“Desire Drives You to Your Destination”
Everyone has a purpose. Having clarity around what that is, what you desire, is what drives you every day.
What’s interesting – and sad even — is many people aren’t clear about what they want or why they have been put on this Earth. Some haven’t ever really thought about it. Others may have, but maybe not lately.
Many people I talk with have either lost sight of what it is they want out of life, what they desire (or never really knew what that was). By extension then, without that, they don’t have a destination. They don’t know where they’re going or why. They live day to day, going through the motions, not satisfied with themselves or their lives, wondering what happened.
Maybe you can relate. Maybe not. But I’m willing to bet you know someone in this situation.
I discovered my true purpose after I retired – it’s to help people prosper. I know what I want. I know my destination. I know how I’m going to get there. I know was put on this Earth to teach, to help other people get the most they can out of life by sharing what I’ve done to be successful in mine.
But I’m getting ahead of myself . . . first, a little background.
I spent the last 42 years of my life in corporate America. I worked hard. I learned a lot, made friends, did excellent work, and got paid well. Very well indeed, as my career progressed. I gave my all and more – see Principle #7. I made a difference through the work I did at the big companies I worked for like Prudential, Pfizer, and Bayer.
I tell you this not to boast, but to convey to you that I paid my dues and then some to enjoy the lifestyle I’ve earned. I know a thing or two about what it takes to set your sights on what you want and what it takes to achieve it. That experience over more than 40 years is what I draw upon to share with you through my teachings.
I spent most of my corporate career in employee communications. My job was to help employees where I worked understand our company’s purpose – who we are, what we stand for, how we serve people, how we make money, where we’re heading and why, what’s changing and why, how that impacts them, etc.
Most important, our communications gave employees clarity on what their role is and how it connects to the company’s purpose. Why does that matter?
People yearn to have a clear purpose – a passion – and to be part of something bigger than themselves.
My team and I won awards for how effectively we did our jobs. Other communicators wanted to learn what we did, so they too could do excellent work for their companies. I teach that, too.
As a leader, I set up our work environment for success. My team had a safe, challenging, inclusive and supportive place to do their best work and we had fun.
But the thing I enjoyed most and got the most satisfaction from was teaching my team how to succeed and helping them become the best versions of themselves they could be. That “teacher” gene in my DNA is the thing that feeds my soul the most. That’s where I found my purpose.
If you look at the most successful people in the world, they have several things in common. One is they know what they want.
Oprah Winfrey knew in her early teens that she wanted to have a career in broadcasting. She knew what she wanted and left Tennessee State University at age 21 after earning a full scholarship to become a news anchor. Doing this launched a career that led her to become one of the richest, most successful businesswomen in the world.
Bill Gates knew computer software was the world he would dominate. He wrote his first software program at age 13 and founded a company in high school that sold traffic-counting systems to local governments. He knew what he wanted and set his life’s work on that destination. He is now one of the most successful businessmen of our time and through his philanthropic foundation works to create a world where every person has the opportunity to live a healthy, productive life. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has funded $7 Billion in charitable support to date.
Taylor Swift, granddaughter of an opera singer, always knew she wanted to be a singer. By age 10, she was singing at local events and began writing songs and learning guitar at age 12. Today her net worth is $740 million. She knew what she wanted and set her destination on achieving it.
There are thousands of similar stories of successful people whose desire has driven their journey.
When I retired early as a millionaire in February 2022 from a six-figure corporate executive job, something inside, a deeper burning need, called me back to do God’s work, to help people prosper. I loved my work and the people I worked with. But I realized something important.
There were more people to help than I could reach through my corporate job.
There are many people suffering today from poverty and lack. People struggle to afford the basics — a decent, healthy meal, access to healthcare, and a safe, affordable place to live.
Sadly when asked what they want out of life, many don’t have an answer. They’ve lost faith in just about everything, because just about everything they used to rely on has failed them.
In fact, according to The Edelman Trust Barometer, its annual trust and credibility survey, revealed that “business is now viewed as the only global institution to be both competent and ethical.”
The employer, their CEOs and business leaders, are the most trusted sources of information for most people today. It has been for the last several years, but the gap between the employer as a credible source and government officials and the media in just about any form, continues to widen.
And now, with economic, social, environmental (think climate change), and technology, advancement pressures circling our lives, people are losing faith in themselves as well.
It’s a challenge for sure. In some cases, it’s even tragic because a lot of people don’t see a way out, or any viable solutions they can do something about. They get complacent because they cannot see a way out or even any progress being made.
But it doesn’t have to be that way. It’s time to shift the tides.
My prosperity journey began nearly 25 years ago, when I met Joe Schroeder, a successful businessman and marketing genius and legend. He once told me this:
“God can only do for you what God can do through you.”
That statement stopped me in my tracks. I’m a spiritual person and that statement made me realize for the first time that the gifts I’ve been given serve no purpose if they are not fully exploited to do good and serve others while I’m here on Earth.
Mr. Schroeder did not enter my life by mistake 25 years ago to introduce me to what I call the Principles of Prosperity. Nor did he re-enter it as my prosperity coach just as I was launching my part-time, post-retirement business in early 2023.
As I set my sights on helping people prosper in this next chapter of my life, I asked for guidance on how to do that, and the Universe provided. When you’re clear about what you want, and ask for help getting it, the Universe provides. It always does.
After a very successful career as a corporate executive, my next chapter is devoted to sharing what I’ve learned about how to think and live with a prosperity mindset – the Principles of Prosperity you’re reading now — to help others, so you too can live the life you always wanted, one of abundance promised to you by your Maker.
You know the saying, “when the student is ready, the teacher will appear.” That’s the Universe knocking at your door. Answer it!
You’re here because you asked for something more out of life. The Universe responded. You recognized the opportunity and answered the call. Thank you for putting your trust in me.
Before we begin, you must first know what you want.
- What do you desire?
- What’s your purpose?
- Where do your passions lie?
- Where are you heading?
- What are you willing to do to get all you want?
Answering these questions is critical. Without clarity around what you want, what you desire, your journey to your destination can’t begin.
Think about it. If you use the WAZE App or Google Maps on your phone to help you find the fastest route to where you’re going, you need to first tell it where you desire to go. Right? So logical. Just put in the location you want to get to, and it will help you get there. Without that, you’re just following a blinking arrow to nowhere. Stop going nowhere.
Additional reading you might want to check out:
To your prosperity!
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