Making The Transition From Management To Mission

I will never forget the day I stood in my office, just weeks before my daughter was born. 

I had aspired to some day be a leader in a large organisation and I had achieved my dream, but for months I felt totally unfulfilled.

As I stood in my office, I told God that I didn’t want to return and in fact at this point I had already removed and taken home anything that was either personal, or I wanted to keep. Talk about “faith on legs.” 

But I wasn’t asking God blindly. I knew the two things I absolutely wanted, one of which was to work with computers, the other to coach.

Mission Wasn’t On My List

And I’m sure I’m not alone.

When you’re managing staff, figures, budgets etc, I’m sure most managers or employees would think in terms of mission and yet I believe that all of our experiences in life is preparing us in one way or another for our mission.

I didn’t start thinking about purpose until my daughter was born and then I started asking, “I wonder what her purpose in life will be?”

It’s certainly a refreshing perspective to think in terms of mission and purpose rather than job and income. I think so anyway. And as a manager, I was more interested in the future of those I managed than many of the leaders within the organisation.

I saw their potential beyond the service they provided, and more than just a good job done, I wanted people to be fulfilled.

So I shouldn’t have been surprised the day I got my “aha” moment having realised that my mission was to help others find their purpose. I had spent years in the corporate world asking people “what do you want?” And by that, I meant “what’s your heart craving for you to do or be.” 

You see, you can’t fool the heart.

The Heart Knows Your Purpose

No matter how many times you deviate from what you really want to do, your heart will speak up the moment it’s quiet enough.

My hands are raised because I know that feeling. 

I’m a natural inspirer and though I had every intention of becoming a Life Coach when I left the corporate world, I fell into business coaching instead.

Now, I combine the two, but whenever the balance feel towards the tech implementation (building blogs, social media customisation etc), it wouldn’t be long before I would feel a disconnect between me and my mission. 

I remember sitting in my Pastor’s office one day with the Assistant Pastor talking about the Church’s website and what they wanted. Both Pastors who were fairly new to our church looked at me and said, “there’s more to you than this … this isn’t all there is.”

I confess my heart both jumped and sank at the same time. I love the hands on, I love the tech stuff, but they recognised that I was in my element when I was teaching, coaching and encouraging people to think bigger and to stop limiting themselves and God.

And For Me, This Is Why Mission Is So Important …

Mission makes you think beyond what you can accomplish and forces you think about what you can accomplish with and though others. Missional living goes beyond asking how can I get this done, but also asks, “why is it so important to get this done.”

Missional living asks the question “is my cause worth dying for?”

Missional living also helps break through the inertia barriers when it feels as though nothing is going right, the whole world is against you and no one seems to “get” your cause.

That’s why people like Richard Branson inspires me so much. It has nothing to do with the fact that he’s a billionaire, but everything to do with the fact that despite being dyslexic, dropping out of school and having a dream that was far above his means or background, he never allowed anyone else to control his vision and his dreams.

It’s Time To Wake Up Your Vision

Rekindle those shattered dreams. Ask yourself what your gifts are, what wouldn’t feel like work that you’d love to do for the rest of your life and how it would help serve others.

And remember, you don’t have to be a Richard Branson to make a big impact. You just have to have an unwavering passion to make a difference in the lives of others.

That’s what missional living is all about – an unselfish desire to change the world.

Go bless others with your gift,