Hello folks,
with this article, I want to explore why soon all of us will be pentrepreneurs – people who take a proactive approach to their careers and lives with purpose at the centre. I will elaborate on why this step is necessary for you, us, them and why you should be part of this movement. Let's get started.
First, I want to elaborate on the idea of "pentrepreneurship". Pentrepreneurship is a term I created that is compounded by two familiar terms: purpose and entrepreneur. Being a pentrepreneur, thus, means you are a purpose-driven entrepreneur, although it does not necessarily require you to own a company. I will elaborate on this idea of the entrepreneur without a company in the remainder of this article.
If you have been part of this community, you have a clear sense of purpose cultivation. However, you might not identify yourself as a pentrepreneur. While some of you are indeed entrepreneurs, others are students, employees, or full-time mothers and fathers. Still, there is one thing you all have in common – all of you are taking a proactive approach to life even if you don't want to.
Today's societies are changing at an increasing rate. Although our basic human needs have not changed and might not do so in the future, how we relate to our social environment is changing rapidly. Technology is a big driver of this change. But it is not the only driver. Our social systems and institutions have already changed radically, and there seems to be no halt to it. While people who entered the labour market 30 years ago were able to stick to a clear and predefined path laid out for them, Gen Y and all born after them are struggling with ongoing individuation.
Individuation is a term coined by sociologist Ulrich Beck. It describes how individuals have to rely more and more on themselves than on the institutions such as family, party membership, nationality, etc. Individuation, hence, means young people today are being put under much higher pressure than their parents were at the same age. Polls and studies reflect this sentiment. Researchers underline this sentiment showing that it is getting harder to settle for Millenials and all generations after them.
I dedicated my years as an undergraduate to studying how individuation affects even the construction of our own identities. To sum it up: Since you cannot rely on the institutions that granted you identity, we are all forced to take a proactive approach to identity construction. Many recur to the market and consume brands more intentionally to express who they are – at least who they want to be. We do not take the identity narrative we get for granted but rather consume social media (or explicitly do not consume it) to construct and tell our own story of who we are. Consequently, we start making mindful choices of what we need, with whom we gather, which schools we attend, for which employer we work, etc.
Gen Y is known for not taking everything for granted and asking "why". But just asking the right question is not enough, at least in this case. Action follows. At least, this is what the data suggest. Since Gen Y, we have taken a proactive stance. We are more deliberate and consequential with our choices. We are more intentional and strive for purpose. And there is no escape: You either start doing or stop doing things with purpose or are overwhelmed by the explosion of options available to you through digitisation and globalisation.
We are living in an environment favouring the prepared while at the same time obscuring the future through a plethora of choices. Barry Schwartz investigated how these many options to choose from paralyses us, and he coined the paradox of choice. Having more than five options represents a cognitive overload. And the more obscure the intended and unintended consequences of our choices are, the bigger the burden we feel, the less likely we are to act at all.
Even if we take the courage to choose, there is still this feeling that we might have overlooked an important bit of information that could have led to a different decision. Thus, we feel the pressure of making the right decisions under the highest possible uncertainty but lack the tools to be confident with our choices. No one told us that we were entrepreneurs that had to build our identities on our own.
I felt the same. Since I was young, I have always been told about the many paths I could take. I am quite a decent musician, and being on stage in front of hundreds of people is one of the most natural things for me. I could have become a musician. At the same time, I am a preacher's kid, and investing in other people has always been part of my life and brought the most fulfilment to my life. Being a pastor myself was a viable option, too. Since I never had problems at school, I could have chosen any career path I wanted. There were too many options to choose from.
While writing my thesis on the construction of identity through consumption, I realised that I did not want to be driven by the latest hype, nor did I want to rely on outdated institutions and customs. Hence, I started researching how I could take a proactive approach to my own life. You already know the result of this: the Purpose Framework. The Purpose Framework is not just a nice concept that lives in my head, but I have made it part of me. I live and cultivate my purpose each day.
The Purpose Framework has helped me reduce the universe of options to a small set I could easily handle. Furthermore, I was able to recombine available assets to define a new category by combining the unique talents, abilities, and skills I acquired throughout the years. I do not need to wait to achieve a certain milestone to say I am fulfilled or happy. I am already in the bliss zone! And you do not need to take my word for it. Ask my wife, or my parents, family, friends or my coachees. (I mean this literally. If you want to talk to them, just let me know, and I will make an intro). I am a pentrepreneur – not just because I am building my own startup but because I have always taken a proactive approach to life. It just happens that I am an entrepreneur, too.
And you should be a pentrepreneur as well. It is only a matter of time until you, too, realise that just trusting God, the universe, your peers, your employer will not suffice. You have to take action – not despite your belief in God, the universe, your peers or your employer but because of it. If you believe in God, the universe, your peers, your employer or even tradition, then you at least believe in someone or something that believes in you. And both of you would be better of if you realised that potential. You have something to contribute. Take a proactive stance and shape the future you want. Be the best pentrepreneur you can be.
mypurpose.academy is meant to help pentrepreneurs, i.e., literal entrepreneurs or ambitious people who want to cultivate their purpose to achieve greatness. I am deeply convinced that this will be the new norm in a decade or so. But you and I have the opportunity to model it to others and inform, inspire, and challenge them to cultivate their purpose in life. There is no other reason why you should be part of this movement. However, your health, wealth, and productivity will benefit if you cultivate your purpose. And today, it's easier than ever to join the movement. You can join the movement by subscribing to the Purpose Letter.