you’re making and whether those align with your long-term vision.
Ask yourself:
For Position: Am I pursuing this role because it aligns with my purpose, or because it’s expected of me?
For Purpose: Am I willing to sacrifice financial security or status to align with my values and calling?
For Potential: Am I growing toward my best self, or am I chasing growth for its own sake?
The Spider Chart Self-Assessment Tool
In this blog, I’ve included the spider chart diagram below to provide a visual tool that helps you assess the current driver behind your decisions—whether it’s Position, Purpose, or Potential. This tool is valuable for increasing self-awareness and guiding thoughtful reflection on how your choices align with your long-term goals.
To use the chart, rate each element—Position, Purpose, and Potential—on a scale of 1 to 10 based on how strongly it currently influences your decisions, then plot these scores to see your overall balance and identify areas for reflection or adjustment.
The spider chart helps you visually assess which element—Position, Purpose, or Potential—is currently driving your decisions. There’s no right or wrong balance; the key is gaining awareness of your priorities and reflecting on the future direction that aligns best with your goals.
Based on the example chart above, the person’s scores suggest that their decisions are most influenced by Position (7), followed by Potential (6), and Purpose (4). This indicates that they are prioritising external progression and growth opportunities, but their decisions may not be fully aligned with their deeper sense of purpose or values at this point.
Finding Your Balance
There’s no universal right or wrong when it comes to these elements—it’s about understanding what matters most to you and making decisions accordingly. Some may prioritise Position as a means to fulfill their Purpose. Others may prioritise Purpose and accept the trade-offs in position or financial stability. Still, others may focus on Potential, knowing it will unlock opportunities in the future.
Ultimately, thoughtful reflection on these dynamics can lead to greater clarity and alignment, helping you navigate career and life choices with confidence.
I hope this helps provide you a framework to evaluate your current and future choices, please feel free to reach out if you would like to unpack your situation in more detail.
All the best,
Why Your People Don't Do What You Want - even though you're the boss!
Isn't this strange? You would think its a pretty simple thing for people to do as we expect, especially if we're in charge. It would make things so much easier if they did.
Yet, our people don't always 'do it the way we want', actually they often don't.
Why is this?
Well, before we start finding all the good reasons to confirm we have crappy team members, have we checked we're actually giving people the input they need to perform how we want them to? If not, it could be time to...
stop complaining about our team and start leading them.
Ouch, that's a challenging concept. I know - its easier just to 'blame them'. But while this may help us feel better about ourselves, unfortunately it also means that we will keep doing all the work, we get more frustrated at those around us, team members don't grow, our culture declines and performance continues to spiral downward.
So let's not do that. Instead, lets understand the problems, and how to fix them.
Whether you're a corporate professional, business owner, community group leader or volunteer co-ordinator...if you want to understand the 3 key reasons people don't do what you want, even though you're the boss - click here to read on (you might be shocked how simple these are!)
Hope this helps
Best wishes, and Keep Leading!
Michael
LEADERSHIP UPGRADE
Experts tell us that booking in for a regular medical assessment is critical for early detection of small issues, that could become large ones.
The same is true of our leadership!
As leaders, we're all super-busy and often don't get time or have the tools to self-assess, while sometimes we get stuck in 'set and forget' mode - never stopping to take the pulse of the vital signs of the impact or quality of our leadership.
That's why I'm providing you my free 2 Minute Leadership Health Check here.
It's a great tool to get a quick update of critical leadership areas and help your awareness of those larger problems looming under the surface. It provides you an overall score and some suggested actions to improve your state of health.
Best wishes, and keep leading!
Michael Rowell
LEADERSHIP UPGRADE
INTRODUCTION
One of the things great leaders do to drive performance is to embed key ingredients into their culture that transform it from being 'average' to 'high-performing'.
But, what are those key ingredients?
Many leaders do not understand what they are, or how to implement them, and subsequently struggle to move the dial on the performance and culture of their business.
We'll discuss this below, and unpack the model they are contained in, which is designed to be versatile and effective across a variety of environments including the home, family, workplace and community settings.
While the measures of 'performance' may differ in each setting, the core principles remain the same. In the workplace, performance might be measured by productivity, employee engagement, and business outcomes. In a community group, performance might be measured by the level of community engagement, the successful implementation of projects, and the overall impact on the community. In the home, performance may be measured by the quality of relationships and level of communication.
By applying the five critical components you can create a high-performance culture that drives success in any environment.
Read on to discover the 5 components and the key leadership actions you must take to build each component into the culture of your team...
Best wishes, and Keep Leading!
MICHAEL ROWELL
Leadership Upgrade
THE MODEL
The below model provides actionable strategies that can be adapted to meet the unique needs and performance metrics of different contexts, ensuring that you can foster a thriving culture wherever you are.
Lets explore each component in some more detail...
COMPONENT 1
Setting a Clear Goal
Effective leaders start with a well-defined vision and objectives.
WHY?
This clarity ensures that everyone understands the direction and purpose. By aligning individual and team goals with the overall mission, leaders can inspire and motivate their teams to work towards a common objective, fostering a sense of purpose and unity.
KEY LEADERSHIP ACTIONS
- Define Objectives: Clearly articulate the organisation's objectives and goal.
- Align Individual Agendas to the Shared Mission: Ensure that team and individual goals synchronise with the overarching mission.
COMPONENT 2
Clarifying Roles and Responsibilities
Clear roles and responsibilities are crucial for operational efficiency and team cohesion.
WHY?
Leaders must communicate each team member's role and expectations, ensuring there is no ambiguity. Understanding interdependencies and promoting collaboration are key to avoiding overlaps and ensuring that everyone contributes effectively to the organisation's success.
KEY LEADERSHIP ACTIONS
- Define Clear Roles and Expectations: Clearly outline the specific roles and expectations for each team member, ensuring everyone understands their responsibilities and how they contribute to the overall objectives.
- Promote Collaboration and Interdependency Awareness: Encourage team members to work closely together, understanding how their roles and tasks interconnect to achieve common goals.
COMPONENT 3
Establishing Accountability
Accountability is the cornerstone of a high-performing culture.
WHY?
Leaders create a culture of responsibility by setting clear expectations and holding individuals accountable and giving them ownership of their tasks and outcomes. This involves implementing mechanisms for tracking progress, providing constructive feedback, and addressing issues promptly. A culture of accountability encourages ownership and drives performance.
KEY LEADERSHIP ACTIONS
- Monitoring of Outputs: Establish mechanisms to detect whether key outputs have been achieved, ensuring that responsibilities are met and issues are addressed promptly.
- Own and Solve Problems: Encourage individuals to take direct responsibility for problems, focusing on resolving issues themselves rather than shifting blame or passing them to others.
COMPONENT 4
Regular Measurement of Outcomes
To sustain high performance, leaders must regularly measure outcomes using key performance indicators (KPIs).
WHY?
These metrics provide valuable insights into progress and performance, allowing leaders to make informed decisions and adjustments. Data-driven decision-making ensures that the organisation remains on track to achieve its goals and can swiftly adapt to changing circumstances.
KEY LEADERSHIP ACTIONS
- Develop and Utilise KPIs: Identify and implement key performance indicators to consistently monitor progress.
- Assess and Act on Data: Regularly evaluate the data collected from KPIs to assess the effectiveness of activities and make necessary adjustments to improve outcomes.
COMPONENT 5
Continuous Improvement
High-performing cultures are characterised by a commitment to continuous improvement.
WHY?
Leaders foster a culture of learning and development, encouraging innovation and the adoption of best practices. By embracing feedback and promoting ongoing development, leaders ensure that their teams remain agile, resilient, and capable of achieving sustained success.
KEY LEADERSHIP ACTIONS
- Upgrade Ineffective Practices: Identify and replace processes or practices that are not delivering results, even if they have been long-standing traditions.
- Pursue Excellence Relentlessly: Replace merely good practices with great ones, constantly seeking ways to enhance performance and achieve higher standards.
THE IMPACT OF THE 5 COMPONENTS
The below statistics underscore the importance of each component in driving a high-performing culture and provide evidence-based support for their implementation.
Statistics from https://bucketlistrewards.com/blog/employee-statistics/
SUMMARY
Creating and maintaining a high-performing culture is a multifaceted process that requires deliberate actions and a strategic approach.
Great leaders drive productivity by setting clear goals, clarifying roles, establishing accountability, measuring outcomes, and fostering continuous improvement. By focusing on these critical components, leaders can build a culture that not only meets but exceeds organisational objectives, resulting in a motivated, engaged, and high-performing workforce.
This model offers versatile and actionable strategies to cultivate a high-performing culture in any environment—be it the workplace, home, family, or community. By implementing these components, you can create a proactive and intentional culture that supports high performance and drives success in any environment.
NEXT STEPS
Take the next step in building your high performing team.
We can help you translate the concepts in this guide into reality for your leadership situation.
Book a call to turn your current culture, into a high-performing culture today.
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MORE ABOUT US
At Leadership Upgrade, we believe great leaders are made, not born, and provide the tools, support and training to take your leadership to the next level.
Hi everyone,
We unpack this question in the video below. Happy watching!
(and be sure to grab my ebook: 10 Enemies of Servant Leadership FREE for a limited time on the link below!)
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