Facing Fear: How I Found My Purpose (No Guests, Just Real Talk!)

Have you ever felt like you're living someone else's dream, caught in the loop of societal expectations? I once pursued a career in basketball and later accounting, driven by external pressures and the allure of financial security. However, these paths left me unfulfilled. Through moments of introspection and various roles, I discovered a passion for real estate investment—a field where I could truly empower others and align with my values. Join me as I share this personal journey of self-discovery and encourage you to uncover your unique purpose, emphasizing that it's more than just a job; it's a lifestyle that resonates with your true self.

Ready to embark on a journey to build future wealth and break new ground? I take you through my experiences of becoming the first in my family to dive into investment properties and entrepreneurship, highlighting the excitement and growth that come with venturing into uncharted territories. This conversation is designed to inspire and motivate you to pursue your dreams, encouraging reflection on the insights shared. Let's embrace a future full of hope and courage, striving for our best selves and setting the stage for uplifting and empowering discussions that pave the way for fearless living.

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Chapters

• 0:00 Finding Your Purpose and Overcoming Fear
• 15:32 Building Your Future Wealth

Transcript

Erica Rawls: 0:00

I was afraid to even do this podcast, this here episode I was afraid to do why? Because I have no guests. I love asking people questions, but the fact that I said you know what People need to hear me, hear my story and how I overcame I decided to shoot this episode. Welcome to another episode of Keeping it Real, where we have real conversations with extraordinary people in multimillion dollar homes. Now, today's a little different. I'm here by myself. Why? Because I wanted to take the opportunity to talk to everyone about living their full purpose, living life to the fullest, living fearlessly. And what other way to do it but just to have an intimate conversation with the viewers? First, I want to say thank you so much to everyone that's supporting our community. It is growing and I love the conversations that we're having. I mean, they are simply amazing, and some of y'all are trying to challenge people. I see you trying to challenge and because of you, we're going to bring a couple more guests back. And you know what? Most importantly, this podcast is being funded by my real estate business, and also I have the pleasure of saying thank you to Allstate Insurance, rob Shaw and also Angie Shaw with Fidelis Mortgage for also supporting, if you'd like to support and see more episodes, please reach out to me.

Erica Rawls: 1:26

This episode is about hope and courage, one thing that I realized the older I get, the more I realize that if you don't understand what your full purpose is, you're going to be just living through life. One thing we should make sure that we do is to make sure that we understand what our purpose is, and when you hear that word, it just sounds so kind of like okay, purpose, purpose, purpose. It's almost like a cliche kind of word, wouldn't you agree? And one of the things that you should probably take a step back and think of is we were put here on earth, I believe, by our heavenly Father, right? So we're all born with some type of purpose, and in order to figure out what that purpose is, you really got to get connected to a higher power. So you think about purpose is like the opportunity for you to live the best version of yourself. Now, how do you do that? Well, it's really something that you have to do as far as taking an internal look at who you truly are, trying to figure out who your true identity is, and that's really hard for some people, because a lot of us, we look for the outside world to tell us who we are, and it starts at a small age, if you think about it, even as children. Who do we look to? We look to our parents, and it doesn't matter if it's negative identity or positive identity.

Erica Rawls: 2:53

One thing I want to challenge you is really try to figure out, okay, who am I One you think about? Are you bold, are you powerful? Are you a light? Do you make people smile? And part of knowing what that truly is, I promise you you're going to be able to determine who you truly are.

Erica Rawls: 3:16

What is your purpose? Purpose just isn't about a career. It truly is a calling. It's your way of life, the reason why you're actually here on earth. See, a lot of people think it's like a treasury map, like you're supposed to figure it out. And okay, if I do this thing, then I want to be able to figure out what my purpose is. No, that's not it at all. I want to share a story with you.

Erica Rawls: 3:37

So, leading by what I believed was something that I was supposed to do, I literally started playing basketball Division. I basketball, I actually got a scholarship, but do you know, to this day, I knew that wasn't something that I wanted to do, but it's because I knew that was something that was expected of me because I was tall and I was athletic. But was that truly my purpose? To this day, it allowed me opportunities I probably wouldn't have seen otherwise, but to this day I struggle with the fact that. Was that truly my purpose? I don't think so, y'all. My purpose, honestly, is for me to actually lead people, to see other people win, to help people understand where they are great and what areas that they are. I'm really, really good at it, but I didn't know that until I actually got older.

Erica Rawls: 4:32

I took an accounting position, went to school. Let me back up. I went to school as an accountant, to be an accountant, and when I did that, I wanted to do it because I thought it was the best way to make money, not really understanding what my purpose was, and I did okay with that thing. However, it wasn't until I took the job at PricewaterhouseCoopers and I realized that that's not what I want to do. So I went into the corporate world, still not understanding what my purpose was. I just knew I was not in it because I was so unsettled and I just kept going place to place to place to place, and it wasn't until I actually secured a job at Offwood I realized that I'm supposed to be working with people, and at that point I didn't understand how I was going to be working with people. But I knew my purpose was working with people to get them elevated into something that they would feel great about, the best version of themselves. So I actually got into investment properties and the light bulb went off. I love this. I can make money and talk to people and help them fund the life that they truly wanna live by investing in real estate themselves. So I got my license.

Erica Rawls: 5:49

After getting my license, I landed at CoBROKE. That wasn't really where I aligned my vision with, and it wasn't until I actually got aligned with Keller Williams that I realized, okay, yep, this is where I need to be, and I was able to grow. I was able to grow a team and I was able to help people to see who they truly are and to help them become the leaders that they are supposed to be as well. And when I tell you when I know that I'm living in my purpose but it took me some time to really understand who I truly was and you may think well, you just said it was about. It wasn't about your career. It's not.

Erica Rawls: 6:27

However, I truly believe, even off job, off my title, take away my title I'm still helping people in every aspects of my life, for example, my children. I truly believe that I was giving the children that I have because of the things that they were going to need in order for them to be the leaders that they truly need to be to lead. Every last one of my children are innately articulate, they are highly intelligent and they have the ability to lead. However, if it wasn't for me and my husband understanding the importance that we have, the role that we play in helping them develop their purpose, I truly don't believe that they could be the full version of themselves. And that's not to say that all parents don't do this. All parents should do this because we have a responsibility to do it. But, taking a step back to understand that every last person that you interact with, they truly have a calling on their lives and most people struggle with that. Try to determine how you can help that person. Is it your child, is it your co-worker, is it your neighbor or whoever it is? Because everyone has a divine purpose in their life.

Erica Rawls: 7:42

So let's talk about the fear of living your full purpose. Fear is defined by what, by what? The false evidence appearing real? That's all fear is. And once you really dive into that definition, it truly the underlying thing, is shame. We're shameful, we're ashamed of not knowing who we truly are. And then we have the shame of oh my gosh, that someone else is going to see that I may be not who I say I am. Or we may be shameful of the fact that, okay, we made past mistakes and now we figured it out, but is everyone else going to be able to believe me? I say forget it, don't even worry about what other people are thinking, because you understand that one. They're human, they made mistakes and this journey is about you.

Erica Rawls: 8:40

One of the best ways that you can overcome fear is surrounding yourself with people that are naturally positive. Start reading books that will provide you the positive insight that you need in order for you to be bold and to be passionate and to stick with your purpose. I learned that just recently. If you think about it, if I think about it, I was afraid to even do this podcast, this here episode. I was afraid to do why? Because I have no guests. I love asking people questions, but the fact that I said you know what People need to hear me, hear my story and how I overcame, I decided to shoot this episode. So let's think about this for a moment.

Erica Rawls: 9:35

We all struggle with the idea of not being good enough, right? And even the ones that say, oh, I don't struggle with that, you're lying, because at some point in your life you did not have all the tools or what you believe to have all the tools and the knowledge and the ability to do what you're doing right now. Today, it wasn't the lack of knowledge, it was the fact that you said no matter what, I'm going to make sure that I do the things that I need to do to get to where I need to go, and if that means failing and moving forward, that's great. For example, I've actually started a team three times a real estate team three times y'all and I wanted to quit. I believe the third time was probably the worst experience ever and I think it was the most blessing in disguise. Why? Because it showed me that, in order for me to get to where I need to go, I need to change. You can't be the same person you are in order to elevate yourselves, you actually have to evolve in the process. So, as a result of that, I was able to take a good look at myself and say, hey, you know what People may think that one I'm a failure. They may start judging, or I can't believe she's trying this again. Why would anyone want to? You know, do something that they failed at three times? And I'm here to tell you it's because of those failures I'm able to stand here or sit here today and share this conversation with you.

Erica Rawls: 11:08

Having clarity is key, being bold is important, and moving forward and taking action that's the only way you're going to get elevate yourself. So just remember that through your obstacles, you can be afraid, but just take action in your fear and knowing that on the other side there's something better for you. I promise you that. So what does walking with purpose look like? It doesn't mean that everything is going to be easy, because it isn't. It is not easy, y'all, and I do believe, although it's not easy, because you are walking in your purpose, that's going to allow you to keep moving on, as long as you are intentional about the things that you do and making sure that you align your intentions with your purpose, you should be okay.

Erica Rawls: 12:06

I mean, there are going to be setbacks. There truly are going to be setbacks. Look for them. And if I can get biblical for a moment, even Jesus had to deal with controversy and setbacks and he was able to persevere. So who are we to think that we can't? We can make it through this life without any setbacks, because that truly is a testament of who we are. We are going to have setbacks of who we are. We are going to have setbacks.

Erica Rawls: 12:40

It's all about your grit and your attitude and your ability to withstand through those times that are actually going to prove to you you, not anybody else prove to you that you are truly growing, because growth, by definition in my mind, is proving to yourself that you can. So when you do that, you're going to be able to one, you're going to feel great about yourself, and then, two, you're going to be okay with the next big thing. And also, when you're working in your purpose, be prepared for people that are going to hate you in front of you and behind your back. This sounds so terrible to say, but it's so true when you're working and living in your divine purpose and you walk into a room and you stay true to your identity. That's intimidating to people that truly is, that truly is. But please understand that by you, shining your light is still welcoming those that are not kind or say things that may not be true or just simply just just being mean. Still shine your light because you know you're onto something. You know you're onto something and it's going to be a testament of your core values that, no matter what it is, I'm true to my identity and I still love you. Remember that, I still love you. Remember that A lot of people I believe, when it comes to living through their purpose, they don't tie it to a big why.

Erica Rawls: 14:28

Think about it. You wake up every morning, you get ready, you start your day, but you ever ask, ever ask yourself, why, why are you doing those things like why are you working in the industry that you're working? Why are you in the circle of friends that you have? You truly have to tie your life, your identity, to a big why. For example, for me, my big why is in the industry that I'm in? I truly believe I'm here on earth to help people obtain an asset, to live their full, abundant life and to show a pathway to people that may not otherwise know. So I know that to be true, and I'm hoping that I can reach as many people as I possibly can in order for them to live out their true, the best life that they possibly can.

Erica Rawls: 15:32

So, whether it's buying real estate, you never owned a home can. So, whether it's buying real estate, you never owned a home. Whether it's owning your own business or building your investment portfolio yeah, I owned a home, but no one in my family ever owned investment properties. No one in my family ever started a business. That's what I truly believe I'm here to do, so I hope you found this I don't know what is it? 20-minute segment, something that you can actually use and replay, and I would love to hear some insight. Again, this is my first take on what I hope to be something that's going to be ongoing and it's always going to be about something that's laid on my heart, and it's going to come from a place where it's supposed to uplift, not supposed to. It's to uplift you to be the best version that you possibly can be. So until next time, I need you to keep keeping it real.