Meet R.G. Shore

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful R.G. Shore a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

R.G. , we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.

Purpose comes to us when we are ready to let go of who we think we need to be, in order to become who we always were.

It’s a radical idea, the notion that we have to lose ourselves to find ourselves, but I find this to be true. In my own experiences, I have found that in order to discover our truest purpose, we first have to fail at the one thing we thought be were born to do. We have to completely fall into the unknown of liminal space, the space between here and there.

This liminal space within ourselves creates a rhythm that helps us develop a sense of compassion and humility — there are necessary wounds that over time help us hold a higher capacity for light.

In this purpose, we discover that it’s not a “finding ourselves,” but rather a “letting go” of all the things that were never “us” to begin with. When we uncover these layers, when we address the wounds, we undress them. Like layers of warn out clothing that no longer fit, we shed the skin of who we thought we needed to be in order to be successful, or fit in, or be liked, or have a sense of worth. These are all external standards we apply to ourselves.

My sense of purpose began when I let go of all the layers that were never me, but this letting go does not come with ease.
As a person of color, with almost 30 years under my belt, a bachelor’s degree, a Masters degree, time in the Peace Corps, I found myself incarcerated in an almost all-white prison, surrounded by Neo-Nazi sympathizers and white supremacists.

As a brown man in a white world, of concrete, and buzzing and racism and physical danger, I knew the only way to survive the physical realm of my limitations, was to go into my own body, address my own deeper wounds, and transform the wounds from a meditative lens so that I could gain higher forms of compassion for those who were oppressing me.

Again, it takes a “going into the wound”, not a “going around it.”When we go into the trauma, and we have compassion for ourselves, we are gently guided to a place where we can hold space for all things — including our oppressors. This space creates a different kind of light. This light is a gentle, unwavering energy that reminds us that our purpose was there all along — that there was a larger “Me” underneath the layers all along, and this larger “Me” has never not been loved, or held, or understood – this larger me knows his sense of worth.

When Purpose is found in this place, it can’t be taken away. You learn it doesn’t depend upon the things that you do, or the things that you accomplish, it is based solely on who you are. It is a “being” energy, not a “doing” energy.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

My purpose in life is to help others find their own purpose. I do this through spiritual modalities. I help clients learn to go into their body, and develop a sense of who they are. By learning to address the wounds within ourselves, we learn to gain a sense of compassion, and new energy.

This energy holds a space for us to come to realize that we’ve always been enough and the plan has always been in motion for us to have the life we were meant to have!

I have a nonprofit called Northwest Wisdom where we help clients every day, whether that’s through spiritual counseling, yoga, reiki, or energy healing. I recently published a book, my spiritual Memoir called The Ocean Inside Me. I am so grateful for its success, and for the healing that it is already bringing others.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

Spirituality is very important. I don’t care what name you give it, that doesn’t matter to me. Are you willing to sit with it? Are you willing to sit with yourself long enough to begin to understand the deeper parts of who you are?
You can’t really discover anything else until you do this. Having compassion, humility, and a groundedness is essential for your own success.

You can climb the ladder as high as you want to, you can have millions of dollars, and be famous and rich, say all the right things, have a million followers on Instagram, but if you don’t know who you are, if you aren’t grounded in humility or compassion for yourself and others, it’ll be like climbing up a ladder, only to reach the top and discover the ladder is leaning up against the wrong wall.

Be humble, be compassionate, be grounded my friends.

What’s been one of your main areas of growth this year?

Moving from a survival energy, after having been incarcerated as a person of color for nearly 3 years, into an abundance energy. That is, moving from surviving to thriving. Of course, you have to be willing to address the wound first, be willing to do the hard work and this can take years.

Only after addressing the trauma are we able to release it. Only after releasing it are we able to discover the energy underneath the trauma is beautiful, abundant and ever-expanding.

This last year has been a year of growth and new energy. I recently published my spiritual memoir, The Ocean Inside Me, and it’s doing really well. It recently received the prestigious Nautilus Book Award in Gold for Memoir and Personal Journey.

I also have a new Master Course available, Healing trauma through meditation and embodiment, available on Udemy.

People are starting to reach out because they are starting to see that my story is very important, perhaps even for their own healing journey.
Of course, I could always use your support in buying my book, or enrolling in my master course. I’m also booking 1-on-1 spiritual counseling sessions, which you can sign up for through my website.

My overall goal is to help you get where you need to go, and I now have the skills to do just that. I’m very excited for this chapter, it’s already full of energy and life and high vibrations that I know will make a positive impact for others.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.northwestwisdom.org
• Instagram: @northwest_wisdom