The words a leader speaks are important, of course. But how they're delivered can make all the difference, especially in tough times.

Three things a leader or manager should be thinking: What's happening? What's not happening? and What can I do to influence the outcome?

The deepest principle in human nature is the craving to be appreciated."Mark McCormack, Author and sports entrepreneur"Psychologists tell us that money is a satisfier, not a motivator... Recognition is. That's why we do what we do... Recognition is critical to self-esteem. Without it, we feel undervalued, even insignificant. Money is nice, sure. But once you establish a basis of monetary rewards, without the accompanying verbal and social affirmation, the employee will quickly become disgruntled and ask for more. Eventually, more will never be enough.

There are some terrific resources on how to find individual purpose but relative resources on how to discover purpose and apply to an organization. My challenge was to show organizations how they could unlock the purpose of their organizations and put it to good use for employees to apply to their own jobs. The net effect is to help individuals, teams and organizations to optimize performance by understanding how to use purpose for good intention.

People who believe in themselves and in a cause greater than themselves can achieve great things-as long as they have a well-intentioned leader to point them in the right direction.

Focusing on one's own purpose is a matter of considering what you want to do, why you want to do it, and how you will do it. Easy questions, but they do provide deep thought.

Leaders who lead purposeful organizations are those who put people first. No, it's not a cliché when they actually do it. It means they set clear expectations, provide adequate resources, coach for success, and evaluate for results.