What is a "Big Why" and how do you define yours?

Welcome to Project Badass Podcast! In today's episode, we are going to be talking about your “Big Why” and how to define yours. This is very important to define, and it's possibly the most important thing that we talk about in my book, Project Badass, and what we coach our business owners from day one

So, what is a “Big Why”? Essentially, a “Big Why” is the driving force behind getting up every single day and pushing through obstacles. It's the reason that you get out of bed every single day. It's the reason you keep going, even when you hit a ceiling in your career or personal life. It's the reason why we push forward through obstacles on especially hard days. This is your statement of purpose, your calling, your mission statement, and this purpose should drive every decision you make in your lifestyle, career choice, and personal life.

I truly believe that we were all put on this earth to teach each other something. And we are here for something bigger than ourselves. Something bigger than the money, the big house, the fancy car at the end of your life. Wouldn't you want to feel utterly fulfilled that you did everything in your power to reach your highest potential?

I want to share with you a little bit about my journey and how I discovered my “Big Why” and how it's changed my life. A good friend of mine once asked me, “Besides the money, why do you do this?” It was a great question - a fair question.

My “Big Why” is what propels me forward on the bad days and motivates me to get better on the good ones. There is something bigger than myself and a calling that I'm supposed to fill in order to reach my “Big Why”, and really drive forward all decisions with that in mind. I had to break myself loose from being poor, undereducated, and unfulfilled. At that point in my life, I was wondering what was wrong with me and why I didn’t fit in. I wondered if I'd ever truly be happy or if I would ever achieve that lifestyle I dreamed so fiercely for since I was a little kid. bB determining my “Big Why”, I went from broke, unhappy, traumatized, and unfulfilled to a top producing real estate agent, multiple business owner, and published author all before the age of twenty.

I have left in the past what no longer serves me and I have a clear roadmap of how to reach that extraordinary life I had always dreamed of by keeping my “Big Why” top of mind. German philosopher Frederick Nietzsche once said,

“He who has a why can endure any how”

Those hard days and challenges that all of us face, whether it's in personal life or business when you have a clear purpose, it makes everything much simpler. You're able to make decisions on your “Big Why”, and you're no longer floundering around with the thought in your brain of what the hell am I doing here and what is the point?

Your “Big Why” is important because it allows you to avoid burnout, by focusing on what you’re truly passionate about. You get to focus on the decisions that are going to move you closer to that. You get to live a lifestyle that is completely by your choice and design.

You’ve probably heard the saying, “If you do what you love, you'll never work a day in your life.” This is exactly what a “Big Why” does for you. We will use the Japanese theory to determine this -

it’s the intersection of what you love, what you're great at, what the world needs, and what people will pay you for.

Keep that in mind as we work through these next three steps.

As we're working to define your “Big Why” determine, what legacy do you want to leave? What sets your soul on fire to the point that every time you think about it and envision what that could look like for you, you can barely contain the excitement, joy, and pride. After fully discovering my “Big Why” I realized that every single day, all I had to do was push the needle forward closer towards my big why.

Success is simple, not easy. It's simple to get up and make moves that bring you closer to that calling, but it is not easy to get up and repeat the same consistent actions over and over again, especially when every fiber of your being is telling you to go back to what's comfortable. Consistently showing up is 80% of the battle. If you can get behind the idea that consistency and taking action is what will create your lasting success and push you forward to that extraordinary life.

Discovering Your “Big Why”

I want to know that you're committed, that you're sold on yourself and your potential. To start, we're going to do a huge brain dump, and we're going to list the top five things that you're passionate about.

Keep in mind that a “Big Why” is the intersection of what you love to do, what you're great at doing, what the world needs, and what people will pay you for. We're going to take this from a large overview before breaking it down into a micro view. Now that you've determined the top five things that you're passionate about, I want you to write a brief of how you could use each passion and what that would do for you.

Ask yourself a couple of questions:

• What value can you bring to others?

• What can you teach them?

• What makes you stand out from the crowd that gives you the courage and confidence to share this?

• How can you provide this as something that the world needs?

• Is this going to be something that people pay you for?

You may already be dabbling in these things, especially if you're passionate about them, but it's time to think about the legacy you can leave behind by using this passion to your fullest potential. For each of these five skills, the next step you're going to want to do is to close your eyes and cast the vision of what living your passion to your utmost potential would look like.

Ask yourself:

• Who are you?

• What are you doing?

• What clothes do you wear?

• What does your typical day look like?

• Where are you?

• What does your lifestyle look like?

• Who are you doing it for?

• What impact would it have on you to accomplish this?

This is your “Big Why”, this is your life's passions we're talking about. So this is not just a one-and-done. Once you're done casting your vision for each of those top five passions, I want you to look at it again with an open mind and look back at those five items, all with different outcomes, lifestyles, and levels of fulfillment.

Get really honest with yourself, which of these passions set your soul on fire? When I cast the vision of my why, my goals, and my lifestyle, I caught this extremely intense feeling of pride, passion, and joy that coursed through my veins and burned a fire in my chest. And I'm really not being metaphorical here. I could literally feel the heat in my chest, knowing with every fiber of my being that this is what I was doing. Once I felt that I knew what my calling was and I knew the reason I was put on this earth. As cheesy as it might sound, there was no denying the fire inside me. It was a defining moment for me when I was finally able to admit that I was living for something bigger than myself and I had the power to achieve that.

Take a look back at the list of your top five passions with each vision of what that could look like cast next to it and ask yourself, “What sets my soul on fire so that I can literally feel the passion, the pride, and the joy from accomplishing this?”

Here is my “Big Why”

I believe that I was put on this earth to teach others how to get out of their comfort zone and break through every boundary in front of them self-made or society-made.

I am meant to teach others that whatever excuse they have it is not a reason to stay complacent. I don't care if you think you're too old or too young, not rich enough or not smart enough, it is possible to follow the clues that success leaves and create your own destiny to fulfill your calling.

You have discovered your “Big Why”, I encourage you to have it written out on a whiteboard or a poster or something that you can look at every single day to keep that top of mind.

Your Next Steps...

We talked about having that clear purpose and the power of being able to make decisions based on your purpose. Before you're able to utilize the power of your “Big Why”, it's important that you are fully committed to consistently showing up every day to move the needle forward and fulfill your calling. Don't let your comfort zone be the reason you can't commit to yourself. That is what the average person is doing. The average person, they're scared, they're worried, they're nervous and doubting. I imagine you're feeling all of those things too. Acting despite these feelings is what will set you apart. If you continue to remain in your comfort zone, you'll be stuck with the others who aren't doing a damn thing about their calling either.

Making your decisions based on your “Big Why” will give you the power to say no to the things that no longer serve you. Utilize these three questions in order to determine if this decision is right for you or not,

1. By making this decision, what is the ultimate goal or outcome?

2. How will making this decision bring me closer to my “Big Why”?

3. What are some obstacles I might face from this decision that can stray me away from my “Big Why”?

In 2022, we're all about Hell Yes Energy!

So I tell you what, if you journal these three questions when making a decision that directly relates to your big why, and it is not a Hell Yes after doing that, then you need to say no.

Want to hear more? Tune into episode 1 of Project Badass Podcast. We chat about mindset, business strategy, wealth building, and more.

Here’s to your extraordinary life!