DNA Of Purpose

Hello and welcome to the Decoding Purpose podcast.
Regular listeners of Decoding Purpose will know that for me, a huge part of my pursuit for purpose has been exploring what some may refer to as the ‘space in between’- consciousness or life force. For some that is a space uncovered in meditation or yoga, for others this space is the exploration of eastern philosophies such as the Ikigai or mindfulness. It is a space that could be found in science, nature or in the expression of art. Whatever it is for you personally...it is a space of solitude, reflection, introspection, and of a deeper connection to the body, mind and spirit. That is why I am more than excited to dive into that space, in order to decode our personal dharma with Ayurvedic practitioner, meditation master, and keynote speaker extraordinaire Mark Bunn.
One of things that I personally admire and respect about Mark is the manner in which he has been able to simplify and translate eastern medicine so that it makes sense in a modern world. In Fact Mark’s speaking presentations for corporate organisations really do take the transcendental and make it tool driven, practical and highly applicable to a day at work in the western world. At the heart of the conversation, is an eastern exploration of high performance, and purpose or in Ayurvedic terms our Dharma, as a super highway that allows us to step into a higher potential.
Marks background, as a professional AFL footballer, has provided him with a deep understanding of exercise, nutrition and health science. However, his passion to understand eastern medicine was inspired by a volunteer trip to South East Asia for an aid organisation, where he witnessed people who despite living in extreme poverty where extremely happy. This made him question what was different about their way of life?
These people weren’t worried about good fats, bad fats, cholesterol levels or high-tech exercise programs. Their levels of health and happiness were off the charts compared to our sophisticated western society. So began Mark's research into Eastern medicine. After years of studying the world's healthiest, longest living people and formal training in Ayurvedic medicine (Maharishi Ayurveda), Mark wrote ‘Ancient Wisdom for Modern Health’. It's popularity in becoming a three-time best-seller confirmed Mark's belief that making health simple is the key for sustained happiness at work and home.
Today, Mark and I covered so much ground, talking about transcendental meditation, the basics of ayurvedic profiling or what is called our doshas, the incredible intuitive abilities of our bodies, and just how much we have to learn from ancient practices in the pursuit of purpose.
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I don’t know about you, but when I hear the word noble, there’s a couple of images that spring to mind. There’s images of knights or soldiers defending kingdoms, and images of people like Mother Theresa placing their own needs aside for the needs that they can see in the world. In the mix of these images, I can guarantee that one of the last images to spring to mind, is that of a salesman. But in this episode of Decoding Purpose, I certainly had a new perspective from guest Lisa McLeod on how the word noble epitomises something much more personal, accessible and individual to each and every person - beginning with the sales people!
A global expert in operationalising purpose, Lisa introduced Noble Purpose® to the world in her best selling book, Selling with Noble Purpose. Her research demonstrates how organisations with a purpose bigger than money make more money and generate greater customer and employee engagement.
Following spending time with some incredible high performing sales people, Lisa realised that those who could connect what they were selling with the people they were selling to, produced bigger results than their counterparts.
“I was trying to find language to describe the emotion these people had that propelled them to go the extra mile, and actually be more assertive, than some of their counterparts because they were what we came to call true believers. It was the nobility of that, I’m here because patients need me, I’ve got to sell this drug because patients need it. Or later we built an adventure travel company and it became “our trips change peoples lives! I’ve got to sell more, I want more lives to be changed!” That feeling was common in the top performers and we needed a word to capture that, and noble became the perfect word.”
Lisa’s newest book, Leading with Noble Purpose: How to Create a Tribe of True Believers is a breakthrough book that shows leaders how to win the hearts and minds of their teams and customers. This episode of Decoding Purpose was yet another incredible dive into this topic with endless facets.
Follow the link below to listen to Episode 16 of the podcast.

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Welcome To The Decoding Purpose Podcast.
When it comes to diving head first into purpose time and time again I have spoken to people who have discovered their purpose not via their work or their passion. For these people purpose looked a little more like a Tsunami that in hitting the shores of their life wiped away any resemblance of what that life once looked like. The wave crashed through any perceived identity and shattered the layers of ego that we so often attach to our self worth.
You see when the wave hits we are called into survival, and it is in survival mode we are faced with any demons, any fears and any shadow that does not serve our recovery - our journey into the future. We are confronted with one of life's hardest questions ...and that question is quite simply do I choose to live? Do I choose to survive, and If I survive how is my life meaningful? How is it significant and how am I going to use that depth of purpose to rise from the waves, to rise from the after shook ...and ultimately to live again.
I first met today's guest in 2017, and I remember when we first had a conversation being taken back by the infectious energy and vivacious nature of the voice that boomed down the phone. This was a person determined to become a speaker, and an influencer no matter what and I was the person to help him on that mission. You can imagine my surprise when I discovered that the person I was talking to was actually in hospital at the time recovering from another round of surgery, and when we catch up he still had a chronic limp and a drip hanging out his arm.
Today’s guest is the incredible Richie Harkham. Richie has always been a serial entrepreneur, and since we first met he has also fulfilled his dream of becoming a speaker and Influencer. That said, there is much more depth to this incredible human being which is exactly why I am honoured to dive into the intersection of resilience and purpose with somebody I include amongst my dearest friends.
To provide context, In 2014 Richie was involved in a near-death accident on his motorbike. This accident left his left leg shattered and over the following four years he battled through eight operations, a knee transplant and a golden staph infection.
While in recovery from this life altering near death experience Richie received a donor knee from a young boy in Germany who had lost his life in a car accident. To thank the young boy he decided to create a wine label called Hark Angel to raise funds to build a school in Burma for disadvantaged young people. This enabled Richie to turn pain into purpose… and since then Hark Angel has literally grown wings and today is a fully fledged non for profit on a mission to build 100 schools throughout the developing world. To date Hark Angel has built seven schools.
Todays podcast is for those of you out there who have ever had a bad day, or for those of you who may have felt the grip of darkness or depression. It is for those of you who feel disconnected from a depth of meaning in your life and need to take the steps to wake up to the wonder of life. It is for those of you seeking the courage to grow, to expand and to transform ...regardless of the mountains to climb. Most importantly it is a reminder for all of us to have gratitude for the strength and resilience found in the human spirit, and to celebrate purpose as the greatest gift we have to navigate the more difficult times life can throw our way. After all these times can often hold the greatest gifts for ourselves, for others and for the planet at large.
Richie Harkham. Welcome to the podcast.

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Hello and welcome to today’s bonus episode of Decoding Purpose.
For the regular listeners you would know that normally we release an episode every fortnight, however sometimes the universe delivers a guest that we simply could not get enough off! With that in mind, welcome to part two of my incredible interview with the game-changing founder and CEO of the Collective Hub - Lisa Messenger.
Lisa’s brand new book ‘Work from Wherever: How to set yourself free (and still achieve)’ will be hitting the shelves of your local bookshop tomorrow so before diving into part two, if you haven’t listened to part one make sure you check out episode 13 as the podcast is jam packed with juicy content highlighting all of Lisa’s amazing perspectives on themes covering the Future Of work, business and the economy in addition to exploring what it is to feel prosperous, peaceful and on purpose with the ultimate freedom to work from wherever. Lisa also gives us a few hints on what her next grand adventure might look like!
In part two we journey backwards through the chapters (or shall I say book titles) of Lisa’s collective evolution. We dig into the daring and disruptive, the bold and brave, the fierce, the feminine and even the things she may not have otherwise spoken about… showcasing the beauty in it all. If you are someone who has followed lisa’s journey as many of us have over the years you will enjoy gaining the inside insights into Lisa’s very public journey into purpose.
I enjoy learning from every guest I have on the podcast, but I have to say that I loved interviewing Lisa because there is nothing hidden, forbidden or held back - she is always in complete contribution. Lisa is everything she claims to be...she walks her talk, and is completely aligned to her purpose. This is why I believe her light burns so brightly in the hearts of so many aspiring or established entrepreneurs….who are seeking out a friend, a role model, a face and a voice that feels like home. This why she is and always will be the entrepreneurs entrepreneur.
Welcome to part two of the collective evolution with Lisa Messenger.

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Hello and welcome to today’s episode of Decoding Purpose.
Lisa Messenger is a name familiar to most people. For those of you who have not heard of Australia's magazine maverick, Lisa is the game-changing founder and CEO of the Collective Hub. She is also an international speaker, best-selling author, and an authority on disruption in both the corporate sector and the start-up scene. Most significantly, she is one of the most purpose driven women that I know which is why Lisa has been number one on my podcast wish list for quite some time.
In 2013 Lisa launched Collective Hub as a print magazine with no experience, and in an industry that people said is either dead or dying. Collective Hub has since grown into an international multimedia business and lifestyle platform with multiple verticals across print, digital, and events – all of which serve to ignite human potential.
I'm sure many of you listening today especially the entrepreneurs out there would have held The Collective Magazine in your hands or one of Lisa’s many books at a point in time, and if you are anything like me you would have cut the collective into pieces after reading it and collaged your office or bedroom walls with your favourite inspirational quotes. Lisa’s purpose is to be the ‘entrepreneur for entrepreneurs’ and that she is in every sense of the word.
Before recording this interview, Lisa and I were chatting and I was reflecting on the fact that I had met her many years before she famously launched the collective magazine. We had shared an intimate dinner with mutual friends in around 2008 at Sydney's fox studios.
We laughed about how long ago that was, however, upon reflection it was one of those poignant moments of gratitude because like so many others I had witnessed the rise of one of Australia's most prominent female entrepreneurs. I remember sitting with Lisa that night, and it was nearly impossible to fathom the journey she had been on since that night. The evolution of a purpose that we all got to watch in awe off from the stands.A purpose that was deep, daring, beautiful and bold. But also purpose that was heart achingly real, raw and required a level of resilience that would break many of us. Despite that in her evolution she kept it real as the entrepreneurs entrepreneur….even when it hurt. Even when it broke and even when the call of purpose whispered...let's do it again. Let's do it differently.
We covered all of this and more so as you can imagine...Lisa and I had a lot of ground to cover. So much so that we decided to turn this episode of Decoding Purpose into two parts as a celebration of Lisa’s brand new book ‘Work from Wherever: How to set yourself free (and still achieve)’ which is available for pre sale today and will be released next week! Check out the show notes for links to the Collective Hub where you can biuy the book.
In the first half of my incredibly candid conversation with Lisa, we talked about her personal sense of purpose, and how she has used adversity to crystallise this. We unpacked some of the trends covered in Work from Wherever, and we also talked openly about the iteration and constant evolution of the Collective Hub and the part her magazine and team played in setting herself up for new ventures.
Purchase Lisa's new book 'Work From Wherever' at the following link: https://collectivehub.com/

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Hello and welcome to today’s episode of Decoding Purpose.
In 2016, a book by the name of Ikigai hit the shelves of bookstores worldwide. Ikigai was a book like no other, a deep exploration of an ancient Japanese concept around our purpose for being, or a reason to jump out of bed every morning. And according to the residents of the Japanese island of Okinawa - the world's longest-living people - finding it is the key to a longer and more fulfilled life.
Today's guest is author Hector Garcia and I was so honoured to be interviewing not only an internationally acclaimed author but a truly humble and heartfelt human being so willing to share his insights into purpose. Hector was born in Spain but a resident of Japan since 2004, has written several books about Japanese culture, but with over a million copies sold worldwide so far, his reflection on Ikigai has certainly captured the hearts and minds of the world.
Ikigai is an international best seller and has been translated into 26 languages. It seems that in today's fast paced world with an abundance of choices, distractions and our attention being pulled in every direction….true peace is found in the pursuit for what's held deeply inside our being. Our Ikigai and our reason for being.
He joins us on the podcast today all the way from Tokyo to talk all things Ikigai, how do we discover it, what has he learnt by observing others connection with the concept of Ikigai, and what can we do to protect our Ikigai when we discover it.
In today's conversation we discussed:

• Why the pursuit and discovery of our Ikigai is at the heart of human joy.
• We look at why the pursuit for meaning enables us to live longer from the people of Okinawa - a part of Japan inhabited by the oldest living people in the world.
• We decode the Japanese characters that make up the Ikigai.
• We unpack the western models for understanding purpose such as Viktors Frankl's Logotherapy, in addition to taking a deep dive into Morita therapy and the art of radical emotional acceptance in finding meaning.
• We dive into the art of flow in tuning into our Ikigai in addition to exploring concepts that guide our Ikigai such as sophisticated simplicity, meditation, mindfulness, nutrition and exercises that support our ability to live with purpose.
• We also look at how we can create space everyday to protect our Ikigai ensuring that we always protect the time we have for what provides us both happiness and joy.

By nature, Hector is a creator, a dreamer, a learner and talented writer, and we had a lot to cover in today’s conversation of Decoding Purpose. Welcome to this episode of the podcast.

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Hello and welcome to today’s episode of Decoding Purpose. After a number of weeks diving deep into conversations of corporate and collective purpose, this week it’s time for a change of pace...and that is why today I have chosen to step into purpose as a spiritual path.
With regards to the activation of purpose, I have pondered whether I would choose to dive into the spiritual components of purpose given many of my interviews have had a core focus on the more tangible qualities of personal purpose or organisational purpose. However in stepping into my truth, I cannot separate the activation of purpose, from the spiritual journey it presents us with. Like a practice of faith, the pursuit of purpose is also a practice.
All of that said, I do want to say that this is not a conversation that is about any particular religion or belief, as that like the pursuit of purpose is something that is deeply personal. Your faith or practice may be nature, science, dance or meditation. It may also be that you embrace a chosen religion and prayer is your practice. What I want to focus on today, is that regardless of faith, purpose comes from an ability to step through the parameters of ego, enabling a greater sense of contribution. The kind of contribution that comes through us, rather than being from us, and with that in mind our spiritual practice, can and does enable us to gain clarity of purpose.
Today’s guest, Sara Brooke, is the creator of The Space in Between, based in Melbourne, Australia. As a Reiki Master Teacher, Soul Medicine Therapist, Ritual Weaver & Ceremonialist, the essence of Sara’s work is about guiding people to ground the sacred in their everyday life and remember their true nature. Sara and I share a lot of philosophies when it comes to the concept of soul purpose and today’s conversation is a beautiful exploration of all things soul, chakras, meditation, spirituality and some of the practical ways we can activate this facet of our purpose.
This podcast is perfect for those of us who find ourselves stumped when someone says “just follow your gut” or “trust your instincts” and where to begin with understanding what our hearts and souls can have to say when it comes to life’s big questions and decisions.
“our mind is this incredible researcher that wants to understand and box, and can find things and creates and weaves stories, but the soul is the part that’s beyond that, it’s the canvas that’s holding everything of us”
Sara believes we are living at an extremely important “tipping point” of human history. That our consciousness and awareness is expanding rapidly, and that the choices that we make now will have a ripple effect on how we EVOLVE as a species. We are all being called to action the guidance our souls are giving us. The world as we know it is changing. It isn’t going to go back to the way it was, and her commitment to assisting others in connecting with their true selves and soul purpose is so clearly evident in today’s conversation.
Today, get ready to take a moment to look inwards, to listen to a part of your heart, your soul, that you might not have connected with in a while. I promise, that moment will pay itself back over and over again.
Connect With Sara: https://spaceinbetween.com.au/

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In today's episode we will be zooming across the world to Phoenix Arizona to talk to an entrepreneur who I admittedly stalked on LinkedIn upon discovering the existence of a purpose driven leadership recruitment firm. When I landed on Brians Mohr's profile I instantly started jotting down a 1000 questions and I knew that I had to have Brian on the show!
After all, never before has there been a poignant time for purpose when it comes to talent attraction and recruitment. With emerging trends redefining the future of work such as flexible working, and the gig economy as two examples and of course the millennials who are the most purpose driven generation to exist taking up 35% of the global workforce...hiring on purpose is a force for business success that cannot be ignored.
With that in mind, If you are a business leader or entrepreneur looking to future proof your organisation then this podcast is for you. At the same time if you are an employee looking to apply purpose in your role, or you are seeking to work for an organisation that is in alignment to your purpose then there are also chunks of gold in here for you.
Brian Mohr, has dedicated countless years of his career exploring the intersection of work and purpose. He has an intense focus on people, purpose, values, culture, leadership, and advocating capitalism as a force for good. A founding member of Jobing.com, one of the original online job boards, Brian over 11 years grew to over 350 employees and $38m in revenue - and their secret to success? Jobing.com privileged purpose and values alignment just as important as career experience, education and skills.
For the last 6 years Brian and his co-founder Max Hansen have expanded on this philosophy, founding YScouts - the first purpose-based leadership search firm. As the first President of the Arizona chapter of Conscious Capitalism for Good, it’s obvious that if there’s one thing Brian knows well - it’s the incredible value that can be seen when individuals are connected with meaningful work. Brian and Max are also the co authors of the book ‘Hiring On Purpose’.

• In today’s conversation, Brian and I deep dive into what it means to lead in a manner that truly leverages the gifts and talents of people to make a meaningful difference in the lives of those around you.
• We dive into the gap between leaders who understand purpose and those who don’t and why.
• We touched on the huge influence purpose and meaningful work has on the bottom line of businesses, and how the intersection of purpose and work is only going to become more important as we launch into a future driven by technology.

Despite being a conversation driven by topics of work and business, Brian’s human-centred philosophy was such a refreshing reflection on the fact that the future of work isn’t all robots and AI, but that it’s human - and to be reminded of our humanity is always a timely reminder, after all it’s impossible to disconnect our sense of purpose, with our sense of what it means to be a human in the workplace.
https://yscouts.com/

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Today’s guest Caroline Guillemain-Brunne is the founder of Organise.Curate.Design - an organisation dedicated to helping busy bodies not only get on top of those tasks we seem to constantly procrastinate, but also put in place strategies to manage the work life balance moving forward.
Over the last few weeks I have spent hours decoding purpose personally, professionally, as a tool for transformation and a process that enables us to uncover our most authentic gifts to the world, but at the end of the day none of that is possible unless we get intentional about living a life of purpose and create the space for purpose in our lives.
Why? Because we are all insanely busy in this fast paced modern world. For some we are riding the nine to five grind, for others we are working as freelancers or entrepreneurs and dealing with client expectations around the clock, and for the busy parents out there juggling the competing demands of kids, families, careers, and the list goes on.
The must dos alone can be overwhelming, let alone creating a space for meaning. This is exactly why it is so important that we get intentional about purpose. That we show up and make the choice, the space, and honour the role of purpose in our lives as we would any other part of mental, emotional or spiritual well being.
Having worked with Caroline over the last few months I can tell you that she is a wild entrepreneur by nature, a mother of 2, and has earned herself a world class reputation in the organisation of high performing humans. She is incredibly aware of how important purpose is in directing and guiding our most valuable asset. Our attention.
In today's conversation we discussed:

• The role of intention in the pursuit of purpose.
• What it takes to create a meaningful life plan
• The practicalities of being a parent and having a purpose
• How to deal with procrastination gremlins taking us of track
• And we take a look at the intersection of purpose, leadership and high performance and within that how as high performers we can stay true to purpose from the inside out.

Today’s episode of Decoding Purpose is a beautiful exploration of how the lofty concept of purpose can be incredibly meaningful in the smallest moments of our everyday lives. An incredible grounded and thoughtful soul, I hope you enjoy today’s conversation with Caroline Guillemain-Brunne.

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Well, they say you should never do business with friends or family, but this week’s episode of Decoding Purpose says that it maybe working with a friend wasn’t a bad decision, but one that resulted in one of the longest and most diverse episodes of this podcast yet!
Having known Tom Dawkins, co-founder of social enterprise crowdfunding platform Start Some Good for a number of years, I knew a few things coming into this episode:

1. There would be no shortage of rabbit holes and tangents for us to jump into
2. His incredible knowledge of the social enterprise space, and the importance of purpose in business would make for a spectacular conversation
3. That no amount of planning would guarantee exactly the outcome of this conversation

From democracy, to finding your tribe, creating collective purpose through storytelling, the need for failure, the “new way” of doing business, collaborations, collective purpose and shoes, my conversation with Tom is everything you’d expect of a conversation between two old friends who are passionate about changing the world. Energetic, inspired and lengthy!
But I can assure you - for those that lean into the over an hour of goodness we’ve got for you this week, there won’t be any disappointment.
“no one is interested in you telling them what they should care about, or what they should think. But there are lots of people out there that do already care about the same things as you.”
If you need a burst of inspiration to find the people who are going to help change the world in the same way you’ve been dreaming of - tune into episode 8 of Decoding Purpose with Tom Dawkins here.
http://www.tomdawkins.com.au/https://startsomegood.com/

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