Personal Purpose (#96)
“Singleness of purpose is one of the chief essentials for success in life, no matter what may be one’s aim.”
John D. Rockefeller, Sr., Founder and CEO, Standard Oil Company
John D. Rockefeller Sr. single-mindedly pursued the organization of the oil industry through horizontal and vertical integration. He worked tirelessly on a rigid daily schedule to improve efficiency, cut costs, innovate, and grow the Standard Oil Company. Along the way, he created the first multinational company and build the first modern corporation. Rockefeller had the vision to take long term risks and hire top talent to run parts of the business.
Here is one example of his single-mindedness. In 1870, the Standard Oil Company owned one refinery in Cleveland, as well a fleet of railroad tank cars, warehouses, and a barrel making plant. Nevertheless, Rockefeller wanted more organization, so he decided to acquire the 26 rival refineries located around Cleveland. His first step was to create an alliance with the three most powerful railroads which shipped the oil from the fields in Pennsylvania to the plants. The South Improvement Company enabled him to control oil prices and the shipment of oil to his plant, as well as his rivals. The South Improvement Company helped Rockefeller to grow his market share, while limiting the profit of his competition. Eventually in 1872, Rockefeller started buying out the other refineries. Within six months, he had acquired 21 out of the 26 refineries and organized the oil industry in the eastern United States. By the end of the year, Standard Oil was the largest oil refiner in the world; Rockefeller was 31-years old.
Rockefeller didn’t stop with Cleveland and the Pennsylvania oil fields, however. His pursuit of his purpose was wildly successful – at one time, Standard Oil controlled 90 percent of the world’s oil production. The organization was too successful — in 1911, the U.S. government broke up Standard Oil into 34 new companies in an effort to increase competition in the marketplace. Rockefeller’s single-minded purpose made him the wealthiest American ever, worth $14.9 Billion in 1913 ($391 Billion in today’s dollars).
John D. Rockefeller is a complex and contradictory person. However, his singleness of purpose enabled him to be one of the greatest businesspeople of all time. Rockefeller had grit, or “the will to persevere to achieve long term goals.” A person’s grit is built upon a goal, their perseverance, their resilience, their courage to deal with the fear of failure, and their drive.
One underlying aspect of grit is understanding and living your personal purpose. At its simplest, your personal purpose is your why. It defines who you are and reflects your passions and values. Understanding your personal purpose, or why, helps to improve goal setting, building resilience, and dealing with the fear of failure. Movies and books can inspire our personal purpose. Introspection can also help you understand your personal purpose.
Personal Purpose Inspiration -- Movies
Sometimes it is hard to determine your personal purpose and movies are a great way to examine other people’s personal purpose to help find your own. Below are six gritty movies that inspire me and hopefully inspire you to develop your personal purpose.
Prefontaine – Steve Prefontaine (played by Jared Leto) was a track athlete who was determined to be the greatest long-distance runner in American history. He was a multiple NCAA champion and came in 4th in 5,000-meter race at the 1972 Olympics Games.
42 – Jackie Robinson (played by the late Chadwick Boseman) was determined to prove that black athletes could play and excel in Major League Baseball. Later, he used his voice to help the Civil Rights movement.
Zero Dark Thirty – Maya (played by Jessica Chastain), a CIA Analyst, perseveres and develops the intelligence that enabled Special Operations to launch the raid on the Abbottabad compound that killed Osama Bin Laden
John Wick – After his wife dies of an illness and his dog is killed by members of the Russian mafia, an assassin, John Wick (played by Keanu Reeves), comes out of retirement and is unwavering in his efforts to destroy the entire Russian mob.
The Martian – Mark Watney (played by Matt Damon) is an astronaut that is left on Mars. He is focused on surviving, getting rescued, and returning to earth.
Wonder -- August "Auggie" Pullman (played by Jacob Tremblay) is a 10-year-old boy with a genetic deformity who attends a private school for the first time. He is determined to fit in.
There are hundreds of other movies that inspire people to understand and live their purpose. Find the one that inspires you, watch it or (re-watch it), and see how you can apply the main character’s purpose to your life.
Personal Purpose Inspiration – Books
Great leaders are readers. Leaders like Mark Cuban, Warren Buffett, Oprah Winfrey, and Bill Gates make it part of their daily habits. Reading (or listening to an audio book) is a great way for you to grasp important concepts, understand new ideas, and access experiences that aren’t your own. I have been a serious reader since I was a kid, checking out books from the Delaware County Public Library, and I continue to read fiction, business, leadership, history, and science fiction books and magazines every day.
Here is a list of five gritty books that inspire me and hopefully help to inspire you to develop your personal purpose:
The Wright Brothers by David McCullough is the well-written story of Orville and Wilbur Wright’s focused pursuit of powered flight.
Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly tells the stories of how Dorothy Vaughn, Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson, and Christine Darden overcame racial and sexual prejudice to contribute to NASA’s many successes in the Apollo Program and beyond.
Titan by Ron Chernow tells the story of John Rockefeller’s single-minded development of the Standard Oil Company and his later philanthropic pursuits.
Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer is Krakauer’s compelling personal account of the Mount Everest disaster.
Ashley’s War: The Untold Story of a Team of Women Soldiers on the Special Operations Battlefield by Gayle Tzemach Lemmon tells the story of the life and combat death of Lieutenant Ashley White, who was determined to serve and excel with Special Operations Forces in Afghanistan.
Leaders are busy and deciding where to spend your time is one of the biggest decisions you will have to make. Spending your time on reading a book that expands your horizons, inspires you, enhances your grit, or develops a deeper understanding of your purpose is always a worthwhile use of your time.
Personal Purpose Exercise
Finding and then pursuing your purpose, or your personal why, is fundamental in developing your grit. You may already have a grasp of your personal purpose. If you don’t, or you want to confirm it, try this four-step, fifteen-minute exercise to find your personal purpose.
First, identify your five core values. Core values are your fundamental beliefs and principles. Select five from this list, or develop your own:
For example, one client decided her values were adventure, creativity, positivity, and relationships.
Then, rank order the values with the first being your most deeply held value.
For instance, the client decided her priorities were relationships, adventure, creativity, and positivity.
Now, write a sentence or two which customizes the value to your situation or environment.
For example, her first three values statements were:
Relationships – I invest regularly in developing close connections with my family and my friends.
Adventure – I value trying new things, exploring new places and experiences, and pushing myself out of the comfort zone.
Creativity – I value opportunities to express my ideas, reactions, and observations.
Once you have selected, customized, and rank ordered your values, use them to build a purpose statement.
Finally, she decided her purpose statement was “To live an adventuresome and creative life while building close connections with those that are important to me.”
Share your personal purpose with you close friends and family. Ask for their feedback. Then improve your personal purpose where you can see it every day, like a note on the refrigerator or on your bathroom mirror.
How did it work out for the client that did the personal purpose statement exercise? She finally went on the African safari with her family that she had been putting off for years. She’s currently planning her next adventure – a trip with college friends to New Zealand.
Obstacle
The easiest part of finding your personal purpose is developing it using this exercise. The more challenging part is living up to your lofty goals. Once you develop your purpose you may want to make time every December to evaluate how you lived up to your purpose or modify it based on your evolving environment. Big life events like marriage, kids, or a new job can spark a significant re-evaluation of your purpose.
Conclusion
The foundation of the grittiest people I know is their understanding and living of their personal purpose. John D. Rockefeller lived his purpose of organizing the oil industry under the Standard Oil Company. You may not take it to that extreme, but watching movies, reading books, or doing the personal purpose exercise can help you gain insight into your personal purpose. Having your arms around your why helps improve goal setting, builds resilience, and manage the fear of failure. Then go on the offensive and live your personal purpose, build your resilience, and grow your grit.