@DenaForYourPurposeIn Service to YOU Unlocking The Keys To YOUR Purpose, Holistic Success & Heartivism Transformation

Change, featured, Podcast, Purpose, Questioning, race relations, Storm Strategies, Transformation

EP 20: The #Sparked Life Podcast: Life Shifts With Brandon Peele

July 27, 2020June 5, 2023 Dena Wiggins

Purpose Peeps,

During these unique times, you may be experiencing some emerging truths. These truths bubble up on the inside and shake up our lives. You may be thinking, do I really need any more disruption during a global pandemic and unprecedented social justice uprising, and whatever else is on our watch? It is during these times you can gain clarity on what you take a stand for and tap into what will sustain you during the marathon required for significant change.

Like the lotus flower that grows through muddy waters, these emerging thoughts are unclear, perhaps nudges that something is shifting. And this process does not come with an instruction manual and can be beautifully messy!

During this episode, we have Purpose Peep, Brandon Peele with us. Brandon lives and breathes purpose. Listen as Brandon takes us through some recent inner shifts. We touch on some of the inner work that is happening within us that is shaping our responses to the clarion calls for we hear sounding loudly for change.

Purpose Peeps, there is homework! Apply Brandon’s heart-centered advice to arrive at your authentic and intentional action towards your vision of flourishing.

Brandon Peele (he/him) is a Midwesterner, best-selling author, international speaker, the Vice President, People Science at ion Learning. He has written / co-written 4 books on purpose activation and worked with many organizations to activate purpose-led and inclusive cultures. He has also taught at several universities and has had his work featured in media outlets such as Forbes, U.S. News and World Report, and Conscious Company Magazine.

Brandon is a PGI Certified Purpose Guide™, Imperative Certified Purpose Leader™, serves on the Council of the Global Purpose Leaders and has an MBA in Leadership from Columbia Business School. He lives in San Diego with his wife, Stephanie. To connect with Brandon, visit his website www.BrandonPeele.com.

Dena Wiggins (she/her) is a Best-Selling Transformational Author and MBA informed Purpose Doula. She wholeheartedly believes that purpose is the birthright of humanity and intentionally refers to all of humanity as Purpose Peeps. Dena’s sweet spot of service is to transform the many ways of living survival as a lifestyle into the many ways of living thriving lives of purpose. This shift is vital to members of BIPOC communities who have experienced systemic oppression as well as doing our individual and collective parts to the end intentional oppression that is the antithesis of thriving lives of purpose. Her style is to be a voice of shared experience meeting clients where they are on their sacred path to purpose journeys with empowering frameworks reflective of her lived experiences, Divine guidance, and learnings in–spirituality, facilitation, purpose, and strategy–all working in service of clients delivering their purposeful expression into the world. Learn more and grow in connection at www.denawiggins.com.

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Change, COVID19 Support, featured, Podcast, Purpose, Purpose Story, Questioning, Resources, Spark, Storm Strategies, The Sparked Life, Transformation, Youth Guns Violence

EP 18: When Tragedy Births Purpose, The #Sparked Life Podcast

May 22, 2020June 5, 2023 Dena Wiggins

When the unthinkable happens, we are built to respond in fight, flight, or freeze. Our bodies are wired to slow down, conserve energy, and limit our view to what is right in front of us. Remarkably, when tragedy happens, there are some Purpose Peeps who shift to evolve tragedy into some of the most purposeful action. Somehow they shift to see possibility in the middle of impossible grief.

As we are months into the world’s response to the COVID19 pandemic, many of us are experiencing the extreme stressors of the attack on human life as well as the painful requirements to reduce its impact. During this time, the ailments of our time are revealed in full view as the capacity of the world is too full and stretched to cover them.

During the last weeks, the world mourned with the family of Ahmaud Arbery as we watched the video of his murder amongst intense public outcry. Let me ask the question that is the elephant in the room, does the sparked life matter and exist within such difficult and challenging times? While the world is in survival mode, is thriving an option?

Thanks to a friend sharing his heartbreak about Ahmaud’s murder, I was reminded of a part of my purpose story, my family history, that is so painful I locked it away. Locked away with that pain and trauma is also the story of a family hero who in the face of indescribable pain, weaved an amazing story of love, purpose, and social advocacy.

I am thrilled that The #Sparked Life Podcast’s first interview format features a painfully complex and beautiful purpose story that will help us answer some of the big questions many have during this challenging time of history. Please open your hearts and hear a story of a tragedy that birthed purpose and societal change with Mr. Kenneth Barnes, Sr., Community Leader, Purpose Prize Fellow, Founder of Reaching Out to Others Together (ROOT Inc.) and father. Here how the unthinkable allowed him to coin the term, Chronic Traumatic Stress Disorder™ (CTSD) that built a platform for change in how we view and treat youth who are repeatedly traumatized by gun violence.

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Check out our COVID19 Sparked Life Support here.

Dena Wiggins is a Transformational Author, Consultant, Certified Purpose Coach & MBA. She takes an unwavering stand for your purpose. Dena unlocks purpose in sparked Purpose Peeps facilitating businesses and organizations to transform into lighthouses that shine solutions into the marketplace, no matter what. As a Purposed Resultant, she combines her experiences and passion for spark, purpose, and strategy to create impactful solutions that deliver your results that matter. Learn more about her Unlock The Keys To Your Success And Turn Them Into Results® programs and A Life of Purpose® Products that shift your sparks (or ahas) into action at www.denawiggins.com.

IKIGAI As A Purposed Resultant Program

Freemiums For Your Purpose

The Purpose Place: Activating Purpose In Younger Purpose Peeps

A Life of Purpose Products

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featured, Purpose, Questioning, Spark, Transformation

Workism or Purpose At Work?

March 12, 2019 Dena Wiggins

Last week I featured a clip of CBS Good Morning about workism in our compilation paper, Connecting With Purpose. As I listened to Derek Thompson succinctly present the case of workism, which he defines as the way work has morphed into a religious identity—promising transcendence and community but failing to deliver, I nodded my head enthusiastically as he shared the symptoms of workism. I recall thinking, “yes, Derek, I am tracking with you!” …Until the conclusion that the intersection of purpose and work translates to seeking the meaning of life from work, which makes the seeker miserable because work is not designed for that and the purpose and work story seems to end there. That’s where Derek and I differ because I know of an additional chapter in the story of purpose and work that is unfolding and it’s a game changer.

Over a decade ago, I became impassioned about the intersection of spirituality and work. At that time the question that sparked me was, “how can I bring my full self to what I do?” I felt exhausted from the ways I compartmentalized my life and believed I had to seek different fulfilling experiences from multiple sources that I felt were easier to unleash my authentic self. I read and studied and tried to make this a mental exercise but it was a soul question and exercise and it took years to figure that out.

I was gifted with the opportunity to work at a consultancy that embraced that exploration in its culture! Talk about manifestation. My employer was a Spirit At Work award recipient and community member allowing me access to living models of intentional practice or being with big questions in an organizational context.

In 2009 like so many workers, I was laid-off.

My bounce back from this lay-off was really difficult not just because of the strains in our economy but because of the importance I placed on this job. I think I developed a slight case of workism in this place of noble pursuit. My case of workism was not about working crazy hours to make meaning of my life but rather how so much of my identity was locked into the work environment that allowed me to explore my big question.

After a challenging couple of years, I realized that purpose, which I define as the fullest expression of who I am (spiritual, savvy, experience, passions, goals) and the authentic service that comes from that knowledge, comes from within me as an ongoing exploration. Whether I am working or not, whether my doing is compensated or volunteered or how I am with my family and community, it all comes from my home center, my knowing who I am and the value I bring that delivers different outcomes in different environments.

When we unlock ourselves, we take ourselves everywhere we go including the workplace.

My lay-off was a gift, a catalyst that allowed me to amplify what I learned. I realize the job that I loved was really my cocoon for transformative growth and post-layoff was time for me to learn my wings and fly. I learned that when I unlock purpose I take that knowing everywhere I go, including the work that I do. It may seem like a slight distinction but the order is everything.

The press that I felt beginning in the early 2000s was the beginning of my awareness of The Purpose Economy, where consumers are purchasing not solely based on the widgets made or products and services provided but on a company’s ability to answer its big question, who it is in its fullest expression. What is its fully intended impact? Like my personal experience of awakening, many organizations are compartmentalized and the shift is moving to an integrated existence. Many organizations are moving from a model of this is what we do, this is how it relates to community and multiple sets of stakeholders to this is what we do, this is why we do it and this is how we integrate what we do with why we do it for a continuum of results that matter.

Source: Making Work More Meaningful: Building a Fulfilling Employee Experience, 2018 PwC, CECP, Imperative

The next chapter of extracting more meaning in life is not trying to wring it from our employment by doing more but rather by bringing our full selves and the expanding knowledge of the value we bring to the organizations we partner with for results that matter. I agree with Derek insomuch as the order matters. Work is not doling out purpose but it can be designed as a purpose-friendly facilitator with measurements including employee-fulfillment and the impact of purpose enrollment between individual, organizational, consumer & community stakeholders towards results that matter.

In this new paradigm, people are leveraging what they know about purpose and gaining fulfillment through intentional doing with purpose clarity. Through this lens, work is a purpose partner and as we shift our jobs, we shift purpose partners. Employers partner with employees in the way it provides opportunities for relationships, impact, and growth, which are the pillars for fulfillment in what its employees do. This is critical as some say we are in a growing Gig Economy.

The next chapter of purpose and work that we are all coauthoring contains external pushes from shifts in our economic environment as well as internal pulls from what many people are experiencing in pursuit of fulfilling and meaningful living. Organizations reside between the economic environment change and the personal internal transformations of its employees. Choosing to be market and employee responsive are good strategic choices for the organization, which are systems of people, and yet the demand is coming from the people in support of what is transpiring within the people.

Dena Wiggins is a Transformational Author, MBA Resultant, and Certified Purpose Coach. She takes an unwavering stand for your purpose. Dena unlocks purpose in sparked Purpose Peeps who transform businesses and organizations into lighthouses that shine solutions that transform our world. Stay connected, join the conversation, take inspired action.

Learn more at www.denawiggins.com. Shop A Life of Purpose® Products and children’s products at The Purpose Place.

featured, Purpose, Purpose Profile, Questioning, Transformation, Unlock The Keys to Business Success, Unlock The Keys To Your Success

#SparkNotes: How Do You Double The Number of Fulfilled Purpose Peeps in the Workplace by 2030?

October 31, 2018October 31, 2018 Dena Wiggins

Hey Purpose Peeps,

I owe you an apology. I apologize for being passive about a trend that impacts all working Purpose Peeps and future working Purpose Peeps–a trend that impacts all of us.

33% of Purpose Peeps say that they are unfulfilled in the workplace. Source 2016 Workforce Purpose Index, Purpose, Imperative & LinkedIn

I’ve shared this trend but sometimes with the energy and passion of a keynote speaker who gets onto the podium, clears her voice, “ummm hmmmm,” and begins speaking while the audience is still talking! How empowered is that?

Speaking from my belly, this trend means that 2/3’s of us Purpose Peeps are unfulfilled at work. Either we know it, we deny it or we’re on autopilot doing a great job of existing. It means that we are doing all the things to check the box on success and we still don’t feel connected. This brings up another point, we may not have the common language to express what we are feeling as unfulfillment.

Here’s the definition of fulfillment:

I got sparked from the definition because.

The definition includes the word realization. One of my realizations is that many of us may be installing (checking the boxes, doing all the things) life and not realizing (coming back to reason) the intent of our life.
The example of the definition describes many Purpose Peeps that have a vague plan for fulfillment because they have not unlocked their definition of success or their purpose code. Riddle me this, how do you measure what you have not defined or defined well? The answer, you don’t because you can’t. At best you try to apply measures that are not aligned with your purpose realization and are met with frustration that is difficult to unlock and unpack.

Last week I attended a gathering of Purpose Peeps at Purpose 2030 where Purpose Peeps across the globe, disciplines, industries and functions and roles met to unlock the burning question Imperative asks every day, how do we double the number of fulfilled people in the workforce by 2030? Such a large question with a huge number of targets, Purpose Peeps who shift, requires a movement–Purpose 2030. But before the movement, comes the revolt or the shift.

A piece of the answer to the question of how we shift this trend is realizing (there’s that impact word again) that it takes all of the Purpose Peeps. At the start of Purpose 2030, Aaron Hurst, founder of Imperative and author of The Purpose Economy shared one of the findings from Imperatives new body of research before its upcoming release…

Are you ready?

82% of Purpose Peeps sampled in the survey understand that they are responsible for fulfillment at work! Introduce the:

What this means is that Purpose Peeps recognize they have the power to switch the dynamic of fulfillment at work, they just have not unlocked the how. It’s like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz who understands the ruby slippers have power but she does not realize that she possesses the shift that unleashes the power!

During Purpose 2030, one of the solution design teams (yes, this is a working session) was tasked with going out and questioning random Purpose Peeps (not Purpose 2030 attendees who are already unlocked) about how they are fulfilled at work. It required a quick reframe on what we mean by fulfillment. Here’s a fulfillment wall with their answers.

The Purpose Peeps in this impromptu exercise were able to express an authentic fulfillment lever that they can check in with daily and throughout the day. This mindset shift shows what is possible for what the 82% of Purpose Peeps expressed in Imperative’s upcoming research survey–we are empowered to unlock fulfillment and create it and do something about it.

This fulfillment exercise reflects the paradigm shift from focusing on engagement to focusing on fulfillment which starts from the inside out.

Purpose Peeps, test this out.

From a place of curiosity with no attachment to the outcome, use the definition of fulfillment above from Dictionary.com and ask Purpose Peeps (anyone) to fill in the blank.
Now go back to your organizational metrics and see if you have anything that measures outputs like this. If you do, awesome! You are an early adopter in the Purpose 2030 movement. How are you leveraging and scaling the power of purpose in what you do within your organization? What is the activation rigor that moves the Purpose Peeps from aha moment to intended practice and mastery?

This is the difference, the gaps, between knowing you have ruby slippers, unlocking the power of the ruby slippers on your path to purpose journey (yellow brick road) and clicking the heels of the ruby slippers knowing you have the power to transform because you were transformed by knowing more about how you come alive.

Imperative has a solution that unlocks more than the knowledge that we have keys to fulfillment to unlock. They’ve unlocked the science of purpose and created a psychological assessment that unlocks the purpose drivers that connect Purpose Peeps with a composite of what brings fulfillment to them. Purpose Peeps are empowered to see the value they bring and create more of it in what they do. It’s a game changer.

Organizations that value sparked, unlocked Purpose Peeps create environments to further unlock what clicking the ruby slippers means (realizes) for Purpose Peeps across organizations (systems of Purpose Peeps) while Purpose Peeps own unlocking what this means for themselves through more mindfulness is his or her doing.

The power of purpose within organizations is multi-directional and when approached this way instead of traditional top-down methods of execution, has exponential power to deliver multiple levels of results that matter.

To learn more about unlocking the power of your ruby slippers personally or in business, check out the Unlock the Keys to Your Success And Turn Them Into Results® Programs and get YOUR custom Purpose Me Purpose Profile for you and your teams of five or more Purpose Peeps. I hold a belief that many Purpose Peeps require some unlocking before using the assessment (going to see the wizard). It’s like Dorothy and the other characters of The Wizard of Oz starting the story visiting the wizard in their current frame of reference versus unlocking more about themselves so what the wizard shares affirms their knowing rather than tells. We are for realized, empowered purpose!

XO,

Dena, Your Sister in Purpose & Resultant

Dena Wiggins is a Transformational Author, Consultant and Certified Purpose Coach. She takes an unwavering stand for your purpose. Dena unlocks purpose in sparked Purpose Peeps who transform businesses and organizations into lighthouses that shine solutions that transform our world. Stay connected, join the conversation, take inspired action.

Learn more at www.denawiggins.com and shop A Life of Purpose® Products. Save the date, October 18 – 19, 2019, Purpose 2030 in San Francisco, CA.

featured, Purpose, Questioning, Transformation

#SparkNotes: What Happens When You’re in a Transformative Process?

August 2, 2018August 3, 2018 Dena Wiggins

Hey Purpose Peeps,

Don’t you love how nature and natural processes teach us about life? One of my favorites is transformation revealed through the life of the butterfly. There’s so much juicy wisdom shared by watching this phenomenal process.

Over time, some deeper lessons began to reveal themselves.

Embrace life lessons that circle back, not as repeats but deeper dives.

Sometimes change just sucks. Yes, I called the elephant in the room out. There are times when you can catch a glimpse of the other side of whatever change is occurring. Then there are the times that Purpose Peeps tend to discuss through hindsight–after they’ve gotten through some really difficult times.

Consider our friend, the caterpillar. What if she does not know she’s a caterpillar changing into a butterfly? What if she did not have a butterfly mentoring her and educating her about the process, “when you are hundreds of times your size, it’s because you need the weight and the fuel to source your change. and by the way you will experience this change in a cocoon or isolation, so get your meditation together for the journey.” What if the caterpillar did not anticipate the change taking so long and gives up before the next phase?

These are real periods in a transformation that when we look back on our journey as Purpose Peeps are clear but while we’re going through it, we may feel lost or unsure. It’s a thing. It’s real. It’s coming up in several conversations with Purpose Peeps that have been through several iterations of major change and it is still happening. What’s interesting is that it takes a minute to recognize this signpost.

If you are experiencing an ugghhhhh period where you are in your purposed transformation and yet you feel lost in the process, consider these things:

KNOW you are in a purposed transformation. Whether you identify with the story of the butterfly or the duckling transforming to a swan, there is a point that you have to give up your old identity to take on your new identity. There is a lot you don’t know and it’s ok. You will learn but you have to let go and have faith in your purposed transformation otherwise it will stall because your mindset is unaligned with what is happening. Sometimes the only thing you know is that you’re in a purposed cocoon of process.
BE with your purposed transformation. Be with the ambiguity, the discomfort, and the frustration. Being with it, just as it is, offers truth to the courageous journey you are experiencing. Offer some sincere asks. You may need some new resources for this leg of your purposed transformation and if you continue to use your current toolbox, or deny your experience, you’ll continue to be met with frustration.
DO your purposed transformation. This means do your version of it. Many Purpose Peeps may offer their best thinking and tools and yet you still have to surrender to YOUR process. Consider our offerings as frameworks or skeletons that still need to be filled, nourished and completed by you. Like our friend the butterfly, from the outside, looking in, we see and acknowledge the phases. What is unknown are the individual requirements of that caterpillar in that process to become that butterfly. What did she give up that she did not know she would have to surrender to complete her process? What happens if she does not fly on the first try? What if she did not stay in her cocoon and got distracted, how does she re-engage in her process? Processes can be similar and unique at the same time.

Living our life purpose is miraculous. Just as every time we see a butterfly swoop by us, we marvel at its miracle of making it through. As the quote from Dr. Angelou suggests, it is ok to admit the changes it took for that miracle we are witnessing just as it’s ok to admit the requirements of our purposed transformations.

Can I go deeper with my entrepreneur or CEO Purpose Peeps?

Here’s a #keytosuccess that I am learning… If you are an entrepreneur or CEO and feel like what you are creating and building feels stuck, stalled or inconsistent (strong starts, fizzles and leveling but not a progressive cycle), one reason could be YOU.

The first transformation that exists in your business is your transformation. Can you imagine the caterpillar building while it is in transition?

If this is you Purpose Peep, check into what is going on with you. What you are experiencing could be the next level of product or service for your business and the key is to continue your journey and what life is teaching you before leveraging it into your business. This principle is true whether your offerings are B2C or B2B. And Purpose Peeps, I have tried to avoid challenging periods of transformation by going off and creating something new. Have you experienced this?

As Purpose Peeps, so much of ourselves go into what we are doing. When I was licensed as a strategic planning facilitator, my licensor created an element called the Owners Personal Definition of Success. This strategic choice came from the CEO and was his/her personal stamp that is woven into the strategy and operations of the entity. This process and its strategic inclusion yield competitive advantage because it is the mojo, the fire behind the services an entity provides or what it manufactures or sells. This is the life energy that connects everyone in the buying or production cycle together. Now, Purpose Peeps call the Owner’s Definition of Success it’s “Why” or the purpose of an organization or business differing from its mission.

Consider if you are that Purpose Peep CEO defining your definition for success for the entity or honing in on its laser-sharp why… And are experiencing a shift while leading the charge on how to grow the entity… And the entity is experiencing bumps and hurdles that you and your team could normally problem solve and shift. Perhaps the shift this challenge is leading you to is to YOUand some refining is taking place with your underlying purpose.

Remember purpose unfolds. Purpose evolves over time. It’s not only ok but brilliant to check in and engage in some questioning to ensure you are in alignment with its direction. When you are clearer, your way forward in all areas including your business or organization is clearer.

As resultants, we know our organizations and businesses shift to recognize and leverage internal and external environmental factors. What if your organization or business is growing through to another level of purpose or shifting purpose in a major way? Who is responsible for sensing this subtle and often elusive shift? Purpose Peep, this level of strategy begins with you. This skillset is keenly important if you are passionate about innovation and being an early adopter in your field or industry.

The innovative Purpose Peep senses the call to transform before it becomes a change with mass appeal. If this is you, part of your purpose is to lead transformations and building this sense is a requirement of your purpose path.

To learn more about unlocking your “why” personally or in business, check out the Unlock the Keys to Your Success And Turn Them Into Results® Programs and get YOUR custom Purpose Me Purpose Profile for you and your teams of five or more Purpose Peeps.

XO,

Dena, Your Sister in Purpose & Resultant

Learn more at www.denawiggins.com and shop A Life of Purpose® Products.