Time to read: 4 minutes
Article at a glance:
- Passion for Contribution means caring deeply about being truly helpful, not just doing what we enjoy,
- Sometimes, the most helpful thing we can do is let go of where we’re no longer helpful.
- True contribution happens when our strengths, passions, and team needs align, even if that means adapting or shifting roles.
- Asking for feedback and reflecting regularly helps us stay aligned with where we’re most helpful.
Passion for Contribution is the first of our core values.
It’s easy to jump on the passion part, and we all want to be helpful. But we can’t forget this very important element: we have to be passionate about understanding where we’re actually helpful, not just hoping what we’re doing is helpful.
It has to include a desire to explore the ripple effects of your work.
After all, it’s hard to be happy if you aren’t helpful.
But realizing we’re not helpful can sting, especially if it’s an area we enjoy.
When we’re truly passionate about being helpful, it can carry us through that discomfort. When we really care about contributing to the whole, we can handle the bumpy parts of tweaking our work.
This realization can hit us in a lot of ways, but I want to share a recent example from my own journey.
A Story of UN-helpfulness
Hi! I’m McKella. I work on the culture content team, and for years I also wrote copy for the Redmond Farms business unit. I adored both sides of my role. But as the content needs of both areas grew, I spent more and more time on my “home team” of culture, and I had less time and bandwidth for Redmond Farms.
I tried to make it work. I still loved farm copy, so I’d still say yes to projects and do my best to stay plugged into what was going on with that area of the company, but as that area grew, I struggled to keep up.
Then things started to fall through the cracks. It took me longer and longer to complete projects. Sometimes we’d suddenly need copy that was still labeled “medium-priority” in my head, and I hadn’t finished.
I realized I was no longer helpful in that area not because I wasn’t good at it, but because I didn’t have the space in my schedule or brain.
The most unhelpful part was that my continuing to say “yes” was obscuring the fact that we needed more support in that area. I was holding the team back.
So, I let go of those tasks. Yes, I was sad. And yes, I moped about it. But I wanted to be helpful, and hanging onto this because I loved it was holding back the farm copy efforts AND preventing me from fully leaning into culture.
In order to truly be helpful, I had to let it go.
Sometimes, letting go of something is the best contribution we can make!
What else can this look like?
This is just one example of how it looks to understand where we are and aren’t helpful.
This can also look like just not being very strong in something even though we want to be. For example, you might really enjoy working on social media strategy, but you’re not creating much value in that area. Your time might be better spent somewhere else.
Or maybe it’s an area of strength for you, but the team doesn’t actually need that thing. If you’re really into photography but we don’t need a photographer, then that passion isn’t helpful right now. That doesn’t mean it will NEVER be helpful, it just isn’t at the moment.
When we’re all working where we’re most helpful, it elevates the team. It makes our overall work better.
And while it’s not always fun to realize you aren’t helpful, this is a win for everyone. Letting go of those unhelpful pieces actually frees you up to keep exploring your Three Circles and find where you are truly helpful.
We’re not asking you to be helpful in something you’re not strong in and that you don’t enjoy, at least not for the long term. Sometimes, phones need to be answered and chairs need to be set up.
But we always want you to move toward that sweet spot where strength, passion, and helpfulness overlap. That way, everyone wins.
So how do you make sure you’re helpful?
- Ask your team. Don’t ask yes or no questions like “Am I helpful here?” Ask more specific, open-ended questions like “Where am I most helpful?” and “Where am I not helpful?”
- Look at outcomes. Does your work create ease or friction? Again, talk to your team and people on other teams.
- Reflect regularly. Where are you thriving? Where are you stuck?
- Be willing to shift. Passion for contribution means adapting as the company’s needs change.
When we lead with helpfulness, we create value and improve others’ lives in powerful ways.
Passion for Contribution isn’t about doing everything or clinging to what we love just because we love it. It’s about finding that path where your strengths and passions meet the team’s real needs.
When we all work in that overlap, our collective impact grows, and so does our fulfillment! That’s what elevating the human experience is all about.
