Finding My Purpose (and My Voice) Along the Way
I didn’t set out to become a podcast producer or a coach. That part still makes me laugh a little because if you’d asked me years ago what my “purpose” was, I probably would’ve said something vague like helping people and then immediately changed the subject.
But here’s what I know now: Purpose doesn’t usually show up fully formed. It sneaks in while you’re not paying attention.
When I got sober, I lost my old coping mechanisms, but I gained something else — clarity. Not all at once. More like in fragments. Conversations that stayed with me. Stories people trusted me with. Moments where someone would say, “I’ve never said this out loud before,” and I could feel how much that mattered.
Podcasting became the place where all of that came together.
At first, I was focused on the technical stuff. Editing. Sound quality. Structure. Making things good. But what kept pulling me back wasn’t the production — it was the people behind the mic. The pauses. The hesitations. The places where someone almost said the thing and then backed away from it.
That’s where I started to notice it.
So many people don’t struggle because they have nothing to say. They struggle because they’ve spent years learning how to be acceptable. Polished. Careful. Easy to digest.
And that’s where my work shifted.
Somewhere along the line, I realized my real job wasn’t just producing podcasts — it was helping people trust their own voice. Helping them stop performing and start speaking. Helping them sound like themselves, not who they think they’re supposed to be.
I don’t have a formula for this. I don’t think purpose works that way.
What I do have is pattern recognition. A deep respect for honesty. And a lot of patience for the messy middle where people are figuring things out (because I’ve lived there too).
When someone records an episode and says, “That felt different,” I know we’re on the right track. When they stop apologizing for their voice, or their story, or their pauses — that’s the work.
I think purpose lives there. In those small shifts. In helping someone feel less alone. In reminding people that their voice doesn’t need fixing — it needs permission.
And honestly? I can’t think of anything I’d rather be doing.
Want to learn more? Check out what I’m doing over at Podcast Impact Studios.
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