My Next Book Has A Title And A Publish Date
On March 17, almost one hundred years ago in 1917, a young soldier by the name of Harold Simpson from Bayview, Prince Edward Island, and stationed on the front lines of World War I wrote to his mother.
We are not fighting for territory, or wealth or glory. The terms of peace may bring us new colonies, possibly we may become a richer nation after the war and certainly Britain’s record will be a glorious one. But even if these were all attained in the fullest measure possible, if they were our prime objects in entering a struggle, then I think we would have fought in vain for they could not begin to make compensation for the sacrifices which we, as a nation, have been called upon to bear. No, thank God, those are not our objects. We have a stronger, nobler purpose leading us all in through the valley of pain and sorrow, and sacrifice to the fairer and purer heights of the glorious attainment called an honourable and lasting peace, peace in which the autocrat no longer holds sway and which stands for the liberation of the oppressed and downtrodden and a peace which shall finally establish, without a doubt, the sacred right of humanity and in which nations shall regard each other as an essential factor of the whole and live together in brotherly love, instead of hatred and suspicion.
I found the letter both disheartening and incredibly positive.
On one hand, Harold was casually lamenting about the state of war, and the possibility that their efforts might be in vain for some unbecoming purpose.
On the other, he believed the purpose of ‘The Great War’ was to establish peace, such that citizens could live in harmony and thus parallel to the sacred right of humanity.
I only recently came across the letter (and many more via excellent archival services in Canada, the United Kingdom and America) but it triggered something deep within my core, and perhaps my own humanity.
It brings me to provide an update on Book #2.
I’m done!
But in hindsight — and upon some reflection after the discovery of Harold’s letter — it’s a book written with two things in mind. It turns out I am both disheartened and positive, much like Harold.
First, I’m disheartened with the way in which our organizations — and leaders in general — are operating the organization itself. I believe organizations have lost their purpose, and by extension, employees have fallen into a job and/or career mindset, versus one that might be coined a purpose-mindset.
Second, I’ve realized there are many organization (and leaders) that have in fact defined the purpose of the organization extremely well, and in doing so employees have also benefitted by feeling as though there is meaning in their roles.
This next book was unknowingly written along the lines of Harold’s letter. The first part laments what is wrong in today’s organization (including many of the inanities with leadership) and the second part depicts a sense of hope and a manifesto of action for the betterment of society.
I believe leaders have a responsibility to, therefore, redefine the purpose of the organization. Equally so, leaders have a responsibility to help employees find purpose in their roles.
I’m excited to announce that my next book will be called DUAL PURPOSE .
The book breaks down the true purpose of purpose in the workplace and suggests that there are two parts to purposeful organizational impact. The central arc of this book is two-fold:
every leader has a responsibility to redefine the purpose of an organization, and;
every leader ought to assist employees reach a sense of purpose in their roles.
Every leader, therefore, has a responsibility to develop and instill a DUAL PURPOSE in the organization.
I’ve signed a contract with a wonderful publisher, Elevate Publishing, one that fully understands not only the meaning of purpose, it is a truly reciprocal partner in the launch of a new book project. DUAL PURPOSE will be fully available on all mediums on December 1, 2015.
An early ‘shout out’ to those who provided such clever and innovative suggestions for the book title as well earlier in 2014. Your ideas were the early catalysts for the title I’m going with, DUAL PURPOSE.
Many more details to come over the next six months or so, but for now, I wanted to give you a wee bit of an update given how moved I was after I read Harold’s letter to his mother.
As always, thanks for reading … and thanks for dropping by.
Dan's Related Posts:Perhaps the Purpose of an Organization?My Definition of Work and an Update on Book TwoThree Types of Workplace MindsetsWhat Should The Title Of My Next Book Be?My Purpose
