52. How to Discover Your Purpose and What To Do If You Feel Overwhelmed

04/02/18 • 48 min

Studio 78: Ignite Your Passion, Amplify Productivity, Achieve Success

Kishshana Palmer is a focus and purpose coach who specializes in helping working women and entrepreneurs achieve clarity and focus toward entrepreneurial and life goals. She too struggled to find her passion and purpose and knows firsthand the frustrations of being unaligned with your purpose. After working in fundraising for years, she discovered her true calling in coaching and hasn’t looked back since.

In this episode, we discuss simple steps career women can take to overcome the feeling of being overwhelmed and tips for anyone who may be struggling to make a career transition.

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Kishshana started out in fundraising and has led external affairs teams for several national nonprofit organizations
She did that for 16 years, and her focus was on fundraising, communications, marketing, and policy
For the past two years, she’s been an entrepreneur, and she has recently replicated the income that she was making while working for a corporation full-time
Her initial focus was fundraising because that was her expertise, but now she’s starting to pivot
Kishshana discusses how to not to make decisions or career moves from a place of needing money
Before jumping into entrepreneurship and spending money on entrepreneurial endeavors, think about what problem you are solving and how you are best positioned to solve it
Kishshana discusses the struggles she faced during her first year and how she learned to accept that she’s a coach
When she found herself overwhelmed, she took the following steps and asked herself these questions:
- Take a life inventory; what is actually happening in your life?
- What are you actually doing for money?
- What are you actually passionate about?
- What is your purpose?; is it singular or are there multi-purposes that you can weave together?
- Map it out; use sticky notes, color pens, etc.
She found that she is a focus and purpose coach that helps entrepreneurs and career women figure out what their next steps are
Her advice if you’re feeling overwhelmed:
- Stop wherever you are and take a moment of gratitude
- Really take inventory of where you need the most help; how can you move the needle
- Look at the small wins; did you approach it with joy
Advice for career women who feel stuck:
- Get with someone who can help you access your career objectively
- Line up that career inventory with what’s happening in your life
- Ask yourself these self reflection questions: Do you have a work sponsor? Who’s your work mentor? Have you moved beyond mentorship? What does that look like? How do you find it?; Set up a cultivation and stewardship plan for your own career
- What are you doing to say yes to yourself?
Favorite resources: planner, online business manager, planner tools, CPA, VA, graphic designer, developer, and online communities
TIP: Really learn the tools you invest in

Kishshana Palmer

Website: kishshanaco.comInstagram: @funddivaFacebook: fabulouslyfundraisingTwitter: @funddivaPinterest: funddiva

WHERE’S NACHE’

Website: nachesnow.comFacebook:

In this episode, we discuss simple steps career women can take to overcome the feeling of being overwhelmed and tips for anyone who may be struggling to make a career transition.

Please share your thoughts:

Leave a note in the comment section below.
Share this show on Twitter, Facebook, or Pinterest.

Support the show:

Please rate me 5 stars on iTunes. Your rating and reviews help other people discover me.
Subscribe on iTunes, YouTube, or Stitcher.

Subscribe on APPLE PODCASTS | STITCHER | ANDROID

Kishshana started out in fundraising and has led external affairs teams for several national nonprofit organizations
She did that for 16 years, and her focus was on fundraising, communications, marketing, and policy
For the past two years, she’s been an entrepreneur, and she has recently replicated the income that she was making while working for a corporation full-time
Her initial focus was fundraising because that was her expertise, but now she’s starting to pivot
Kishshana discusses how to not to make decisions or career moves from a place of needing money
Before jumping into entrepreneurship and spending money on entrepreneurial endeavors, think about what problem you are solving and how you are best positioned to solve it
Kishshana discusses the struggles she faced during her first year and how she learned to accept that she’s a coach
When she found herself overwhelmed, she took the following steps and asked herself these questions:
- Take a life inventory; what is actually happening in your life?
- What are you actually doing for money?
- What are you actually passionate about?
- What is your purpose?; is it singular or are there multi-purposes that you can weave together?
- Map it out; use sticky notes, color pens, etc.
She found that she is a focus and purpose coach that helps entrepreneurs and career women figure out what their next steps are
Her advice if you’re feeling overwhelmed:
- Stop wherever you are and take a moment of gratitude
- Really take inventory of where you need the most help; how can you move the needle
- Look at the small wins; did you approach it with joy
Advice for career women who feel stuck:
- Get with someone who can help you access your career objectively
- Line up that career inventory with what’s happening in your life
- Ask yourself these self reflection questions: Do you have a work sponsor? Who’s your work mentor? Have you moved beyond mentorship? What does that look like? How do you find it?; Set up a cultivation and stewardship plan for your own career
- What are you doing to say yes to yourself?
Favorite resources: planner, online business manager, planner tools, CPA, VA, graphic designer, developer, and online communities
TIP: Really learn the tools you invest in

Kishshana Palmer

Website: kishshanaco.comInstagram: @funddivaFacebook: fabulouslyfundraisingTwitter: @funddivaPinterest: funddiva

WHERE’S NACHE’

Website: nachesnow.comFacebook:

Previous Episode

51. Why Building a Community on Your Platform is Important + The Importance of Support

It’s Women’s History Month, and as we celebrate the trailblazers, historians, and up-and-comers, I think it’s timely to speak about women supporting women. My guest this week, Elayne Fluker, has built a brand and business around this concept. She is the creator and host of the Support is Sexy podcast, a podcast dedicated to featuring women entrepreneurs and their stories.

Although her podcast is about entrepreneurship, Elayne also created a forum to serve as a meeting place where like-minded, creative, and talented women can collaborate, share, uplift, and support one another. Elayne discusses her own journey into entrepreneurship after having a successful and lucrative career as a media specialist, including how she made her leap and what she’s learned along the way.

She also provides a host of great tips on ways to market content to increase your following as well as how to market yourself. Forty-minutes of goodness coming your way.

Please share your thoughts:

Leave a note in the comment section below.
Share this show on Twitter, Facebook, or Pinterest.

Support the show:

Please rate me 5 stars on iTunes. Your rating and reviews help other people discover me.
Subscribe on iTunes, YouTube, or Stitcher.

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Elayne has worked in media for more than 20 years
Started career working in print media for magazines; first internship was at Essence; she was a junior editor and assistant for Susan Taylor
Passionate about creating a space for women to share their stories, which is why she created her podcast (Support is Sexy) and Facebook mastermind group
The Support is Sexy idea is about empowering women to know and believe that having it all doesn’t mean doing it all alone
Has been a full-time entrepreneur since 2014; her last position was with Martha Stewart Living, where she was managing director for the Martha Stewart and Martha Stewart Weddings websites
We discuss what to consider when contemplating making the leap from a 9-to-5 job to becoming a full-time entrepreneur
Elayne often asks her clients: “How can you package what you’re already doing?”
In 2015, she took a personal development workshop called “Momentum,” during which she found that the two most difficult things for successful folks to ask for were love and support
She began saying “support is sexy,” which was often received positively, and she decided to use the phase as the name for her podcast
Support and collaboration is a pillar of her business
We discuss charging what you’re worth
Tips for creating a following:
- Be consistent; show up when you say you’re going to show up
- Let people know about your business; ask people to tell other people
- If you have a group, make sure you welcome new members (it helps it make it a friendly space)
- Social media: share as much as possible and engage (remember you don’t have to be everywhere)
Tip: Make sure you build your own platform; drive people back to your website
Tip: Build your email list by developing offerings (i.e. guides)
Advises that if you’re looking to get more press, consider being on other podcasts, local stations (tv and radio), and local events at the chamber of commerce (i.e. teach a class)

LINK LOVE

Next Episode

53. How to Earn a Living as an Artist + The Pros and Cons of Publishing a Book

This week’s guest truly believes in doing what you love without compromise. Jenipher Lyn had always been a creative force, using her creative energies to make and sell jewelry at an early age, but she found her voice as an illustrator during a challenging time in her life. From then, she discovered her purpose was not only to create but to encourage. With every whimsical and colorful illustration, she hopes to provide customers with motivation at any and every stage of their journey.

Jenipher’s path to becoming an illustrator, podcast host, and author has taken many turns, and she is still navigating and learning the intricacies of entrepreneurship. We particularly delve into publishing and the process of self-publishing, as well as what you can expect after publishing and how to generate additional income as an artist. Fun stuff. Enjoy folks!

Please share your thoughts:

Leave a note in the comment section below.
Share this show on Twitter, Facebook, or Pinterest.

Support the show:

Please rate me 5 stars on iTunes. Your rating and reviews help other people discover me.
Subscribe on iTunes, YouTube, or Stitcher.

Subscribe on APPLE PODCASTS | STITCHER | ANDROID

She started making jewelry at age 9 and began selling her jewelry at age 15, maintaining that business for 10 years
In 2010 while going through a difficult time, she found illustration, which helped her get through that challenging time in her life
After getting an opportunity to sell her items at a gallery, she decided to apply for a grant
She won the grant, which allowed her to find a good printer and take a class to hone her craft
We talk about the benefits of pursuing an artist grant and navigating the process
When she decided to sell her art, she decided to use these avenues:
- Selling in stores
- Art shows
- Licensing (she’s had cards in Target and Trader Joes)
After a pep talk with a friend, she decided to self-publish a book and fund it through Kickstarter
She used Amazon Createspace to create her book
For her next book, coming out in 2019, she is using a traditional publisher
To get a publisher, she hired a book agent who was able to get her a deal with Crown Publishing Group
We talked about how long it takes; she signed the contract for the book in 2016, and the book is coming out in 2019
Advice for people who are interested in self-publishing:
- Consider size if you’re publishing an art book
- Have people read your content along the way
Books don’t necessarily generate money, but they bring potential opportunities or credibility
Different ways she currently generates income:
- Wholesale
- Consignment
- Licensing
- Art shows
Licensing tips:
- Get paid for what you’re worth
- Always make sure there’s a contract
We talk about the importance of community