Swans have returned to the Venetian canals. As the world falls deeper into chaos we are being called to celebrate things that may have felt insignificant just weeks ago. If I mentioned ‘Venice’ you may have though “ah, I really want to visit those canals”. Many of us would have felt entitled to see the beauty of the City of Water in their lifetime. Venice was there for us to explore.

In a world where success is measured by personal wealth and expressed through the places we go and things we own, that has now been thrown into question. We’ve all known the truth for a long time but kept ignoring it: success is much more than the accumulation of personal possessions. Over the past centuries we lost our connection to that wisdom and edged towards feeling entitled to material success, wanting to do and experience everything our neighbour did, and more. We thought happiness would follow if we got everything we were ‘entitled’ to.

But even long before the coronavirus crisis, people have felt the calling of the neglected feminine, awakening to question what success really means to them. This search has manifested itself with many women especially wanting to “find their purpose”. We’d travel to warm and beautiful places, attend silent retreats and buy lots of yoga gear because we felt we were entitled to this search. 

It turns out we needed this u-turn to help us see clearly.

Suddenly we are ready to give up our plans and let go of what we were supposedly ‘promised’, the lovely things we thought we were entitled to. We were searching for happiness from trips to see wildlife that would be have been destroyed if we travelled, dresses that would have exhausted the planet if they were produced and food that would have been airlifted from Peru so that we could have an Instagrammable breakfast.

This crisis is teaching us that the Universe owes us nothing. We are not entitled to that trip to Venice and we are slowly accepting we may never see its canals and the swans now swimming in it.

Find your purpose by changing your mindset from entitlement to enrichment. 

This crisis is helping us to move our focus from what we can ‘get’ from the Universe to what we can ‘give’ to the Universe. As soon as we shift our focus we can see that we are here to enrich the Universe. As we move from a mindset of entitlement to enrichment our lens transforms and we find our purpose.

Ask yourself questions to re-enforce mindset change from entitlement to enrichment:

What are the talents I have I can use to support others?

What are the experiences (good or bad) I can share with others to support them so they too can find strength?

What really matters right now? 

How can I make a difference?

What are the positive habits I need to prioritise?

What do I want to create?

What do I need to let go of to move from entitlement to enrichment?

Our purpose is not ‘out there’. The world owes us nothing and we owe nothing to the world. But it is in our power to move through our fears and insecurities, find courage and start showing up fully, living our purpose. When we focus on what matters most we suddenly see how we can make a difference.

A mindset of entitlement makes us feel separated. It creates us vs them patterns, the have’s and the have-not’s. We feel powerless and lose hope and it is difficult to believe in our purpose.

Mindset of enrichment creates a positive ripple effect around us.

Suddenly we are connected, not separated from each other. The lens of “what can I do for you” opens a door for connection and we see everyone as allies, not enemies. 

Start practising enrichment by recognising your strengths and what you truly value in life. It is that treasure trove inside where you can find your drive. That’s what you are meant to be sharing with others. That’s what you are here to do. That is your purpose!

I don’t feel the need to see the canals of Venice anymore. I know they are there and I love that the Venetian swans now have their time. My time is elsewhere, my time is here with the community of women who support each other through these changing times.

 

Miisa Mink, founder & chief-doer of DrivenWoman

DrivenWoman is a female-only empowerment platform and accountability network, that helps ambitious women to achieve their goals and dreams by creating positive habits one step at a time. Thousands of women around the world have joined our program and are achieving their life goals, which range from entrepreneurial dreams to career change or simply being more confident in their own skin and enjoying life in the present moment.

To find out more about our programmes for corporations click here.

Join us in DrivenWoman’s free community the Doers Tribe.