Embracing the Art of Purposeful Pivoting: Transforming Change into Opportunity

Discover your innate power to navigate life's unexpected turns with confidence and purpose. I'm Seth Lusk, your guide on this journey of self-discovery, here to share the art of pivoting not out of desperation, but driven by the force of your true calling. This episode peels back the layers of adaptability and flexibility, revealing how they can become your greatest allies in the face of change.

Let's unravel the complexities of life's challenges together, as we confront the fears that hold us back from embracing the unknown. I'll share personal stories and insights that illuminate the path to redefining our identities beyond societal labels and professional containers. Learn how to align your actions with your core purpose, transforming every pivot into an opportunity for growth, and let go of the misconceptions that change equals failure or weakness. This is a call to shift your perspective, to see adaptability as a testament to your resilience, and to welcome the transformative power of purposeful pivoting.

Join me in a conversation that transcends the confines of rigid roles and embraces the fluidity of our evolving selves. As we journey through each chapter, we'll understand the importance of grounding ourselves in unwavering purpose and how it forms the unshakeable pivot point around which our lives can dynamically revolve. By the end of this exploration, you'll be equipped to reject limiting definitions, expand beyond outdated containers, and step into a life defined by internal values and authentic intentionality.

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

You are listening to the Authentic Life Connection Podcast, episode number 171. Welcome to the Authentic Life Connection Podcast. I'm your host, seth Lusk. I'm a master certified life coach, author, personal trainer and nutrition specialist. For over a decade I've been helping people with their dreams and goals for their life and health.

Speaker 1: 0:28

I spent many years watching people get frustrated with their journey in life and giving up on taking actions towards their goals, so I dug in deep to find answers to why so many of us face this same frustration and struggle in life. So in this podcast, we're going to dive in deep on topics surrounding what it means to consistently live a fulfilling and authentic life where you are unstoppable in taking action towards your dreams and goals. So the only question is are you ready to start living your most authentic and fulfilling life once and for all? Then let's get started, shall we? Hey, everyone, welcome back to the podcast. For those of you listening in for the first time, welcome, welcome.

Speaker 1: 1:15

I'm going to re-air an episode today for you all, and I'm re-airing this episode because it's something that I see a lot of my clients and friends currently struggling with at this moment, and we live in a time where opportunities are accessed to certain resources, certain things that we have in our life. We're being shown that they can very easily be restricted, taken away from us or limited, and oftentimes, when this happens, I see people falling into this very disempowered state of feeling like they failed or feeling like their life no longer has any meaning. They don't know what they're going to do. They lose their identity in not having access to this. One way of doing things or one way of accomplishing things or one way of expressing something about themselves is truly important, and this is why I always talk with you all about the importance of purpose over passion. Passion is our expression, purpose is the why, and when we're clear on the purpose, it doesn't matter how many different expressions change. It doesn't matter how our access to those expressions change. We are always able to pivot and find a way to continue moving forward in line with our purpose. So I'm going to re-air an episode here for you all today, talking about the power of pivoting on purpose. Enjoy. The reason why is because this is a topic that I think touches a lot of people's lives, especially people who may identify themselves as being a people pleaser, or people that maybe identify themselves as being stubborn or rigid.

Speaker 1: 3:12

This is going to speak to you because we're talking today about you know I talk a lot about change. So we're talking about an aspect of change that is adaptability, flexibility and pivoting. So when we talk about change, you know we have these ways of going about change where we look at something that we want to do with our life, and we make a plan and we change our actions to go after the thing that it is, that we're going after the goal that we're going after. In the direction that we're heading in, we're pulling ourselves towards this image of our future self, this image of our future expression of our truest self, and this is one aspect of change. The other aspect of change, though, is when we've created that mental image, we've started acting out the plan of action, we started doing things differently, and we're heading in the direction that we want to be going in, as far as finding new ways to express ourselves more truly in the world around us, and then we hit these obstacles, these speed bumps, these unexpected results, and they require of us to adapt, to alter our plan just a little bit, to become flexible, to pivot, and I find that a lot of people really struggle with these concepts surrounding adaptability, flexibility and pivoting. So, yeah, this is what I want to talk about today, and a lot of people, when they struggle with this, it's almost like they feel resentful about the idea of adapting or being flexible, or pivoting, or they feel frustrated.

Speaker 1: 4:56

So let's start off by looking at some definitions here. The first definition I want to look at is the definition of adaptable. So adaptable means the quality of being able to adjust to new conditions. So as we're going down the path towards the thing that we're heading towards and something that we don't expect happens, we adapt. We have new conditions, new circumstances because we're behaving in a different way, so our life looks different around us and we're not getting the results we want. So we adapt to the new conditions to create the results that we want from where we currently are. Because when we make these plans to head towards our goals, we're making them from where we were, and so as we go, we learn that obviously, as we go, we learn and then we're in different places than we were before, and so the plans that we made before were from the perspective of where we were at the beginning of our journey, and so we notice now how these plans aren't necessarily going to work with where we are now and the direction that we're going in now as we learn more about the path forward in our journey. So this is being adaptable we adapt to the new conditions and being flexible that's the next definition I want to talk about is being ready and able to adapt to change as to differing circumstances. So these definitions are very similar. Flexibility is like so adaptability is being able to adjust. Flexibility is almost like the readiness to be adaptable. It's like okay, I know that adaptability is coming, so, or I know that something is going to call on me to be adaptable, so I'm ready. I'm ready to be adaptable whenever necessary, and I think that's the difference between these two words.

Speaker 1: 6:46

And then there's a third word that I want to talk about today that really brings this all together as far as why it is that I'm wanting to talk about adaptability and flexibility today and why so many people feel frustrated or lost with it, and the word is pivot. I've been talking about it all week on my social media and I even made a live video where I was talking about the fact that I was going to be talking about it, because this word is really crucial when it comes to how we approach adaptability and flexibility, and we're going to talk more about why that is a little bit later, but for now, let's just get the definition here. So this word can actually be a noun and a verb, so pivot. The noun form is the central point on which a mechanism turns or oscillates or moves or balances. So that is the pivot, it is the noun, it is the central point. So the verb is basically when an object or mechanism turns as if on a pivot or moves as if on a pivot or balances as if on a pivot. So the central point, the pivot, is the most important thing in this definition. So you might be asking why that's so important to look at. Let's dive in.

Speaker 1: 8:06

Okay, so what I'm observing quite often when people want to make changes in their life and, as I said, as we try to make changes in our life, we head down the path and this journey towards change is going to ask for us to be adaptable and flexible and to pivot in life when something unexpected occurs. So what I'm observing when I see people trying to make these changes is that there is this resistance to adapting or acting flexibly, and it's due to various fears. There's also this resistance to discomfort, so people not wanting to be uncomfortable, and we've talked about why that is. Another thing I observe is that there's this idea that wanting to change is somehow bad because it means you're not grateful for what you have in your life. We talked about that in a previous podcast episode, and then there's this other, like sort of subtle underlying theme that I run into with almost anyone when it comes to making adjustments in their life, or being adaptable or being flexible, and I want to address that here. That's what I want to talk about today, and it has to do with this idea of pivoting.

Speaker 1: 9:15

So many people are afraid to make changes by being adaptable and flexible because they see this as meaning that they were either wrong before or that they have to realize somehow that they were ignorant or stupid or dumb before in order to adapt their plan, in order for their actions forward, to be flexible, to, in other words, like this was the plan that I had, but I'm going to make it a little bit flexible because I'm running into this here. This was unexpected, so we're going to do this a little bit differently than planned, and people think that this somehow means that they were either dumb, ignorant, lost, broken or many different things, many different stories that people make about this idea of moving forward with flexibility. Maybe they think that they look indecisive or unable to make commitments, and here's what I want to say I get it. I used to feel this way like very, very often when I was going after my goals in life and I would run into these roadblocks and I would want to be flexible because I was going to, I knew something was calling me to be flexible there. But then I would look around at all the people around me being like, oh no, you got to be committed, you got to know what you want, you got to stick to a plan, you got to blah, blah, blah, blah, blah and plan and plan, and plan and plan and stick with the plan. And you know what I mean.

Speaker 1: 10:32

And it got so frustrating to me because I was like I don't think that there's something wrong with me, but I'm beginning to believe that there's something wrong with me that somehow I'm adjusting my plans as I run into obstacles and I see all these other people out here being super rigid. And it wasn't even until years later that I started noticing that the people that were being like super rigid and always have to follow the plan and blah, blah, blah, blah and you know being resistant to flexibility and adaptability or feeling resentful about it, or you know they were being adaptable and flexible, but they were doing it for other people that I started noticing these people are very unhappy and feeling very unfulfilled in their life. So maybe my way of doing things isn't actually so wrong, maybe I'm not lost, maybe I'm actually doing something right here. So I just want to say I get it. I used to feel the same way so often. I felt like adapting and being flexible somehow may be weak or lost, and I was almost embarrassed to let people know that I was, you know, adapting my plans or being flexible with my plans, and then eventually start getting resentful about it because I was doing it for other people and for another reason.

Speaker 1: 11:40

We're going to talk about it a little bit later. So, yeah, let's look at this concept of pivoting, because this right here is going to be the focal point of what brings this all together and helps you understand why you have these feelings surrounding adaptability, flexibility and making changes. We all understand being flexible or adaptable and we all understand to some extent that it's for some reason, important. You know, like we, we don't maybe we don't really know why, but we understand. We have a vague concept of the fact that somehow this concept is important in life, but then we have these feelings of resentment, we have these feelings of overwhelm, we have these feelings of there might be a push over or that we're directionless or weak or unable to commit. And what I want to say is where this feeling comes from has to do with this pivot, as in the noun form, the pivot point. And what I mean by that is that this feeling comes from a really boiled down lack of clear vision when it comes to life purpose, and I might have lost some of you there, so let me explain here I talk a lot about purpose.

Speaker 1: 12:48

I talk a lot about the difference between purpose and passion. Passion is the container, passion is the what, purpose is the why. Purpose is what we feel the container with. I have talked with you all before about evolving and getting clearer and clearer on our purpose in life and that as we involve our understanding of that purpose, it expands. And as it expands, certain containers that we had put our purpose in before, that were working for us before, they may no longer fit and we may need the container to adapt and be flexible and expand. And maybe it doesn't, maybe the container is unwilling to flex and maybe we need to shift containers into a different container and expand with the purpose in that new container. So this same concept applies here.

Speaker 1: 13:36

So often people feel resentful about being flexible and adaptable because they're doing it for the sake of the container. They're doing it for the sake of a person, of an object, of a job, of a title, of a degree, of an idea of what they should look like in life. They're not adapting the container as the purpose expands. They're questioning their purpose because the container is either changing or not changing and their purpose is no longer fitting in that container. And so, instead of looking at the container as being no longer the container to be in, they start questioning the purpose that their higher self knows is their purpose, even though they don't really have a clear vision of what that purpose is.

Speaker 1: 14:22

I see people ignoring their calling for their life purpose in order to stay in and follow the adaptations of a container that they are attached to, and they call this being flexible or adaptable. Or the container isn't flexible, isn't adapting, isn't doing anything, and their purpose is expanding and therefore they think maybe there's something wrong with them. So they try to quote unquote be flexible and adaptable by trying to keep shoving their purpose into this container that no longer fits in. They keep playing themselves small to try and hold onto a container, whether that be a relationship, whether that be a job title, whether that be a path in college, a university degree, whether that be so many different things in life, a certain city that you're living in, a house that you live in, so many different ways in which we get attached to things, a certain body type that we believe that we should have in order to be acceptable enough. These are all containers, and so many times I see people adapting, flexing and pivoting around containers, around passions, around what's.

Speaker 1: 15:36

So when we go back to this concept of pivoting, we can really see how we can still be flexible and adaptable without this having to happen, this feeling stuck in a container, feeling like we're stuck with this thing and we have to be adaptable around it. You know what I mean. I know you guys understand what I'm talking about here. So remember that a pivot is not just an action, it's also a noun. It is the central point on which a mechanism turns, rotates, moves or balances, and pivoting as a verb is the action in which we shift, turn, balance, rotate, flex or adapt around that pivot point, that central point the point, my friend, that we're wanting to pivot on is life purpose.

Speaker 1: 16:25

I think that for so many people out there who are either feeling resentful about their flexibility or adaptability, or they're feeling guilt or shame surrounding adaptability or flexibility, or making a change in the way they're showing up in their life or changing a container in their life. This, these feelings, they come from this focus on passions and containers as being the pivot point and they have zero focus or zero clear vision on life purpose, because purpose is the pivot. We are designed as humans to move around, to shift around, to adapt around, to flex around, to turn around and to balance on. When we have our focus on the container as being the pivot point, then we base our changes on something out there, and out there things are always changing, they are always temporary, they are designed to be impermanent.

Speaker 1: 17:17

It can start to feel like we have no identity, like we are constantly shifting on a pivot point out there that is always going to be different, and we can start to feel like we're lost or maybe that we have no purpose in life. We can start to feel resentful or ashamed or like we're unimportant and like everything out there is more important than us and we have to find the right thing to pivot on out there, because obviously we haven't found it yet, because we still don't feel important enough. And we adapt and we shift and we turn and we pivot and we feel lost and ashamed and many times we begin to believe that these feelings come from the action of shifting, adapting and pivoting. But if we look closer, this isn't really the case. The feeling actually comes from the fact that we are not pivoting on our true pivot point, which is purpose. We are instead out there adapting who we are to some container that we feel like we have to be in to have a purpose or identity or to have value or worth. But it's actually our purpose that offers us that. And our purpose comes from recognizing that who we are is already unknown and that who we are is already unchangeable and that what we are is here to. What we're here for is to express that in life, not to change who we are by doing things differently. No, we're not doing things differently. To become who we are. We already are who we are. We're just expressing it into the world around us. But when we're so busy pivoting on containers and what's and passions out there, we get lost because we don't remember who we are. We keep trying to change our identity to make it good enough because we're out there. We're pivoting on something out there that is temporary and changing, instead of pivoting on the one thing that doesn't change, which is who we are and the purpose of that being being here in this body, on this planet, expressing who we are into the world around us. We are here to express the unchangeable nature of who we are in the world around us and our purpose is for that, and we will all do it in so many different ways.

Speaker 1: 19:30

So many of us feel like we're failing at life somehow when we look around and recognize that how we are showing up in our life is not where we want to stay, when we feel that pull to reach inside of ourselves and bring out more of who we are into the world and express it through changing the way that we behave, the way we speak, the way we work, the way we connect and relate to the world and to other people. So many of us feel like, when we look around and feel that pull to create those changes, that it has to mean somehow that we've been doing something wrong or failed up until now. And it looks that way because we see ourselves pivoting and adapting and flexing around containers and those containers we see as being what determines our worth and who we are. We forget that who we are is unchangeable. And we're out here making these changes in the life around us not to change who we are, but to better express who we've always been, and that we are out there making these changes to learn more of who we already are so that we can express it in a better way in this life, Not change who we are to make ourselves better. Who you are is already so effing good you can't make it any better. You're out here making these changes to express that into the world around us and to remind other people that they are effing awesome too and they can start showing up in their lives to express that person as well.

Speaker 1: 20:53

Stop hiding. That's where these dreams, these pulls, these goals come from, this desire for change. It doesn't come from the fact that our life isn't good enough and that we're not good enough and we can't be grateful for what we have in life. No, it's because we as humans have been lost in the ego for so long and forgetting who we are that we are here to make these changes, to remember who we are and to show up in this life as the badasses that we are, that we've been hiding and playing small with. For our entire lives, for generations, we've been doing this and instead we keep letting the ego convince us to get attached to job titles, to degrees, to cars, to houses, to relationships, to families, as being what determines our worth in life and who we are. And so we keep thinking we need to pivot and flex and adapt around those things to make sure we don't lose our worth in this world.

Speaker 1: 21:49

And that, my friends, is where your feelings of frustration, your feelings of being lost, your feelings of being inadequate, your feelings of not knowing what you're doing in your life come from is because you, my friends, are adapting, pivoting and flexing around things that you're not designed to flex, adapt and pivot around. Those things are supposed to be impermanent and temporary in your life and they do not determine your worth or your identity. When a place that you've lived, when a circle of friends, a business relationship, a car you drive, a way that you eat, a way that you exercise a certain body, shape or size, when one of those things, a career that you have, when those define your worth, then pivoting or flexing or adapting, feels like we don't know who we are, my friends, because who we are, we are putting who we are into something that is impermanent, and so, therefore, who we are becomes impermanent when, my friends, this is what feels so frustrating, because a part of us knows, and is trying to get us to recognize, that who we are is so incredibly valuable, worthy and permanent, and that nothing we can do in this life, no label that we can have, no person that we could love, no person that we can be in any sort of level of a relationship with no job, no car, no house, no place that we live, no color of our skin, no songs that we sing, no sound of our voice can change that. But so many of us are out there finding these things and latching onto them as our identity and then trying to pivot our life around these things that are simply supposed to be temporary containers to house our massively beautiful purpose that we are here for. There is this idea promoted in our culture now that we are supposed to also know at such an early age, just getting out of high school, what career or job we want to have for the rest of our lives and then pick a path and stay on it, because that's who you are. That's who you are. You're a doctor, you're a such and such.

Speaker 1: 24:00

I'm a life coach. You know, I've even had to come to terms with this. I am not a life coach. That is not who I am. I do life coach because, as of right now in my life, what my purpose calls me to do, to express more love, more understanding, more compassion, more connection into the world. Because that's who I am. And right now the label of life coach is the best container I've found to suit that purpose. And someday I'm going to find that that container no longer holds the purpose as I expand it and expand it and expand it out into the world. And I will love to see what new label the world is going to put on me when I expand outside of the label of life coach into a different container. But I'm not going to feel lost, I'm not going to feel confused, I'm not going to feel like I did it wrong by being a life coach. I don't feel like I did it wrong for all those years that I was a personal trainer, nutrition specialist.

Speaker 1: 24:56

I needed to do those things to learn what it was that people were truly struggling with. It wasn't that they needed a list of foods. It wasn't that they needed a list of exercises and someone to stand over them and crack the whip and tell them you're doing it wrong. Eat better, exercise more. What people needed and wanted was a fulfilling life, was to feel like they had a purpose, was to feel like they knew who they were and that that person was worthy and valuable in this life and that they could stop doing these things to their body, to try and numb the pain away of feeling like they weren't worthy, like they weren't good enough, trying to hide themselves behind food, trying to hide themselves in their houses with inactivity, because they didn't know who they were and if it was worthy enough to be out there in the world doing something. But I needed to do those things. I needed to have the label of personal trainer, nutrition specialist, to come in contact with these people for long enough to start seeing what the true pain was, where it was coming from. And so you know what I did I pivoted, I adapted, I flexed around my purpose and recognized that what I was doing as a light, as a personal trainer, nutrition specialist, was no longer touching my purpose.

Speaker 1: 26:12

My purpose called me Seth, go bigger. My purpose called out Seth, go deeper. And I felt scared as shit, my friends. Everyone's going to think I don't know what I'm doing. You know, I'm 30 something years old and changing from being a personal trainer, nutrition specialist, to a life coach. Everyone's going to think I'm a joke and I have no clue what I'm doing. What do you think you're doing? Being a life coach? You have no idea what you're. You're 30 something years old. You're a personal trainer, you're a nutrition specialist. Just stay there. That's who you are. You know people trying to keep me in a box that they felt comfortable putting me in. It was terrifying, my friends, but I felt my purpose telling me Seth, this container is no longer fitting your purpose. It's time to expand. And so I stepped out and into a new container and I'm sure I will do it again, maybe when I'm 50, 60 years old. Who knows, who cares? It's going to be beautiful when it happens. I'm excited to see when it happens and where it will take me.

Speaker 1: 27:11

But we have this concept in our society now that we're supposed to at such a young age 17, 18 years old. You know, pick a path and stay on it. That's who you are. You're a violinist, you're a doctor, you're a dentist, you're an orthodontist, you're a lawyer, you're an athlete. And no, no, no, don't stray from that path. That's who you are, that's your identity, that's your worth, right there.

Speaker 1: 27:34

And then we all feel these callings to do something different, something more, and we don't even know where it's coming from, because we've always looked at passions, we've always looked at containers as being what identifies us, as being what gives us our worth, and so we're pivoting and flexing and adapting around those. And when we feel these callings to do something bigger, to expand, to do something more, we feel scared and like we can't do it. We feel resentful for having to play small and flex around these little containers that are not actually designed to hold our massive effing purpose. That is screaming for us to stop playing small. That is screaming for us to show up as the bad ass that we are in the world and stop thinking that these little effing containers of athlete, doctor, dentist, surgeon, whatever the eff it is and yes, I'm saying eff a whole lot because I don't want to use the word on my podcast but whatever it is, whatever container it is that you think that you. That is what gives you your worth and your value. You keep flexing around it, keep adapting around it. That's why you feel resentful, because you haven't looked at what your purpose is.

Speaker 1: 28:39

What is it that you're here to do? Why are you here to do that? Why? What is what is inside of you calling you to bring this out into the world? For me, it's compassion, it's understanding, it's connection and it's love. Those are my sensitivities in life. Those are the things that when I am creating them, when I feel them in the world around me, when I am manifesting them and expressing them out into the world around me, I become unstoppable Because, no matter what anyone does, they can't stop me from doing that. They can take away a container, doesn't matter. They can take away the container of personal trainer, of nutrition specialist, of life coach, it doesn't matter. I will still be here, unstoppably, expressing the purpose that I am here to express in the world around me, and I will find a new container to do it in my friends.

Speaker 1: 29:34

This is what adapting, pivoting and flexing is about, and we have been taught for so long that it's about finding a container and sticking with it, and that's your identity, this tiny little thing, this tiny little thing, this little label. I mean, just look at some of the labels that are now nothing. Think someone like a steam engine engineer we don't even use steam engines anymore. Think of people that used to work in coal factories. Think of people that used to work in all of these obsolete fields that, as we evolve our technology and evolve the world around us, these containers no longer exist. So do these people now no longer have an identity? Do they no longer have a worth in our world?

Speaker 1: 30:22

We have this idea expressed to us and we just accept it and we take it on about ourselves that this is the truth, that some little passion or container is what defines us, and then, therefore, we play small our entire lives because we're afraid to break out of that container. Because then, who are we? We've lost our value, we've lost our identity. But no, my friends, that little container was there to express a small part of who you are and what your purpose is in this life. And as you expand and grow, you will require the container to grow with you, or a bigger container. You are designed for this, my friends, and so many of you out there feel resentful, feel stuck, feel lost in your life because you get in these containers, you trap yourself in, you still don't feel fulfilled and you believe that it's because something is wrong with you, because you've been taught to believe that you're supposed to find that container.

Speaker 1: 31:22

That's the right one for you, that relationship that's the right one for you and I know you all know what I'm talking about. This Disney happy, ever after ending of falling in love with the one, the one out there that is for you, instead of recognizing that a relationship is a container for you to express who you are more fully and connect to another human being more fully. And as you do so, you learn more about the depths of love for yourself and for other people. It's not that there's this one person out there that's going to come in and, you know, make you a whole person and fix you and make your life have a purpose and give you value finally in life. No, you'll meet a person. You'll choose to love them and as you choose to do so, you will find the conditions of your love on yourself and start releasing them and learn to love deeper and deeper and deeper and deeper as you let go of those conditions on your own love for yourself as you notice them in how you're loving the person in front of you. That, my friends, is what love is about.

Speaker 1: 32:26

That, my friends, is what a committed relationship is about. It's not about this person coming into your life and all of a sudden, doves and daisies and rainbows start flying everywhere and you feel fulfilled and whole. And, my friends, that's infatuation and lust and, yes, that will happen. But then it comes down to seeing all of the layers of the person in front of you and being confronted with all of the layers of you and getting the opportunity to decide will I love and accept these layers or will I reject them, as I've always rejected myself, and keep the conditions on my worth through the conditions that I put on this person in front of me? That is what love is about, my friends. We're not from a little bit of a tangent there, but it applies here because even in relationships, when we understand our purpose in that relationship, then we can adapt, we can flex, we can pivot in that relationship and keep that relationship so alive and vibrant and full of love. When we're not doing it, because the relationship gives us our identity, the relationship gives us our value no, we are choosing to be in that relationship because we are choosing to love and learn and go deeper and connect more and peel back layers, this concept of concrete attachment to these containers in life, that not being able to be concrete in those attachments somehow means that you're broken or defective or not valuable or lost.

Speaker 1: 33:52

I get so many clients coming to me with this feeling of being lost and without a purpose and when I start really digging deep, what I find is that they have attached themselves to a container and it's not that the container is bad. It's that they see their identity and their worth being the container. You are not lost or without purpose. It is that you have been taught your whole life to look at a passion or a container as being your identity, as being your purpose, that your purpose is a container. No, the reality is that your purpose is something so much deeper that's within you. It's not out there.

Speaker 1: 34:27

In a job, in a relationship, in a title, in a car, in a house, in a family. All of those things are ways that we express our purpose, but our purpose does not get touched by those things changing, because they are designed to change. They are designed to be impermanent. That's what everything in this life is designed for, for us to go through that impermanence and remember who we are and how permanent that person is, how permanent and unconditional the value of that being is. And we're so lost in this small, tiny human identity of a job, of a career, of an amount of money that we make, of a house that we live in, how many kids we have, if we're married or not.

Speaker 1: 35:11

This feeling of lostness, of somehow being broke or failing in life, it comes from this focus on these passions, these containers, as being what defines you, and that those are your purpose. So the solution here, my friends, is making those changes to the external expression, meaning changing the container, making it adapt to your expression of your purpose, your unchangeable purpose that is here to expand into the world around you. And first to do that, we have to take a look at our life purpose, which asks us to do a deep internal dive into our core values, into our core sensitivities, a dive into our emotions, our emotional responsibility, a dive into our self-awareness, self-love, unconditional self-worth, self-acceptance, self-care. That comes from a space of unconditional love for your true identity, not the container or the passion that you're expressing it through in this life. And here's the thing when we recognize that a lot of times this pressure with these containers, this feeling of needing to grasp them, it just goes away because we recognize I don't need to grasp onto this so much. It'll be here for as long as it's supposed to be here in this life and when it goes I can still be grateful for the time that it was here in this capacity and then I can move on to enjoying how it's still here in another capacity or it's no longer here and something else is here in that capacity.

Speaker 1: 36:43

When I see people pivoting or adapting or flexing themselves around passions or containers, I see them reinforcing this desire to people please. These containers are supposed to be impermanent. When we think that they are the source of our identity and purpose and we end up doing things that are inauthentic for us in order to try and alter or manipulate other people's opinions of us so that we can try to hold on to that, something that is designed to be impermanent, what we do is we force ourselves into these inauthentic roles in order to try and hold on to titles or relationships through trying to manipulate other people's visions and feelings about us. That is people pleasing. I also see people creating a ton of resentment within themselves about being flexible or adaptable. They take on this idea that they're doing it to be able to affirm their worth or their value externally, like being adaptable is. If I'm not adaptable, I'm never going to be able to prove that I'm worthy here, instead of seeing you're already worthy, and being adaptable has nothing to do with proving that. It has everything to do with just expressing how worthy you already are into the world around you, as you find that certain ways don't express it so well for you.

Speaker 1: 37:54

After a certain amount of time of trying to hold on to these temporary containers and trying to affirm your worth through them, of course the feeling of resentment is going to arise. You're trying to validate your worth with something that cannot validate your worth for you, and in trying to do so you spend a ton of energy doing inauthentic tasks, taking inauthentic roles on without any clear idea of what it is that you genuinely want in your life, and moving into containers to express those genuine desires in the world and then moving out of them when they no longer fit that purpose. Another thing that I see many people doing here when it comes to pivoting around passions and containers is this feeling of shame, guilt or brokenness? People who have switched jobs several times or maybe someone made comments about it or someone they know that they look up to make comments about how changing jobs too many times means that the person is somehow irresponsible, broken, lazy or lost. Changing career paths, changing the degree you're going to school for, so people somehow feel ashamed of adapting by switching containers because they have this idea that the container is what gives them their purpose, the container is what gives them their value.

Speaker 1: 39:07

Another way that this creates problems is that sometimes pivoting, adapting and being flexible means staying in the same container but finding a different way to fulfill your purpose within it. Sometimes the calling is to shift containers. Sometimes the calling is how can I fit my purpose into this container? How can I stop putting conditions on my love of this container, such as a relationship, and allow this relationship to be a vessel of my purpose? Sometimes the course of action, being flexible and being adaptable, means staying on the same course, but choosing a new mindset or perspective to see how this path is in fact helping you to achieve your life purpose.

Speaker 1: 39:53

But without having a clear image of life purpose, it can become really easy to bail on something when it starts to feel uncomfortable and just convince yourself that it's no longer what you want and that you don't know what it is that you want in life and that you are somehow lost and broken because you don't know what you want in life. Sometimes purpose will ask of us to stay on the path and dig deeper. Look for change the way you're looking at this. See how you can fulfill your purpose on this path that you are on. But you won't be able to do that if you are not clear on life purpose. If you're focusing on the what's, on the passions, on the containers, you won't see what the purpose is. All you'll know is that right now, in this container, I don't feel happy and since my identity and everything is around this container, obviously the container isn't right for me and so I need a different container so that I can be me.

Speaker 1: 40:46

There are two different ways this can show up here when you're not pivoting, when you're not adapting, when you're not flexing around purpose. So the solution here again, my friends, it's becoming crystal clear on life purpose and from there we can pivot, we can adapt and we can flex with empowerment. What do I mean when I say that we can do these things with empowerment. So remember when we talked about pivoting around containers or passions, what you were pivoting around is something external, temporary and conditional, which means that you are both directly and indirectly putting conditions on your worth and your identity and that, my friends, is disempowering your whole entire identity and worth is based in something that you don't have control over and is, in fact, designed to be temporary. Passions are temporary, my friends.

Speaker 1: 41:28

Purpose is not. Purpose is something internal. It comes from your higher self that knows what you're here for, even if you don't fully allow yourself to recognize it or connect with knowing that. And when we align our actions, when we decide to be flexible and adapt based on what we value, based on what is important to us and on our life purpose, then being flexible is not about weakness, it's not about giving in, it's not about giving up, it's not about taking a consolation prize, it's not about changing our identity or trying to prove our worth. It is, in fact, about the exact opposite. It is about being unstoppable and finding solutions in this life to express more and more fully who you truly are, through your life purpose, through your values, through your core sensitivities in this life.

Speaker 1: 42:16

The definition of empowerment is is power given to someone or something to do something. When we pivot on purpose, we are giving ourselves power to make intentional action that makes or that keeps us in alignment with and and moving towards our goals and expressing our truest selves, and stopably. We choose to flex, pivot and adapt, not because we have to, in order to prove something. We choose to do it because we know that this life is designed to be temporary. It is designed to be a challenge, it is designed to be uncomfortable at his time, at times, and we are choosing to be here and actively participate in it and co-create with the universe.

Speaker 1: 42:58

In this life, we are empowered because we see that all of this part of our journey is something that we have choice in. We can either step up and find ways to express our truest selves and and and fulfill our life purpose with intention, or we can passively sit back and feel like life is happening at or to us and that we're being forced to adapt, pivot and flex. When we align with purpose, we align with true desires, and when we make the decision to take actions based in that, then pivoting, adapting and flexing are empowered actions of intention to create unstoppable movement surrounding that life purpose and what we truly value and want in life, no matter what containers or passions become available to us or that we create access to for ourselves, or as time changes and access to certain containers no longer exists, or using certain containers no longer creates the outcomes where we're looking for to express our truest selves and purpose. None of this matters, because our purpose stays the same. We look for solutions to continue expressing that, even if it means changing the container, even if it means changing the way we look at a container, it doesn't mean that we've done something wrong or that the other container was wrong or a waste of our time. It might mean that the old container was part of the journey and it fit your purpose for a period of time, that it was supposed to, until you discovered its borders and limits and now you see that your purpose actually goes beyond those borders and limits, and then you can simply pivot and move containers and continue, continue your expansion of your purpose and powered and unstoppable. This is the power of pivoting on purpose. And yes, that is a double entendre there, meaning that it has two different meanings. We can literally make our purpose the pivot point and therefore we pivot on that purpose into any container and we can purposefully, with intention, pivot or do it on purpose. So, in other words, we do it on purpose. We pivot on purpose not because we feel like we have to or because we feel pressured to do this by some external force, because we're afraid of losing our identity or our value or worth by losing that attachment to that container. No, we're doing it because we have a clear vision of our purpose that we are creating and we set intentions ahead of time that when a container no longer suits that purpose, we will pivot and adapt and move into a new container as we learn more and more about this life and ourselves by following our purpose. This is pivoting on purpose.

Speaker 1: 45:34

So some of you might wonder how is it that you can begin to recognize if you're adapting, flexing and pivoting on passions or containers instead of purpose? So here are a few signs to watch for that could be, and are probably, a strong indicator that this is what you're doing. It doesn't necessarily mean that it is 100%. It is. You are pivoting on a container, but these are strong signs, okay. So?

Speaker 1: 45:54

Number one you feel resentful about adapting or being flexible. Number two you feel fear of your identity or value in this life being lost If you make a change into a different container. The next one you make decisions to be flexible or adapt based on what you want other people to think or feel about you. The next one you fear that you are lost in adapting and being flexible without a clear vision of where your life is going. For you, you feel like life is just going and you're trying to keep up with it, but you have no idea where your life is going for you, okay. The next one you feel like you keep making changes but you just end up feeling the same way in the end and wanting to make another change in order to feel another way.

Speaker 1: 46:38

That's a sign that you're pivoting and adapting around containers. So another sign you find yourself trying to hold on to something for fear that letting it go will take away all or part of who you are and your value or worth. And then the last one you find yourself feeling overwhelmed with adapting or being flexible. These are all very strong indicators that you are not aligned with your life purpose and your decisions to adapt, flex or pivot. Or you may not be aligning with your life purpose in your decision to not adapt or to resist adapting, to resist flexing, to resist pivoting. These are all signs of that.

Speaker 1: 47:16

So here are the key ideas that I want you to take away from this conversation today. Number one being clear on life purposes the cornerstone to a fulfilling life in every aspect, including when we decide to be flexible and pivot or adaptable in life. The next thing I want you to take is that when you choose to adapt, pivot or be flexible around containers or passions in life, around things, and then you will create overwhelmed resentment, confusion and feelings of being lost or that somehow you're worth or identity is in question constantly. And I want you to take away that you can live an intentional and fulfilling life that allows you to be flexible and adaptable and that it comes with intention, ease, empowerment and even excitement. So the last thing I want you to take from today is that containers and passions in this life are designed to not be permanent. They are meant to temporarily hold your life purpose for a period of time, as it is currently understood, for that period of time until you're called to expand and deepen that purpose, and then either the container changes or you change containers. It does not mean that you are not grateful for the container. It does not mean that you are not committed to the container or the person or the job or the, whatever it is. It does not mean that you are broken or indecisive in any way.

Speaker 1: 48:40

We have been taught to for so long believe in this idea of permanence, in the containers, in this life, the passions in this life. It leaks out into so many areas of our life. We as humans are designed to grow and evolve, and either the containers evolve with us or we evolve into new containers. This is the journey of life, my friends, and it's beautiful once you understand that. This is just how it's meant to be. It's not that there's something has gone wrong because you're shifting containers. It's not that something has gone wrong because a relationship evolves to the point where you no longer see each other and you develop new relationships with new people that fulfill those areas of that purpose of your life. It doesn't mean that we've done something wrong when we, at 45 years old, all of a sudden recognize this career path is not fulfilling my purpose and we change the career path. We've got to let go of this idea that these containers and passions are supposed to be permanent. For us, they're not.

Speaker 1: 49:39

So those are the things I want you to take from today, and that leaves me with my question for you. My question for you today is this Are you ready to start exploring the areas of your life where you might be adapting, flexing and pivoting around containers and passions in your life? Or are you ready to find those areas in your life where maybe you feel you feel stuck or lost because you're doing this? It's not that you are stuck or lost, you just feel like you are because of how you're looking at it and are you ready to find the way forward that is guided by a clear, intentional and authentic fulfilling purpose that is 1000% genuine for you? Are you ready for that? Because that's awesome.

Speaker 1: 50:24

This is some of my favorite work to do with my clients one-on-one, so I just want to say feel free to reach out, let's see how we can get you onto your path of an empowered and authentic fulfilling life that pivots on your purpose. And I know that some of you out there you're not going to be ready to coach with someone one-on-one, either because you're not ready to invest in yourself financially in that way or, with time, in that way. I get it. Some of you out there aren't ready to do coaching one-on-one, but you still have interest in diving into this work.

Speaker 1: 50:59

So I just want to also say I have an exercise, a program, to offer you that gives you some limited access to me one-on-one, but it's not, you know, you don't have to. It's not like we have to have weekly appointments or something. So it's not a full coaching experience, but it is a powerful, fun and deep experience and I've received a lot of really good feedback from people that I've allowed to do this on their own. I've given them this program to do on their own, without me, and they just had access to me to text me or email me when they were having struggles, and that I could reach out to them and help them move forward with this exercise. So it's a powerful, fun and deep experience about discovering your true core sensitivities and your purpose in life and how you're going to show up in your life and start using that to create your most fulfilling life.

Speaker 1: 51:54

So if you're not ready for that one-on-one coaching commitment, that's okay. I've got something for you. So feel free to reach out. Okay, I'm sure that we can find some way to get you moving forward in this area of your life. We can be adaptable and we can be flexible here, my friends, because the purpose is to get you moving and pivoting on purpose.

Speaker 1: 52:16

All right, my friends. So reach out. I'm here. Every way to reach out to me is in the show notes. You've got links to my email, to my website. You've even got links to where to buy my book. You've got links to my social media. So so many ways to get in touch with me.

Speaker 1: 52:28

On my website, you can book a free discovery call. It is 1000% free and obligation free. It is about you reaching out to me and letting me know where it is that you feel stuck or struggling in life and how it is that you want help. And I'm here to talk with you about that and see if my coaching is a good fit for you. If coaching isn't a good fit for you, is my program that you can do on your own a good fit for you? We can find out, we can look at it, we can explore. We can be adaptable and flexible around purpose here.

Speaker 1: 52:55

All right, that's all I have for you today, my friends. I love you all so, so, so much, and I hope that today's episode was insightful for you. I hope it brought forth some new things that maybe you weren't aware of before, and I wish you all the most adaptable, flexible and purposefully pivoting end of this week and beginning of next week. So until we meet again here next Thursday. Ciao, thank you for joining us today. I hope you enjoyed the content of this podcast. If you did, please subscribe so that you're one of the first people to know when I release a new episode each week.

Speaker 1: 53:33

If you have any questions, or if you have interest in learning more about the coaching that I do with my clients one-on-one, then just head over to my website at wwwlifecoachsethcom. That's wwwlifecoachsethcom. There you're going to have the ability to reach out to me for questions that you might have or to book your free discovery call with me to discuss what one-on-one coaching with me might be like for you. You can also check out and order your copy of my book to get a taste of what I'm all about as a person and as a coach. I'm so happy that you joined us today and I hope to have you here again next week. So until then, let authenticity be the guide to your most unstoppable and fulfilling journey of life. Thank you you.