Knowledge of the mission
Knowing is about having the information needed to perform one’s job tasks and knowing one’s job mission. What to do, what to achieve, when to have it done, how to do it and why are common components of the feeling of knowing.
Relevant information
To do a good job, it is crucial to have a strong sense of knowing; after all, it doesn’t matter how good or motivated you are if you don’t do the right things. However, this does not mean that you need to know everything or have all the information. The most important thing is that the information is relevant to the task and the understanding of the work to be done:
Several pieces of the puzzle
However, relevant information does not necessarily have to be the information that only relates to you and your mission. Understanding the purpose behind your and your colleagues’ tasks – and how they contribute to the group’s or organization’s mission – can also be essential information. Imagine that your and your colleagues’ tasks were pieces of a puzzle. It is only when we see how these pieces fit together that we get a clearer picture of the complete puzzle. This will help you understand why you are doing certain tasks, which can help you feel more meaningful and purposeful in your work.
Avoid fizzy drinks
Knowing your mission, your team’s mission and your organization’s mission is good, but it can also be too much of a good thing. An abundance of information can lead to confusion and misunderstanding. It can also be unnecessarily time and energy consuming. Especially when parts of the information are not relevant to the personal mission. On the contrary, it can lead to a blurred picture of one’s own mission and make it difficult to evaluate the information and assess which information is relevant among the noise. People may absorb non-relevant information at the expense of more valuable information
Reflection questions
Think about your mission and what information is needed to carry it out effectively.
- How can I improve my understanding of my own mission?
- How can I improve the understanding of the group’s common mission?
- How do I find the right information?
- What information is important for me to have access to?
- Am I missing any essential information and if so, how can I get it?
- How do we inform each other?
- Can I organize my work better?
- Is there anything I can do to improve the overview at work?