The Only Reason You're Not Living Your Purpose Yet

Ep #1: The Only Reason You’re Not Living Your Purpose Yet

Welcome to the Make Money Living Your Purpose Podcast. I'm Prosperity Coach Karen Powell and this is the podcast for heart-centered leaders, innovators and creatives who dream of leaving their nine-to-five to pursue their passion project but don't know where to start. I'm sharing my proven process that will help you heal your money mindset and figure out your own unique purpose in life. Let's go!

Welcome to episode 1 of the Make Money Living Your Purpose podcast. I am so excited to finally be doing this. I've been wanting to create a podcast for a long time now and you know how it is when you plan on doing something new that you've never done before. It's kind of scary and takes you out of your comfort zone. So there were some false starts and stops along the way. But here we are. 

And I have to say, just to give you a secret tip, I hired a coach. And she kept me accountable and talked me off the ledge a few times and just kept me on track. And really, I can tell you I'm 100% certain that if I hadn't hired a coach I wouldn't be launching this podcast today. It would have been later in the year because you know, things came up, distractions came up like they always do. And without having someone holding me accountable, it would have been so easy to give priority to the distractions. But I couldn't do that with a coach. So here we are celebrating sticking with it. Okay, so tip number one right off the bat, hire a coach to help you get stuff done. 

All right, this podcast is about making money and living your purpose. I want to share with you how to know what your purpose, how to really be certain that you're on the right track, that you are clear on why you're here, what your important work is in the world, and how to step into it gracefully. 

You might be in your nine to five, feeling content, making good money, kind of status quo, but also dreaming about leaving and doing something more fulfilling, more fun, more creative. But at the same time feeling like you can't just leave the security of your paycheck or the safety of your job and just go do something else. So I'm going to show you how to transition gracefully from where you are to where you really want to be. 

And then I also want to show you how to heal the money blocks that are standing in your way. Because this is a big part of why you're not living your purpose. It's this lack mindset or poverty mindset that keeps you back, keeps you small, keeps you from earning the abundance of money that you are absolutely capable of earning. So we'll be going on a journey together throughout this podcast every week taking a few more steps forward together toward that lifestyle that you really want, the one you dream about. The one that feels pretty far-fetched, but really lights you up.

 I'm going to show you how I did it, how I left my 10-year career in corporate America to go live in Africa and work as a life coach. I call myself a prosperity coach. And what I'd really love to show you is really how to create an entire lifestyle that really reflects the real you, but in every direction. So like in every direction that you look in your life, you resonate with what you're seeing and feeling and experiencing. It all feels like the real you not just the weekend part or the after work part. But all of it. Every direction, every nook and cranny of your life is reflecting who you love to be. 

Today's episode is called The Only reason You're Not Living Your Purpose Yet. I mean, you might be able to come up with lots of reasons why you're not living in your purpose yet. And we're going to go through some of those in a minute. And yes, they will all feel legitimate like real reasons. But my aim today is to show you that there's really only one thing right now that's standing in your way to you knowing what your purpose is, and actually living your purpose. 

So when I was working in corporate in Chicago, I grew up in Chicago, I remember in about year seven of my 10-year career, how restless I started to feel. And let me first say that I really loved my job for like seven years. I was a commercial real estate broker. And I actually I worked my way up the corporate ladder from starting as a temporary secretary to a full time secretary and then got an offer to work as a salesperson. But I first had to be like an intern or a like a gofer, where you kind of, you know, do all that grunt work stuff, learning the ropes and getting trained. I had to do that I think for about a year.  

This was at a commercial real estate brokerage company in Chicago that represented a lot of different retail chains like Walmart and Starbucks and McDonald's and those kinds of chains. And basically, we would find them locations in shopping centres and negotiate their leases. So I loved learning about it. I loved working there, I moved up from an intern, then to a salesperson, and then to a broker. And then finally, at the end of my career, I was promoted to a vice-president position.  

So for those first seven years, it was exciting. It was fun, I really enjoyed it. But something happened around year seven. I don't know, is it that that seven-year itch thing. And I just started to feel bored, and uninspired and unchallenged and unfulfilled, just kind of dead inside, eventually, as those last three years waned on.  

Now, you might be somewhere in this boat, like really quite successful, maybe even not hating your job, but not feeling the excitement anymore, or the challenge anymore, or the point anymore, I got to the realization that the point of my job was to fill empty space. Like that's what I was doing every day. That was the essence of my job, I had some empty spaces and shopping centers and I was finding tenants to fill those spaces. So you know, at some point, it just didn't feel that meaningful anymore.  

To me, my heart was kind of aching. My soul was kind of aching. I remember my throat was tight and restricted. And like, I just wanted to express something deeper and more meaningful about myself. But I really didn't know what that was. I knew there must be something else in life that would feel better or feel more exciting and more meaningful. But I really had no idea what it could be. And on top of all that, I felt so guilty for wanting more. I mean, so many people would have looked at my life and wished they had that. And even though I was grateful for everything I had, just the fact that I wanted more made me feel guilty, like I wasn't being grateful. So that made me feel even worse about myself.  

So that's year seven of the 10-year career when I start feeling this way. I'm making really good money, I'm climbing the ladder, I'm successful, my life looks really amazing on paper. And I'm dying inside. I can remember literally dragging myself out of bed in the morning and then dragging myself to my car, and then dragging myself from the parking lot up to the office. It was brutal. And I did that for three years, until I learned how to make the change that I needed to make one that felt safe and supported.  

And that's my aim for this podcast really is to help you get to a place of feeling safe and supported within yourself. So that you can make the changes or shifts that you need to make to create the kind of lifestyle that excites you and makes you feel alive inside, not dead inside. And let me tell you in those last three years, I was reading all the self-help books, even talking to a therapist, confiding in one or two close friends that I just really wasn't very happy and that I wanted to make a change.  

But nothing was moving me forward. I felt really stuck. I felt confused. I didn't even know where do I start to make a change out of something that I don't like anymore, but have no idea what I do like? And this brings me to our topic today, which is what really stops us from living our true purpose. And if you would have asked me back then, Karen, what's stopping you from leaving your career and just going and living your purpose? I probably would have said, I don't know what my purpose is.  

Let me ask you right now, what is stopping you from going out and living your true purpose in life? Maybe you're thinking, well, if I knew for sure what it was, I would go out and pursue it. Or maybe you're thinking I don't think I can make money doing what I love. Or I'm too scared to leave the security of having a regular paycheck. Or what if it doesn't work out and I look foolish and totally embarrassed myself. Or you have to work hard to make money and the fun stuff should just be your hobbies.  

So we go around and around in our heads with these thoughts. And guess what, those people who you could be helping are not getting helped. If you could pursue your passion project, who would benefit? There are so many people looking for whatever that is that you could offer. And they're just not able to find you.  

As a coach for over 20 years now, the thing I see people struggle with the most is they know deep down there's something more for them. But because they can't see exactly what it is or how it's going to look and how it's going to work out, they don't do anything to pursue it. They think that once they've got the full picture with all the pieces and all the information, then that's what will give them the green light to go for it. And here's what I want you to take away from this episode today. Your true purpose in life is not something that you know, it's something that unfolds as you step forward into your passions.  

So if you're waiting to know what your purpose is, before taking any action, you will stay stuck. It'll feel like you're standing in wet cement that's drying around your ankles. Instead of trying to figure out your purpose, are you willing to go on a journey of discovering it? Are you willing to let go of the need to know everything now, and instead, be open and curious about where life wants to take you, where life wants to lead you.  

Now the first most important thing about going on a journey is the starting point. To get to where you want to go, you first have to know where you are right now. So if your destination is living my purpose, then the first step to getting there is acknowledging where you are right now. How do you do that? By saying what it is you want right now. This is the place where people get so hung up on.  

Ask anyone what they want and 99% of the time they'll tell you what they don't want. Try it. Do an experiment. Ask a few friends or family members what they want. And then just listen to them. Just ask them, if you could have anything what would you want, and then just let them talk. At some point, they will go into what they don't want. And the focus of what they're saying has turned to the actual opposite of what they really want.  

And we all do this, it's not wrong. It's just not useful. People love to work with me because I keep things really simple. I'm obsessed with simplicity and I love to show people how powerful it is to use simplicity to create the world you want to live in.  

Now we'll get into the law of attraction and how to manifest things and people and experiences in future episodes, but for right now, I'll just introduce the concept of, what you focus on expands. In other words, you attract more of what you focus on. So if I asked you what you want, and you start telling me all the things you don't want, where's your focus? On what you don't want. Where's your energy? On what you don't want.  

So how do you start living your purpose? By connecting with what you think it is right now. And articulating that without being married to it but being more curious about it. But Karen, what if I don't know what my purpose is? Okay, let's just all assume that none of us knows what our purpose is. So you're off the hook. You don't need to know what it is in order to start your journey towards discovering it. But what you do need to do is start from where you are right now. And that might mean saying all the things that you don't want, but then from there, stop focusing on what you don't want, and just start saying what's in your heart right now. What do you want right now? Not how can you make money doing something you love? But what do you want right now?  

Okay, let me give you an example of this. So when I was in that seven-year itch of my career, I started to get honest with myself about what I didn't like about my life. And then I started to pay attention to the things that brought me joy. Being out in nature, breathing fresh air, having open windows, sunshine, warmth, being barefoot. I loved watching nature documentaries on TV, especially ones about Africa.  

I paid attention to the things that really perked me up. I got curious about why do I get more excited when I'm watching a documentary about Africa than when I'm watching one say about Asia. I noticed a difference. And little by little, I would feed those interests. I even started to travel to Africa. I went on safaris in Kenya and Tanzania and Uganda. I indulged myself in the things that interested me.  

And it doesn't have to be, go travel around the world. I mean, I remember just walking past a bookstore one day in Chicago, and there was a book signing happening that night for a book called Africa Within and that felt interesting to me, so I went. I read books about Africa, I watched movies about Africa, I went for walks in nature, I opened my windows, I got fresh air.  

So how hard is that? How hard would it be to allow yourself to just do things because they interest you? And be open and curious about new interests? Because here's what happens when you do that. What you focus on expands, and what expands gives you more information, and more information, guides you. You might be wondering, what does living in Africa have to do with living your purpose, Karen?  

Well, after I resigned from my retail brokerage career, I moved to Namibia and my purpose started to unfold for me, my ideal lifestyle began to take shape. And I was open to being surprised that really, working with people and helping them live their best lives would be the work that I really wanted to do in the world. I could not have figured that out beforehand, I had to follow some breadcrumbs to the place where all that would unfold for me.  

And I realized, now more than ever, that living your purpose, your life's purpose includes living your ideal lifestyle. The two go together. So the only reason you're not living your purpose yet, is because you're waiting for all the information first. And if information comes from stepping and taking action towards what feels interesting and curious, then you've been going about it all backwards.  

So stop trying to figure it all out. That's not the way. It's really so much simpler than that. Say what you want and what you don't want, that's okay, but don't get stuck in it. Focus on what brings you joy and what makes you feel curious. Let go of needing to know the end result. And take small, fun actions towards your interests. That's all for now. If you do that, you begin to embody more of who you are. And when you embody more of who you are, people and circumstances become attracted to you.  

You start to attract the life and the lifestyle that is more reflective of the real you, the true you, the person you were meant to be, the person living a life that expresses your uniqueness and your gifts and your talents and skills, your creativity, your unique creativity. And once you've claimed these for yourself, then you can start sharing them with the world, making that beautiful impact that you want to make, being the force for good that you are. 

Thank you so much for joining me today on the Make Money Living Your Purpose podcast. I want to invite you to subscribe to the show by clicking the Follow button, and come on this journey with me, each week stepping closer and closer to living your purpose and making the kind of money that will feel like freedom.  

Please share the show with your friends and leave me a five-star review. This will help others find the show so they can also start living the life they were meant to live.  

In the next episode, I'm going to show you some sneaky ways your money mindset is ruling your life, in a bad way, not a good way. And once we pull the curtain back on this, you can't unsee it and just having the awareness is going to start shifting your money mindset from lack to abundance. And when you do that, you become a magnet for money. You don't want to miss it.  

When you heal your money blocks and step into your purpose, you become a force for good in the world. I'll see you next time.  

If you're ready to start creating the lifestyle of your dreams, I want to invite you to join GPS, my Gratitude Practice for Success program, where you'll learn my unique and proven manifesting process. It's simple, it's powerful, and it's already helping hundreds of people go from thinking their dreams were impossible, to making them happen quickly. Whether you want to manifest your dream home, your soulmate, a brand new career living your life's purpose, or even financial freedom, it's yours to claim now. Just head over to kcpowell.com/gps and I will show you how.