Purpose – It's not about you

With 8.9 billion search results on Google, “find your purpose” is second only to a much more pressing query that most people are searching for…

The first one is pretty straightforward… but the second?

This takes some unpacking.

We tend to attract two types of people at The KINN.

1) Those who have found their purpose and want to amplify their impact.

2) “Transitioners” – those who are leaving the corporate world to a mission-driven entrepreneurial endeavor.

When you’re in a transition, you might be searching for your purpose. Your next move. The thing to go “all in” on.

And that’s for good reason. Aside from providing clarity, purpose improves our sense of meaning, fulfillment and can even lower our risk of mortality. [1]

It connects us, inspires action and forges community. 

But where so many get stuck is in trying to “find” their purpose. 

I talk to a lot of people about interesting problems they want to solve. But there often lacks one key factor: a personal connection to that problem… and a real, uncompromising conviction to go the distance, persevere, and solve it. 

A strong, visceral, unforgettable experience that deeply impacts you... 

This is what inspires purpose. 

Recently we hosted a talk at The KINN with Reuben Vollmer, the CEO and Founder of Spout – an innovative device that produces clean drinking water from air.

Reuben shared that when starting, he wanted to solve the problem of “tap water being dirty.”

He knew he wanted to make water out of air, and he had a prototype…but it was too expensive and didn’t work consistently.

And when he visited Flint, Michigan, something changed. 

He met a mother who shared the tragic experience of her two children passing away after drinking contaminated tap water that she gave them, thinking it was safe.

“That was the moment that changed everything… No one on earth should ever go through that.” Reuben shared.

That day he made a promise to her – that he would solve this problem.

He then shifted his focus to providing fresh drinking water for families. 

That brought the inspiration needed to make countless iterations over the 10 year journey it took to get to the stage they’re at today.

Now they’re making a tiny, quiet, affordable machine that makes the highest quality water on earth.

This touching story shines light on the core of what it means to find your purpose.

When someone has an experience that moves them to their core… 

Those are the founders that I really believe in.

It changes your worldview and perspective, and motivates you to push through hard times.

Your attention is lifted off yourself and on to something greater. 

For me, when I started helping conscious founders find community and connecting them with resources to grow, my purpose lit up.

So, instead of asking, “what’s my purpose?”

Try looking for those experiences that truly move you.

And you just might find it there.

– Oliver 

PS. If you’re an entrepreneur and you want to grow your purpose-driven business, we’re kicking off the Beyond Accelerator at The KINN in just a few weeks.

We built this for founders to shortcut their business growth, by leveling up their strategic, operational skillset and network to execute faster. The biggest rate limiters to scale.

So if you know what problem you want to solve, and you have a product or service that you’re ready to grow…

––> Apply for the Beyond Accelerator.

And we’ll see if this next cohort can help you scale. 

Talk soon!