Passions to Purpose

Stoic Quote of the Week

When they're really possessed by what they do, they'd rather stop eating and sleeping than give up practicing their arts. - Marcus Aurelius

What I learned this week:

I’m asked by people, particularly clients, how do I find my purpose and how do I know if something I’m doing is a passion. I love those questions because there is nothing more satisfying to me than to help someone discover their purpose and watch them begin to live their life in pursuit of it. A purpose is something that pulls you to action. Your purpose is something that fulfills you and is a trend line that connects all of your passions. When a person is living in pursuit of their purpose, they have a direction and drive that pulls them through the muck and the crap that life throws at them. The pursuit of your purpose is a fuel for life. I’ve worked with so many people over the years who believe they don’t have a purpose or just as bad, don’t want to pursue a purpose because they are afraid of getting it wrong. The bottom line here is that everyone has a purpose, and you can discover yours and live in its pursuit if you choose. The push back I get is, “what if I’m wrong?” I counter with, what if you are right?” Even if you are wrong, how bad can it be to pursue something you believe is your purpose then discover that that wasn’t it? I’d take that any day over waking up, checking emails for taskers and actions, then seeing what the day holds. Wake up in pursuit of your purpose. If you don’t know what that is, take a guess and walk towards something. Life is better lived in pursuit of purpose than in waiting for it to happen.

Planning thought of the week:

When I was a private and training for Ranger school, a big change was implemented to the five-paragraph field order. The Army directed that Commander’s Intent be included as part of paragraph 3. Execution. Commander’s Intent was always given but now it was a formal part of the orally and written order. The Commander’s Intent is the why or the purpose of the mission. Make sure that you include your intent-purpose-why in your plans. Business idea I heard about or thought of:

I have some old electronics laying around that are still of some value and it’s time to put them to some use. (I’m not talking about the really old kind like tube TVs, although I have some of those too.) I’m sure everyone reading this has a couple of old phones, tablets and even laptops laying around the house that you are wondering what to do with. I’ve found some solution-the phones and tablets can be used as extra cameras and generally speaking the cameras in them are better than the cameras in your new laptop. The real business idea is this, why not collect those items and repurpose them into new devices. Most people will hand over a wiped device to get rid of it rather than tossing it in a landfill because of the hazardous materials in the device. It wouldn’t take much training and effort to learn how to disassemble and retool a device for another purpose then resale.

Veteran opportunity of the week:

The national mental health crisis line (aka suicide line) has a VA sub-dial. It is simple, 988 is the national number. For veterans, press 1 and be connected to veteran specific support. That is 988 then 1. No one gets through life alone.

Someone I met this week:

I’d like to give a shout out to my VBLM Tribe. I started the Veteran Business Leader Mastermind about 3 years ago and it has become much more than me facilitating a mastermind. It has become a true tribe. Many of the members of this tribe have been with me since the start and the one thing that everyone of us (yes, me included) get is the feeling of belonging to a tribe that cares for each member and truly wants each other to have the success and happiness they talk about. We have formed an amazing bond of support and friendship. Thank you to all the members of the VBLM Tribe, past and present.

Please follow us on LinkedIn and Facebook, Tribe + Purpose.

Link to current The Cam & Otis Show podcast episode, Ep 178 Riding with Purpose with Carol Carpenter- Moto Vixens.

Thank you for your support.

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