Below you’ll find the stories and lessons of some of the best and brightest entrepreneurs, artists and creatives in the community and how they found their purpose.
kweeie
How did I find my purpose? Well, honestly my purpose kinda found me when everything else pretty much fell apart. For years, I’d been living my dream as an art educator – lecturing and then running a creative arts department, mentoring others, and basically loving it. I was really good at it, maybe too good and that pretty much became the problem. Read More>>
Julie Pelikhova
through my work with student-athletes Read More>>
Makenzie Cardenas
When I was 24 I had an unplanned pregnancy that altered the whole course of my life. Becoming a mother was my undoing and, ultimately, my blossoming. I have a difficult relationship with my mother, and I craved nothing more than to rewrite that narrative with my own daughter. Read More>>
Isabel Varela
$100K in Debt and Buried in Clothes: How I Found My Life’s Purpose By Isabel Varela My purpose began revealing itself when I was at rock bottom. I was $100,000 in debt from a shopping addiction, surrounded by clothes I didn’t need, and completely disconnected from who I was. My entire life had been built on external validation. Read More>>
Hadley Rampton
I’ve been drawing or creating visual art for longer than my memory allows. Seeing my natural interest in drawing, my mother enrolled me in visual art classes through the Visual Art Institute located in Salt Lake City, UT at the age of 9. By the time I turned 12, I was figure drawing and painting in oil. Read More>>
Carmen Kusyelega
I found my purpose when I was working long shifts at outback steakhouse. While there i was paid very low ($12.50) per hour but still required to provide a consistent and constant flow of good food for the guests…. I became way too burnt out working the clock always making sure I had the hours to match my pay. Read More>>
Sandhya Gopalakrishnan
This is an interesting question—and my answer is going to be rather philosophical! I grew up in India and moved to the U.S. in my twenties. “Finding purpose” is a very Western idea, one I only became acutely aware of after moving to America. In Indian culture, there is only purpose, no finding. Read More>>
Nicole Marburger
In my heart, I always new that I could really be fulfilled by teaching and leading people. Growing up I was a social butterfly in my small town of Challis Idaho. I was always managing my time with many friend groups and getting to know different people with different personalities. Read More>>
Bonnie Powers
I love this question because it gets to the core foundation of marrying meaning with what I do for work. Early in my career I worked in advertising and brand and design agencies. We served a client need– uncovering the one belief or reason why someone would care about the brand, solved various marketplace and cultural challenges and created visual identities, advertising and marketing campaigns. Read More>>
Tracee McDaniel
I truly believe that I didn’t have to seek out my purpose during the height of the civil rights movement on that cold January night in Sumter, South Carolina, I was born with it. Read More>>
Victoria Ryan
I found my purpose in the moments when everything around me felt uncertain and I was forced to ask myself who I really was, not who I was expected to be. My purpose revealed itself when I stopped trying to fit neatly into one box and started listening to the my own voice inside that told me to create, to connect, and to serve. Read More>>
Meghan Phelan
I’m the owner of Granny NANNIES of South Florida, proudly serving families across Miami-Dade County and the Florida Keys for nearly two decades. We provide private-duty home care that allows seniors to safely age in place while maintaining dignity and independence. Read More>>
YOKO GAALAAS
My purpose — to live in the music world — has always been there for me since I was very young, I believe. My parents discovered I had perfect pitch when I was 2, and from then on, I started learning the piano and solfege. Later, I also learnt to play the flute and pursued vocal training during my teenage years. Read More>>
Brad Eickhoff
I found my purpose in a hospital room. As a kid, I spent a lot of time ill with cancer — not the kind of childhood you’d wish for. But every so often, a magician would visit Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. They didn’t just perform tricks; they transformed the space. Read More>>
Kelsey Hart
From a young age, I always knew I was meant to be an entrepreneur. I didn’t know exactly what that would look like, but I felt that calling deep in my heart. Over time, I found my purpose through a mix of faith, perseverance, and a lot of trial and error. Each season of struggle and growth revealed a new piece of the puzzle. Read More>>
Champa Thao
My journey started in the beauty industry over a decade ago, but I always knew I wanted more than surface-level transformation. I wanted connection. When I discovered fine-line tattooing, it felt like everything finally clicked — it was my outlet for storytelling, healing, and creating something that lived beyond the moment. Read More>>
Marina Swann
I’m an artist, a musician, a songwriter, and it took me 35 years to start taking it seriously and pursuing it as a career. What it took was some things that happened to me – going through deep grief and loss and finding the kind of love that sees me for who I am and supports all my expressions. Read More>>
Andrew Isbell
I think “purpose” is a fluid thing – working in music is the thing I am the most passionate about, but calling it my purpose always feels scary. Working in the arts can be really volatile, and if I define myself too much based on how that feels, I’m often left feeling unstable. Read More>>
Hollywood Cue
My purpose comes from wanting to be great, be somebody who impacts history, be somebody who leaves a blueprint to success for the next few generations who come behind me. Read More>>
Keona Herbert
I found my purpose through Keyoir. When I started, I just wanted to create something beautiful but as I connected with the women wearing the lashes, I realized it was so much deeper than beauty. It was about confidence, identity, and being seen. Keyoir became my way of reminding women, our KeyBabes that they are worthy, strong, and powerful. Read More>>
Carol Leutner
My first successful career opportunity was working for the Navajo Tribe in northern Arizona. My post was in the executive office of the man who would become the first modern-day tribal chairman. When the federal government offered our organization funding to begin a new health and nutrition program, I was tasked with designing it. Read More>>
Andrew Beck
I found my purpose through two non-profits located in Minnesota and Wisconsin. I spent four years in the Marines and twenty-one years as a firefighter/paramedic. For most of my adult life, I lived and worked in a culture that shunned mental health. As both a veteran and first responder, we live with the mentality of, don’t show weakness and suck it up. Read More>>
Ebony Karim
My purpose revealed itself at the intersection of two worlds that, at first glance, couldn’t seem more different—government consulting and beauty technology. For nearly two decades, I worked as a federal consultant leading multimillion-dollar programs that demanded precision, strategy, and impact. My work revolved around building systems that improve how organizations serve people—whether through infrastructure, procurement, or process optimization. Read More>>
Meloseri Dumnoi
I am of the belief that purpose is not supposed to make sense while making sense at the same time. Looking at me on the outside, assessing my behaviors and achievements, if I told you what my purpose was you wouldn’t be surprised. It would make sense, actually you might tell me my purpose before I told you. Read More>>
Sharise N. Johnson-Moore
I found my purpose after I produced a show entitled, Author’s Excerpt Sunday. I would interview authors for the show and afterwards we would get into discussions about their author career. Read More>>
Graham Ottoson
How did I find my purpose? My purpose found me, while I was firmly centered on a different purpose. I was a midwife. I LOVED my job. Miracles, every day. And challenges. I was good at it. But my hands weren’t busy enough. My hands MUST be busy. As a midwife, one spends a lot of time being patient. Sitting on one’s hands. Read More>>
Fernanda Silva
More than ten years ago, I began my journey in the countryside of Brazil – a place where hopelessness and a lack of dreams seemed to surround me. But even then, I chose to dream. I refused to be just another person. I wanted to be different and to make a difference. Read More>>
Tamarra Campbell
It was a hot summer day on set in my hometown. The energy buzzed with excitement — people rushing, cameras rolling, dancers stretching, and a crowd gathering for a big scene. We had a team of over fifty people that day. I remember standing there, clipboard in hand, watching it all unfold. Then I paused and really looked around. Read More>>
Kemi Samuel
I didn’t set out thinking I’d build a platform or start a community. It really began with my mom. She used to encourage me, even as a teenager, to teach younger kids about God. I started small, helping out in children’s ministry, telling Bible stories, learning how to make the lessons come alive. Read More>>
Kashi-Tara Barrett
My purpose found me. I was born into the arts. My mom is a singer and my biological father is a percussionist and writer so creativity has always been in my blood. From a young age, I was drawn to the stage. I sang my first solo in kindergarten, won talent contests, and performed in countless school plays. Read More>>
Evita Armienti
Many of my friends, colleagues, and even famous people I know have musicians in their families. In my family, no one is a musician. Many times, I’ve asked myself how I discovered this passion, why music isn’t just a hobby for me, and where it all began. Read More>>
Symone Ranaye
You know it’s quite humorous to be asked this because everyday we think we are required to have our purpose figured out and it creates such pressure. I find beauty in this question because with purpose comes a sense of belonging and I know exactly where I belong. Read More>>
Sheila Gutierrez
To find, by definition, is to discover—sometimes unexpectedly, sometimes through searching. For me, finding my purpose has been less about a single moment of clarity and more about a series of quiet nudges, small sparks of curiosity that guided me from one minute, one day, one year to the next. There’s a quote by Emil Cioran that resonates deeply with me: Read More>>
Kevin Wachtmann-Smoot
I don’t think I found my purpose. I think it found me.
For years, I tried to run in every other direction. I studied engineering, almost became a pastor, and spent years working in consulting and market research. But no matter what I did, design kept showing up quietly and persistently. Read More>>
Amerian Ciara Martin
I found my purpose at a young age my mom would play random music genres no matter the type of song my siblings her and I would have mini dance parties This made me develop my love for music Read More>>
Rudo Musekiwa
Finding my purpose continues to be a journey of discovery for me. I began having a sense of purpose when I realized that creativity is a space that allows me to reach people; it is a catalyst for meaningful conversation & also a space where others can find resonance in the artistic expression of my personal views or human experience. Read More>>
Jackie Dahm
Honestly, I didn’t so much find my purpose as I started noticing it. I felt it in the things that lit me up and in the moments that felt both exciting and aligned. Read More>>
Jackai Yip
My purpose didn’t arrive overnight—it grew from the roots of my own story.
I was raised by a single immigrant mother who, with the support of her family, showed me the power of community and perseverance. From a young age, I was drawn to the idea of “delivering babies” and becoming an obstetrician. It felt like a calling even then, though I couldn’t have imagined what form it would take later in life. Read More>>
Southern Soul Damo
As I’m sure it’s quite obvious that music is my purpose, I didn’t find the music because it’s been in me since head start. I must admit, I lost the music somewhere along the way after leaving college. But my purpose, the music, it found me in 2022 when I became homeless and living out of my 2015 Read More>>
Simran Shah
Curiosity!
I had a nerdy curiosity in me ever since I was a kid. Of course, when I was a teen I tried to shrug it off to be cool. But when I found it again I was so careful with it. I would be curious about how a liver is transplanted, or the logic behind mathematics, or how a dancer portrayed such immense grace along with flawless technique. But design always sparked an additional thought. Along with the usual “how did they do that,” there was “I wish I could do that.” Read More>>
