You’re probably familiar with the classic story of Dicken’s Christmas Carol. Ebenezer Scrooge has a transformation after being visited by three ghosts revealing his future trajectory. Can this awful fate be altered? Another chance?
Mr. Scrooge goes from miserable, miserly and self-centered to charitable, compassionate and determined to make a difference in the life of the Cratchit family.
Gary Keller and Jay Papasan, co-authors of the book The ONE Thing, use this familiar story to illustrate a useful framework for leveraging purpose for productivity and designing a better life course.
Before the transformation, Mr. Scrooges purpose in life was money, money and more money.
From there, his priorities were clear. Anything that made money was good, including limiting Christmas to one day for Mr. Cratchit.
Productivity could be measured entirely by impact to the bottom line.
After transformation, Mr. Scrooge’s purpose included improving the lives of others. His purpose was bigger than just money, yet still included money that could be used to help Tiny Tim. This newfound concern in no way implies earning less money, rather a different why, with new paths for employing and enjoying it.
Try this question, “Do I serve money, or does money serve me?”
Scrooges priorities were expanded to include people. He determined that spending time with his Nephew and of course helping Tiny Tim survive were vital to his newfound purpose.
His productivity now becomes centered on making the most of life, including his need for family and community.
Take a moment and write your life purpose. To accomplish this, what needs to be your top priority? What does productivity look like in this new framing of your career, relationships and financial aspiration?
This is a powerful framework to keep in mind as you plan your productivity.
As always, we’d love to hear from you.
– Diamond Mind Thomas
