Intentional work is a vastly different concept to society’s standard perception of work. This is how we operate as the Institute for Human Potential as part of the Trails to Empowerment community. Lea Dahlke discusses this in more detail in her book Intentional Work. An organization that practices intentional work seeks to empower its employees. It facilitates opportunities for them to have greater responsibility and freedom than a standard workplace.
An employee who applies intentional work is clear on their interests, goals and purpose. This is true both for their life and for their work. Their interests, goals and purpose align with that of the organization. This creates a synergy where the organization benefits from having motivated employees. The employees benefit through contributing to something meaningful and enjoying opportunities not found in a standard work environment.
For us, intentional work in the Trails to Empowerment community means to be aware of our intentions for why we want to do something and not the activity itself. Understanding the intention behind the work we are doing, allows us to follow our interests and find fulfillment. For example, someone working in the office also wants to experience nature connection and find a balance by being outside and contributing to the community in other ways. So they might chop wood, learn how to shoe a horse, guide guests on a pack trip or hike and learn about conservation.
Though the office is still their main responsibility, because they were interested in learning about everything that belongs to the ranch lifestyle, they took responsibility to get involved in all different kinds of work. They use what is traditionally described as “time off” to invest in themselves by learning how to pack a horse, watching the chainsaw orientation and practicing using it.
Instead of constantly working and draining their energy, everyone takes responsibility and initiative for the things that they are interested in. Investing in themselves by learning and practising new skills helps everyone to grow and evolve and prepares us for bigger challenges and successes. Pursuing our interests and being clear about our intentions allows everyone to recharge their energy and find fulfillment in the work we do.
Some of the key values identified as part of Intentional Work are:
- Collaboration
- Empathy
- Mentoring
- Responsibility
- Leading from behind
- Equal opportunities for all employees
- Autonomy
- Variety of opportunities
- Flexible and adaptable
- Reflection
- Appreciation
- Nature connection
- Nature conservation and the bigger picture
Collaboration means everyone can apply their unique strengths to create a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts. Empathy is to believe everyone works to their best the majority of the time so if a task wasn’t done as expected, the employee isn’t judged, but the organization seeks to understand what happened. Mentoring creates a culture where everyone can teach everyone something, in this way the whole team learns how to do all tasks. This way the organization isn’t handicapped if a person leaves or can’t work one day.
Responsibility means everyone takes responsibility for themselves and what they do, stepping up to take on additional responsibilities when they are ready to do so and when the situation necessitates it. Leading from behind means a leader gives other people the opportunity to lead and practice their own skills, providing a safety net so other people can learn. This means there is not just one leader, but everyone can be a leader.
This is what the organization facilitates, the values and principles of the employees who practice intentional work are:
- Responsibility
- Clarity on interests, goals and purpose
- Commitmet
- Communication and collaboration
- Reciprocity
- Community and alignment of interests, goals and purpose.
Are you ready to find out how you can apply the concepts of intentional work, either as an organization or as an employee? Are you ready to challenge yourself and take responsibility for everything you do? Joining the Institute for Human Potential will give you the opportunity to learn about Intentional Work and how to apply it. Here are some of the ways you can get involved. Read Lea Dahlke’s book Intentional Work or her blog story as part of our Self Study program or sign up for one of our Immersion programs to learn more:
