We recently connected with Morgan Mohler and have shared our conversation below.
Morgan, so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?
In the fall of 2021, I was anticipating college graduation, moving across state lines, and pursuing a place within a nonprofit organization that would take her heart for the next few years to come: the Miss America Opportunity. Growing up, I often challenged myself to be the best at everything I put time into: academia, music, theater, forensics, and softball. These liberal arts interests led me directly to Viterbo University where I declared a biochemistry major and signed onto the softball team. I was all set to enjoy the “best four years of my life.” Little did I know that freshman year would turn my life upside down over the span of two short months. During Christmas break, my grandfather’s Alzheimer’s had progressed to its final stages. While waiting for the phone call from hospice to see him for the last time, my mom sat my brother and I down saying, “Morgan and Dustin, your cousin Tyler has died in a drunk driving accident.” Shocked and confused, we grieved quickly before leaving home to visit my grandpa for his final moments. After three days of funerals, I was expected to return to school.
Just one month later, I got another surprise when I was struck in the face by a 70 mile an hour fastball resulting in a concussion. My recovery was almost finished when the elevator doors opened to my mom standing next to security. As we connected eyes, I knew that this time it was my grandmother who had passed. Feeling numb, I walked with my mom to softball practice, said goodbye, and pressed the grief down to get through the next few hours. After coasting through life and suppressing anxiety attacks, because that was all I knew how to do back then, I decided I needed to learn to feel again, to be proud of myself again, and to live a life worth living.
This pivoting moment allowed me to discover ways to manage anxiety while improving mindset, willpower, and lifestyle: I learned how to strengthen my mindset by journaling, facing limitations, and talking about grief. I imagined bigger dreams for my life. I focused on crafting specific goals to achieve my dreams. I earned success graduating from college, starting a career in research at Mayo Clinic, and earning titles within the Miss Minnesota Scholarship Organization.
Over the past few years, I especially fell in love with the Miss Minnesota program for their service first mentality and support of women as a whole person, not just a pageant contestant. Today, I am honored to be representing my local community and the entirety of Southern Minnesota.
Through all this trauma, grief, struggle, I still believe that everything happens for a reason. The things I endured then and now, have given me the rare opportunity to reach people like you. My story is a beacon and message for you, and I hope in reading my story, you find encouragement and more importantly, a voice to use being proactive rather than reactive through your life.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
Part of being involved in the Miss America Opportunity means that I’ve created a community service initiative to share with my audience. In 2019, I finally took time to look inward, deciding how to best get my life on track having been through the thick of homesickness, anxiety, family losses, failures, and injuries. I had an amazing community cheering me on through it all. I found journaling and talking about my pain and suffering was fundamental in my healing. I flipped the switch in my life to seek out happiness and success again. Sitting down to create a community service initiative, I knew my story had to be at the center of it. I decided to create a framework to teach others how to fight through tough circumstances on the way to success: how to Live L.I.F.E. Limitlessly.
Since starting Living L.I.F.E. Limitless, I have built partnerships with organizations that carry similar missions of providing youth with skills they inevitably need when adversity strikes – Big Brothers Big Sisters, Limitless Ambitions, YMCA Leadership Academy, Girls C.A.N. Mentoring, etc. Alongside these groups, I have been able to reach more kids while providing my Limitless Workshop message and continuing education materials in which I walk through what L.I.F.E. means: Learn. Imagine. Focus. Earn.
More in depth,
(L) Learn to strengthen your mindset and overcome limiting beliefs through being honest about your starting capacity and filtering out negative self-talk. (I) Imagine better possibilities for the future and declare your dreams, while maintaining a neutral headspace. (F) Focus on crafting a goal roadmap by writing out SMART details. (E) Earn success by being one of the 3% that take action! With the L.I.F.E. framework, students dive into their abilities allowing them to rewire their thoughts, brainstorm big ideas, hone in on their goals, and earn success.
I learned early on in my journey that having resources on hand can be very helpful for someone wanting to take the first step to living limitlessly. On my social media and website, I provide interactive worksheets that describe the L.I.F.E. framework so anyone can take immediate action toward goal-getting. I’ve also started a podcast called “How to Live your L.I.F.E. Limitless” to be a part of people’s drives, walks, journeys that go into depth about each step of L.I.F.E. themselves, but also with people who have experienced barely surviving to thriving. Most recently, I have published a 40-Day Guide to learn, imagine, focus, and earn success, Living Limitless.
All of these L.I.F.E. tools have been designed to help others dive into their abilities, rewire their thoughts, brainstorm big ideas, hone in on their goals, and earn success.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
My journey of making the world a goal-getting place has been tremendously fulfilling because I am passionate, bold, and innovative.
I am passionate beyond measure because I have a strong, personal connection to my mission: believe in others especially when they don’t believe in themselves, strive alongside innovators, and fulfill dreams with hard work and dedication. Coasting through life, because that’s all I knew how to do in 2019, wasn’t the life I wanted to live. I picked myself up learning, imagining, focusing, and earning success because I needed to. Now, I thrive on teaching others to do the same.
I am bold. I am not afraid to chase opportunities. Unique to the Miss America Opportunity, I have 3 years of social marketing sales experience which means I’ve been told “no” more times than I can even imagine. Being in this line of work encouraged me to reframe the way I approach conversations – authentically, confidently, and strategically.
I am innovative. This comes naturally as a scientist. Growing up, I was always the student raising her hand to explain to the teacher the other way she could have solved the math equation *cue classmates’ eye roll* but it’s true! I am always thinking outside of the box to create the next big idea which is something we are truly missing in our society today as only 3% of people in the US achieve the goals they set for themselves. Imagine how many new inventions, cures, ideas we would be working on if all 97% (300 million people) believed, strived, and fulfilled at least one of their own dreams.
My BEST advice is to find something you are this passionate about and pursue it. It might be scary; you might have fallen into the 97% of people who gave up on their dreams yesterday – but today, you don’t have to be. You get to choose which side you fall on, and I hope it is the 3%. Please visit my resources and give them a try; if you want to discuss your dreams further, feel free to reach out to me directly!
What has been your biggest area of growth or improvement in the past 12 months?
In the last 12 months, I have grown the most in acknowledging my self-worth. I used to think as an Enneagram 3w2 that I was only valued when I checked items off my list of things to do or accomplished a big feat, but I realized this achievement feeling only lasted a few seconds before I needed to do the next big ticket item. It was exhausting. Today, I am still busy checking items off my list, but in a completely different way. When I put things on my to-do list, each item has a particular purpose and value to my passions. Example:
12 months ago – cold-email sponsors, redesign website, post on social media, find events, look for interview outfit.
Today – create events, complete ad page designs & thank sponsors, take pictures for social media, schedule fitness class, make list for meal prep.
In the “12 months ago” column, I have a desperate energy. Reading those items makes me feel like I have a million things to do when the lists are actually equal. In the “Today” column, I am graciously facilitating my time and energy based on my priorities.
The major difference is, I have decided how to manage my time and energy more effectively because I can acknowledge what fills my cup and what doesn’t.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://morganmohler.com/
- Instagram: @misssouthernmn2024
- Other: Podcast: https://missmorganmohler.podbean.com/ Amazon Journal: https://a.co/d/e6lvzNB
Image Credits
Carol Standen Photography
