Listen To This: Jason Keath on NBN Radio

SME’s resident podcast-addict here again, and I’m excited to deliver the second installment in our “Listen To This” series! If you missed the first, head here to check it out.

This week, my inspiration comes from Dave Delaney’s “New Business Networking Radio” podcast: Episode 43; guest, Jason Keath. There is a ton of goodness packed into Dave’s interview with Jason, CEO of SocialFresh, but the moment that stuck out for me the most occurs around 15 minutes in. And it’s a goodie.

What’s Your Purpose?

In answering Dave’s on-point question about networking tips for attending conferences, Jason replies, “Have one Purpose.”

On one hand, what a great angle for approaching networking events. Instead of rambling around the room…rambling, or standing against the back wall pretending to be busy on your phone (yes, that’s me), Jason reminds us of the importance of arriving with a singular purpose. Decide on that purpose before getting dressed, keep that purpose in mind as you grab your nametag, and be monomaniacal about that purpose with every hand that you shake. I totally dig that, and I am going to steal it.

On the other hand, the inspiration here is not to only steal it for networking; it’s to steal it for life. We should take the time to focus on that.

I am going to take a wild guess that you are busy; some might call your days super-busy. So busy, in fact, that it’s 100% blowing my mind that you are taking the time to finish reading this post (thank you for that). I am busy, too. And I admit that the distraction of being busy oftentimes leads directly to my adopting numerous, scattered purposes. It might not seem like such a bad thing on the surface, having many purposes, but when you lose sight of the one, the capital-P Purpose, that’s an issue. Here at SME Digital, we call that capital-P Purpose your “zone of genius”. If that inspires you, steal it.

Your zone of genius is that part of your day that is effortless. It’s that thing you do that provides you energy, instead of taking energy away. It’s that space where, if you can stay there, you do the good work that you’re meant to do, that you enjoy doing, and that fulfills your Purpose. We should focus more on that Purpose and run everything else that we do against it.

My Turn

So here is my Purpose, thanks for asking (and I want yours in return).

My life Purpose: To enable my wife and kids to do the good work that they are meant to do. I’m a caretaker, and my purpose is to do everything that I can to care for them.

My work Purpose: Creating simplicity and beauty out of the complicated. (A little spoiler there from our coming-soon SME Digital website.)

But even beyond those, what is the reason, the Purpose, that I work here at SME Digital? Putting aside humility here for a moment, we are excellent at a lot of things: Conversation Reports, Digital Strategy, Marketing Automation, Social Outreach, etc. But where we really shine…our zone of genius…our Purpose… is Measurement. We’re phenomenal at measurement, and everything that we do, every other purpose that we take on, serves that larger Purpose.

Helping marketers become business Rock Stars by proving marketing’s effectiveness.

Apologies for the commercial there, but that exercise is important for a specific reason. When I attend networking events or participate in 1:1 outreach, I now know my Purpose. Yes, I am a caretaker by nature, and yes, I am a creative director by trade, but the one thing that I am going to talk to you about when we share a table: Measurement. Are you doing it? Are you actually being effective? Are you satisfied with your measurement? If so, awesome; tell me more about it. If not, I have a Purpose. And having a Purpose feels good and is empowering. It might even get me to put down my phone and leave the sweet comfort of that back wall.

Your Turn

Now, it’s your turn. What is your Purpose? Consider this blog a networking event, or at least a networking opportunity, step up to the plate, and commit to your Purpose. And if you’re not comfortable having that conversation yet, then making that decision, putting your stake in the ground, and committing to be monomaniacal about your zone of genius, well that’s your new Purpose.

Many thanks to Jason Keath and Dave Delaney for the reminder of how important and how valuable having a singular Purpose is. Own yours, and let us know what it is. There’s a comments section (and a Twitter account and a Facebook Page, etc.) for that. *Shanti*