#11 - Redefining Success

Hey, you're listening to Soul Seek with me Akshaya in this space, you have permission to dream, to dream, to learn to grow, and to break free. Welcome home my love's. 

Hey, everyone, and welcome back to soul seek with me Akshaya. Last weekend, we took a little trip, we drove into Houston for the day. And as we drove around the city, you know, Houston is a big, busy city, there are a lot of different highways, there's there are a lot of different businesses off of the highways. And the one thing that struck me was the diversity of all of these different businesses, many of which had existed for decades, right? They have, they probably were started by one generation, and they're being continued by another generation. Or they're still being run by that first original generation that started it. And a lot of people who started these first generation businesses were immigrants who came in to the city who came seeking opportunity, who saw an opportunity, and decided that this was the one they were going to build, to grow in order to get to that dream, right? 

The Immigrant Dream, which they often called the American dream, but really, it's evolved into the immigrant dream, you see it in a lot of businesses, you see it and a lot of how immigrants in particular, conveyed the work ethic you see it in the dreams they have for their children, giving them more than they ever had right opportunities for education. A lot of immigrants first generation immigrants who came in, you know, 20, 30, 40 years ago didn't have the access to education, they started businesses, just with pure gusto. And with pure belief that, you know, a business was the quickest way to get to the dream. And the purpose of, you know, talking about this particular sector of the population is because, you know, I would say a large portion of us have our roots in immigration, we can identify with their stories, right. So many immigrants leave their homes, right, where they were comfortable, for opportunity. Now, some of them were definitely forced out of, you know, their home countries because of war because of turmoil because of just being in an unsafe situation. And many came across, hoping for that opportunity. And here's, here's the thing, don't get me mixed up in, you know, don't be confused about my stance on legal versus illegal immigration. Honestly, that's a whole other podcast, I am supportive of people who have to leave their countries for a better future for themselves and their children. I believe that we all have the right to seek a better future no matter where that future is. Right? We all have a right to growing up in safety, with opportunity, with the opportunity to earn an income. So let me just be clear about that. So many of us, you know, because I am also an immigrant, come to the west, right, seeking an opportunity, starting a business for the dream of earning a livable income, educating their children more than they ever were. And in order to keep the dream alive in order to get to that and goal, you know, they keep working and working and working, they burn out, but they continue to work and work and work. Because that financial goal, that place where they feel like they've made, it is so important. Right? Because there is no turning back, there is no going back to where they came from, there is no safety net. 

And I'm sure you can identify with this. Because, you know, so many of us were raised by parents with who had this mentality. Right? success was defined by a financial goal, by how well you educated your children, like what schools in particular, you see this, you know, especially in the immigrant population in the US, right? Like, those were all very important markers, to making it. Right. And the money is often the answer to all of our prayers, right? With money, we have abundance of wealth. What do I mean by abundance of wealth, like the ability to support ourselves, the ability to support our parents, the ability to support our children? Right, we're going back and forward in generations being able to do more than just the bare minimum. Right? Money brings with it comfort, right, a roof, rooms for people to sleep in beds, right running water, electricity, right? TV, wireless internet, right? These are all things that are big fucking deals to a lot of people. 

Money also brings stability, right? When you're able to build this nest egg, you know, that if you hit, you know, a health crisis or some other hard times, right, you know, that the money will provide when you do run into a hard time. And here's the thing, these are all really, really noble goals, really noble values that the generations before us had, I don't want to take away from it right life was different 20, 30, 40 years ago, when immigrants were moving to the US to Canada and just trying to settle into the culture, trying to build their legacy, so that, you know, they could do what the previous generation was not able to do. And they could make it easier for their children, so their children don't have to, you know, bust their asses as hard as that current generation does. 

But here's the thing, a lot of these values, a lot of these dreams are rooted in patriarchy, right? It's served that particular generation. But it is time to evolve. It's time to evolve the dream. It's time to evolve the goal. It's time to move beyond the basic value of money being the answer to everything. Yes, money is still important, but there is also the how you acquire money, right? The trust that you put in to yourself and the universe right in earning the money in keeping the money in growing the money. There are these words that I love to say over and over again, right? What about your purpose, your joy, your long term health and wellness, right? How you take care of your physical body will allow you to take care of your mind, your mental body, your emotional body, and will allow you to create the space to tap into practices that bring you joy that bring you peace that allow you to really follow your purpose. Right?

We often neglect ourselves first while chasing the dream of patriarchy. Right if you have had a career goal, or a parenting goal or a life goal, right, an education goal. Oftentimes, we sacrifice ourselves our physical, mental and emotional wellness first, and then we pay the price for it later. And why do we do it right? Because patriarchy says push harder, work faster, longer. Rest when you die, slay, hustle your way to success. Right? If you have a stable full time job, get a side hustle, multiple side hustles. You will only be good enough, the harder you work, the faster you work, right to get to that goal. And when you hit your first financial goal, or everyone after, you know, there's often this feeling of, oh, it's not enough, I hit that goal. But it's not enough, I need to keep going without acknowledging everything it took for you to hit that first goal, because there was a point in your life where that very first goal felt far away. And you had to become a certain person in order to get to that goal, right? If we don't acknowledge every goal that we accomplish, with gratitude for ourselves for making it there, then we're never really giving ourselves that opportunity to create joy and peace and fulfillment in our lives. 

And here's the other thing, right? The retirement age is just going up. Right, like used to be 65 and 65. And I see people you know, in their 70s and 80s, working, here's the thing, there's not a problem with working, but it's it's the intention with which you still show up, right? It's like, either, you don't want to let go. Because you're you're like, What the hell will I do with my life? If I stop working? Right? Or it's the I don't have enough, I need more, I need more, I need more. Right? That pushes retirement further and further and further out, right, but you can actually retire and learn something new, learn a new skill, start a new business, something that's maybe more aligned to your purpose, teach what you know, right? There's so many people who want to know how you got to where you are, like, there's so many lessons you have learned along the way that you could teach. When you're ready to. What happens is when you get into that thinking of I have to do more, I have to do more, you know, you kind of get into this mode of living in the past, right, you're not able to accept the present, you're not able to accept the future. Retirement isn't not the end goal. Right? You will not come alive once you retire, you have to live now. 

When we are out of alignment with our purpose, we allow fear to lead the way. The fear of not making it the fear of being poor. The fear of failing, the fear that our children will live the same backbreaking life that we did. But there's a different way when we allow love to lead. When we take the time to align with our purpose. When we peel the layers to listen to our souls guidance, we step into ease and flow. That doesn't mean that you won't have sadness or challenges or that life will be a cakewalk. What alignment means is that you will be supported in a way that allows you to take the pressure off yourself. When you trust the path that the universe has prepared for you, you will be guided through the obstacles through the fears, feeling joy and peace through it all. You will still have to work hard, but how you align is how you live each and every day. Choosing peace every day, choosing to detach from your identities that get in your way, choosing to detach from obligations and relationships that get in the way of your purpose. Right especially if those obligations and relationships are not supportive of your growth. You get to choose what lights you up. Be in a business strategy, a partnership, a job you love, living with awareness and intention is the only way every single day, still going after the dream, after the goal, but with intention, right. 

My personal intention in my business is to run my business, how I run my life with ease, having fun along the way, and creating a little bit of magic. I bring those values into my business every single day, I bring those values into my life every single day. Think about how you can bring intention, into your purpose into your goals into the next big thing you want to accomplish. Right, have goals with purpose. So what I want to leave you with my loves is how can you re imagine the dream in a way that allows you to discover your purpose, right? How can your purpose be a part of that dream? And if there's a little bit of shifting, reworking reimagining that needs to go on, can you give yourself the space and the time to re imagine your future so that you can spend the second half of your life in deeper connection with yourself and deeper connection with your dream and deeper connection with your purpose and in alignment with your highest self. Your dream is worthy, you are worthy. Now let's bring intention and purpose into the tree. I hope you learned something from this episode my love's as always, feel free to send me a message at akshaya@akshayachinapa.com. That's my email. And I'd love to hear what you're taking away from today's episode. Have a beautiful day bye. 

If you're looking for one on one support in finding your vision and your purpose, if you're ready to discover how generational and societal messaging gets in your way, and if you want to learn how to prioritize your needs, your goals and your dreams, so you can live a purposeful life that you love. Then my one on one coaching is for you. Sign up for a discovery call at akshayachinapa.com or just find the link below at the end of the episodes. Have a beautiful day my loves. You deserve to live a life you love.