I’m so glad that you are back on this passion and purpose journey with me. I know that usually we keep the Coaching Hive Podcast brief so that it easily fits into your day. Last week’s interview with Amy McLaren was full of wonderful insights and ideas and you may still be working through that episode, so today’s episode will be brief in hopes that you take time to finish listening to Amy’s thoughts in Episode 28. As a reminder, there is still time to join the Passion to Purpose book club by going to bit.ly/passiontopurposebookclub and entering your name and email address. I hope to see you in the book club soon!
Music and Intro Message
I’m Dr. Moira. I’m a college professor, instructor, coach, and passionate mentor to health coaches around the world. But I haven’t always been that confident and committed to my coaching career. I was hesitant to take the next step and wasn’t sure what the best approach was to success and fulfillment. I decided to step into my passion and purpose of guiding health coaches on their journey from hesitant health coach to committed health coach,
with a unique approach to coach growth, the Coaching Hive Blueprint combines creating a mindful vision with inspiring guidance and progress-driven learning. The coaching hive podcast is your glimpse into the concepts, ideas, and approaches that underscore the coaching hive while giving you the opportunity to implement tools and tips along the way. Are you ready to dive into today’s podcast, then let’s go and remember that this podcast is family-friendly.
So go ahead and play it through your speakers.
Introduction
I’m going to put it out there. Finding your Purpose is Woo-woo. It is not the best way to grow your business. Wait a minute, what did I just say? Finding your Purpose is Woo-woo and it is not the best way to grow your business. Have you ever been told that and now wonder if it might be true? I know I have heard those and similar sentiments before and it is easy to believe that when you explain to people that you are really looking to live your purpose and you get some weird looks. Someone may say to you to stop relying on self-help books and still others might say that purpose doesn’t pay the mortgage or fund retirement. They shake their heads and they wish you “luck”.
Shift Your Perspective
But look at Stu McLaren. He is a multiple 8-figure business owner. He has grown his successful business to the point that it supports the foundation Village Impact’s operating costs. His family has a goal in life to give 90% of their wealth to do more good and to live on the remaining 10% BUT he doesn’t want to give up their lifestyle. So he lives in his passion and purpose. In fact, their purpose as a family is to effect change in the world and specifically in Kenya with education. So, let me ask you a question, if someone, like Stu McLaren, who is committed to living his purpose can be a successful entrepreneur, why can’t you?
Feel Inspired
And Stu is not the only one in this situation. So, what do Stu McLaren and others like him do? Stu leans into his passion and shifting as that changes over time. His business has grown by leaps and bounds as has his ability to do good in the world. And this is primarily because he is working within his purpose not just to make a dollar. It can feel scary, and if you read his wife Amy’s new book, Passion to Purpose, she will tell you it is scary to lean into your passion and live your purpose especially if you are in a comfortable situation right now. It can mean big changes, tough choices, and feeling unsure of yourself along the way.
You may be thinking ok, that sounds nice but how do you do what the McLarens have done, without the benefit of the 8-figure business at your back? Here’s the thing, when they started out, they didn’t have that kind of income either. Amy was a school teacher, albeit in Canada where school teachers make more money, and Stu was an entrepreneur working to make his way. Yes, they had the privilege that often comes with being raised in a two-parent loving home, going to university, and having the support of their friends and family, but they didn’t have loads of money. Most entrepreneurs don’t when they begin this adventure. So if that is you, you are in good company.
Let’s say that you want to do more good in the world, but as Amy talked about on last week’s interview, starting an international foundation is not for you or maybe it’s not where you are at just yet. The first step is to know that you don’t have to do anything big and expensive to lean into your passion and fulfill your purpose. Start with a simple please and thank you. Send a handwritten thank you note to someone who has helped you. If you purchased a product that you love from a small business owner, sing their praises on social media. Send them a video saying thank you or a voicemail. I had the opportunity to learn from a very dynamic motivational speaker at a virtual conference a few weeks ago. Blake Fly shared that this kind of thank you and reverse testimonial, giving a positive testimonial without being asked, means the world to the recipient. For the cost of a stamp, a thank you note, your wi-fi password, and a few minutes of your time you can do more good.
Maybe you are looking for a way to earn money, like Stu McLaren, while leaning into your passion and purpose. Let me share a little of my journey over the past year with you and maybe this will paint a picture of how you can lean into your passion and fulfill your purpose even on a small budget. As we all know, 2020 brought about a lot of changes and in our family, we were really able to really slow down and reassess where we were and what we wanted. It was a huge blessing. And in our conversations, something that I had been pushing to the back of my mind for some time decided it couldn’t be pushed into the corner anymore. You see, I love mentoring. I feel great passion in helping others solve their challenges and come up with a path forward. And although teaching gives me this opportunity to some extent, there just wasn’t enough time to mentor. My husband, Nate, and I sat down and started thinking about what it would look like to make mentoring more of a focus and re-aligning some of the other things on my plate or even moving them off of my plate going forward. At the end of 2020 we were at a crossroads. I had to make a decision to lean into my passion or continue to push it to the depths of my brain. This time, I just couldn’t push it back and instead I leaned in. In January we began making changes and planning for the Coaching Hive. Those of you who know me, know that 2021 has been a challenging year for our family without throwing in the building of a business. But just like Amy says it will be chaotic and it will be challenging, but it will be worth it. Nearly nine months later and six months after welcoming my founding members into the Coaching Hive I’m seeing why that constant thought in the back of my head was there. Now, am I making 8 figures a year? Not by a long shot. In fact, that isn’t my goal. But my goal is to help the world have more access to health coaches and one way I can help that purpose is to mentor coaches so that they confident in moving forward in serving others.
I recognize that not every family has the ability to make a shift like we did. What if you want to make a shift, but your need to continue working your full-time job, your part-time job, or managing all of your other responsibilities? What if you do little things here and there. What if you host a healthy living class at the local rec center. Given the nature of the pandemic, what if you hosted an outdoor meditation opportunity for stress management? Perhaps you start a free virtual group that gets together to swap recipes, food prep hacks, and scheduling tips to make eating healthy easier in a busy family. Low costs ways to lean into your passion and purpose as a health coach.
Move Toward Your Purpose
So, I have a question for you, isn’t it more important to listen to that voice in your head that is telling you there is something more or different that might be worthwhile to at least pursue instead of giving in to the weird looks, the doubtful friends, and the nay-sayers? Don’t get me wrong, paying the mortgage, putting food on the table, and securing your financial future are all critically important, but living your purpose doesn’t have to eat into those key components. Just look at Blake Fly who suggests that you send a quick video or voice message saying thank you. That won’t cost you anything and it means the world. In fact, I was lucky enough to get a voice message from someone I admire, and it meant the world. I played it probably five times. I brought my phone in and played it for my husband. I said, “Wow! This is amazing!” And all that person did was thank me for being there. That was it. It cost that person 30 seconds to record the voice message and hit send, but it made my day different. So, remember, it doesn’t have to cost something, but it can change a lot.
To give you another idea, in the redesign of the Coaching Hive website, I’m purposefully adding information about who we are as a company and what we stand for. Why? Because even though my ability to give back is limited right now, it won’t always be limited. The more coaches I serve, the more good I can do in the world, and give back in larger proportions. That is one of the biggest lessons Amy and Stu McLaren have taught me and she brings that out in her book as well. Put that purpose and passion into action in whatever way you can today. From a thank you note, to a $5 donation to your favorite charity, to a free community class, to learning or going back to a hobby.
So, do you want to continue pushing that “there is something more” thought to the background or do you want to bring it out and see where it takes you? If you are ready to see where your passion and purpose will take you as a health coach, I invite you to join the Coaching Hive wait list today. Doors are opening in September. I’m so excited. We have a new look and feel and new opportunities. In the meantime, I’d love you have you join our Passion to Purpose virtual book club. We are going to have three live meetings in addition to a welcome call, a private Facebook group, and a private Telegram channel. Lots of ways to connect and lean into your passion and purpose as you read Amy McLaren’s Passion to Purpose book. If you are interested in the Book Club, here is the link again. It is bit.ly/passiontopurposebookclub.
As always, thanks for listening and I’ll see you next week.
~Moira
