“Why, Mr. Anderson? Why, why, why? Why do you do it? Why get up? Why keep fighting?” asked Agent Smith, in the Matrix series. That intriguing monologue was much longer of course. Almost everyone knows the importance of determination and this note has nothing to do with that. However, while with great determination, an expert biologist might try finding factorial of 100 a hundred times to see if the result differs, is that purposeful? 

Mindful determination doesn’t have to benefit the whole of humanity, but more importantly, it leads to purposeful outcomes. Mindless determination, on the contrary, is like a headless chicken running around. There is this inordinate amount of resolve to get “it” done, but there is no meaningful “it”. There is no purpose. 

I’m not saying that one should perpetually follow meaningful goals without a break. That will only burn out the wick. What we need is conscious investing of time into identifying personal and/or professional goals. Goals that add value to—an individual, one’s family, organization, or society, and so on. 

For a leader (at any level), the focus and determination exuded set the path for the team. Now, that leader can choose to layer on the path with aspects that matter the most. Or, the leader can be determined about achieving the goal, but focus on inconsequential asks. 

Let’s talk about a leader, say Mr. Agent Smith. He is a go-getter who is determined to go up the ladder. Now, everyone wants their team to be productive. So, Mr. Smith starts using ID cards data to track how much time team members are wasting in the cafeteria every hour. Then there’s this person who does the data crunching for him and creates Xcelsius reports and dashboards to report back on 20 metrics. This can go on and on, but you get the point. 

Determination as a superpower is good obviously, but are we pointing it in the right direction? That’s the question we need to ask and answer—both personally and professionally. Is it laser-focused on what truly matters? If yes, then go ahead and do what it takes. If not, then it’s time to get back to the drawing board. Get going... 

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P.S. The morning routine picture above is courtesy my daughter. The weighted vest certainly helps.