Your Purpose Factor with Gabrielle Boschè

This transcript has been lightly edited for readability and to correct obvious transcription errors while preserving the meaning of the original conversation.

Episode 85 — Your Purpose Factor with Gabrielle Bosché
Clean Speaker-Labeled Transcript
Guest: Gabrielle Bosché
Automated QA: Passed

00:00.842 Brandon Burton
This is the Chamber Chat Podcast, the show dedicated to chamber professionals to spark ideas and to get actionable tips and strategies to better serve your members and community.
00:15.938 Brandon Burton
He loves going.
00:20.588 Brandon Burton
Welcome to the Chamber Chat Podcast. This is your host, Brandon Burton, and it is my goal to introduce you to people and ideas so you can better serve your chamber members and your community. This is episode 85 of Chamber Chat Podcast. And our guest today is one of those people who will help you better serve your chamber members and your community. Our guest is Gabrielle Bosché, who is the co founder of the Purpose Company. She's a bestselling author and a TEDx speaker. She's worked with Fortune 500 companies and the U.S. military. Gabrielle and her work have been featured everywhere from NPR to Bloomberg, Fast Company, and Business Insider. Gabrielle and her husband Brian just published their most recent book, The Purpose Factor Extreme Clarity for Why You're Here and What to Do About It. I'm grateful to have Gabrielle with us today to talk more about what the purpose purpose factor is or what your purpose factor is. And we will get into our conversation with Gabrielle as soon as we hear from our sponsor. Every chamber is looking for new ways to increase their non-dues revenue. Has your chamber found a good affinity program? I have a great affinity program to offer your chamber that will continue to increase in revenue year after year. I want to introduce you to Swypit for all of your credit card processing needs. Swypit has a unique affinity program that 1, lowers your credit card processing fees at the chamber, 2. Helps your chamber members be more profitable, and three provides recurring non-dues revenue to your chamber. To learn more, please visit chamberchatpodcast.com slash C C for credit card. Again, ChamberChatPodcast.com slash CC and get swiping with Swypit. Alright, Gabrielle, we are back. Thank you.
02:23.224 Brandon Burton
for joining us on Chamber Chat Podcast. If you would, say hello to all the Chamber champions that are out there listening and share something interesting about yourself so we can all get to know you a little bit better.
02:35.502 Gabrielle Bosché
Sure. Well, thanks for having me on, Brandon. I'm very excited to be joining you and all the chamber champions. You guys are leaders, you're influencers, you're the folks on the front lines, not only bringing our communities and our businesses together, but really doing an incredible job, especially during these days where businesses are really looking for that leadership right now. So you guys are are doing some incredible work. I am a California native, transplant to DC, transplant to Dallas, where I live currently with my my husband Brian. And yeah, we co-founded the Purpose Company after working with major companies, organizations, the military, helping them bridge the generation gap, which I think we'll probably chat about here in a moment. because we recognize that so many organizations, although they were looking at millennials and generations as a problem, the real consistency was that folks, whether they're consumers or clients or employees, we're wanting to find significance. So we spent the last six years really honing in on how do you talk about purpose at work.
03:41.138 Brandon Burton
That is very important and will lead into a good discussion today. kind of piggybacking on your your interesting fact, Gabrielle and I figured we found out as we were setting up this interview that we both grew up in the Sacramento area and now we both live in the Dallas area. So in fact we were in Sacramento, attended the same school district, kind of rival high schools a little bit. So it's neat to to connect with her and and and build a little bit of a relationship here. But Gabrielle, if you would share maybe I mean you've shared a little bit about your company, but what kind of drives that that work with the purpose company?
04:24.974 Gabrielle Bosché
So we really founded the purpose company because we recognized that so many people were talking about purpose, but there wasn't a system to be able to discover and then utilize purpose at work. So when I was in my teens and twenties, like most folks who are probably listening, great mentors and influencers told me, Find your purpose. And it's great advice, but it's agonizing to execute if you have no idea what to do.
04:51.146 Brandon Burton
Get a little direction, right?
04:53.07 Gabrielle Bosché
Absolutely. And I think for most people is they would follow through on their purpose if they actually knew what it was or they if they knew how to find it. And so we are kind of systems thinkers and we kind of thought after a while, if this is so important to find, there has to be some sort of system to to discover purpose. And we found out that there wasn't. So we spent years researching everything from ancient philosophies, popular religions, modern motivators, looking at what do they all have in common. And what we discovered was there are these four elements that really help solidify someone's purpose. And so we created the system, called it the purpose factor, and have been teaching it for the last few years to organizations, the military, Fortune 500s, stay-at-home moms, consultants, people around the world to help them really get clear about their individual purpose. And most importantly, how they can apply it to what they do every day.
05:50.875 Brandon Burton
That's very good. you were kind enough to share a a copy of the purpose factor with me in leading up to this interview. And I found it to be very insightful and kind of narrowing down what my purpose is, and and I think I had some idea. you may not be surprised to know that I'm a builder and a craftsman and slash messenger, given that I do the podcast and so forth, but that would that'll mean more to you guys as you dive into the book a little bit. But right now, the chamber of commerce industry is really maybe rediscovering their purpose. in the book, you guys talk about how your purpose doesn't change, but who you serve does. And I think right now, chambers of commerce throughout the country and and even throughout the world, as we navigate our way through this COVID. pandemic are really getting back to the roots about what the purpose is of their organization, why they were founded, and who it is that they served. you had shared the thought with me that we are in a a purpose economy. would you mind elaborating a little more about what it means to be in a purpose economy and kind of how that relates to chambers of commerce, understanding their purpose.
07:12.962 Gabrielle Bosché
Absolutely. I think in the past we were really dealing with an economy that was much more transactional. I work for you, I do this for you, you pay me, or there there's some sort of value exchange. Then we started moving into what we call the transformation economy, where I come in and I work for you or I buy a product from you and I want to become transformed or changed in the process. That's still all about me. What we're seeing now, really in the last six months. the economy transforming from that kind of more transactional and even that transformational element to this purpose-driven economy where people are now wanting to know what's my individual purpose, what's the purpose of the organization that I'm a part of, what is the the purpose of the products that I'm consuming. And people are becoming much more interested, aware, and invested in the purpose of the organizations that they're coming in contact with. And I think that there are number of reasons for that. I think that the shift in values of people recognizing that the economy isn't just about dollars and cents. I think that this COVID crisis really shined an important and beautiful light on the fact that people matter and that they matter more than, you know, profit and they matter more than just kind of the the standards or some of kind of the normal way of life that people have kind of gotten stuck in. We have stopped everything because we recognize people's lives, their health, their safety, their purpose that matters. And so I think emerging and even as we're pushing through this crisis together, I think the conversation is so appropriately back on the foundation, rebuilding from the start, saying, who are we and who are we supposed to help?
09:01.006 Brandon Burton
So and I think as a organization for a chamber of commerce, that's definitely where they're at now with getting back to the roots of who are we and who are we here to help? part of that answer, I think, as far as who they're here to help, is they serve the business community in their individual communities. You had mentioned how the kind of the economy is going more from transactional to transformational now to purpose. And how can a a chamber of commerce help their business community understand their purpose and where they fit in. And I asked this question amid this COVID recovery, I hope to call it right now, where there were some businesses that were deemed to be non-essential. So w how does that reflect your purpose when you're told that your position, your your job is non-essential?
09:55.734 Gabrielle Bosché
I I think that that has certainly been challenging for most folks. As a business owner myself, you know, having someone say that you're non-essential versus another organization or entity that is essential. Any person who is employing other people is essential. That relationship that you have with your customers, your clients and your employees, your vendors, your community, you're an essential element of of the organization of of American cities today. And I think that that role is so incredibly important. But I I think that the question really comes to not asking, you know, why am I here and finding our why? It's really who are we and who are we supposed to help? The entire economy is about who. It's who are you serving? It's it's how how are you solving the problem that those people in your community, those members that you have, those business owners that you serve, who are they and what problems do they Do they have today that you can serve them in? And I think that that's really right sizing our economy is again, we're getting really back to basics. Whereas the old school economy used to be build it and they will come. We've now really entered this purpose economy where it's find out who they are and help and serve them better. And so really focusing on that who again of who are we and who are we supposed to help, I think is going to be a clarifying question and that defining question. that's going to really separate the leaders from the losers in this next economy.
11:25.686 Brandon Burton
I love that whole thought of going from build and they will come to who is it that we need to serve and then build something to fit the who and the why. that makes all the difference, I believe. And hopefully the businesses that are a part of a chamber of commerce in the in the business community have some idea of what their purpose is, of why they went into business and who they're serving. But I think you're right. Right now our economy is kind of right sizing and really making us look internally to say, what is it that I'm doing? And and you've seen a lot of businesses pivoting to make a change in what they offer to their customers or how they offer their services or goods to customers. And a lot of that I think reflects back to their purpose and and who it is that they're trying to serve. So I know you've you've talked a lot about next generation chambers as you've worked with ACCE and and other organizations. What how do you see the next generation of chambers of commerce?
12:32.162 Gabrielle Bosché
think that the role of chambers are certainly shifting and changing and and becoming much more organic. I think again where it used to be here are programs that we offer, you know, does it work for you? It's we're now shifting and recognizing that our members want to become partners with us. And that is really influenced with a newer generation who wants to partner with the entities that they're a part of. It isn't just about attending events or doing the networking or or benefiting from some of the more traditional aspects of the chamber. It's that partnership. It's that peer influence. It's recognizing that there's expertise, brilliance and insight from newer members of the organization as well as those who are more established. So I I think that that kind of organic relationship and that flattening so to speak of organizations is certainly what the new generation of chambers is going to look like. We did we've done a number of studies on that next generation chamber, especially working with chambers around the country on helping them reach that newer generation of member and recognizing that that newer generation wanted to have more more training, more development, more more opportunities to connect with people in a very intentional way and and wanted to have even more structure than many organizations necessarily thought. And And so creating that opportunity again to partner, that's really the the key element is to partner with that that next generation member to make sure that you're not just creating something for them and saying, does this work? But you're creating something with them to ensure that it will.
14:14.99 Brandon Burton
That's right. And as you're giving that response, I was thinking of you know some different business models. for example, Tom's, you know, TOMS shoes. They have a a huge customer base because there's a certain segment of the population that sees the great value of a company who so they're taking your money in that transaction, but then they have a greater purpose of providing shoes to those in need. And their customer base supports that. They get on on board with that mission and purpose. and drive that. And I I can see where as this next generation is is kind of looking to chambers of commerce for that that those partnerships and more of a a true investment in the organization and and what they're gonna get out of it as far as training and development and so forth. So I think you're you're pretty spot on with that.
15:04.246 Gabrielle Bosché
Well, I love that you you said that too, because branding you're spot on, because TOMS Shoes also too represents the new consumer base, which when I purchase something as a new consumer, it I'm purchasing it because it says something about me. And so as a chamber, you have to recognize as you're bringing in those next generation members, they're joining because it says something about them. Whereas in the past it was that's just what you do as a business. New new generation chambers recognize that they're competing with pop-up groups and virtual networking and LinkedIn and all these other entities. And so you have to recognize that this new generation of of members will join, but you have to really dig deep into considering what does joining your chamber say about them. When I buy something from TOMS Shoes, it says that I'm interested in fashion, I'm interested in giving back, I'm ph philanthropic. And so creating that avatar of who is it that this new generation member is and what about their values resonates with our values, that's really where the opportunity comes in to really deliver on that partnership promise.
16:15.51 Brandon Burton
That's right. And I think as people see the chamber logo in a business window or in an email signature or wherever it's coming, there's a certain resonance that comes with that, or there should be. So as another person or business owner sees that, they should know what that business stands for, what that means for them to be a member of the chamber. And I done a whole episode about frequency, vibrations, resonation, that totally kind of aligns with what we're talking about right there. But what does your chamber reson how does your chamber resonate with others? Yeah, what is that frequency that you're putting off and how are others going to resonate with that? So great point. I I appreciate that. So let's talk a little bit more, maybe specifically, about the book, the purpose factor. As somebody picks up the book, just share with us what they can expect to get out of it. I think the name itself, the purpose factor and the the the subtitle are are pretty descriptive as to what they get. But there were as I read through it, I think a few things that stood out to me that I thought, huh, I didn't really expect to to get that as I read through this book. So what would a the reader what could they expect as they pick up your book?
17:37.054 Gabrielle Bosché
Sure. The the book itself is really written for that individual who knows that they were made for more, the organizations who recognize that that they have to focus more on their purpose as an entity and that as leaders they need to discover their purpose and help their employees discover their purpose. And so that's what's been so great is we've got teams lead reading the book together. We've been doing virtual trainings for organizations around the world on helping them find their purpose. as individuals than discussing how they can use their individual purpose to help their employees, help their members, help their customers. It's really incredible. So the book itself is the most practical approach to purpose discovery ever created. It takes you from recognizing the myths that many of us believe about purpose, debunks a lot of those myths, help you helps you with the mindset you need to be able to discover your purpose. takes you through the four steps of purpose discovery and then, and this is my favorite part, takes you to the three steps of applying your purpose to your organization or to your life. And so that way if you don't just rest in knowing that I have a purpose and you have those warm fuzzy feelings, that's great. But that's step one. In order to be able to execute on that purpose, serve your members better, serve your family better, your community better. you need to have an application plan. And so we have a very simple three step plan to apply your purpose to what you do every day.
19:10.104 Brandon Burton
Very good. One of the things that really I guess it kinda gave me a chuckle because you kind of set the stage with it early on in the book is you mentioned that passion is a barely controllable emotion. And people all the time say just follow your passion. Follow you know, follow your passion. And you guys point out how dangerous that can be if you don't understand what your purpose is, because the passion can change day to day. It can it can move as the wind blows. So I I love those kind of little snippets you guys included throughout the book that really make you evaluate and and look from a different perspective at what what maybe you thought your purpose was to look at it from another angle. And I also I feel like this is a very timely book as a lot of people as they've been shutting aside for months and maybe been laid off from their jobs or furloughed or different, you know, situations. I think a lot of people are asking themselves that question, what is my purpose? You know, what am what am I supposed to do? Who am I supposed to serve? And when you're leaving your control up to your employer or government or whatever your situation is, it can become kind of detrimental to somebody's you know, how they feel about themselves or self esteem. So can you talk a little bit to that, maybe the the impact that people are seeing right now and how the book can help them through?
20:45.106 Gabrielle Bosché
Felt going into this season that we had a choice. We could either see this season of working from home and things kind of slowing down. We could see the season as a gift, or we could see it as a crisis. We could see it as something that would benefit us and something we were grateful for, or we could see it as something that had to be handled and we would spend our time reacting to the world around us. And so what I've recognized is many organizations are really taking this time to think deeply about who they are and who they can help. They're reconsidering what programs do they actually need to invest in, what's actually going to move the needle. They're taking the time to breathe more life into the some of the programs that maybe they've been intending to go after, but they've had to delay because there have been things that are or at least appear to be more pressing. So I'm really seeing this season where people are taking the time with the white space that we have because we're not busy running kids around, we're not busy running to and from meetings, we're doing everything digitally and virtually. And so I I think it's really causing people to ask some of those big life questions. And I think that the timing of this book being released is certainly very interesting. We've got incredible feedback from folks and we've got endorsements from folks like The Rock and Tony Dungy and and Simone Biles and Gary Keller and things like that, which is incredible. And I think why we're seeing so much momentum on this book is because the timing of asking who am I and who am I supposed to help as an individual first and as an organization second is really going to be the defining factor for those coming out of this crisis to determine whether or not they're going to be leading the future of the purpose economy. Or they're going to be stuck in the old ways of the past, reacting and waiting for things to return to normal.
22:43.062 Brandon Burton
And those structures of the past, I think they'll they'll last for a little while, but they're gonna struggle as they as they last before they they dwindle away. So I mean we're seeing a lot of chambers making that pivot, you know, where they're seeing they have a lot of in-person events that have been canceled or postponed indefinitely because they don't know when they can meet in in a room again with people, you know, more than a group of ten or whatever. but they're pivoting to do things over Zoom or all different, you know, offerings altogether and seeing more chambers getting into podcasting to be able to share their advocacy efforts with their membership and and even have a a wider purpose in in connecting with their community at large and not just the business community. So I think you're right. It's a a huge opportunity to be able to reevaluate and see how do we come out of this better? How can we look at this as an opportunity, define our purpose and come out of it better. So I I appreciate you sharing that. So besides first of all, I mean we've talked about the timing of the book and when it's released. Do you want to share with the audience when when your book does come out?
23:51.768 Gabrielle Bosché
So it's available for pre-order right now on purposefactor book dot com and the books will officially be released at the end of September, September twenty-ninth.
24:03.554 Brandon Burton
All right. And I assume once it's released, I mean they could still get it through your website or some of these other locations that Amazon and things like that, which I I I'd probably encourage people to go to your website. I think Amazon's getting plenty of business right now. But but yeah, so that again that's purposefactor book dot com and we'll we'll put that in the show notes for this episode as well. But Gabrielle, I wanted to ask you what would be one action item that a a chamber champion who's listening right now, what's something that they could do at their chamber to help take their their organization up to the next level?
24:48.918 Gabrielle Bosché
Sure, I I really think that it's focusing on that who. When you start with a who, everything else falls into place. So there's a story that we tell in the book about the tumbleweed tank. So the tumbleweed tank was created during World War II to cr to protect soldiers and it had everything. It would protect them against mustard gas and it would protect them against landmines, and it was really this innovative solution to keeping soldiers safe. The only problem was that there were no windows. And there was no door. And so oftentimes as organizations, we create entities, movements, programs that do everything that seems like needs to be done. If we protect our members, we serve them, we inform them, but we don't think about the windows and the doors. And so as an organization, you have an opportunity and frankly a responsibility during this time to really get to know your members more. It's start with who first. Who are they and what do they need? So really spending time on focus groups, one-on-one interviews, spending time getting to know them and what their deepest challenges are. Because when you start with who first, everything else comes into place. When you start to understand their challenges, their fears, their anxieties, their their opportunities, what they hope for in the future, then you can really dig deep into how you can best serve them. Because again, the role of the chamber is changing. Your your purpose isn't changed, but but how you serve those people is certainly going to change. And so as you get to know your your people, and we always talk about starting with people first, as you get to know your people better, you're going to be able to become sharper, more competitive, and and more holistic in the way that you're serving your members today.
26:40.118 Brandon Burton
Right. I would love to have an interview with whoever it was that designed the tumbleweed tank and just ask, what were you thinking? I know their intentions were good, but really, what were you thinking? It was a a great example that was shared in the book there. So this question I asked everybody that I have on the on the show, and I think it aligns very well with your company and with your book and and with your purpose. But as we look to the future of chambers of commerce. How do you see their purpose going forward?
27:13.678 Gabrielle Bosché
I really see the role of the chamber really shifting to again be that partner with with the businesses that that are members and really seeing them as continuing to expand and grow their voice. Whereas before I think that chambers really played an important role when it came to membership and networking and advocating on behalf of their members. Now we're really seeing, especially with next generation employers coming on the scene, that they're looking for education and development in a very deep way. And so the role of chamber is no longer just going to be that entity that is going to, you know, advocate and inform that Chamber of Commerce is going to start getting involved in everything from helping certify a new generation of employees. Whereas Generation Z. That generation who's graduating right now is the first generation most likely to not attend a traditional four-year university. They're getting certifications, they're attending trade schools, they're they're getting mentorship one-on-one through apprenticeship programs. So I think the role of the Chamber of Commerce is going to help on the recruiting side of things. I think that it's going to help in educating individuals outside of just the member base. And and I think that it's really going to start to shift and change even the conversation around the role of employer in the community. And I know many who I'm sure are listening right now are part of that shift. And I and I think that it's such an incredible movement that the chamber is really stepping into and a huge opportunity to be able to not only influence a new generation of employers and employees, but really lead the way for the future of what we call the purpose economy.
29:06.934 Brandon Burton
Great response. And I think you're right on cue. I've been doing for the last two years, I've done Chamber of the Year finalist series where ACC I've I've interviewed the each chamber that's been up for the Chamber of the Year award from ACCE. And almost every one of them talks about some type of apprenticeship program that they are highlighting in their application. working with the school districts, having a partnership there, working with their local colleges and universities and trade schools and and partnering with the major employers in their community to find out what their needs are and to be able to help train and bring up the next generation of employees and really supporting the industry in their community. So I think you're spot on with the the direction that chambers of commerce are going. So Gabrielle, as we wrap up here, I wanted to to give you an opportunity to maybe put your contact information out there. If somebody wanted to learn more about you or connect with you offline about anything that we discussed today, what would be the best way for them to to reach out and to find you and and go ahead and plug your the website again for the book as well.
30:18.382 Gabrielle Bosché
Sure. Well thank you, Brandon. So they can reach out to us at purposefactorbook.com or purposecompany.co. And that's where you'll get all of our information, find out where we're speaking, how to get access to the book and more information about our programs and what we're most excited about these days.
30:38.028 Brandon Burton
That is perfect. I will get both of your websites on the show notes page for this episode, which everybody can find at ChamberChatPodcast.com slash episode eighty-five. Gabrielle, I appreciate you spending time with us today here on Chamber Chat Podcast. I hope those chamber champions listening are able to maybe refocus on what their purpose factor is and pick up the book and and see what you have to offer. Thanks a lot.
31:05.614 Gabrielle Bosché
Thanks for having me on.
31:08.16 Brandon Burton
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