Stepping Into Your Life Purpose

On chasing dreams and stepping into your life purpose:

When I wrote this letter to myself back in December 2022, I wasn’t trying to magically turn my words into reality—I was deliberately setting a goal and intention of how I wanted my life to unfold.

Not sure who’s with me, but have you ever felt like you’re meant for more? Some of us are guilty of ignoring that tugging, nagging feeling. We push it down as far as we can, but the truth is that those feelings will always arise until you tend to them.

Leaning into Mission Driven Work

At the height of the pandemic, I launched Izzy— the world’s first premium zero waste beauty brand. After winning 15 major beauty awards, gaining thousands of subscribers and expanding into retail, my team and I successfully created a brand that was for the greater good— a mission driven brand that will hopefully encourage the cosmetic industry to consider more sustainable practices.

Let’s take a quick detour

When my sister Jamie was 16, she was diagnosed with stage 4 Hodgkin’s disease. I can only imagine the sense of despair and panic my parents felt in that moment, let alone all those big scary feelings my sister was enduring. All I knew as her 9-year-old little sister was that I felt sad. I was sad that my sister was rapidly losing her hair, and sad after my mom and sister left for treatment at St. Jude hospital. After almost 2 years of grueling treatments including chemo and radiation, St. Jude saved my sister’s life. Miraculous, truly! Today, she’s a healthy, kick-butt lawyer and amazing mother to her son…wait for it…JUDE!

Connecting The Dots

As if Izzy didn’t keep me busy enough, I was still left craving a deeper more inspirational change. I dreamt of actually helping people, beyond advocating for our planet and the cosmetic industry—ultimately giving back to a mission that resonated on a more personal level. I wanted to parlay everything I knew about marketing into something new and different.

A few weeks ago, I made the life-changing decision to join the St. Jude family to head up Entertainment and Influence. Plot twist, I know! But, I’m so ready for this moment in my career and cannot wait to dive into such an incredible mission!

After almost 2 decades in Cosmetic Marketing

The beauty world will forever hold a special place in my heart. From turning co-workers into life-long friends and touching some of the most iconic brands, I am eternally grateful for the indelible experiences in my career thus far.

As for Izzy, I will be stepping into an executive board role, and look forward to watching the brand continue to grow and flourish. It’s like Wakanda forever, Izzy is my forever and I know in my heart that zero waste is our future.

For anyone else dreaming of change, here’s my advice:

·?The point isn’t to go into change knowing exactly what you’re doing. The point is to it be committed to figuring out what success looks like for YOU.

·?Sleepwalking or feeling like a zombie? It’s probably time for change and a revival in your life. Trust the process. Often times our life falls apart or slows down in order for a clear path to be defined.

·?Information is your friend. The more knowledge you have, the less risky your endeavors will ultimately be.

·?Determine what’s holding you back. There are a multitude of reasons to feel uncertain when it comes to change. By very definition, the term “taking a chance” implies the very real possibility of risk. While it is impossible to deny that there are risks involved when it comes to change, there is an endless possibility of benefit as well.

·?Ask yourself what you’re good at. In the end, you’ll be more energized, engaged and motivated if you can apply what comes naturally to you.

·?How we arrive is just as important as the arrival itself. Change comes with friction. Know that you will experience many shifts before you posture into place.

· Appreciate who you’ve been in every season, without judgment and without critique. I was so nervous what people would say if I shifted away from beauty. The reality is this: I am the only one who has to live this life and the same goes for you.

·Everything is always in transition, and nothing lasts forever. For every winter, there is spring. Allow yourself to experience the different seasons of life. Change is perfectly normal.

·?There’s no simple quantum leap into a new reality, the price of admission is just “sticking with it.” You got this!

St Jude

As MLK said, "Life's most persistent and urgent question is, “What are you doing for others?” The answer is simple: There are endless possibilities! To me, King communicated this message not to disparage people for failing to serve, but to be a gentle reminder of how we are all called to help others.

When I was asked what I wanted my start day to be, I knew right away that I wanted it to be the week of my birthday—what an incredible gift! I will be dedicating my birthday to the kids of St.?Jude and ask that you kindly consider supporting them too. Some may think that Cancer is the absolute worst life sentence, but it’s actually finding out your child has Cancer. Let’s make sure no family has to come out of pocket to save their child’s life.

Please visit my fundraising link below to help tackle childhood Cancer. Any amount would be greatly appreciated, thank you!!

https://www.instagram.com/linking/fundraiser?fundraiser_id=723819559286085&source_name=SHARE_LINK

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Thank you!

Shannon