Finding Purpose in Business: 10 Questions to Deepen Your Why

The numbers look perfect. Revenue is up. The team is strong. Clients are getting results. By every metric, the business is succeeding.

And yet.

That question keeps surfacing: “What am I really building here?”

As the Business Philosopher, I’ve watched countless C.O.A.C.H.E.S. hit this wall. Not a wall of failure – a wall of success without meaning. They’ve mastered their craft, built their systems, and grown their teams. But something essential is missing.

Purpose isn’t abstract philosophy. It’s practical business thinking at its deepest level. It’s about knowing exactly what you’re building and why it matters.

Look at any business that’s stood the test of time. They didn’t just sell products or services. They stood for something. They meant something. They built something that mattered.

In an age when AI writes your copy and automation runs your systems, your purpose becomes your strongest advantage. It’s the one thing no algorithm can replicate – your reason for doing what you do.

Through twenty years of helping C.O.A.C.H.E.S. build frameworks that last, I’ve developed ten questions that cut through the noise and get to what matters. Not feel-good questions that lead nowhere. Hard questions that make your business stronger.

The Problem with Purpose

Most businesses get the purpose wrong. They write mission statements, copy competitors’ values, or grab ideas from the latest business book. That’s not the purpose. That’s decoration.

Purpose comes from clear thinking. Not quick thinking. Not clever thinking. Clear thinking.

In twenty years of working with C.O.A.C.H.E.S., I’ve seen this pattern: The ones who succeed aren’t the ones with the best marketing or the newest tools. They’re the ones who understand exactly what they’re building and why.

Think about that. Really think about it.

Most people don’t want to do this work. They want the quick answer, the easy fix, the template they can copy. But purpose doesn’t work like that. You can’t download it. You can’t copy it. You have to think it through.

That’s why these ten questions matter. They force you to think about what you’re really doing with your business. Not what you say you’re doing. Not what others think you’re doing. What you’re really doing.

Ten Questions That Matter

Let me give you ten questions. Not surface questions. Not feel-good questions. Questions that make you think harder about your business.

1. What’s the Real Problem You’re Solving? Not what you tell clients. Not what your website says. What’s the actual problem? If you’re building frameworks, you’re not just making diagrams. You’re giving people clarity. Control. A way forward. Go deeper.

2. Will This Matter in 200 Years? Everything changes. Markets. Technology. Tools. But some things stay constant. Human needs. Business principles. Core problems. What part of your work touches these constants?

3. What Work Feels Like Freedom? I call this Freedom Work. It’s the work you’d do even if no one paid you. The work that gives you energy instead of taking it. Pay attention to this – it’s showing you something important.

4. How Is This Work Changing You? Your business isn’t just what you deliver. It’s who you become while building it. What are you learning? How are you thinking differently?

5. What Actually Changes for Your Clients? Skip the testimonials. Look at the real changes. When your work succeeds, what’s different in your clients’ world? What can they do now that they couldn’t before?

6. What Principles Hold You Steady? Every business faces hard choices. What core ideas guide yours? Not mission statement words. Real principles that you use when decisions get tough.

7. When Does the Work Feel Right? There are moments when you know you’re doing exactly what you should be. What are those moments? What are you doing? Who are you helping? This tells you something vital about your business.

8. What Grows From This Work? Look beyond next quarter. Beyond next year. What are you building that lasts? What gets stronger over time? What compounds?

9. What Gets Better Because of Your Work? Every solid business improves something. Makes something work better. Solves something that matters. What specifically gets better when your business succeeds?

10. Why Your Way? There are thousands of businesses doing what you do. Why yours? Not your marketing answer. The real answer. What makes your way of working make sense?

Making These Questions Work

These questions aren’t a test. They’re tools. Use them to think about your business differently. To see what you’re really building.

Take the first question – about the real problem you’re solving. Most businesses stay on the surface. “We help companies grow.” “We improve productivity.” “We build better teams.”

Go deeper. If you help companies grow, what does that really mean? More freedom for the owner? Better lives for their employees? Stronger communities?

Or look at the question about what gets better. Don’t give the easy answer. Think it through. When your business works exactly as it should, what actually improves in the world?

Making Purpose Work

Most C.O.A.C.H.E.S. get stuck here. They understand their purpose. They see what they’re building. But turning that understanding into daily business? That’s where things break down.

Let me show you how purpose works in practice.

Start with your offers. Most businesses build offers backwards – they look at what others charge, copy what seems to work, add their own twist. That’s why most offers feel the same.

When you understand your purpose, offers become clearer. You know what to include. What to leave out. What to charge. Your price comes from value, not market averages.

Look at your clients. Purpose changes who you work with. You stop chasing anyone with a checkbook. You start choosing people who need what you actually build.

Think about your content. Most businesses create content by watching trends. Writing what everyone else writes. Saying what everyone else says. Purpose gives you something real to say.

Even your systems change. You build processes that make sense for what you’re really doing, not just copies of what worked for someone else.

Purpose in Practice

Let’s make this practical. Take your main offer right now. Not what you wish you offered. Not what you plan to offer. What you’re actually selling today.

Does it solve the real problem you identified earlier? Not just the surface problem. The deeper one. The one that actually matters to your clients.

Look at your last three clients. Why did you take them on? Was it just about the money? Or were they the right fit for what you’re building?

Check your pricing. Most C.O.A.C.H.E.S. price based on the market. They look at what others charge and match it. That’s backwards. Price based on the value you understand you’re really delivering.

Study your daily work. Which parts align with your purpose? Which parts fight against it? This isn’t about making dramatic changes. It’s about seeing clearly what’s working and what isn’t.

Small Shifts That Matter

Change how you talk about your work. Not marketing speak. Real words about real value.

Adjust how you choose clients. Start saying no to projects that don’t fit, even if they pay well.

Rework your frameworks. Make them reflect your actual thinking, not just what’s popular.

Build systems that make sense for what you’re really doing, not just what everyone else does.

This is how purpose becomes practical. Not through big declarations. Through small, daily choices that add up.

The Real Freedom

True business freedom isn’t just about good numbers. It comes from doing work that matters, in a way that makes sense to you, with people who share your vision.

When your work naturally flows from your philosophy, you stop competing on price. You stop chasing every trend. You build something real, something lasting.

This is what I help C.O.A.C.H.E.S. achieve. Not just better businesses, but better thinking that leads to better businesses. Work that matters, done in a way that makes sense.

A Note About Frameworks

Purpose and frameworks fit together naturally. This is something I’ve seen consistently in my work. When you understand your deeper why, creating your framework becomes clearer. It does not mean forcing complex ideas into simple boxes. It means seeing the patterns that already exist in your thinking.

Think about it this way. Every great business idea comes from clear thinking. Your framework is just that thinking made visible. It’s your philosophy turned into something practical that helps others.

The Four P’s of Purpose-Led Business

Through my years of working with C.O.A.C.H.E.S., I’ve noticed four elements that matter:

Purpose: Your reason for doing the work

Plan: Your way of making it happen

Philosophy: Your principles that guide decisions

Passion: Your energy that keeps it moving

When these four elements align, business gets simpler. Not easier – business is never easy – but clearer. You know what to say yes to. You know what to avoid. You build something that fits who you are.

Making This Work Now

Here’s what to do next:

Take the ten questions seriously. Don’t rush through them. Sit with each one. Write down your thoughts. Let them challenge your current thinking.

Look at your work through this lens. What needs to change? What’s already working? What could work better?

Consider how your purpose shapes your framework. How does it influence what you teach? How you work? What you offer?

The Bigger Picture

Profitable businesses matter – without money, they can’t survive. But the best businesses do more. They make things better. They solve real problems. They help people work better, think better, live better.

This is what separates dependent businesses from dominant ones. Dependent businesses chase whatever seems to work right now. Dominant businesses know exactly what they’re building and why it matters.

The Choice That Changes Everything

Every day, I see C.O.A.C.H.E.S. making the same mistake. They chase tactics. Buy courses. Follow formulas. Always running after the next big thing.

But here’s what twenty years of building frameworks has shown me: The businesses that last aren’t built on tactics. They’re built on thinking. Deep, clear, purposeful thinking.

Think about the great businesses in your field. The ones everyone respects. The ones that keep growing year after year. They’re not just better at marketing or sales. They’re clearer about what they’re building and why it matters.

This is what separates dependent businesses from dominant ones. Dependent businesses copy what works for others. Dominant businesses build what makes sense for them.

The choice is yours. Keep chasing tactics that might work. Or build something that has to work, because it comes from your clearest thinking about what matters.

Want to turn your thinking into a framework that works? Book a 30-minute session with me. Let’s build something real. Something that lasts. Something that matters.

Because in business, the clearest thinking leads to the strongest building.