Career & Purpose

17 Aug

Posted at 05:00h in Career & Purpose, Emotions & Happiness by

 "Every man must know when it's time to move on."

-Unknown

How do you know when it's time to quit?

More than anything, when I talk to readers, clients and friends about their careers, the biggest challenge they face is figuring out when you know it's time to leave. For many, it's so hard to know when to jump or if you should at all. So much so, they get paralyzed.  Do you ever wonder if the work you're doing, the career you have, the way you spend 75% of every day, is worth your time? Ever curious if there's something else that would fire you up a bit more? Well I think I have the answer.

Let's start with a personal story.

Four years ago my wife quit her career in corporate PR to pursue her passion for yoga, fitness and nutrition. She went off and got certified to teach yoga, do personal training and started teaching folks about what to put into their bodies through her classes and blog (for the health nuts out there, you gotta check out here vegetarian/vegan cooking and recipe blog, Food-LifeBalance. I'm her dedicated taste tester and definitely not complaining ;)). She also recently got a sweet gig helping a fellow Living Legend and fitness fanatic manage a chain of workout studios. Last night we went out to celebrate (Congrats Chelsea!). As we drove she remembered back to her couple years in the PR industry. She vividly recalled that she always knew she never wanted to have her boss's life. It was nothing against her superiors (who were actually great people), but for whatever reason, she just never wanted to be in those shoes. Fast forward a couple years, and one massive career shift later, she noticed that from day one teaching at her new fitness studio, she found herself admiring her boss and the role she had - inspired by the responsibility she was given, the way she got to help people and her genuine excitement for what she was doing. Two years later my wife has just about that same role and it's appearing to be everything she imagined. She admired the work her boss did & the life she lived, and it inspired her to operate on an entirely new level. I can't say the results surprise me (of course I'm a tad biased), but this did get me thinking...

It turns out I have a sure fire way to figure out whether you should stay or go.

10 Aug

Posted at 04:00h in All Topics, Career & Purpose, Emotions & Happiness by

reach potential

"There are powers inside of you which, if you could discover and use, would make of you everything you ever dreamed or imagined  you could become."

- Orison Swett Marsden

As it turns out, Living Your Legend is synonymous with Living Your Potential. That's why we're all here. So let's start with a question:

Are you reaching your full potential?

It's a question that haunts all of us from time to time. A question that casuses people to dream and act big, but also a question that forces people to do some of the most foolish things. A reader recently came to me with this very problem. She didn't feel like she was using everything she had. She genuinely enjoys what she's doing and is damn good at it but feels like something is missing. Like she doesn't use her brain as much as she'd like (as she put it). She mentioned going back to medical school or nursing school - something that had been on her mind since university. She was starting to think a few years of school was the only way to solve the problem. This got me thinking...

Potential is nothing more than a feeling.

Realize that there are a million and one ways to experience it. It's simply a feeling of adequacy and fulfillment with what you're doing. That you're using all the gifts and talents you have. Something only you can be the judge of. Sure we often let others help us decide whether we feel fulfilled but at the end of the day it's bull sh*t. It doesn't matter if the world puts some certified genius on a pedestal for being a surgeon if the person knows deep down that they are only using half their brilliance. Staying in your current role or traveling the typical path may keep others happy, but will it keep you happy? It's doubtful. Sooner or later that feeling will get the best of you. The later you catch it, the harder it is to correct. The good news is you can live your potential in just about anything you do.

03 Aug

Posted at 08:08h in All Topics, Career & Purpose by

Change the world

"Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect."

-Mark Twain

Welcome new readers! The last week since the launch of Live Your Legend has been nothing short of insane and legendary in every way. We have over 2,300 new members who joined our cause in the last few days alone. Welcome to the community! Thanks to everyone who's decided to be a part of what we're building. You make this what it is! Also if you're reading this in email or RSS form and haven't seen the new Live Your Legend site, please click here and check it out. ******

Now let's get into today's action:

In case you haven't noticed yet, I believe in taking the road less traveled. I believe it will always make all the difference. It certainly has so far... Last week we heard from 57 Living Legends who were spending their time putting their unique dent in the world. But how did they get there? What do they do differently than the rest of the world? Their stories blew my mind but the habits and beliefs that got them there are where the real magic is. In a word they simply do things differently. Over nearly the past decade, I've made a deep study of the tenets that guide their actions. Those same beliefs now guide all of mine. Over the coming months we will examine, test and experience them in deep detail. For now let's start with the road map. If we are going to change the world by doing work we love, then the below are requirements. I call them a way of life. These are our guiding principles - an Operating Manifesto of sorts. They make up the foundation of Live Your Legend. They're the beliefs that guide every Living Legend I've met. Make them your own and watch what happens. Note: This is meant to be a reference piece going forward. With almost every habit below I've included links to an article or two I've written on the subject. I hope you'll spend some serious time with this. I want you to fully understand our foundation for why we do what we do here. Enjoy.

27 Jul

Posted at 00:02h in Career & Purpose, Entrepreneurship, Life on Your Terms Interviews, Popular Posts, Timeless by

"No one ever got anywhere by themselves. Find your support and keep them close."

-Anonymous

Who inspires you? Who pushes you to places you couldn't get on your own? It's time to start spending more time around them... Live Your Legend is dedicated to helping you find the work you love. To discover passion and spend your time doing what matters. To putting a dent in the world that only you are capable of making. This comes down to a simple formula:

Learn who you are + get inspired by others + take action = Live Your Legend

If I'm not spending my time in one of those categories, I'm not living. I surround myself with passionate people everyday. They push my limits. They inspire me. They teach me the impossible is possible. We are not meant to go at it alone. I get to live my legend, work on passion and wake up excited because of what I've learned from those who've taken the world by the horns and done something with who they are. Recently I asked a handful of kick-ass entrepreneurs living their dreams (aka: Living Legends), one question:

What's one defining life experience or belief that's allowed you to find your passion and live on purpose? 

The responses blew my mind - I hope they'll do the same for you. I'm grateful to say the below are all people I've met, spent time around or been in touch with in one way or another along the journey. Many of them have become good friends. Whether they know it or not, they've shed light on a path I could not have walked alone. They have built businesses and sold them, written bestsellers, lived and worked all over the world and most importantly helped people in a way only they could. And they did it all on their terms. They've created lives of meaning that, however big or small, are changing the world. And the best part, we are all capable of what they've done. You just have to want it badly enough. Doing work that matters is scary sh*t. One few decide to tackle. You are here because you think differently. We all do. We all have moments that change us. We all have times where fear and uncertainty stare us in the face. It's what we do at those moments that defines us. I have not gotten here alone nor will I go any further without the right people in my corner.

From the shoulders of giants, enter the Living Legends...

21 Jul

Posted at 18:42h in Career & Purpose, Emotions & Happiness, Simplicity by
Whos Success

"The lack of clearly defined success is what keeps one’s dreams and happiness just out of reach of their reality."

Think about the goals you're running like crazy to accomplish. Think of the promotion you want. The job you'd love. The cars, the houses, all of it. What are you chasing? The thing is most people know what they're chasing but few people know why they're chasing it. Is it because those are things that mean something to you or is it just because they mean something to those around you?

When was the last time you sat down to define what success really means for you?

It's so easy to get caught up in societies definition... That's usually the money, the paycheck, the status, the title, the clout. After all, it's the only thing that can easily be compared, so it's the thing that get's talked about. My last year at university all people wanted to know was what the job paid and was it a name that everyone knew. There was no talk of whether it was something they actually wanted or something they were good at. For most of us that comparison stuck. So we forever adopt, often unconsciously, someone else’s definition and claim it as our own. Then we start to base our biggest life decisions accordingly. All of a sudden we are busting our ass to live societies dreams, giving no thought to our own. Is it any surprise why so many people can't get a grasp on their passion, let alone live it?

15 Jun

Posted at 18:48h in Career & Purpose by
**Sorry folks, the sale is now closed.

"Dedicate yourself to continuous learning & experiment, and passion will always be close at hand."

In case you haven't noticed yet, I am absolutely crazy about learning. Second to doing (which happens to be the best form of learning), there is nothing more important to living a life on purpose and on passion than going to school on yourself.

09 Jun

Posted at 00:04h in Career & Purpose, Entrepreneurship, Life on Your Terms Interviews by

Written by Scott Dinsmore –  Follow me on Twitter. "Be impeccably you. Boldness means pushing. Innovation's messy. Enjoy it." -Danielle Laporte The last four days have been a bit of a blur. Chris Guillebeau hosted over 500 of the most inspiring web entrepreneurs, freedom fighters and road less travelers from...