Finding Your Why

Not knowing why you are going wherever it is that you are going sounds silly, but so often folks live life without thinking about their purpose. We believe that thinking about your purpose and trying to identify what it might be is one of the most impactful things you can do to level up your life, career, and general level of happiness and fulfillment. Having a sense of what your why is will help you become a better decision maker which inevitably will improve your life. Below, you’ll find some interesting discussions, stories and perspectives around find your purpose.

Michael Libby

I found my purpose shortly after I got out of grad school and was deployed onto a job site in Abu Dhabi. I had just gotten a master’s degree in Interactive Media & Game Design from USC’s School of Cinematic Arts, where I was first exposed to and then deeply immersed in a lot of the new media technology that we’re hearing about so much these days— real-time game engines like Unity and Unreal Engine, virtual reality and augmented reality, and machine learning. Read more>>

Renee Miller, MBA, PCC

My path to becoming the CEO and Certified Chief Love Coach of Love Camp was shaped by my own experiences with love and heartbreak. I’ve always been a romantic at heart, but my search for a fulfilling relationship led me through a series of dating ups and downs, including an unhappy marriage. Read more>>

Vandana, Aadya Ramanathan, Pandey

Growing up, I constantly noticed the lack of discussion and vulnerability surrounding mental health. Ultimately, alongside my own experiences with mental health, I noticed the toll this societal stigmatization took on my fellow peers. From these experiences, me and my co-founder, Aadya Pandey, came together to unite under our shared experiences, to fight for more awareness about these issues that go drastically unaddressed. Read more>>

Chris Swan

I love music and I love people. I know there are a lot of people who are afraid, lonely, or struggling out there. I also know that music has the power to heal and inspire. I know this because music has saved my life too many times to count. I want to use music to encourage others to keep going, to believe again, and to dream about what is possible for their lives. Whether performing or teaching music, I see both as a vehicle to reach and lift others up. Read more>>

Jessica Lemons

I found my purpose in beauty through my growing process the more I grew the better my skills developed and when I say growth I mean everything in life and everything that made me who I am today. Read more>>

Iris Almaraz

I never found my purpose. My purpose found me in the trenches of a fire that a child should never have to pull themselves out of. I grew up around a lot of criminal elements with a mother who self-medicated her mental illness with illegal narcotics. Naturally, abuse and neglect were my childhood companions.  Read more>>

Amy Johnson

Music has always been my passion. For most of my life, I toyed with the idea of becoming a singer and songwriter. I participated in local small-town opries and events for many years. However, it wasn’t until I met Taylor Dee and teamed up with the talented songwriter Chad Roland that I truly discovered my potential.  Read more>>

Yunxin An

I found that my purpose was solidified through creating and sharing my music. Performing live, recording albums, and receiving feedback from listeners made me realize the impact my music had on others. This connection and the ability to evoke emotions in people reaffirmed my dedication to my craft. Read more>>

Jodi Funk-Miley, DDS

In the 8th grade, I had an amazing science teacher who spent extra time in class discussing career options and how everyone should do the most with their life including helping people in some way. At that time, I decided I would go into the health sciences with the possibility of becoming a physician, veterinarian or dentist.  Read more>>

Margarita Schwiebert

I am still searching! Purpose seeking is a really challenging concept that I obsess over quite often. I seem to have purpose amnesia. Each morning it feels like I wake up and want to start over, try something totally new, or move to a new place. Read more>>

Adriana Alvarenga

I found my purpose by personal challenges and overcoming experiences that led me to be where I am today. I have faced several health trials which have shaped my decisions in what that very purpose could be for me. Baking was a way I found to escape all of the issues of my health. I have always loved being in the kitchen, cooking and baking has always been my passion.  Read more>>

Amelia Martin

On a beach in Haiti. Ever since I was a kid I was in love with the natural world. I loved to watch nature documentaries, go to the woods in my backyard everyday, and go swimming. I always wanted to be a surfer and got the chance to go in high school when a friend brought me. From then I fell in love with it and would go every week with her as soon as I got my license and the money to buy a board. Surfing made my love for the outdoors stronger and brought me closer to the ocean. Read more>>

julia Linn

I found my life purpose through hardship – it’s the greatest teacher, and also the most demanding. Diagnosed with diabetes Type 1 in 1968 at age 11– it was a rare condition for children. Medical research and diabetes care were in the dark ages. As a result, I experienced classic diabetes complications by age 27 – failing kidneys, diabetic blindness, neuropathy, heart disease. Read more>>

Lawrence Ndzanga

I fell in love with comics at a very young age. I remember my late father would bring me comics and the rest, as they say, is history. This fueled my passion for the medium. It made me want to create my own stories and draw as well as the masters. As I got older I discovered manga and indie comics and my passion was reignited. This drove me to take this dream seriously and study to fulfill my purpose. Now I create comics and self-publish. Read more>>

Nancy Schier

As a mom of two, I had to be creative of what I do so that I can spend time with them. I was a freelance artist for different companies and studios. It was difficult to juggle motherhood and try to be a freelance illustrator at the same . Mostly realize how quickly the time goes and working freelance was a lot more stressful than I could handle and it would take me away from my kids I did not want to miss out on watching them grow up, Read more>>

Maryssa Fenwick

Finding my purpose was a journey marked by trial and error. Throughout my life, I have explored various paths, each filled with its own set of challenges and rewards. I constantly sought to understand what resonated with me, from academic pursuits to professional endeavors, From a young age, I knew I loved wildlife and being outside. I also had a knack for planning and organization.  Read more>>

Anna Bazarnaya

From a young age, I’ve been sensitive to the energy and emotions of others, and I’ve always tried to help them feel better. I used to practice energy healing through my hands unknowingly and felt a connection to the world of spirits, which sometimes scared me. I’ve always loved nature and animals and believed that nature is alive, with all creatures having souls and personalities communicating with us. Read more>>

Linh-ly Vinh

When I was three years old, I wanted to be a ballet dancer. I spent the next 14 years of my life focused on that one goal. What skills I needed to work on. What I needed to look like. What I needed to do get to where I wanted: a dancer in a ballet company. I was ‘the ballerina’. That was how everyone saw me and how I saw myself, but that wasn’t my purpose in life. Read more>>

Brent Nowak

I began working in recovery nearly three years ago, and it felt like everything fell into place. I had always communicated with the universe, asking to be placed in a position where I could help others, and my prayers were answered beyond my expectations. Helping individuals achieve their goals has been more fulfilling than I ever imagined. Witnessing the positive changes in people and walking alongside them on their journey has shown me my true purpose. Read more>>

Lisa Goforth

When I turned 50, I knew my season was changing. I had been out of the workforce home educating my children for 15 years. I have always been a creative, but it looked different when my kids were younger. I was decorating for parties or sewing for my daughter, but when I painted a table and resold it on Facebook marketplace I thought to myself, “This is something I can do.”  Read more>>

Lara Shah

At the risk of sounding cliché, it was love at first sight as I locked eyes with my purpose from across a dimly-lit bar.. it felt like we knew each other from different lifetimes.. like my purpose and I were old soulmates. The year was 1988, I was four, the setting was a pre-school in Jupiter, Florida. There was a stage in the cafeteria turned all-purpose room, and I was in its very center.  Read more>>

Brock DeWald

I feel that my purpose is clearer now than every before, but continues to evolve with each passing season. Today I know my purpose is to connect people of all walks of life on different paths of grief and sorrow, blessings and joy. I do that through sharing stories in songs. The community around me has shed some light on my path. My wife sees things in me even before I know they exist. The town in which I live has great people that have inspired and encouraged me. I draw hope from watching genuine people relate. Read more>>

sena runa

I found my purpose through a journey of personal discovery and creative exploration. Initially working in a corporate job that I found unfulfilling, I started quilling as a hobby in my free time. The meditative and creative process of quilling brought me joy and a sense of fulfillment that I hadn’t experienced in my corporate role. Read more>>

Becca Purtell

Stepping back and looking at what I wanted in my day-to-day life is what helped to birth my sense of purpose. I enjoy traveling, teaching yoga, and exercising outside (rock climbing & backcountry skiing) and it became clear that these activities needed to hold more of a presence in my life. I decided I wanted to establish my own type of experience that allowed me to balance work, daily movement, and community on a regular basis. Read more>>

Zachary Sutterfield

Much of my purpose was forged in the same fires that made me who I am today. I woke up in the hospital with the realization that I had been burned to 68% of my body and received a traumatic brain injury as well as double amputations to both of my hands. With the knowledge, too, of my two roommates and three other young adults passing in the fires, I felt called upon to make sure their names were not just forgotten to the echoes of history. Read more>>

Tanvi Parulkar

As a neurodivergent artist, who has experienced anxiety & depression, my work is strongly inspired by own experiences lending a great empathy to all of our studio’s designs. I found my purpose to create helpful tools to help adults navigate life with anxiety, when I created these same tools for myself during one of my depressive episodes. Seeing our products have such a tangible and positive impact on our customers, fills my heart with joy and reaffirms my purpose. Read more>>

Christalle Twomey

Life’s complexity often takes us on unexpected journeys, filled with twists and turns we never saw coming. My own path to purpose wasn’t a destination on a treasure map but rather a series of unforeseen events that led me to where I am today. During finals week in my senior year of college, while studying to become a fashion designer, I had a tonic-clonic seizure. Standing up from the dinner table, I suddenly crumpled to the floor, my body limp and my head hitting the hardwood with a force that left a temporary imprint on my forehead. The incident was disorienting and left me with a concussion. Read more>>

Tiffany Johnson

I believe my purpose has evolved over time and with experience. Each time I think I’ve figured it all out, life reveals yet another layer and repaves my path forward. In my 20’s, my purpose was centered around my career and ability to succeed as a professional. I chased this idea for many years, but it wasn’t until the pandemic hit that I realized my purpose had nothing to do with “professional success”. Read more>>

Alison Harmon

I found my purpose by thinking about what I love and what I enjoy. I thought to myeslf, what is something that I do naturally and consistently? I found my purpose in high school. I defined my purpose in college. I always had a passion for entertainment: To make people smile, laugh and gain excitement to face everyday challenges.  Read more>>

Boo Chen

Growing up as an East Asian female, I was fortunately enough to be born in a well off family that’s dominated by females. And the experiences of having strong and successful female figures inspired me to pass on the strength to other girls who might be struggling through the structure of patriarchy society, much social norms and restrictions. Read more>>

Anam Rani

Finding my purpose as an artist has been deeply shaped by my upbringing in Pakistan and my exploration of identity. Beyond depicting societal upheavals and the impacts of violence, my sculptures delve into profound explorations of personal identity. As a queer artist, I navigate themes of resilience, self-discovery, and the complexities of belonging in a society marked by suppression and adversity. Through my chosen mediums, a process of sculpting with wax and PVA glue, I translate these themes into tactile forms that evoke emotion and encourage contemplation. Read more>>

Kristen Sagona

I found my purpose very early on. I am the oldest of five children, and of course being the oldest daughter, I learned that taking care of others is what brought me a sense of purpose. Being in the service industry and serving others is what makes me have peace. Read more>>

Elmaz Abinader

I found my purpose in the quiet, or maybe I should call it silence. The silence of a six-year-old sitting under a tree hiding. The branches hung low, drew a curtain between me and the voices. From the loud house, loud in two languages. Loud because my family loved who we were but were also ashamed. And so, we tried to change. Read more>>

Kye Hallows, Blake Lundell N/A

Music always spoke loudly to us as individuals in a way that was beyond just an average teenager. In high school each of us began working in independent music stores and felt suddenly connected to a world we didn’t know existed. Record shops were a place where weirdos and freaks and alternatives could connect and bond over music of all kinds- and the cultures associated with them. Being a part of the record store culture paved a path that connected us to people who were like us and people who we could learn from.  Read more>>