Affinity Purpose
Dimension 3 : Affinity Purpose
One of the joys of work for many is the connection we have with others in our worklife. Working closely with others on meaningful projects, being an integral part of a team, can provide a lot of satisfaction in our worklife.
Human beings are innately social creatures with a need to connect, belong and contribute. Affinity Purpose motivates your striving for connections and relationships within the workplace, from co-workers, teams, and business units, outwards to customers, partners, professional organizations, and the communities in which you participate.
It goes beyond title, beyond the job itself, and even your particular skillset. You like to feel wanted and accepted for who you are. You want to feel connected; to feel like you belong.
This is the dimension of connection, camaraderie, and ‘finding your tribe’.
Analysis
If your highest Purpose Score, or one of your highest, is in this 3rd dimension, then your connections, friendships, and networks are very important to you at work. You are motivated by being part of a group, connecting with others, belonging to something beyond your isolated self.
You probably get a high degree of satisfaction through working collaboratively towards shared goals. You not only take pride in your personal work, but in the success of a bigger collective. Being part of a team is important to you. The connections you have at work likely stretch and strengthen you to perform well and provide a source of wholeness to your worklife.
You probably enjoy engaging in team-building activities and feel at home creating fun projects for your colleagues to participate in. Some of your work relationships may extend into friendships outside the workplace.
Recommendation
Your worklife provides opportunities for you to develop deeper and more meaningful relationships, which is an important motivation for you. For others, such connections might be less important as they might just want to do their job and get on with the rest of their life. But not you!
If you’re feeling like you belong, that you love working with the people you do, and that you’re consistently enjoying your worklife, then you are in the right place!
If you find your Affinity Purpose is being fulfilled at work then you might want to look at other dimensions where you had a high score to see what other motivations are important to you in your worklife. It’s often the top two or three scores that will give you insight and clarity into YourWHY@Work.
Remember, this self-assessment is just a snapshot in time, representing how you’re feeling right now about WHY you’re working.
So, if you find yourself wishing for more out of your worklife, take a look at some of the higher dimensions in the purpose pyramid to see which characteristics resonate with you. While you may be a great team-player right now, you might aspire to be a team-leader (if you’re not already!), or even the CEO one day! Or you might want to do something greater still, like saving the blue whale.
But don’t worry - you don’t have to give up the characteristics you currently have in this dimension. They are part of who you are and will help you achieve greater impact for yourself and others. Affinity Purpose provides fertile ground upon which to further develop your potential and expand your motivations for a richer, more fulfilling WHY@Work.