1871 CEO Betsy Ziegler Uncovers What’s Behind Being a Purpose First Entrepreneur
Betsy Ziegler, CEO, 1871
How do we develop intentional practices that allow us to live and work with purpose? This question was the focus of a recent virtual fireside chat between 1871 CEO Betsy Ziegler and Pete Wilkins, author of Purpose First Entrepreneur and Managing Director of HPA. Wilkins and Ziegler touched on topics ranging from the power of purpose in amplifying performance to the influence of Purpose First leaders in shaping company cultures and the process for creating a foundation that supports a purposeful life and career.
Ziegler opened the discussion by asking about the inspiration for the ideas in Purpose First Entrepreneur. Wilkins shared that the book grew out of a traumatic event—a brutal attack that left him fighting for his life. As a result of that experience, though, he experienced an intense personal transformation that served as a catalyst in his search for purpose. That personal journey morphed into decades of research into the effects of leveraging purpose as a framework for business success.
As Wilkins’s career progressed, he began to see the overlap between his own experiences and those of the thousands of other entrepreneurs he worked with as managing director of HPA, one of the most active early-stage venture groups in the country. Wilkins explained, “I saw clear patterns of success and modalities of how purpose was infused in people’s lives and businesses to create enormous impact. And so my curiosity from a business perspective was, ‘How can you do that at scale?’”
In fact, writing his book allowed Wilkins the opportunity to pursue his own purpose, to “infuse purpose into entrepreneurs, who are fundamentally changing the worlds we live in [and] create a pretty meaningful place in the world that will be better because of that, and ultimately, to … inspire leaders to fundamentally change the world in a positive way.”
In spite of the title Wilkins chose, Ziegler pointed out that the lessons in the book aren’t limited to entrepreneurs. According to Ziegler, they represent a universal experience because “We are all masters of our own universe … We all have the opportunity to live a life with intent and can act as the CEO of ourselves, at minimum.” Wilkins echoed this assessment, emphasizing that he believes the lessons he shares are applicable to anyone looking to “control [their] life, to have [their] own pursuits in a way that’s going to make an impact.”
Pointing to the Great Resignation, Ziegler asked Wilkins whether he was inclined to believe that an individual’s purpose evolves over time in relation to personal and social changes. Wilkins described this kind of change as “inevitable.” In fact, Wilkins encouraged attendees to maintain a flexible mindset and stay open to these shifts. He explained that being mindful of this evolution can reveal new opportunities that “may actually generate more value for you from a purpose perspective than what you’re currently focused on.”
While purpose might change over time, Wilkins emphasized the importance of investing time and energy in developing a stable, enduring foundation, built on what he calls his four Purpose Pillars—Honor, Love, Wellness, and Goodness. These core principles also provide a framework for objective self-evaluation. Routinely checking on the strength those pillars can, according to Wilkins, can flag up weaknesses in overall performance and in prioritizing our purpose, helping us maintain focus and advance toward our ultimate goals.
For Wilkins, purpose amplifies performance in measurable ways. Purpose First leaders motivate their teams by helping them identify meaning in their work, build a mission that links purpose and performance metrics, and ultimately quantify that purpose by communicating the value delivered to consumers or clients. Wilkins believes that the concepts he shares in his book “become the framework of just doing good with fundamental business elements put in place.”
Ultimately, Wilkins hopes that the uncertainty of the past two years will continue to inspire people to consider their “why” and leverage it to build purposeful careers and lives.
“Right now, I think everybody’s looking for meaning. Our lives have been disrupted in a way that we’re looking at what matters,” he said. “Vocationally you might not be an entrepreneur, but from an overall archetype, you are. You are one that wants to control your life, to have your own pursuits in a way that’s going to make an impact that’s [meaningful] for you and others.”
Click here to see a recording of the event.
