How do you define a common purpose for a group or a team? There may be an assumed shared objective, but how well does that resonate with all its members? Here, we show how to gather the individual needs of the group and distil the information to create a shared group purpose statement. The common objective then sets the direction and principles for the group.
Kian Mokhbery describes how he worked with a newly formed group of Gallup Strengths Coaches in Southern California. He describes his 3 step process to create a shared purpose statement for the group.
Defining a Purpose Statement for the SoCal Coaches Group
The big question for us during our first meeting was “What brought each of us here?” and more importantly, “In such a fast-paced world, what could inspire us all to keep coming back?”
Purpose for us was the passionate why behind what brought us together and what would keep bringing us back. How could we serve the needs of the individual so they would be hungry for more?
Our goal for the process became: To meet the unique needs of our like-minded community. To listen, connect, and act accordingly.
This is where our purpose development became so helpful. I will outline the steps I took to help our group develop our purpose statement and my goal is that by the end of this article, you will be able to do the same for your group. But what does this look like? Let’s dig in.
A 3-Step Framework
Being strengths coaches, I thought using our shared CliftonStrengths® language would make it easier to get this done right. That led to the creation of the following three steps you can easily follow as well.
3 Steps to Define the Purpose Statement for a Group
- Collect the “Needs and Brings”
What are the needs personally and professionally of each person? What would they each enjoy contributing to the group?
- Distill the Information
With all the answers collected, what does it look like in a simplified form?
- Share the Collective Output
Communicate the results to the group.
The rest of the article will give you more details on each step so you can apply this as well.
What tools can you use?
As I brainstormed how to navigate this goal, I had to figure out a way to organize it all to avoid overwhelm. Huge blocks of text can be overwhelming for me so a visual tool is how I decided to proceed. I used Obsidian Canvas but tools like Miro or other visual brainstorming boards could potentially work too. Obsidian is free and the Canvas tool is something I use all the time now so I highly recommend downloading it and checking it out.
[Editor’s Note: Find a tool and a process that works for you. Some people prefer to highlight similar comments in the same color whereas others engage in the use of AI to summarize the data.]
Step 1 – Collect the Needs and Brings of each Person
In order to cut through the noise of our society, I wanted to get to the heart of each person’s needs personally and professionally so our networking group could flourish. Keep in mind, while it is ideal for everyone to respond, I found that the portion of the group that responded gave enough insights into what shared needs we all had that would stand out. It became more important to not let too much time pass rather than to put effort into getting a response from every single person.
The following template is what our group responded back to me with.
Need and Bring Template Questions
My goal with these questions is to redefine networking to become a joyful two-way street with deeper relationships and build trust that we can lean on each other and thrive together as we navigate through this chaotic journey of life.
- Need – What do you need personally and professionally that would nourish you most in this season of life?
- Bring – What do you most enjoy bringing to help others on their journey?
You are not committing to doing all that you say here.
This is intended as a brainstorm to understand what nourishes you and that you would enjoy contributing to helping people in our group as various challenges or opportunities come up.
Bonus questions, feel free to answer if you have a strong reaction or idea for the questions below:
- What are 1-3 big challenges that capture your attention and you are seeking to find solutions for?
- What mission inspires and drives you most? (in addition to living a strengths-based life 🙂)
- Purpose – which purpose would be most exciting for you? If multiple resonates, please assign priority to what would be most important to you now.
Some of the answers received were:
- Learn, Grow, Support, Connect, Collab, Share, Innovate, Refer.
- Sharing techniques, collaborating on bigger clients, tackling professional challenges in a safe space
Step 2 – Distill the Answers into a Cohesive Purpose Statement
Open up Obsidian Canvas or your preferred visual brainstorming tool. I dumped all the responses into one canvas, here is what it looked like:
Click on the image to expand.
[Editor’s Note: There are further aspects to this stage where you can contact Kian Mokhbery for more specific information.]
Step 3 – Summarize the Information and Share with your Group
In order to share with the group, the next step is to create a simplified graphic of the top answers. Place the Personal and Business Needs on the outside. Then use arrows pointing to the developed purpose statements on the inside.
Click on the image to expand.
Our results for the purpose statement of our community were distilled down to:
- To create a safe space to connect, have fun, grow, and innovate together
- To collaborate and help each other grow our coaching businesses
Perhaps you can assign this task to someone with dominant talents in Communication® and/or Strategic® as it is fun to see how all the dots connect and create a path forward that is aligned with everyone.
Final thoughts
I hope this empowers you, simplifies the process of bringing your group’s purpose to life and continues to bring you together for lots of laughs, sparks of insight, and nourishing connection.
Further Reading
Header image by StockSnap from Pixabay
