Common Purpose

Common purpose is when a team is working together to reach a common goal. Having a common purpose contributes to a high level of group trust where all participants share responsibility. I believe that common purpose is the most important of the seven C’s of social change. Without having the same idea in mind, people are not able to work toward the same thing. If my priorities are different than my teammates, we will never be able to accomplish what we want because we will be working toward different outcomes that align with our priorities or purpose. It is important to establish this purpose early on in the team-building process to address any complications that may arise in the team. 

A time that I truly understood the importance of having a common purpose was before I even knew about the social change model. During my senior year of high school, I was in a group for a dual enrollment class through a local college and we had to write a paper together. As the deadline for the paper approached, I realized that I had much different expectations for the paper than some of my group members. I was very upset with them and ended up having to do a lot more work than I was originally required to do because they were not meeting my expectations. Looking back, it would have been smart for us to create a group contract or be more clear on our purpose for the paper so that we did not run into that disagreement and upset so far down the line. While I have experienced the importance of having a common purpose since then, that was definitely the first time I saw firsthand how much of an effect it has on groups.

Since I have learned that, I have made it a goal of mine to ensure that all group members are on the same page very early on. As soon as we start the forming stage, I ask what their expectations are, and through that, we determine our common purpose. Whether it has been writing a paper, doing a project, or even doing things at work, it has been so much easier to reach our goals while having a common purpose that we all agree on. I will continue to make this an important part of team forming since I have seen the positive effects from it and have also experienced the negative side of it.