Nearly five years ago, I went through a period of deep self-discovery. I was confused about who I was, where my life was going, and how I could ultimately make an impact. You see, through that process I realized that everyone wants to discover their inner brilliance. And with that inner brilliance, they want to make a difference. They want to make an impact on the world. Personally, I discovered that my purpose in life is to empower other people. And now, for the past several years, I’ve been able to fulfill that purpose through my leadership coaching, writing, and speaking.
You see, I fell into a common trap. I bought into the idea that money is what makes people happy. I bought into the idea that I needed to climb the corporate ladder, get to the executive suite, and for lack of a better way of saying it, reach “rock star” status. I was a six-figure income earner, and I was miserable. Everything that I thought would bring me happiness left me feeling unfulfilled and lacking purpose in my life. And even though I was married to a beautiful woman, and had two great kids, my identity was tied up in a career.
Some of you reading this post may relate to my much-abbreviated story. Perhaps you’re at this very point in your life right now – you’re in a period of deep self-discovery and you are searching for how you can personally make a difference in the world.
The good news is this: you can reach your full potential, and I have some advice for you.
- Discover Your Purpose! In other words, find out why you’re here. I promise you, God didn’t create anything without a specific purpose in mind, including you! And when you discover what your why is, the hows and the whats will manifest themselves almost supernaturally.
- Take Risks! More importantly, don’t be afraid of failure. Seth Godin says, “If I fail more than you I win.” Real failure only occurs when we don’t give ourselves an opportunity to even try.
- Choose Your Inner-Circle Carefully! Over the course of your life, you will be the average of the five people you associate yourself with the most. Look at who you hang out with. Are they where you want to be financially? Do they have the level of success you personally desire? Do they lift your spirit, or do they bring you down? Some of you reading these words right now realize that you need new friends!
- Embrace the Journey! Everything we do in life is a journey. It’s a process. And sometimes, processes are just plain hard. With that in mind, learn to embrace the journey. Embrace the struggle. Realize that who you become on the other side is so much more important than what it is you are seeking to achieve.
- Serve Others! True fulfillment only occurs through helping and serving others. Find a way to serve someone each and every day, and lead by example. Personally, I enjoy mentoring others who have similar interests to mine. And I don’t do it for monetary compensation. I simply do it because I want to help and to serve. I enjoy helping others reach their full potential. At the end of the day, there have been several people in my life who have bent over backwards for me. It’s my responsibility to give back and to serve others too.
