Your Story and Your Why…
Last week Madeline Cunningham, LAc (My Rêve Health Co-
Founder) and I spoke at my Alma Mater, Northeastern University.
We were asked by one of our amazing members, Elise
Robin, to come speak to (200!!) of the young, incredible women of Delta Zeta.
It was an intense experience, taking me back to the days of being a grad student. I realized that as female founders we can make an impact in young women’s confidence and trajectories. I could have used someone like me speaking at my college!
⛰ We spoke about purpose and finding your why.
⛰ We also talked about how you can change your story at any time, because you own it.
⛰We talked about the importance of your purpose and story for connecting to your health.
Only YOU have your story. And only YOU know your why. What is important to you? What lights you up and wakes you up on a Sunday morning? What do you dream about doing? It’s ok for your story to change.
As an alum of Northeastern University (graduate school, 1998!!!), I realized halfway through my co-op that I did not want to pursue the thing I was studying ;). It’s what propelled me to re-invite my story, and that became the key topic of our talk.
The Symbolism of Northeastern’s Koi Pond
Before we spoke, Maddy and I got a tour from Elise and her sorority sister, and we spent some time taking in the beauty and peacefulness of the Koi Pond. This pond is not simply decorative, it symbolizes perseverance, strength, and spiritual growth.
What an apropos way to start the day before inspiring young women.
After our talk, some of the topics that came up was how you can evolve your career and purpose at any point you do not feel aligned.
We were asked incredible thought-provoking questions which to me truly symbolized that Koi Pond:
☀ How do you deal with guilt about how not to keep going on a specific path (aka your degree)
☀Dealing with the doubt that things will work out for you
☀Whether your skills are transferable if you want to change direction (yes)
Perseverance, strength, and spiritual growth all stems from stepping into your power and owning your story.
The Power to Change: A Key to Wellbeing
We have the ability to transform our lives, evolve, and go in a completly different path.
As part of our talk, we discussed the keys to health and wellness.
Often, we think about health in terms of diet and exercise but leave out the importance of our mindset and how we lead our lives.
You control your narrative and it’s one of the determinant factors to your healthspan, lifespan, and happiness.
I think it’s a success predictor.
It’s certainly a predictor of joy.
When you realize you have the power to empower yourself, it changes everything. Often that means letting go. Just as the leaves let go every Fall in the Northeast…so can a Northeastern University student (or anyone) let go of a life they are building toward, if it no longer fits your story or your why.
It’s your story, you can do whatever you want with it.
In 1998, after my Co-Op at a newspaper (Northeastern has a Co-Op program where students are required to work in the field of study prior to graduating), I decided I hated Journalism….the degree I was pursuing.
I finished my program and got an M.A. in Journalism.
And then…I never touched journalism again except peripherally. It turned out more than ok.
Your Skills are Transferable
Every time I write, have a business development call, or formulate a pitch for anything I am building I use the skills I learned in J-school.
When I started writing my book, all the skills I learned helped me do long-form reporting, research, and the reverse pyramid–important stuff up front, tease the audience, make the hook.
Basically, all the fun parts of Journalism. Minus the sweaty chaos of a newsroom.
I think for me the most impactful part of our talk at Northeastern was a Journalism undergrad coming up to me after and asking if she would be ok if she switched her major…or whether she could use her major to do something else (like advertising). My answer was a resounding YES.
You tell the story and market yourself.
Nobody can take your classes, school, learnings, or degrees from you. They are yours.
But what makes people unique is not the degree or the classes.
What makes people unique is the wisdom and experiences they gain along the way, and synthesizing those experiences with their skills.
That’s the special sauce.
Only You are You
Honestly, I get irritated and the INTJ within me comes our when people start talking about competition in regards to my startup or my book.
There is no competition when you lead with your story.
Because nobody can take that away from you, no matter what the iteration of you.
We can change our path, evolve it, and take ownership of our trajectory.
I guarantee you’ll have a more fulfilled, joyful, and abundant life the moment you realize you own the novel that is you.
🌞 Thank you Elise for inviting us, and thank you to the ladies who described us as magnetic. What an incredible compliment and a testament to how engaging and inspiring these ladies are!
Can’t wait to see what all of you do next!
