Who are you doing what you are doing FOR?

I was thinking about dangling prepositions over the weekend. (Yes, I know this makes me a little geeky.)

So, I decided to do a search utilizing AI. It generated a definition of dangling prepositions and then added an example of something that wasn’t a dangling preposition.

I don’t know where AI got its information AT.

But this is a blog about leadership, not grammar, so I will stop with that vocabulary geekiness and dangle you with a preposition that you must be able to answer. 

Who are you doing what you are doing FOR?

In other words, who are you serving with the work that you are doing?

It is easy to lose sight of this question for several reasons. 

  1. We live in an increasingly self-focused time. 
    • It is easy to believe that no one will look out for you if you don’t look out for yourself. 
    • Our political messaging increasingly focuses on the individual benefit instead of the greater good.
    • Many businesses focus on making individuals wealthy, even at the expense of others.   
  2. It is easy to forget who you are serving when you are busy. 
  3. We have traded loving and serving people for impressing people. 
    • Social media is designed to impress people, not love people. 
    • Our houses are judged on curb appeal, not how the people in those houses treat one another. 
    • Serving others involves laying aside some of my wants for the sake of another. This concept is almost scoffed at in the Western world. 


These are more excuses than reasons. 

Great leaders regularly remind themselves and their team who they are serving. 

So, again, Who are you doing what you are doing FOR?

This question has a few answers for me:

  • I am doing it for my wife and kids. Providing for them is extremely important, and I want to work hard to meet that objective.
  • I am doing it for my boss. He is a great leader, and I have skills and abilities that complement his talents. My role is to serve him so he can lead our company well. 
  • I am doing it for my teammates. They are dedicated professionals who care deeply about the people we serve.
  • I am doing it for leaders around the world. Great leaders are essential at the community and company levels. (I believe leaders at my company and in my community are more important to people’s daily lives than our national leaders.)
  • I am doing it for employees all around the world. Employees leave work daily to go about the rest of their lives. How they enter the other areas of their lives is dramatically influenced by how they are led at work. If their leaders make them feel small, insignificant, and disempowered, they carry that home. If their leaders make them feel positive, encouraged, and strong, they carry that home. So, I do what I can to help fill companies and communities with human-centered and results-oriented leadership. Leaders who help people thrive at work and in life. 


Now, it’s your turn:
Who are you doing what you are doing FOR?

I have mentioned it before, but it bears repeating. Humans are tribal creatures. We work and lead better when it is FOR someone besides ourselves.

So take a few minutes, write down the answer, and keep it somewhere you can see it. Doing this regularly is a simple professional habit that can keep you motivated when you are feeling the grind.

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Brian Rutherford

Brian Rutherford is the Chief Operating Officer for Leadercast. Brian has been telling stories professionally for twenty-five years. Stories that inspire people to see themselves and the world differently. Stories that challenge people to take meaningful action in the world.

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