There is no question that team members experiencing meaning in their work is a huge factor in organizational success. 

To stretch beyond the measurable impact of an increased sense of purpose contributing to success at work, there are measurable positive effects on the brain that result from this connection to purpose. This discovery offers deeper insight into why companies who invest in their people from executives to frontline team members experience boosted bottom-lines.

The Value of Connection to Purpose at Work 

First things first, who says that increased purpose in work impacts team members satisfaction, engagement and retention?

In the aptly title McKinsey article ⁽¹⁾ “Help your employees find purpose—or watch them leave” from 2021, they found a few notable results:

• 70% of employees said that their sense of purpose is defined by their work
• 85% of execs and upper management said that they are living their purpose at work, only 15% of frontline managers and frontline employees agreed, referred to as the “purpose hierarchy gap”
• Only 18% of respondents believed that they get as much purpose from work as they want

The results-backed article goes on to say “People who live their purpose at work are more productive than people who don’t. They are also healthier, more resilient, and more likely to stay

at the company. Moreover, when employees feel that their purpose is aligned with the organization’s purpose, the benefits increase to include stronger employee engagement, heightened loyalty, and a greater willingness to recommend the company to others.

The Effect of Being Connected to a Greater Purpose on Brain Activity

In experiments detailed in Lisa Miller’s The Awakened Brain ⁽²⁾, fMRI scans are utilized to monitor brain activity, three scenarios were compared: one of stress, one of spirituality, and one of relaxation.

Spirituality was defined in this context as “connecting to something bigger,” as distinct from religion, which was controlled for and no correlation was found.

In the examination in this article, this state of being connected to something bigger is applied to being part of a mission-driven organization that evokes a unified purpose. 

There were three significant effects to the brain’s response to having a spiritual experience, also illustrated in Table 1:

1. The default mode network lights go out – The “rumination box” that stimulates incessant self-rumination during depression and draws attention away from the present moment.
2. The dorsal attention network inhibitory filter is released and the ventral attention network takes over – This allows a shift from “top down” focus that filters out unintentional information to “bottom up” focus that allows us to be open to information outside of a predetermined narrative and allows sudden breakthroughs, flashes of clarity and insight.
3. The frontotemporal network comes online – This network is implicated in relational bondedness, such as when we’re held by our mother or embraced by a romantic partner, indicating feelings of relationship intimacy. Additionally subcortical engagement was observed indicating emotions such as love and bliss, distinct from positive emotions from a relaxing experience.
4. Increased activation in the posterior cingulate cortex and reduced activation in the inferior parietal lobe – This is where the distinction between self and others is perceived. This brain shift is associated with feelings of separation diminish and there is a more expanded sense of self as we perceive being part of oneness. 

The Impacts of the Brain when “Connecting to Something Bigger”
Brain Activity	Reduced	Increased
Default mode network power down	Rumination, negative thought-spiral	Present moment awareness
Shift from dorsal attention network to ventral attention network	Filter that inhibits anything outside of predetermined narrative	Sudden breakthroughs, flashes of clarity and insight
The frontotemporal network comes online	Stress, worry, fear, loneliness	Sense of being embraced, safety, love and bliss
Increased activation in the posterior cingulate cortex and reduced activation in the inferior parietal lobe	Separation, being alone	Expanded sense of self, feeling of being part of something bigger, oneness

There are so many more details to share regarding these studies and the incredibly positive impacts on the brain and protection against depression that leads to increased wellness and resiliency.  

With brain impacts such as these, it is no surprise that employees who experience increased meaning in their work and a sense of being part of something bigger have such a huge impact on organizational success!

Purpose Baked into Culture is a Recipe for Success

An organization is able to increase each’s experience of purpose by incorporating it’s role and contribution to society and creating ways for employees to see how their contributions impact the company’s efforts while they are also lifted, experience belonging and proud to be part of the mission. This connection to purpose supports connection to self and a mission that is greater than any individual.

In order for an organization to be effective at aligning their behaviors with their north star, their culture must be a unifying force that makes clear what their mission is and how to contribute to mission success. This may be achieved through incorporating conversations and reflections that evoke teammates’ individual purpose and how it nestles into the greater mission, what fulfillment looks like, and what support they need to get there.

This emphasis on connection to purpose and creating deeper meaning in the workplace is one of the foundations of how Enliven Leadership helps transform organizations to have cultures that are worth writing home about.

1. Dhingra, N., Samo, A., Schaninger, B., & Schrimper, M. (2021). Help your employees find purpose—or watch them leave. Organization Practice.
2. Miller, L. (2021). The Awakened Brain. Random House.