Author: Jones Loflin
When I am working from home, one of my favorite places to go when I need a break is my daughter’s apiary (bee yard). I am absolutely fascinated by these amazing creatures and WHAT YOU CAN LEARN. Between their work ethic and how they function together as a colony, I think I could sit and […]
When I am working from home, one of my favorite places to go when I need a break is my daughter’s apiary (bee yard). I am absolutely fascinated by these amazing creatures and WHAT YOU CAN LEARN. Between their work ethic and how they function together as a colony, I think I could sit and watch them for hours (and I might have on a couple of occasions)!
Purpose has been on my mind a lot lately. The monumental disruptions in how we do work, and life have, honestly, caused me to sometimes feel less focused than I should be. I find myself “checking boxes” instead of intensely aligning my day with my purpose or governing values. And when I have those moments of self-awareness about what needs to change, I find that a quick trip to the bee yard helps me get back on track.
What is it about bees that I find so helpful in clarifying the importance of purpose? Here are three things that I see:
You never see a bee just wandering aimlessly around a hive. Every moment is focused on intentional activity. I need that reminder when I’m tempted to not plan my entire day. I can miss opportunities to advance my work, deepen a relationship, or invest in personal renewal. Every moment counts!
Your purpose doesn’t change but HOW you carry out that purpose does.
A fascinating insight about worker bees for me is that their job changes over their lifespan of approximately 40-45 days. They start out cleaning honeycomb cells, move to caring for baby bees, and finally leave the hive to forage for the colony. This season of change has found me at times wanting to hold on to the familiar and the comfortable. Bees remind me that there are multiple ways to carry out your purpose.
Catching a swarm of bees is truly an adventure. It can get quite chaotic with thousands of bees flying around trying to figure out where to go. Something amazing happens, however, once the queen is in the transport box. A number of bees will land on the top of the box, stick their abdomen up into the air, and wildly flap their wings. That’s the signal to the other bees where the queen is, and soon you see this steady stream of bees moving to the box. Because one set of bees carry out their purpose, others can too. A question I’ve started asking myself more often when thinking about this process is, “How will living out my purpose help someone else live out theirs?”
If you aren’t fortunate enough to have a hive of bees to remind you about your purpose, that’s okay. I’ve created several free resources such as my video about being more intentional in your day, that you can use to better identify what your purpose is and how to begin living it out. But if you WOULD like to start working with bees…let me know. Just be prepared for a really long and spirited conversation. ;)
Contact Us at WeSpeak Global and follow us on Twitter
Author Profile
The articles, video and images embedded on these pages are from various speakers and talent.
These remain the property of its owner and are not affiliated with or endorsed by WeSpeak Global.
Emotions That Could Be Stopping You From Living Your Dreams and Hurtful memories can stifle your development and growth. How do we break through this insidious mental conditioning? How do we grow and develop beyond hurtful episodes that bury themselves in our subconscious and influence our lives? Do we change and grow so that we […]
Something about being Attracted to the PAST seems much more romantic than the future so Are you more attracted to the PAST or the FUTURE?. Maybe it’s because the past is a time we can look back on with nostalgia, or perhaps it’s because the future is an unknown quantity. Whatever the reason, it seems […]
Without exaggerating, there are literally hundreds of ways of becoming more self- aware, and hence be more Adaptable to embrace and think through opportunities and / or adversity. As a Preferred Partner in South Africa for the Six Seconds EQ Worldwide Network (in 174 countries), we talk about ‘emotions driving people, and people driving performance’. […]
Things to QUIT if you Ever hear that saying that says before you can grab hold of what you really want you’ve got to let go of what’s you’re currently holding on to so tightly and QUIT Starting Today? That’s what I want to talk about in this article. Those things that no longer serve […]
As a seasoned frontline journalist and broadcaster, Mandy Wiener has a unique perspective on current affairs and A Country Worth Fighting For on how history unfolds in South Africa. Mandy has had a front row seat to the nine wasted years, the anatomy of the state capture project, the evisceration of state owned entities […]
Do you remember THE BAIT SWITCH DOES NOT WORK and the first time you were disappointed by a large organisation? My earliest memory of corporate greed (we all have those, right?) was what I recall being a few months after Smarties Mini Eggs were launched in South Africa. As a lifelong fan of the traditional […]
Why is a 216-year-old voluntary member-based organisation like the Cape Chamber of Commerce thriving under lockdown? It shouldn’t – when times get tough, members will look at their expenses and cut those that are ‘voluntary’. People tend to pay their utilities, because if you don’t pay, you don’t get to play. And heaven forbid we […]
Are you guilty of multi-tasking during meetings? Unfortunately, being present during meetings, especially present-day Impactful Virtual Meeting, is so rare, I wish I could bottle and sell it. Here’s a few facts you can toss around the tele-conferencing office (Source: Prezi State of Attention Research): In any online meeting about 95 percent of the audience is probably multi-tasking. […]
Our Mission
© All rights reserved 2025. Created using VOXEL THEME
