19. Connecting To Your Vision, Purpose & Impact with Linda Scott

Do I have a treat for you this week! Today my guest is Linda Scott, Namibian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom and to Malta, and Ambassador to Ireland and Greece and the Sovereign Order of Malta. In 2022 Linda received Diplomat Magazine’s Diplomat of the Year Award for Africa. She is an advanced-certified life coach, has lived in 11 countries and is mother to two young men.

Linda is also a member of my Money On Purpose community, and it gives me so much joy to know that my program has influenced Linda in the way it has.

Today Linda shares how choosing to do the Money On Purpose program motivated her to follow her vision for herself, and gave her the tools she needed then, and still uses today, as her vision and purpose keep evolving. 

In today’s wide-ranging episode we discuss:

·       How our power is in the present moment, and by asking the ′what if′ questions and choosing to just start, all sorts of magic is set into motion.

·       Money doesn’t have to be your first focus. In fact, healing your money blocks and looking at money with a different mindset frees you to focus on your vision, on your purpose, and on the impact that you want to make in the world. And then everything else follows.

·       How very normal it is to feel insecure about your gifts and articulating your vision, but by being brave and taking the first step, the answers will reveal themselves.

·       Evolving from your current reality to the truth of your vision is a process, one that might unfold in ways you would not expect. 

I′m so thrilled to share this episode with you as I deeply admire the work Linda does in representing Namibia internationally. She is such a force for good in the world and an example of how asking those ′what if′ questions and surrendering to the process has made it possible for her to have the tremendous impact she always wanted to have on the world. 

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Resources:

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Episode 14: ESSENCE: The Key To Getting What You Really Want

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Transcript

Ep #19: Connecting To Your Vision, Purpose & Impact with Linda Scott

Welcome to the Make Money Living Your Purpose Podcast, I′m Prosperity Coach Karen Powell and this is the podcast for heart-centred leaders, innovators and creatives who dream of leaving their nine-to-five to pursue their passion project, but don′t know where to start. I′m sharing my proven process that will help you heal your money mindset and figure out your own unique purpose in life. Let′s go!

Karen: Hey there, welcome back to the show. It is so nice to be together again today. Thank you so much for joining me, I'm really enjoying this podcasting thing. I'm having so much fun. Especially at the moment, I'm doing a series of interviews with members of my Money On Purpose community and I'm just loving reconnecting with these amazing people, these forces for good and catching up on what they're up to, what they're creating in their lives. And it's just so fulfilling to hear their stories of transformation. This is why I do what I do. 

This is why I created the Money On Purpose program to help people release their limiting mindset, release their blocks, the things standing in the way of them living joyful, prosperous, fulfilling lives. And then seeing how they are creating this joy, this prosperity and fulfillment in their lives for themselves, for their families and for the people that they serve. 

Today I am so excited to have you meet Linda Scott. Linda is the Namibian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland. Welcome to the podcast, Linda. And actually, how would you introduce yourself? I'll let you introduce yourself.

Linda: Hi Karen, thank you. Well, in terms of my job, I would say that I am High Commissioner to the United Kingdom and to Malta and Ambassador to Ireland and Greece and the Sovereign Order of Malta. But in terms of myself as a person, I would...

Karen: I missed a few of those, thank you!

Linda: In terms of myself as a person, I would say I'm a Windhoek girl coming straight from Windhoek, grew up in Windhoek, and return to Windhoek every chance I can get and to Namibia, to the desert. I've lived in 11 countries, and I've been a very privileged person to know people like you. So that's it in a nutshell and I'm also a mum of two wonderful young men.

Karen: That’s a beautiful nutshell. Thank you for sharing that, giving us all the different aspects of you. And Linda, I'm going to share something with you today that I don't think I've ever told you. You were the very first person to pay me in my online business. I had just launched Money On Purpose for the first time. I was so nervous, so excited, feeling so many different emotions.

Linda: Oh wow! I didn't realize that!

Karen: Because this program was and it is my passion project, something that just means so much to me and is the accumulation of decades of work with people and something that I just believe in with all my heart. But I didn't know how other people would feel about it. You never know. Anytime we put something out into the world for the first time, we have no idea how it will be received by other people, right? 

So I opened registration for the first round of the program and someone registered but they had an issue with their payments, so it didn't go through right away. Then you registered and your payment went right through. And I'll never forget that feeling of excitement I had and pride and just validation, you know, that, oh, OK, this is happening. You made me a legitimate online business owner and there's just nothing like that feeling of the first time. So thank you so much!

Linda: That is my absolute privilege and pleasure Karen. Wow! And to be honest, your principles that you've taught, that I've learned from you, I'm still using them almost every day. When you speak about not knowing whether what you were going to put out into the world was going to be relevant or was going to speak to people, my goodness! I mean, I'm still using what I learned from you because what you teach is so powerful and so practical and so doable and has such a fabulous vibration.

Karen: Oh, that just warms my heart. Thank you so much for that. And when I say that this is my passion project, it really is something that I believe so much in. And I want it to feel like a way of living, a way of life. It's not just a course. It's not just a program. It's tools that you can use for the rest of your life to keep creating and keep up-leveling and keep healing and just keep applying to whatever is going on in your life. That makes me so, so happy. Thank you. You'll always hold a very special place in my heart in my journey of creating this online business. So thank you.

Linda: My absolute pleasure. Wow, what a privilege!

Karen: I thought we could talk a little bit and we can see what you want to talk about today. But I think that just knowing your journey and I'll let you share some of your story of your career, the things that you do and the things that you want to still do and the things that are unfolding for you. 

We want to talk about purpose and vision and impact and what are we here for? How do we spend our days doing our work and feeling fulfilled? And how do we connect with that? And I think you're such a multifaceted person when it comes to this subject that I'm just so open for wherever this conversation takes us. 

But maybe do you want to talk a little bit about when you came to Money On Purpose, you were looking for a specific focus. I think there were some changes happening in your life or you could maybe foresee some changes were going to be happening so you kind of wanted to get a jump on them. What was happening and what's kind of been unfolding for you? 

Linda: Karen, I'm just amazed at the direction that life has taken me because I am in a very different space than when I started. I remember, so maybe I should just say, first of all, as I said earlier, I've lived in 11 countries. And so, you know, moving once, anybody who has to pack up house and move once will know how stressful that is. 

Karen: Yes, I just did that last year, I know exactly. One was enough. One is enough for me. I don't have to do that again, thank you very much.

Linda: Yes, so I've done that probably about 60 or more times in my life. I think I've never lived in one place for longer than four years until this time now being in the UK. Since I left home at 18 there's been a lot of movement and I got to the place in my life where I was, I mean…

Karen: Oh my gosh.

Linda: Literally anybody who looked at my life would have said, wow, you've got the dream. I was working in New York at the United Nations, and I had two young men, young adults. Oh well, the one was definitely a teenager and the other one was a student at university. And it was very very stressful. I found New York was, just the lifestyle... I had to be on the train by 7 in the morning, I'd come home after nine at night. 

My youngest was 13, 14 at the time and also struggling to adjust, I would say. At that point I felt, you know what, I just don't see what good am I doing in the world. And I ended up doing a coaching program with what was then called the Life Mastery Institute, they've since changed their name to Brave Thinking. But it was kind of coupled, I think, with the fact that there was so much going on in my life. And that just helped me to start focusing on the good in life and what is it that I can be grateful for. 

And by the time I came to your program, I felt as if that was just the next logical step for me to move because by then I had moved to London and I was also in the space where I thought, well, my next step is I'm going to be a life coach. I thought that life was going to go in one direction and I would soon be retiring and soon I would, you know, become a full-time life coach. 

And it was I think at that point that I just felt I needed support. And I felt as if I just couldn't get a handle on my finances. And this was another layer of support that I needed. So when you said Money On Purpose, well, it was the purpose side that really caught my eye because I thought, well, I think if I focus on my purpose, the money will take care of itself. And so that's why I came into your program. 

And in fact, since then we went through COVID and we've been through so many other things in terms of the changes at home in Namibia and changes in the world. And I have managed to find the joy and the purpose in everything I do in my everyday life. And so using the principles, can I mention a couple?

Karen: Yes, please.

Linda: So what I have found so useful to me is number one, the ABCDE meditation that you do. You know, your attention on your breathing and centering yourself. Breathing has become a huge tool and it's so amazing because any coach that you speak to, any coach that you listen to, they'll always tell you to go to the breath. And that's one of the fundamental things that you've taught is, you know, go to the breath. 

And in focusing on the breathing it's helped me to slow down because another thing that I've discovered about myself is that I'm, I don't know if you've heard of the Enneagram, but in the Enneagram personalities, it turns out I'm a number one. Well, I can tell you nobody wants to be a number one because the number one, first of all, you're Miss Judgey and you′re Miss Judgey about yourself before you're Miss Judgey about anybody else. And so the first thing you do is like, am I breathing right? You know, am I doing this right?

Karen: Hahaha! Oh goodness, am I breathing right? I love it. Yeah, that's the thing about breathing is that it′s such a fundamental practice in everything, right? In every meditation, in every self-development, and just in getting to know yourself. But what's so simple about it and what's so important about it is it's getting you into your body. That is the bottom line, it's getting you into your body and into the present moment. And this is where we have our power. We only have our power in the present moment. 

And we might say that, oh, your power is in the present moment, your power is in the present moment. And somebody who is looking outwards all the time and trying to get things done and looking for approval or whatever the things we do to look outside of ourselves, we are not in the present moment as much as you think that you might be. 

But when you use something so simple as A, B, C, D, E, and that's just a little mantra that we use just to kind of remind us, everybody knows the alphabet, it's bringing your attention to your breathing, centering yourself. And then I do a directed energy guide after that. So it's just bringing you into your body and helping you to be present.

Linda: And the other thing is the questions that you ask through the breathing. Number one, what would it feel like to live without armor? You know, for somebody who's a number one enneagram, that is a huge question. And you know that when you're in the diplomatic world it can feel like a big thing because very often you're on guard 24/7. 

You know, how can I be putting my country out there? How can I protect my country? What am I doing right? How can my country be seen? How can I be seen so that what I'm doing is going to have full impact? And suddenly you come to the question, what would it feel like to live without armour? 

And then you go into your personal life and you think, what would it feel like to live without armor? And then you link that to what is my purpose. And like, oh, I've got to, you know, focus on my purpose. You're the warrior looking for your purpose. But on the other side, what would it feel like to live without armor? 

I mean, Karen, these are very, very significant questions, I think, because as you sit with your breath the question comes and you sit with a question. And it's a what if. So that the big thing is: what if life is supporting me? What if...whatever it looks like, is it a mess? Am I going into the office? Am I going into a meeting which is really challenging? Is life looking like it's completely upside down? But what if I can live without armor in this situation? So, for me that has been a significant and forward moving question, just sitting there in the ABCDE.

Karen: Yeah, it can be a scary question for people because they're like, wait a second, I need my armor. Don't  take it off. And we're not taking the armor off by the way, in this, just for people who might be listening and thinking, wait a second, no, I can't take my armor off. Don't ask me to do that. 

It's not about taking your armor off. First of all, you cannot remove your armor. That's not something you can do with your mind. You can't remove your armor, your armor is there to protect you. It's there as a bit of a defense against the world and what has come at you up until then. So we all have an armor that we have put on, or it's sort of, we haven't put on, it′s kind of come on to us as a loving gesture from life. Like, you don't have to feel all this stuff coming at you all the time, so armor up. We all armor up as human beings.

So to ask the question, what would it be like to live without armor, sometimes people are like, well, wait a second, I need this armor, so don't ask me to take it off. And I just want to sort of put some focus on this, that it's not about taking your armor off. It's about thinking beyond I have to suit up every day to protect myself, and it is more about what are the possibilities if you didn't have to? 

To see if there was nothing to suit up for? And when we start asking ourselves these questions, what would it feel like to live without armor, then we trigger a healing response within us and that healing response and all those answers and the wisdom that we, every one of us, have within us. You said when you're sitting there, you started feeling these answers and that's because you have all the answers within you. We each have that wisdom inside of us but we don't often chat with it. We don't ask it questions. 

We just kind of go, our head just rules our world and our life, and we just go forward doing what we have to do in our jobs. Like for you, what does my country need? My goodness, that's a huge thing to have to think about every day Linda. My goodness. What does my country need first? How do I keep my country safe? How do I keep my country in good light? How do I look out for the best interests of my country? That's a huge thing. 

And then to ask yourself a question like, well, for me personally, what would it feel like to live without armor? Life is going to start giving you some answers that you wouldn't get if you hadn't asked that question, right?

Linda: Absolutely. And in fact, it's been significant, I must say. So that is one practice that I really have benefited from. And I can talk a little bit more about that because what has happened, I've found, is as I asked the what if question, that has been translated into another practice that you give in your program, which is the sacred circle.

Karen: Mm, my favorite tool of all time.

Linda: And so, yes, so that too is also my favorite and I use it all the time. For example, most recently, I've been using it with my mom to call in a new tenant. And so the two of us did a sort of call on WhatsApp and we worked on the phrase, I welcome the perfect tenant. And we did a sacred circle on that. And we thought of all the wonderful things, the what if words around if we had the perfect tenant, what would that person look like? 

And we came up with things like loves animals, is loving, is friendly, is hospitable, is kind, is content, is self healing. So that's a word my mom came up with, is self healing. I put supportive because of course I am very far from my mom, so I needed to know that there's somebody who's supportive to my mom. And there were other things that were obvious, like you know, quiet, clean, you know, the normal things that you would want. 

Karen: Yeah, loves to pay on time.

Linda: Exactly. But then what we also wrote outside the circle were things that we didn't like that we had discovered through other tenants we didn't want. And so we said, we thank those tenants for informing us that we didn't want that. So that, yes. And that.

Karen: Yes, love that. Love to have that contrast, right? And we do that. We do a similar thing in the fuel/drain circle in the beginning of the program, where you look at what's happening in your life, what's fueling you, what's draining you. It's really important to articulate what I do not want first. Just in the beginning, it's like, okay, thank you for the contrast that you gave us other tenants that we can pick these things out and say, I don't want this so that you know exactly what to put inside the circle. 

And when people tell me that they don't know what they want, they're like, oh, I just really don't know what I want, then I say, that's OK, start with what you don't want and just make a list of all the things you don't want. And then go to the opposite of that. And it'll move you gently into what you want.

Linda: Well, I forgot that that's exactly what we did because my mom was like, oh, I don't know what I want at this point. I said, well, mom, let's look at what we don't want. And, you know, so it's become so integrated in my own life.

Karen: Yeah, and I just want to say, right in there where people will tend to get stuck when they say, I don't know what I want, but I know what I don't want. And they'll kind of start thinking about mostly what they don't want. Well, I, and if you ask anybody, try this as I've talked about this before, ask anybody what they want in their life, and then just stay silent and listen to them. They will 99% of the time they go into what they don't want.

Linda: Yes!

Karen: Try it with five different people and all five of them will do this. They will just, they might start saying what they want and then they will go into what they don't want, or they'll say, I don't know, but I don't want this and this and this. So that's our sort of default setting, is we go into what we don't want and then we'll get stuck there for a long, long time. 

And guess what? What you focus on, you attract. What you focus on expands. So that's why we get into the cycle of living in a situation or a day-to-day where it's just not what we want. But if you take the time, even five minutes to do a sacred circle and just say, okay, well, this is what I want and articulate that and write it down or say it out loud but get it out of your head, that changes everything. It's so simple yet so difficult sometimes for people to do.

Linda: Absolutely. Exactly. So, Karen, that's exactly the next thing. So for me it's this thing that you've just mentioned, what we focus on expands. So that is what I focused on more and more through the practices that I've learned from you. 

And, in fact, within my work, I've managed to have tremendous impact because, okay, things have also shifted in Namibia with our focus on renewable energies. And isn't that exciting that we have something that we can hook onto that will make the world a better place? And guess what? We're leading the charge on that. 

And so that was linking to this whole thing of what we focus on expands. I used that but I also thought about within an office. And I think this is a pretty general thing. It doesn't matter what your role is in an office, whether you are making tea or the secretary or whether you're the CEO, there are challenges that come up every day.

And there will be people that make things difficult, whether they do it because they are looking for love or whether they have got a particular challenge that they feel overwhelmed by, it doesn't matter. The point is that there can be all sorts of challenges, could even be financial. But the point is that as you take your attention off that reality that's happening, this so-called truth with a small t of my current circumstance, and you ask the question, well, what would it feel like? And the what if, and the what if we focus on what I would love, let me look at my sacred circle and then say, well, what's the opposite of what I'm experiencing? 

And all of a sudden you think, well, actually I would love to have a supportive team. I would love to have a supportive friendship circle wherever I am. And guess what? As you think about that, you think, well, what can I do today to create that? And things start happening. And the amazing synchronicities that come up are beyond description, you can very seldom make them up. 

Karen: Yeah, it feels magical. People often say it just feels like magic. And I'm like, actually, it is the way that life works. And we've been blocking it off. And we're opening up to the “magic”, but it's actually just the way life works when we say what we want and how we want to feel that really helps charge things up. 

And we work with essence words in my program. When you do that then you summon life's support. And life support shows up in the most amazing ways that we call synchronicities that just feel so beyond description. Like, how could this have been orchestrated? I could never have done this myself. It's like these coincidences that happen that are just, they feel so magical. But life's like, hey, you know what? I just want to make things easy for you but I need you to say what you want and how you want to feel and then we can mix it all together and start making it happen.

Linda: Karen, I'm reminded now of listening to the podcast that you did with Nelao and you talked about how we want to feel and then how things just sort of start falling into place. So one of your other clients, Jan, who's also a life coach, I remember one day I was complaining to him about a person that I was just struggling with in my own environment. And he said, Linda, I'm sick and tired of hearing this. Tell me what you want. 

Karen: Exactly. I think it's kind of like being at a restaurant and you're trying to order and the poor waiter is just trying to get your order and you're saying, well, I definitely don't want the seafood and I definitely don't want the this. And he's like, okay, well, just tell me what you do want and I'll bring it to you.

Linda: Exactly, exactly. And you know, that was amazing when he said that because then it was like a real little kick in the pants that I needed. And I wrote down what it was that I wanted. And guess what? It manifested. And I got a person who was like, yeah. So that was the one thing. The other thing was that I want to talk a little bit about what your program did for me in terms of coaching because I had studied the coaching when I was in New York. So I've got my qualifications, I'm an advanced life coach within the Brave Thinking. 

Karen: Congratulations.

Linda: Thank you. And he was also the one who said to me, Linda, just start. And as I started we went into COVID and I ended up with 10 clients and I didn't ask any of them for any money because I thought nobody was going to pay me to coach them. And I did the first week, my basic program is a 12-week program. And so I did the first week and I thought, well, nobody's going to come back next week. And guess what? Everybody showed up on week two, and week three, and so on. 

And finally, I started. I ended up eventually coaching some top CEOs and top diplomats from around the world. And it has been an incredible journey to think that I can offer this. I didn't know I had any stories in me. I didn't know I had anything in me to offer. And turns out that what I do have to offer has value for certain people. 

And I guess that's the same with you when you said, well I'm offering this program and will anybody want to come into this and would anybody pay me for this? And then guess what? I was the one, I saw the program and I was like, this is what I need. And it's Karen and I'm paying this because it's Karen, you know? 

Karen: I just wanted to say it's so important what you just shared, Linda, about not being sure about our gifts, what we want to bring out into the world and offer the world. And so many people think that it's easy when they see somebody doing something. They think, oh, it's just easy. They make it look so easy. They've got the confidence. They can do it. 

And I want to really put a pin in this right now and tell everybody that everybody feels insecure when they put something out into the world for the first time. Even Linda, this seasoned, successful diplomat who's a master coach, who has a master coaching certification, who just wants to help people and has it all in her heart and ready to offer that out into the world is unsure at first and doesn't know. 

And then, but the only way that we know is to go ahead and do it. When I was looking at starting my podcast my sister said you should really keep a little journal as you're doing your run up to your podcast. When I was trying to get all the pieces together to launch my podcast, I was so insecure about it. I'm like, I don't know, is anybody going to want to listen to it? I don't know. Is it going to be okay? And all these different things. 

And I was looking at that little journal yesterday and the insecurities in there and the doubts and the fears and the tears. Everything that happens in the process of creating something for the first time was there. And it was there when I created Money On Purpose and it was there when I created my website and it was there when I did anything for the first time, when I had my first workshops. 

And the thing is that I was telling somebody this yesterday and she said, but Karen, you just make things look so easy. Like you just launched this podcast and there it is. I'm like, oh, you have no idea the feelings behind it. And it's the same with you, Linda, with you saying is anyone going to come? And if they come are they going to come back? 

And I just want people to know that everybody feels this way and that the only way to get past that feeling of insecurity and is it going to work or is it not going to work is to just do it. To just do it, be brave. You know, this brave thinking, just be brave and just step forward and do it. 

And it's going to be a little messy at first, possibly not the way you were hoping it would be. I mean, I think with everything I've done, I'm like, oh, I can see the flaws but other people don't necessarily see them. Or if they do it's not a big deal because nobody is perfect. And I just think it's very important to have a little discussion around this, what you've just shared that you have been a diplomat for so many years and then you want to go into life coaching. You get the certification. You take all the steps that are needed. You actually put together your program. You open it up for enrollment and those feelings of insecurity and doubt and self-doubt are going to be there. 

I want to normalize this, I just want to normalize this for everybody and let you know that this is part of the game, guys. This is part of the process. You have to move through this and with support and tools, it makes it easier to move through. 

Linda: Yes and I think that it's important also to emphasize it. A lot of people listening would think, well I'm not interested in becoming a coach so how would it work in my life? Well you know what? I want to just share, I ended up being chair of a board, quite a significant board, with 56 members on there. And I didn't want that position but my colleagues insisted I must be the chair of that board. And finally I said, okay, well, you guys just have to support me.

And what happened was I realized there was a lot of fighting in this board. And I thought, you know what? This is not going to be the case under my watch. We've got to do things differently. What was happening was that people were meeting once a year and at the meeting everybody would be fighting. And so I started saying, well, listen, we've got to have smaller meetings. 

I set up working groups and those working groups, I got people to chair them. I got people to attend. I got people to use those working groups to come and talk about what their problems were. But the bottom line of all of that process is that I was just as insecure taking on that position as when I started with the coaching. And the bottom line is that I used the same process, the sacred circle, the what would it feel like to be without armor in this process with 56 people looking over their glasses at me, as it were, you know, and waiting for me to make a mistake, I felt.

Karen: Daunting!

Linda Scott: And so I diffused that by just having a lot of little groups talking to each other. And guess what? It's been a tremendous success to the point where they don't want me to step down and I'm like, whoa, guys, my time's coming to an end. 

Karen: Please don't leave us. You've transformed us.

Linda: And I've been saying no. You know, you've got to work on a system. You've got to have a system in place and you've got to be ready to let it go and let somebody else take over and learn and use whatever tools are there to grow in the process as well. 

Karen: And you'll leave a beautiful legacy of tools for them when you do, when you do have to leave. You will leave such a such a toolkit for them to use to go forward and to make it work. And what I love about your story Linda, is that you didn't know what to do. It felt very daunting. You didn't know. You couldn't see how you're going to do this. And so the initial reaction is, no, I don't want to do this. This seems too hard. This seems too difficult. I don't know. I can't see how it's going to work. 

But when you step back, you get present in your body where all of your power is and you focus in on, well, what do I want? Doing a sacred circle will just help you do that immediately. It's a quick little two-minute exercise that is so simple and fun. I love it. I think it feels so freeing to me when you just write well, OK, this is what I want in a perfect world. This is what I would love it to be. 

So you wrote those aspects out for this group process and then you took a step and the thing is, when you take a step, you will be informed after you take that, the outcome of that step will inform you of what your next step. So when you took your step, something informed you to wait a second, there's fighting in this big group. Let me break it down into smaller groups. I mean genius right, to do that. And to you know this is not working in the big group, so how can we fix it? What way can we work around this? And then the information comes to you because you took a step first. 

And there that brings me to one of the other tools that I absolutely love, which is the OSSAAT wheel, the One Small Step At A Time wheel. I don't know if you ever use that but that's also just a really simple tool. Gosh, for me it just feels like I hop onto a little cart and it just starts rolling me towards my goal. It's like it's just rolling me step-by-step towards my goal. 

But the thing about the OSSAAT wheel is that you do not make a list of steps. That's not how you use the tool. You put down what is my next, or could be my logical step or intuitive step, whichever. What's my next step that feels like the right thing to do? And then you take that step. And then after you've taken that step you can give it a little tick mark if you want. 

And then you go, okay, now that I've taken that step what is the outcome informing me to do next? So simple but our brains don't typically work that way. We're taught to make a list of all the steps you're going to take in a project, make a plan and then get the outcome. Like what's the outcome going to be? And then only then do you move forward into your project. But we do this. We turn all of this on its head in this process. And to me it just makes life so much easier and so much more enjoyable to move organically into and through a process.

Linda: Absolutely. And I think it highlights three words, vision, purpose, and impact. Because you can't put steps in a vision. Because a vision doesn't look like your current truth. It's a capital T truth. It's something that is, you can't mark it, you can't imagine it. And that is linked to what you also always put at the bottom of your sacred circle, this and something even better still. 

So, you've got this idea, okay, this is what I would love. And then you say well this and something even better still. And that immediately takes you to your purpose. Well what is the reason that I'm doing this? And guess what? The next thing you're having impact that you never dreamed you would have.

Karen: Yes it all works together. So beautifully explained. 

Linda: I mean that is it exactly, and I think this is it — I mean, you can't figure it out. You can't plan this thing. And this is where you just have to surrender to the process of transformation that you're in. Because once you recognize that it's a process and that it is you′re getting into, I love that wheel concept, you know, you're on the wheel, you're on the little wagon. And it's in your program, you have this little map. And what I hated, I must tell you what I didn't like about your program was that your map was so jolly accurate.

Karen: Hahaha

Linda: I mean, like you in the beginning of the process, you say like okay on week one this is how you're going to feel. On week seven this is how you're going to feel. On week nine this is how you're going to feel, and it turns out it's all right, it's all correct.

Karen: And you know, it took me 20 years of working with people through 90-day containers, this three months of a transformational journey to really see the patterns of what's happening. And I got so fascinated with it that I started to take notes about it and I started to really create support around what I could see what was going to be coming. 

And people were like, how did you know that I was going to feel this way? How did you know this is what was going to be happening? Are you some sort of witch or something? I'm like, well, you know, I've been called worse, but it's really just being very, what's the word? Just noticing what people are going through. 

And I've been through it myself. So I'm like, oh, yep, I know that feeling. I know that that's what happened. I know that was right around the corner. And the map is not exactly like okay, you're going to be feeling, everyone's going to be feeling this way. Sometimes people are like, wait, I don't feel this way. I'm like, that's okay, just hang on because it's coming. It may be the next week or it just depends on what you're doing and how you are engaging. 

But it is overall very accurate because that is the nature of a 90-day container of transformation. That's the nature of a transformational journey if you stick in it. If you stay in it it's going to take you through these ups and downs and peaks and valleys. But it's so empowering when you know that that's part of the process, that there's nothing going wrong. 

But I'm feeling like I can't breathe. I'm feeling like I can't focus. I feel whatever it is that's happening on a certain week it's like, but that's part of the process. So if you know that, just give yourself a little bit extra self care this week. Slow down a little bit, take some time, get some extra support, because this is part of what's supposed to be happening. 

So that's empowering to know, okay, I don't like this, but I know that I'm not doing anything wrong. This is part of it. And if you've got the support to pull you through, you pop out the other end going, whoa, gosh, I did that. And then all of a sudden you've got a strength that you didn't know that you had before.

Linda: And it also is about trusting the process, Karen. Because once you know it's okay, the process has got me, this is what it looks like as it's all working out. And it's got to, things have to shift because, what did they say? Or Einstein apparently said, if you keep doing things the same way you're going to get the same results and that is insane. That's a sign of insanity. 

When you are doing things differently of course things are going to shift. The blocks in your life are going to shift. And of course if you're trusting the process you are focused on the outcome. You're focused on, what is that vision that I said that I put on that sacred circle and knowing that that's where we're going? And this is just what it looks like.

Karen: Absolutely. The trust is such a beautiful part of this process. It's hard for us to trust at first because we are programmed to first see what's behind that rock before I go walking on that path. But when you are in this kind of a supported process, and that's where we take a lot of time in the beginning to build a strong foundation, so that you can start sinking more and more into trust. And as you trust you learn how to trust more. And so trusting the process is such a lovely little mantra but it means nothing unless you know what that feels like to trust the process. And when you see that when you do trust a little bit something comes in to support you, then it's easier to continue trusting. And like you say with the vision, which I really love how you put it, when you craft your vision.

Karen: That vision is not your end result. Like, oh, my vision for my life or my vision for my work is this. And then you think, OK, I just need to go make that happen. That's not actually how it works. Whatever's in your heart at the moment is your vision. That's all you can work with. But it's going to change, and this is where the trust comes in. 

The trust part, it's like, wait, I thought I was going in this one direction. And now there's all of a sudden something asking me to pivot and move into another direction. But if you're building up that trust muscle then you will let go of a little piece of that vision. Like, well, I thought I was going in this one direction but something is telling me to move in this other direction and I can feel it in my gut. I can feel it in my heart. I can feel it in that trust muscle that's developing, that it's safe to turn this other way and to start walking in this other direction.

And your vision starts evolving and shifting and your purpose starts becoming brighter and brighter and it starts shining for you. And you're like, oh, now I understand what my purpose might be. And you start moving towards that. I like to show people that you are let off the hook. You don't have to know what your purpose is. In fact, you can't know what it is. You can only know from today, right now where you are, just what's your vision? And start with that. It's a starting point. It's just a starting point. And it's powerful to just start with that starting point.

Linda: So I want to speak a little bit about that just for two minutes if I may. And that is that I started off with this whole thing, okay, I want to coach. Well because of circumstances in the last year or so I haven't done any coaching because it just, this board that I was talking about took up too much of my energy and time. And I realized something. I was like, oh, there's so much going on. I don't think I can keep focused. And he said, well, at the end of the day, what would you love to do in your work? And I said, I would love to just see that I'm supporting young people, that I can help young people to see that there is a way forward and that there's a vision that they can have for the world. 

And I said, in my job, I mean, I'm turning 60 in three minutes time. Well, that's what it feels like. And yet I remember when I started this career I was 26. I came to London to open the High Commission with a colleague when I was 26 years old. I met the queen at age 26, you know, it was quite phenomenal. If I think about all the things I've done when I was a young person, I lived in Cuba for three years, et cetera, et cetera. 

So to give young people that same sense of wonder, oh wow, this is what I'm doing at this moment, and to feel that they can contribute. So, that was one of the things that I really wanted to work with. The other one was speaking. And it's amazing because as I articulated that, opportunities have just popped up for me to speak at all sorts of events where there were young people, whether it's young women or whether it's young African entrepreneurs. 

I was in Oxford at the business school last week speaking to young entrepreneurs. It was so exciting to see all these young people who have dreams and that I could give them a sense of wonder, a sense of there is a future and it's waiting for you. And you as young people are the ones who are making this happen now, you know? 

And the week before that, I was at King's College saying the same message. It's just amazing because that is part of my vision, part of being a coach, being a speaker, and that is another part of my job, but it's also part of my vision, part of who I am as a person. So those are opportunities I could never have made up, that I would be invited to speak in those kinds of fora, you know.

Karen: I want to highlight something here that you're saying and that is you said, as I articulated that, that wish, that vision, right? As you articulated it, opportunities started popping up. This is the simplicity of the support that is available in our lives. This is what I want everyone to hear. It is when you are brave enough to articulate what you want. And when you articulate it, that can be in the form of maybe telling someone, telling your coach about it, telling a trusted friend about it, telling your journal about it, telling God about it, Source about it, whatever, whatever way that you are actually articulating very specifically, this is what I would love to do, or this is what I would love to be, or this is what I'd love to experience or have or whatever it is. When you articulate it, opportunities start popping up. 

I was on a coaching call with a client of mine a couple weeks ago and she articulated in our session for the first time something that she would like to start doing. I drew those answers out with specific questions to help her to really get specific on it. And then the next coaching call we had one week later she said Karen, this is so weird what's been happening since our coaching session. 

I haven't said anything, but people are coming up to me and asking me to speak at these things, do these things, become involved in things that I was articulating to you, Karen. Like I didn't say anything to them, I just brought it up to you. How do they know this? What is happening? And I said, no, this is just the way it works. This is how it works when you're brave enough to say what you want and be specific about it just from what's in your heart right now. Don't go into, but I don't know what I want. Don't go into that because that gets you nowhere, it keeps you stuck. 

But when you say, well, I would like to help young people, I would like to help them in this specific way, I would like to speak, I would like to whatever it is, those opportunities will very magically, quote/unquote magically, start popping up and synchronicities will start happening and life will start handing you the next pieces of the puzzle on a silver platter.

Linda: And I want to make another link to that because I feel that sometimes we think this is somebody else's life, you know, that happens to Linda. It will never be right for me. But you know what? It can even work on a basic thing, like when you're having challenges with your kids, like when you're having challenges with a colleague, it′s articulating what is it that you love and writing it down perhaps and focusing on what would I love to have. 

I mean, if I look at my kids as a single mum living in several countries, you can only imagine how challenging it was with two young men, and guess what? They are just, I'm so proud of them. And I think a lot of that is to do with, okay, vision and prayer are very closely linked, but I have to say, just focusing on what I would love. 

As a woman who's been through the empty nest syndrome, you've also been there, you know, it's always about trusting that, you know what, my kid is well taken care of, my kid is okay. And what would I love for my kid? What would I love for that young person? And focusing on that rather than, oh my God, this and this and this can go wrong, you know, where are they? They haven't come home, all those kinds of things. 

And just relaxing into trusting the process for your young person as well, and for your mom or whoever it is. What I'm trying to say is, this process of the what would it feel like, life is supporting me. I have a vision, let me focus on what I would love so that it can expand. It all works on every aspect of our life.

Karen: Oh, it does so beautifully, thank you for that. So Linda, what's sort of in your world moving forward now? What kinds of things are you focusing on? Is there anything that you would love to share with the community if you're offering anything at the moment or are you focusing on other things? What is sort of in your vision at the moment?

Linda: What I'm thinking about, what I would love is to be engaged with young people and I would love to be coaching again. And I've kind of said to myself what I would really love is to have containers of time where I work intensely and containers of time where I'm relaxed, where I can spend time focusing on myself, making sure my admin is taken care of and making sure that my physical and spiritual side is really just supported because there's been so many transformations in the last few months in terms of Namibia and the possibilities for my work that I'm kind of just waiting to see. 

Obviously the universe has got something in mind that I can't imagine. So I literally am in the space of saying, well, focusing on trusting the process, surrendering and saying, well, I know what my vision is, what I'd love to do, how that's going to unfold, I've no idea. So I'm waiting to see, watch this space.

Karen: And that's the beauty of it, isn't it? Yeah, and you know what? It's so fun. It becomes so enjoyable. I think when you adopt that kind of thinking and trust in life that here's my vision and here's what I'm busy with. Like you said, you've got new things to focus on in your work now for Namibia and things like that. And it's taking you a bit out of your coaching, but you've got this vision still of it's still there in your vision. And you're even articulating even more about working with young people and all of that. 

You're kind of organically letting it flow and then just being open to let's see what life delivers. But life can only deliver when we articulate what we want, when we say what we want. And when we say it, and then we let go and the most amazing journey can start unfolding.

Linda: Right, exactly. I continue to focus on my three main goals, things that I think are part of my purpose, which are speaking, writing, and coaching. But how that will unfold I've no idea. And when you talk about the Money On Purpose, so the money side of things, it's taking care of itself because I'm focusing on my purpose. 

And I'm focusing on where can I use my skills to have the greatest impact for the positive growth and development of the world around me and of course my country and my family. So you know, that's where I'm focusing at the moment. I'd love to have a catch up maybe in a year's time, a year-and-a-half, and see where we've reached.

Karen: Oh, absolutely. You're welcome back to the podcast anytime. And I love always to have chats with you and see what you're doing and also support you with what you're doing because you are such a force for good in this world, such a bright light in this world. And I just love everything that you've shared with us today, Linda. You are just so amazing. 

And one thing I want to just highlight here, what you just said about the money will take care of itself. The money will follow, kind of thing. You didn't use those words but the way that you said it really is the whole reason for why I've created the Money On Purpose program. It’s because people tend to think that the money should be the first focus and then I'll go and try to do my purpose and then I'll try to think of a vision or whatever. 

And it's really not the money that stops us from doing what we want. It's the way that we think about that money that is pulling us back and holding us back. So it takes healing those money blocks and really looking at money in a different way with a different kind of a mindset so that you become free from that focus and you rather focus on your vision, you focus on your purpose, you focus on the impact that you want to make in the world, and then everything else follows, meaning everything sorts itself out and so you don't have to go from the other angle. 

It's looking at life from a new angle which is difficult at first. It's kind of like, wait, this is new. It's just new. It's not actually difficult. It's just new, and it's something different. So thank you for all of your different angles that you've showed us, all your different perspectives that you showed us on all of these. We've talked about so many things in this hour and I just am so grateful to you Linda for being here, for being such a bright light in our community and in this world. You’re making a beautiful impact all over the world. Thank you.

Linda: Well thank you Karen, because you are making such an amazing impact in this world. And, you know, one thing that I want to just mention that's been with me for some time is just think about this. There you are, you′re  a coach. You are recognized across the world. You have a top podcast, and you live in Windhoek. 

Now honestly speaking, who would imagine that moving to Africa from Chicago, where you get people like Oprah Winfrey launching their careers, to Windhoek, which is when I grew up, I tell you what, my dad used to say it was a one-horse town and then the horse died, so we just had a donkey. And you have made this amazing impact from Windhoek, you know. So many, many congratulations to you and kudos to you, recognition to you and keep doing what you're doing because it is awesome.

Karen: Oh, thank you so much, Linda. That's so funny because when I set out to make my changes that I wanted to make in my corporate career in Chicago that I was doing for 10 years, I just had this feeling that I wanted to do something different that would just impact other people in a way that felt fulfilling for me. But I didn't know what that looked like. I just wanted impact, I wanted to feel more fulfilled in my life. 

And actually, I shouldn't even say at that time it wasn't even that I wanted to impact other people, it was just I wanted to do something more fulfilling with my life. And so I started there and I crafted a vision which is so different, so different than what I'm living right now. But I had to craft that vision first and start taking the steps. 

And that vision brought me to Namibia and that vision started unfolding for me and it made me pivot and I've talked about it in another episode, an earlier episode. I can't remember what number, but I'll link that one in the show notes if people want to hear that story of how there was such a pivot all of a sudden. But that's how it works. We have to just articulate first what's in our hearts at the moment and then life will take it from there. It will show us. Source will show us.

You're starting with where you are right now and that's perfect. And just trust and come along on this journey and you're going to be surprised and you're going to be delighted and you're going to heal some things that need to be healed and you are going to be doing some things that you never thought you could do. And I definitely am doing things that I never ever imagined that I would be doing. So is there anything else that you want to share before we close off our conversation Linda? Anything else that maybe didn't get said that you kind of want to share with everybody?

Linda: No I think I don't want to say more. I think just going back to the beginning, if you want a program that's going to support you and going to help you to focus on how to create your vision and how to bring that into reality, the Money On Purpose program is second to none. And believe me, I've done a lot of programs so I can really say that it is one of the best, if not the best, at just slowing you down and saying, well, life has got you. Life is supporting you and let's look at what that could look like. And then with your purpose sorted, the money will take care of itself.

Karen: Oh, beautiful. Thank you so much for sharing that. 

Linda: It's been wonderful to be with you.

Karen: Thank you so much for being here Linda. I appreciate your time so much and I appreciate all of your wisdom and everything that you shared today. You're just amazing.

Thank you so much for joining Linda and me today. We hope our conversation has inspired you to be courageous and go for your dreams, articulate your vision, whatever is in your heart right now, and join us as we continue to all become forces for good in this world. I'll see you next time.

If you’re ready to start creating the lifestyle of your dreams, I want to invite you to join GPS, my Gratitude Practice for Success program where you’ll learn my unique and proven manifesting process. It’s simple, it’s powerful, and it’s already helping hundreds of people go from thinking their dreams were impossible, to making them happen quickly. Whether you want to manifest your dream home, your soulmate, a brand new career living your life’s purpose, or even financial freedom, it’s yours to claim now. Just head over to kcpowell.com/gps and I will show you how.