PURPOSESCAPING with Amanda Miller Littlejohn

PYG 134: Generating the surplus from which you can serve

If you ever find yourself feeling too busy, too overwhelmed, or too burdened with to dos and it's standing in the way of you packaging your genius and making the impact you're meant to make on this world, you need to generate a surplus.
And while it seems counterintuitive, much of that surplus can be connected to making more time (I know, I know -  you're already stretched thin) for yourself.
But this is a personal experiment I've been conducting in my life, and the results have been priceless.
Since implementing a more intentional and daily self balancing routine I have experienced:
more clarity on my business challenges
clarity on what is standing in my way personally
motivation to push through on hard things
patience and grace with myself
perspective - understanding when I'm assigning too much or too little significance to something
a higher tolerance for stress
resilience
If you're too busy to package your genius, putting yourself back on the calendar is a practice I encourage you to try.
Get yourself back on the agenda so you can generate the surplus from which you can serve.
Because you can only give from your overflow.
***
If you've been thinking about joining us for the fall cohort of Package Your Genius Academy, this is the last week to apply. Sessions start Tuesday, October 8.
While I'm clear on how I want to serve (as one who helps others find and get back on their true path) I thought about a few of the people who have benefited most from going through the program and my teachings.
Do any of these people sound like you?
Are you at a crossroads professionally and personally - perhaps you've hit a milestone birthday and you're pondering the bigger questions of your life like "Is this what I want to be doing with my gifts and talents? Is there another professional path for me? Am I showing up the way I truly want to, or am I showing up as others have always expected me to?"
Do you know in your gut that the current stage of your professional journey is over, but you haven't figured out how to activate your next chapter?
Do you feel like something is just...off? You're a success on paper, but you've yet to knock it out of the park doing what you really want to do? You feel like something is missing - the right message, the right market, the right formula to serve - but you're just too close to see the missing piece...
Did you recently leave your job or find yourself on leave wondering what's next? You're a little nervous about making a financial commitment because the future of money is uncertain, but there's something telling you it's time to take a leap?
Are you at a plateau having done all you know to do to make yourself stand out? You know you've got the goods but the world doesn't see you or your accomplishments clearly? (You know this because your compensation and industry acknowledgement don't match the time and work you've put in up to this point...)
Do you live with the daily regret of not betting on yourself sooner? Are you secretly worried that perhaps you missed your moment and it's too late for you to leap?
If any of those scenarios resonated with you, I'm here.
Here to help you cut through the overgrowth and get back on the path again.
And trust me, the path may look overgrown and indistinguishable right now, but I promise you, it's there.
And I can help you find it.
 
It's the LAST WEEK to apply for Package Your Genius Academy. We are enrolling students for the fall cohort that begins Tuesday, October 8. Doors won't open again until sometime in 2020. If you're interested in joining us, learn more and apply now.

PYG 133: Why high achievers need self care the most

We hear a lot about self care - how to get it, why we need more of it, and what does or doesn't constitute it. But lately I've been made aware of the residual effects and payoff of self care - how it benefits me long after I'm in the practice of doing or getting what I need. 
And it makes everything related to my ideas, my planning, my long-term thinking crystal clear.
If you struggle with overwhelm, anxiety, irritability and lack of focus, I highly recommend you thinking through the self care practice that makes the most sense for you.
And check out Dr. Thema Bryant- Davis's episode on the Homecoming Podcast about self care. Very powerful stuff.
 
***
As our enrollment season comes to a close, I welcome you to apply for the opportunity to work together in Package Your Genius Academy this fall!
 
Enrollment is closing soon for the personal brand visibility academy and our PR mastermind. Visit www.packageyourgeniusacademy.com to learn more and apply.

PYG 132: You Can Change Your Vehicle

I recently discovered a truth about myself I had been unable to see for years. I realized that I had been telling myself a story that simply wasn't true. While the story was rooted in my personal experience. I fail to take into account the fact that my situation has changed.I was holding on to a truth that matched a past version of me.
Can you say the same?
How many times have you decided who you are and what you can do based on who you've always been and what you've always done? 
You can change.
You can change your vehicle.
You can choose a new, true, story.

PYG 131: It's worth your dream to try again

Even when we fail the first time, our dreams are worth fighting for.
Package Your Genius Academy was a dream of mine that almost didn't happen. I failed launching the program the first time, but have since gone on to work with 7 cohorts - now enrolling my eighth.
One of the things I often reflect on is what might have been lost if I hadn't gotten back up and tried again. When I think of the lives that have been impacted directly by the academy, and even more importantly, the people I'll never know but who have been impacted by the students who've gone to the academy. It's a humbling thing to see the ripple effect your work can start!
LaShonda Walker is one of our PYGA ripples. She joined in May of 2019 on a quest to find deeper meaning for her work. She used her time in the academy to gain clarity on her purpose, and essentially remember who she'd always been and what she's always loved. It's an honor to see LaShonda ignited and on a new path all her own.
 
***
I welcome you to apply for the opportunity to work together in Package Your Genius Academy this fall as our enrollment season comes to a close.
 
 
Enrollment is open now for the visibility academy and our PR mastermind. Visit www.packageyourgeniusacademy.com to learn more and apply.

PYG 130: How I handle exposure as an INTROVERT

Believe it or not, I'm a hardcore introvert. 
Networking events are my least favorite thing right after small talk. But I realized at some point that if I wanted my business to grow, I'd have to get in front of new people.  I needed a way to show strangers what I knew and what problems I solve if I ever wanted new clients to hire me.
Enter the media.
What other way can you get in front of thousands while only interacting with a handful of people to make the interview happen?
But most introverts see media as a big overwhelming proposition when in reality, there are a number of ways you can approach it.
I came up with a few media exposure personality types. Which one are you?
The Thinker - The thinker has ideas to share and recommendations to make. They would rather share those ideas in a long form way by writing. Their dream media placement would be a New York Times op ed or an essay in the Atlantic
The Talker - The talker loves to engage. And short snippets just won't do, they prefer to get into it and go deep which is perfect for radio or podcasts. A dream media placement would be Fresh Air with Terry Gross on NPR or a Top 10 podcast.
The Talking Head - Unlike the talker, the talker head has her sights set on television and loves the idea of being seen. Dream media placement? A spot on a CNN panel or segment on the TODAY show.
The Hybrid - The hybrid isn't concerned with the type of media so much as what the media will allow him/her to do. So they're fine with radio or tv so long as it allows them to reach more people and make a bigger impact. A mix of all media types will do. 
Which one are you?
And better yet, do you see how different personality types may deal with media exposure differently? There is no one size fits all when it comes to it.
 
If you know you need exposure to get in front of new faces, it doesn't have to be overwhelming. You can tailor your approach to fit your business and your personal style, which we can help you uncover in our program - learn more.

PYG 129: Scarification and Stratification

From The Spruce.com:
Not all plant seeds are ready to sprout as soon as you put them in the soil. Some hard-shelled seeds need a bit more coaxing and some need a temperature change to trigger the end of dormancy. Scarification (cracking the hard outer shell) and stratification (fooling seeds into thinking they've been through winter) are two simple techniques that will save you a lot of frustration when starting seeds.
Stratification and scarification occur naturally when seeds stay outdoors through the cold winter.
Some seeds have outer shells that are extremely hard and don’t allow water through. This is one way a seed stays dormant in the fall and winter until growing conditions improve.
 
You may be upset when you look for your efforts to bear fruit and you can't see the evidence above ground. Sometimes the action is not visible, you may be in a dormant phase in preparation for your growing season.
Not all seeds are ready to sprout as soon as you put them into the soil. You may look at what other people are doing and try to mimic their path not knowing that you're a different kind of plant that requires a different set of conditions and will develop on a different timeline.
Don't judge the progress of the apple tree with the same criteria you use to measure an oak tree.
All seeds are not the same.
You're maturing and preparing to sprout, blossom and bear fruit in your own time.
 
***
I welcome you to apply for the opportunity to work together in Package Your Genius Academy this fall as our enrollment season comes to a close.
 
If you've been doing great work and getting results in your industry, but you want to expand your exposure, learn more about our PR mastermind and apply.
 
Enrollment is open now for the visibility academy and our PR mastermind. Visit www.packageyourgeniusacademy.com to learn more and apply.

PYG 128: Harvest your gifts before the rains

When it comes to working the land - especially in the Southern region of the United States, this time of year is an exciting time because it marks the season of harvest.
But it can be a potentially dangerous time for the farmers who aren't quick enough to get their year's work out of the ground.
It's essentially a race against time to harvest before the winter rains when anything you've left out in the field will be rendered useless.
Unpicked fruit will be left to rot.
A fortuitous conversation with my grandmother revealed this wisdom that's native to Southerners, and I had to share it with you. The similarity between our gifts and a farmer's crops were too stark to miss.
So many people have allowed their gifts - their expertise, skills, and wisdom - to ripen for years, but have yet pick their own fruit.
Let this comparison to nature be your own cautionary tale: there comes a point when you're not growing anymore. But it may not be because you've simply reached a plateau, instead you're fully ripe and it's time for you to get off the vine. And if you stay on the vine too long, the very gifts you've spent years cultivating may be in danger.
 
***
Thank you to Nikki Rogers of the Wednesday Morning Bulletin for mentioning Package Your Genius on your latest edition. For those who want to check out her newsletter, you can check it out here.
 
It's harvest season - and that goes for you, too! If you know your gifts have ripened and you're ready for your harvest, I welcome you to apply for the opportunity to work together in Package Your Genius Academy this fall.
 
If you've been doing great work and getting results in your industry, but you want to expand your exposure, learn more about our PR mastermind and apply.
 
Enrollment is open now for the visibility academy and our PR mastermind. Visit www.packageyourgeniusacademy.com to learn more and apply.
 
 

PYG 127: Choose to choose

High achievers typically do such great work that they're often recruited for opportunities, courted by associates, even pursued by friends. 
Instead of being the aggressor, it's not uncommon for them - despite all of their success - to find themselves in the passive role of waiting to be chosen.
It's what they're used to after all.
If this resonates with you, and you're not in the field you want to be in, on the career track you want to be in, or in a relationship that serves you because you were chosen but did not choose, let me be the first to tell you things can be different.
You can choose to choose.
Don't settle for what falls into your lap. Decide what you want in every area of your life, and go after it.

PYG 126: Must-haves, deal breakers and multipliers

Every living thing has its own set of base level requirements for survival. 
Every living thing also has its own set of factors that would make it hard to grow.
Last but not least, every living thing has certain factors that would take it to the next level and cause it to thrive, regenerate, multiply.
The same is true for us.
Each of us has our own set of must-haves, deal breakers and multipliers. A part of radical self discovery is paying attention to all three in order to get the clearest picture of ourselves and our personal recipe for success.
 
***
Package Your Genius: 5 Steps to Build Your Most Powerful Personal Brand has officially been in the world for a full year!
Thank you to all of you who purchased the book (or the companion workbook), left a thoughtful review, bought the book for a friend and shared this life-changing content. 
I am so grateful!

PYG 125: Radical Self Discovery

I was reflecting back on a few of my incredible clients and the reflection reminded me what it is I do that matters, and more importantly, WHY I do this work.
 
As I was thinking about the simplest way to describe what I do, I realized that at the core of my work I help people remember who they are -- even if you've never truly been able to articulate your understanding of yourself, or if you knew it very clearly at another point in your life but somehow drifted away from yourself and forgot, I help you put a framework around yourself so you understand who you are, what makes you tick, what energizes you and what drains you.
 
In some ways there is nothing more important than this.
 
Once you get a clear understanding of who you are, you can not only make better decisions, but you can make the BEST decisions for you because you will immediately understand why something doesn't feel right.
 
Once you get a clear understanding of who you are, you will know immediately what you have to do in order to get yourself back on course once you've fallen off track.
 
But if you don't know yourself, you'll keep finding yourself in relationships, on career paths and in situations that don't serve you, but you won't know why.
 
If you don't get to know yourself you'll never quite feel at home in yourself, but you won't know why.
 
If you can understand yourself, showing up clearly to others becomes easy. When you know yourself and are clear on who you are, it's easy to communicate that message to other people. It's easy to know when something's a fit or it's not. It becomes easy to say yes instead of no, or no instead of yes because you know yourself.
 
You know your landmines, you know your triggers, you know your deal breakers, you know your must-haves.
 
But how many of us seek to get to know ourselves on such a level? How many of us set out to become a student of our own personal tastes, our likes and dislikes, our motivations?
 
I recommend that if you say you're ready to package your genius, follow a big dream, build a personal brand in a way that puts you further out in the world, first make it your mission to understand yourself.
 
If you can understand yourself, you can set up each day in a way that serves you. Then week after week, month after month, and year after year will be a delight.
 
When you know yourself everything you want - fulfillment, self actualization - all of it - will be within your grasp. You'll become the architect and the builder of your own happiness.
 
***
 
Radical self discovery is the first stage in our successful personal branding process, and we spend the first month in Package Your Genius Academy on that topic alone. If we can get that part right, the packaging and promotion naturally follows. So we don't rush to package you - we seek first to help you understand yourself, and understand how to take personal inventory in the future because some things about yourself will change.
 
If you've ever
landed a great job only to find later on that it's just not a great fit, and you wonder how you missed the red flags
built up a successful business only to realize the clients you serve don't light you up,
had to wake up everyday to a sense of dread instead of joy,
it's time you get to know yourself on a deeper level.
 
Package Your Genius Academy is a powerful opportunity to do that before you package a personal brand that is built on your own recipe for success and fulfillment. Visit packageyourgeniusacademy.com to learn more and apply.