Unpacking Episodes 60, 61, 62 | LAYC64

​ Isabel: Hi everyone.

I'm gonna ask for your help right now to hold some space for me to

collect myself, because I've just finished listening to which really

impacted me emotionally, deeply in a reflective, pensive way, but also in

an inspiring, really uplifting way.

And after all, isn't that what we're here for on the Lift As You Climb podcast...

Is figuring out how we can continue to lift ourselves, elevate ourselves, and

become the best version of who we are.

And at the same time, recognizing that makes it possible for us to Lift others.

As I think about that process, for me, it is like building

your own success ladder...

Which then enables you to empower others to build their success ladders.

Today I'd like to reflect and share my takeaways on episodes 60, 61, and 62,

in which I had the great privilege to spend some time on air and interview

and learn from Genevieve Piturro, Marion Hook, and Shannon Tobin.

Three very different women, three different backgrounds, three different

addresses, and zip codes, or postal codes.

Three different stories about their projects and their passions

that became purposes, that have incredible impact in the world.

When I started the Encore Catalyst, it was born out of my own journey,

searching for my own identity, after a lot of life changes and figuring out...

All right...

Who am I now?

And also...

What's my value in the world now, after a lot of life changes?

You know, what am I gonna do?

How I'm gonna bring value to the world?

How will I be valued?

And in what way will I receive value, to be able to go forward?

And then...

What's the impact that I wanna have now in the world?

That journey has taken me through this process of developing the Encore Catalyst

methodology, and then learning...

Like many of us, about the online world of communicating your message during Covid...

When we were all on a virtual stage.

How fabulous, is that out of that, came this joy of learning about podcasts...

Listening, consuming them myself, but then to also start my own podcast

about two years ago, and then the evolution of that process, learning

these things in my late sixties.

To discover that it really was an opportunity, an advantage for me to

learn from other people in the world, how to do some of the things that I aspire

to do, and that's what's transpired.

And I'm so excited that I've had this opportunity and this new season of

the Lift As You Climb podcast, to interview others that are figuring out...

Have figured it out, continue to refine the process of creating their

legacy, or living their legacy...

Influencing, improving their legacy in the world.

Now, I won't go into a lot of detail about those last episodes.

I strongly encourage you to take 15, 20, 30, 60 minutes

to listen to those episodes.

If you are like me, and many others...

Coming out of the life changing, literally in some respects...

Almost apocalyptic pandemic period, the "P" period...

The pandemic period, which upended our lives, and gave us

a lot of time to think about...

Who are we now, and how are we gonna show up in the world.

How are we going to maintain a connection...

And forced many of us to pivot in what we were doing, and how

we connected with the world...

gave us pause to think a lot about PURPOSE.

Purpose is definitely born in passion, even though maybe we're

not aware of it at the moment, but something definitely is a spark.

There's always a spark in our lives that brings us to...

Yeah, that is what I am called to do.

That is what I'm meant to do right now.

The three women that I launched this season with, as I said,

are all very different.

They live in different places, and they've got different experiences

in their lives, but they also have a lot of things in common.

Reflecting back and listening back on these episodes...

What stood out for me is they are extraordinarily passionate.

They are passionate about living their lives, and continually growing and

evolving on their journey on this planet.

It doesn't mean that they're zealously passionate but they're just constantly

opening and growing and expanding.

They're all lifelong learners, which thrilled me because it's

something I'm proud to say and always want to continue to be...

But at the same time, I observed the humility of each of these three women.

The three women I'm speaking of are: Genevieve Piturro,

Marion Hook, and Shannon Tobin.

Genevieve is in New York, in the United States, and she

founded the Pajama Program.

She's a phenomenal speaker and sought after motivator and

consultant, and the author of the book Purpose, Passion, and Pajamas.

Marion Hook now lives full-time in Indonesia, and she lives

in a community in Bali.

She's a Rotarian among many other things.

She's also a very accomplished writer, and I am always delighted where her articles

are showing up, and I love consuming them.

I was in my audiologist's office a couple of weeks ago in Tucson, Arizona...

Killing time, waiting for my turn...

Flipping through a magazine that was there, and oh my gosh, there was

another article written by Marion Hook!

Shannon Tobin, who is the founder of Dare To Be Youth Charity, is also

an accomplished speaker and author, and has written a book that has been

very powerful in helping women to see a bigger vision for themselves.

The other thing I've observed with these three women is that

they are incredibly creative, imaginative, big thinker people...

Even when their ideas are so very different, and maybe started

from a small suggestion...

Or a personal experience in their life...

They didn't let that just slip by...

They caught onto that idea, and with their imagination, fanned the

flame, and created something...

Which is enduring, and is a legacy project or result for them.

The other thing that these three women have in common are they're

incredibly collaborative...

And I think that's essential for everything meaningful,

fulfilling, and successful today.

If you are part of the planet these days, where you've experienced the pandemic...

And that caused you to really have to change some things in your life

and maybe have some time to say...

As one of them have said, "Is this it?...

Is this all there is to my life?"

In fact, a very similar quote comes from all of my interviewees.

From that, they decided to stretch and grow, and go through the growing pains

of figuring out their next best self.

I love a quote from Genevieve Piturro, where she talks about

" The Power Of One Another"...

And how that...

Really is the secret sauce, right?

It's recognizing that we are not alone on any of this, and that the power of

one another and connecting from the heart and purpose with other human

beings enables us to create some impact.

Marion Hook when I asked her if she could share some tips about how people

could follow in her footsteps, she really touched my heart when she quickly

modestly, but firmly said, "NO, I don't want people to follow in my footsteps.

I wouldn't be comfortable with that.

but I invite them to walk alongside me or beside me, and I'll try to help them."

That really is part of Lift As You Climb and my belief that it's our

responsibility to give a hand up to anyone around us who wants it, who needs it.

Shannon also in her episode, about her journey, from ultra successful

in her profession, to now dedicated to building a charity to give a

hand up to the younger generation...

Talked about regrets, and the importance for us all to be mindful

that if we don't take that first step forward, and don't push through the

uncomfortableness, and the fear...

That there will be regrets without a doubt.

So if any of that resonates with you, then listen to those

episodes and find out more.

Today, I made some notes and recapped some of the most compelling takeaways

for me in listening to those three episodes, and I wanted to offer those

to you as maybe some kindling for your own spark and your passion project.

What I learned from our three generous guests are your purpose picks you

and as much as I would like to think, oh no, I'm totally in control, that

I'm orchestrating all of what is happening and unfolding in my life.

I know they are right.

That everything that's been unfolding, as Steve Jobs would say, the dots that have

been connecting backwards have brought me to this moment in my own life and journey.

My story, my script, , in my Encore, my purpose has been

preparing me and picking me.

In support of that.

I also learned from our guests that very often, most often I imagine, our purpose

is rooted in our own life's journey.

And so therefore, you know what, as long as you trust and take

the steps forward, there's no avoiding, what that is going to be.

Now as overwhelming as all of that may sound and intimidating, I also want to

remind you that, and by their example, when you listen to our guests,

none of us are starting from scratch.

We are all starting from experience and the cumulative life experience

that brings us to being the right one, being exactly in the right place to

do what we're feeling called to do.

The fourth thing that I thought was important to really take note,

and I'm thinking about this for myself, is to start small with

your idea and just keep moving.

Every day, do one thing that day to keep you moving forward in

the direction of your main thing.

And, as somebody who, as my friends would say, sometimes gets on all the

horses and rides off in all directions, , it was a really good reminder for me.

Choose my main thing that is really, really important to me right now and

every day do one concrete thing to move closer to my end goal, my vision for that.

Number five, have a plan.

Yes.

Now a plan, in all circumstances of growth requires you to keep on revising it.

Set some metrics in your plan, your KPIs, key performance indicators

in my business vernacular.

Check back regularly to make sure you're making progress towards those metrics,

those KPIs, and keep revising it as the project grows and you learn more.

In support of that growth is know what you don't know, really know

your own strengths and then build a team.

Build a team, whether that's a team that are actually in the trenches with

you, , a team that, , members that are contributing a certain expertise, or

maybe it's the collective wisdom of an advisory board that supports and

understands your vision and your mission.

you will be surprised.

Be prepared to be surprised at who will help you and who will support

you, and equally be prepared to be surprised at who will not.

Because not everyone in your life right now wants to go on that journey with

you or wants to see you change and grow as you progress in that journey.

So those are the seven thoughts that came to me today that I hope

will be of some benefit to you.

I'd really love to hear if other key points come out of the episodes for you

that will help us, create that framework.

That guidebook going forward as we listen to our passion,

our inner voice, our inner knowing,

and figure out what the purpose of our life is and,

and how we are perfectly equipped to make a difference for others right now,

and how we continue to climb on the ladder of our own personal development

and then can reach back and give a hand up to someone else

and also, be so grateful for the fact that there are others

that are on ladders above us.

Reach out and pull us up a little higher.

Thank you so much.

I'm very excited next week, to have another fabulous interview.

I am interviewing the woman who helped me reframe...redefine

t he

meaning of the word philanthropy.

It's an eye-opening conversation, and it really expanded my vision

for what philanthropy truly means.

In fact, we even talk about the origin of the word,

And to be able to proudly own the fact that I am a philanthropist...

And I bet you are too!