WEBVTT 00:00:08.619 --> 00:00:11.539 What's going on, Pursuers? Welcome to The Pursuit 00:00:11.539 --> 00:00:14.720 of Calling, the podcast that provides you with 00:00:14.720 --> 00:00:17.660 the strategies and tools needed to successfully 00:00:17.660 --> 00:00:21.160 discover and pursue your calling. Whether it's 00:00:21.160 --> 00:00:23.620 through inspiring stories, thought -provoking 00:00:23.620 --> 00:00:26.539 interviews, or quick, insightful episodes on 00:00:26.539 --> 00:00:28.960 personal growth and development, we've got you 00:00:28.960 --> 00:00:32.759 covered. I'm your host, Thomas Carney. Enjoy 00:00:32.759 --> 00:00:41.460 the episode. Guys, thank you for joining us for 00:00:41.460 --> 00:00:42.859 this episode of the Pursuit of Calling podcast. 00:00:43.299 --> 00:00:45.719 Today's guest is someone who carries a message 00:00:45.719 --> 00:00:48.719 of hope, identity, and purpose that I believe 00:00:48.719 --> 00:00:51.679 will speak directly to your heart. I'm joined 00:00:51.679 --> 00:00:55.820 today by Chante Dixon, a first -generation college 00:00:55.820 --> 00:00:58.640 graduate, coach, and the founder of the Poor 00:00:58.640 --> 00:01:02.060 Print Framework. After being told she was born 00:01:02.060 --> 00:01:04.739 too poor to attend the college of her dreams, 00:01:05.120 --> 00:01:07.519 She turned that painful moment into the foundation 00:01:07.519 --> 00:01:11.060 of a life assignment, pouring into people who 00:01:11.060 --> 00:01:14.000 have been overlooked, underestimated, or placed 00:01:14.000 --> 00:01:18.120 in boxes by society. Her journey from discouragement 00:01:18.120 --> 00:01:20.959 to purpose is powerful. And for those of you 00:01:20.959 --> 00:01:23.319 living with chronic pain or navigating long -term 00:01:23.319 --> 00:01:25.799 challenges, Shantae's message will remind you 00:01:25.799 --> 00:01:28.579 that your circumstances do not disqualify your 00:01:28.579 --> 00:01:32.040 calling. They can actually deepen it. We're going 00:01:32.040 --> 00:01:35.180 to be talking about identity, mindset, purpose, 00:01:35.379 --> 00:01:38.540 hope, and how to pursue your calling if one life 00:01:38.540 --> 00:01:41.439 feels heavy. I believe this conversation is going 00:01:41.439 --> 00:01:43.819 to be truly transformational. Let's dive in. 00:01:44.340 --> 00:01:48.120 Shante, again, thank you for joining us. Thank 00:01:48.120 --> 00:01:51.560 you, Thomas. I am excited and honored to be here. 00:01:52.260 --> 00:01:55.420 For sure. And for those who don't know you, Shante, 00:01:55.519 --> 00:02:00.680 how would you tell people who Shante Dixon is? 00:02:02.760 --> 00:02:07.019 Well, first, Shante Dixon is a child of God. 00:02:07.900 --> 00:02:12.020 That is the title that I take great, great pride 00:02:12.020 --> 00:02:15.139 in. Like you mentioned, I'm a first generation 00:02:15.139 --> 00:02:21.460 college student. Who went on to have a 30 plus 00:02:21.460 --> 00:02:25.500 year as an adult probation officer here in the 00:02:25.500 --> 00:02:28.819 largest court in the state of Ohio. And that 00:02:28.819 --> 00:02:35.969 is actually where. My assignment was honed in 00:02:35.969 --> 00:02:40.069 on and actually defined through the clients that 00:02:40.069 --> 00:02:44.169 I serve, who were the ones that society deemed 00:02:44.169 --> 00:02:49.849 to be the worst. And it was my assignment and 00:02:49.849 --> 00:02:56.349 my gift, per se, from God to find the best in 00:02:56.349 --> 00:02:59.340 the worst, because a lot of my clients. Their 00:02:59.340 --> 00:03:04.919 story mirrored mine in so many ways. Always wanted 00:03:04.919 --> 00:03:09.360 to go to college. That was never up for discussion. 00:03:10.120 --> 00:03:14.539 Being a first generation college student born 00:03:14.539 --> 00:03:19.139 to a single mom. I was fortunate to have my grandmother 00:03:19.139 --> 00:03:22.900 and my great grandmother for the majority of 00:03:22.900 --> 00:03:26.199 my life. And they always pushed me to that direction. 00:03:26.379 --> 00:03:30.310 So as I'm preparing to go, to college I meet 00:03:30.310 --> 00:03:34.969 with a counselor to finalize things and had this 00:03:34.969 --> 00:03:37.949 dream school that I wanted to go to not knowing 00:03:37.949 --> 00:03:42.009 as a kid that financially it was supposed to 00:03:42.009 --> 00:03:44.830 be out of my reach but we know God has the final 00:03:44.830 --> 00:03:48.449 say in everything and that counselor's words 00:03:48.449 --> 00:03:54.090 and his frustration as I indicated to him where 00:03:54.090 --> 00:03:58.430 I wanted to go what my plans were were that Unfortunately, 00:03:58.509 --> 00:04:01.490 you're born too poor to attend a college of that 00:04:01.490 --> 00:04:06.430 statue. But again, he was right. When you look 00:04:06.430 --> 00:04:09.509 at statistics and you look at the generational 00:04:09.509 --> 00:04:12.949 things that went on in my family, I was not supposed 00:04:12.949 --> 00:04:16.470 to be going to college. But he was right, but 00:04:16.470 --> 00:04:20.370 wrong. I was actually born too poor. And my life 00:04:20.370 --> 00:04:23.889 has been taking on that assignment ever since. 00:04:24.250 --> 00:04:27.740 And God gave me the acronym for poor. which is 00:04:27.740 --> 00:04:30.800 helping individuals live purposeful, outstanding, 00:04:31.220 --> 00:04:35.019 unique, and relevant in every area in their lives. 00:04:35.600 --> 00:04:38.699 So that's what I've been called to do, and I'm 00:04:38.699 --> 00:04:42.519 grateful that God chose me to do so. Yeah. And 00:04:42.519 --> 00:04:46.279 again, I said this in the pre -interview, but 00:04:46.279 --> 00:04:52.850 I love how you took that experience. of being 00:04:52.850 --> 00:04:55.269 told that you were born too poor to attend that 00:04:55.269 --> 00:04:59.709 college and turned it on its head and changing 00:04:59.709 --> 00:05:03.089 the word from poor, B -O -O -R, to poor, P -O 00:05:03.089 --> 00:05:07.310 -U -R, and creating the framework around it, 00:05:07.370 --> 00:05:11.069 then now you can help others find the best in 00:05:11.069 --> 00:05:13.870 themselves. The ones that you said society deems 00:05:13.870 --> 00:05:19.790 the worst. The audience of this podcast are people 00:05:19.790 --> 00:05:23.149 who feel limited by their circumstances, especially 00:05:23.149 --> 00:05:25.629 those battling chronic pain. How can they begin 00:05:25.629 --> 00:05:27.930 to see their life through that same lens of purpose? 00:05:29.850 --> 00:05:36.290 Well, what pain does, it can paralyze you if 00:05:36.290 --> 00:05:41.290 you let it. But pain does not erase or disqualify 00:05:41.290 --> 00:05:49.040 you from your purpose. Pain actually. takes on 00:05:49.040 --> 00:05:53.360 a distillation process. It breaks you down to 00:05:53.360 --> 00:06:00.319 the purest form. I have witnessed in my lifetime, 00:06:00.360 --> 00:06:04.240 within the last 10 years, actually three very 00:06:04.240 --> 00:06:07.620 strong men who have dealt with serious chronic 00:06:07.620 --> 00:06:12.199 pain. Two of them were with ALS and the other 00:06:12.199 --> 00:06:18.269 was colon cancer. So I have seen how pain can 00:06:18.269 --> 00:06:23.149 really get a hold of your spirit. But in them, 00:06:23.209 --> 00:06:27.350 I would definitely say they remained purposeful, 00:06:27.389 --> 00:06:30.610 outstanding, unique, and relevant in their lives 00:06:30.610 --> 00:06:36.470 because there's a mindset when it comes to dealing 00:06:36.470 --> 00:06:39.209 with something like that. And you have to shift 00:06:39.209 --> 00:06:40.990 because you're definitely going to have some 00:06:40.990 --> 00:06:45.329 very bad days. So let's be honest. It's a very 00:06:45.329 --> 00:06:48.569 human thing. to experience this pain, but it 00:06:48.569 --> 00:06:52.589 does not disqualify your purpose. It actually 00:06:52.589 --> 00:06:56.250 clarifies it. It shows you what you're made of. 00:06:56.350 --> 00:07:00.629 And sometimes on your worst day, you could become 00:07:00.629 --> 00:07:05.029 better by helping someone else become better 00:07:05.029 --> 00:07:09.550 and get through it. So it might feel very purposeful, 00:07:09.550 --> 00:07:12.430 excuse me, very personal as you're going through 00:07:12.430 --> 00:07:16.899 this pain. But in reality, it's very purposeful, 00:07:16.899 --> 00:07:20.560 if you understand what I'm saying, Thomas. So 00:07:20.560 --> 00:07:24.939 we see it all throughout scripture that God has 00:07:24.939 --> 00:07:29.199 used people at their lowest point to make great 00:07:29.199 --> 00:07:33.480 strides in history. Yeah. I do like what you 00:07:33.480 --> 00:07:36.879 said, Payne, can clarify your purpose. Because 00:07:36.879 --> 00:07:40.680 I know in my life, what it's done is it kind 00:07:40.680 --> 00:07:44.139 of trimmed off what was possible. It trimmed, 00:07:44.899 --> 00:07:47.120 I shouldn't say what was possible, what I was 00:07:47.120 --> 00:07:51.000 capable of doing physically. It trimmed, like 00:07:51.000 --> 00:07:54.019 I'm a full -time web and app developer. I'm on 00:07:54.019 --> 00:07:56.240 the computer all day. I love playing video games, 00:07:56.319 --> 00:07:58.019 but I don't play video games right now because 00:07:58.019 --> 00:08:00.399 I don't have the capacity to do that and a full 00:08:00.399 --> 00:08:02.720 -time job and pursue the calling that God's put 00:08:02.720 --> 00:08:08.420 on my life. And so it's caused me to focus on 00:08:08.420 --> 00:08:13.779 the, focus on the calling, focus on the priorities 00:08:13.779 --> 00:08:16.160 that's helped me prioritize. And like you said, 00:08:16.240 --> 00:08:21.019 clarity. And I think you probably heard it before, 00:08:21.120 --> 00:08:24.560 but clarity is kindness. Clarity, I think that's 00:08:24.560 --> 00:08:27.180 one thing for me. I've said this before in this 00:08:27.180 --> 00:08:30.259 podcast that I believe God is a good God and 00:08:30.259 --> 00:08:31.819 I'm not healed from my condition, even though 00:08:31.819 --> 00:08:34.240 I've been prayed over hundreds of times. So what 00:08:34.240 --> 00:08:37.100 does that mean? It means I believe God's helping 00:08:37.100 --> 00:08:39.679 me get clarity on the calling he's put on me. 00:08:40.669 --> 00:08:43.590 And I don't believe he did this to me, but I 00:08:43.590 --> 00:08:46.230 believe he's leaving me here for a very specific 00:08:46.230 --> 00:08:54.110 reason. And so, but for those who feel like their 00:08:54.110 --> 00:08:57.889 pain does disqualify them, it feels like life 00:08:57.889 --> 00:09:02.730 kind of counts them out because the world isn't 00:09:02.730 --> 00:09:05.529 really built for some people with chronic conditions. 00:09:05.889 --> 00:09:09.080 It's kind of a, it's like. there's some things 00:09:09.080 --> 00:09:11.440 we can do but they're not always easily accessible 00:09:11.440 --> 00:09:15.799 so like um or like they don't always come to 00:09:15.799 --> 00:09:19.039 the forefront of our mind so from that from your 00:09:19.039 --> 00:09:22.000 frame from your poor framework through that how 00:09:22.000 --> 00:09:24.419 can they how can they see themselves from being 00:09:24.419 --> 00:09:26.980 disqualified they actually qualified for their 00:09:26.980 --> 00:09:33.240 calling well you can see yourself as i like what 00:09:33.240 --> 00:09:37.710 you said You can't do the things that you used 00:09:37.710 --> 00:09:40.509 to be able to do with the frequency that you 00:09:40.509 --> 00:09:43.830 used to be able to do them. Yep. So it kind of 00:09:43.830 --> 00:09:47.730 actually the pain pointed you more in the direction 00:09:47.730 --> 00:09:52.809 of your purpose. So it sounds like you're very 00:09:52.809 --> 00:09:57.250 productive in doing what you were actually called 00:09:57.250 --> 00:10:05.120 to do. So as you do that. And also I hear you, 00:10:05.159 --> 00:10:08.059 what I hear you saying is you become more resilient 00:10:08.059 --> 00:10:12.940 because you have had to figure out things because 00:10:12.940 --> 00:10:15.600 like you said, it's not built. This world is 00:10:15.600 --> 00:10:18.679 not built for people in these circumstances. 00:10:19.159 --> 00:10:26.879 So you've become more present. Yeah. And I want 00:10:26.879 --> 00:10:29.120 individuals to know dealing with chronic pain, 00:10:29.220 --> 00:10:34.710 that your presence is a present. to this world 00:10:34.710 --> 00:10:38.029 it's a gift it's a reflection of how you show 00:10:38.029 --> 00:10:41.950 up being human and being purposeful for some 00:10:41.950 --> 00:10:45.129 on that particular day just the very fact that 00:10:45.129 --> 00:10:48.830 you were able to get up and get out of bed yeah 00:10:48.830 --> 00:10:52.490 and just go about your day as best you could 00:10:52.490 --> 00:10:55.269 that's purposeful sometimes we think purpose 00:10:55.269 --> 00:10:59.090 is such a grand thing but it's just being present 00:10:59.090 --> 00:11:03.009 in the moment and doing the best you can with 00:11:03.009 --> 00:11:06.289 what you can for that particular day. And sometimes 00:11:06.289 --> 00:11:11.169 you kind of have to shift. I've seen individuals 00:11:11.169 --> 00:11:16.389 practice what I kind of call a premature gratitude. 00:11:17.389 --> 00:11:21.950 You know, that's speaking things as though they 00:11:21.950 --> 00:11:25.669 are, as you say, premature, premature gratitude, 00:11:25.870 --> 00:11:29.149 thanking God, it's going to be a good day. So 00:11:29.149 --> 00:11:31.110 my good day might not look like your good day. 00:11:31.679 --> 00:11:34.340 But for you, you're going to decide it's going 00:11:34.340 --> 00:11:36.820 to be a good day with given the circumstances 00:11:36.820 --> 00:11:40.759 that I have. So my circumstances won't be my 00:11:40.759 --> 00:11:44.519 boundary. Because a lot of times I watched one 00:11:44.519 --> 00:11:50.840 of my closest friends deal with ALS. And that's 00:11:50.840 --> 00:11:55.200 a very debilitating disease. And I watched him 00:11:55.200 --> 00:11:58.700 as long as he could speak verbally, you know, 00:11:58.700 --> 00:12:03.299 still thank God. and say don't don't feel sorry 00:12:03.299 --> 00:12:06.139 for me god's still been good to me and then as 00:12:06.139 --> 00:12:09.399 he could not speak we had these non -verbal cues 00:12:09.399 --> 00:12:14.460 that we would use and still remembering god's 00:12:14.460 --> 00:12:17.759 been good to me you know so he was practicing 00:12:17.759 --> 00:12:21.500 that premature gratitude even though he was well 00:12:21.500 --> 00:12:26.919 aware of what his situation was so it's it's 00:12:26.919 --> 00:12:31.039 a it's a push yeah It's a push that you have 00:12:31.039 --> 00:12:35.080 to push your way through and just, you know, 00:12:35.080 --> 00:12:39.519 say I'm not going to allow pain to pause my purpose. 00:12:40.100 --> 00:12:42.779 It's going to push me towards my purpose. And 00:12:42.779 --> 00:12:44.899 then when I think about my framework, like the 00:12:44.899 --> 00:12:47.519 poor framework, again, purposeful, outstanding, 00:12:48.039 --> 00:12:52.320 unique and relevant. Outstanding is not, like 00:12:52.320 --> 00:12:55.740 I said, just about so much how tall you stand. 00:12:55.820 --> 00:12:58.879 It's just the fact that you're standing. In the 00:12:58.879 --> 00:13:02.019 midst of everything that's going on, you're choosing 00:13:02.019 --> 00:13:05.399 character when you don't even feel strong at 00:13:05.399 --> 00:13:09.519 times. At your weakest points, you continue to 00:13:09.519 --> 00:13:15.460 dream when life or your diagnosis may push you 00:13:15.460 --> 00:13:17.840 to settle. But you continue to have these dreams 00:13:17.840 --> 00:13:20.740 because as long as we still have breath in our 00:13:20.740 --> 00:13:25.159 body, God has purpose for us. It does not make 00:13:25.159 --> 00:13:28.840 us less outstanding. It just more reveals how 00:13:28.840 --> 00:13:32.820 outstanding we are and what we can be in this 00:13:32.820 --> 00:13:37.379 world and make an impact in the kingdom. My mom 00:13:37.379 --> 00:13:43.779 always said to us as children, it's not about 00:13:43.779 --> 00:13:48.419 what you go through as much as it is about how 00:13:48.419 --> 00:13:51.639 you go through it. You know, because really the 00:13:51.639 --> 00:13:57.259 only way out is through. Yeah. So, and then we've 00:13:57.259 --> 00:14:00.919 talked about being purposeful, talked about being 00:14:00.919 --> 00:14:06.740 outstanding. Also being unique and realizing 00:14:06.740 --> 00:14:10.019 that your uniqueness is like your superpower. 00:14:10.679 --> 00:14:15.919 Yeah. There's only one Thomas. That's the Thomas 00:14:15.919 --> 00:14:19.909 that you are, if that makes sense. Yeah. What 00:14:19.909 --> 00:14:23.409 you may think disqualifies you is the very thing 00:14:23.409 --> 00:14:27.269 that God intends to use to distinguish you and 00:14:27.269 --> 00:14:29.929 set you apart. And you're doing that in this 00:14:29.929 --> 00:14:33.129 space right here, which is reaching individuals 00:14:33.129 --> 00:14:37.830 and is going to help somebody. So pain actually 00:14:37.830 --> 00:14:41.669 gives you a perspective, if you understand what 00:14:41.669 --> 00:14:47.309 I mean. It puts you on the path only where your 00:14:47.309 --> 00:14:51.700 calling makes sense. It's only where you're called. 00:14:51.759 --> 00:14:55.519 It's a custom route, so to say. Yeah. Pain takes 00:14:55.519 --> 00:15:01.179 you to a custom route just for you. So it's the 00:15:01.179 --> 00:15:04.259 positive, finding the positive and the negative, 00:15:04.299 --> 00:15:09.220 finding the best on the worst days. Right. And 00:15:09.220 --> 00:15:12.580 it doesn't, like I said, let's not sugarcoat 00:15:12.580 --> 00:15:15.879 it. Pain is painful, if that makes sense. Pain 00:15:15.879 --> 00:15:22.139 sucks. It does. So it's very okay to be very 00:15:22.139 --> 00:15:25.399 human about that. Yeah. You know, so let's just, 00:15:25.419 --> 00:15:29.279 let's just be honest and to show up, let's move 00:15:29.279 --> 00:15:31.779 on to being relevant. We've talked about being 00:15:31.779 --> 00:15:34.320 purposeful, outstanding, unique, irrelevant. 00:15:34.559 --> 00:15:40.600 It is staying aligned with the world that's changing 00:15:40.600 --> 00:15:44.080 around you and staying aligned with, with your 00:15:44.080 --> 00:15:49.179 values. So I like to think of alignment as one 00:15:49.179 --> 00:15:54.299 of my mentors described alignment as what you 00:15:54.299 --> 00:15:58.299 say, what you do, and what you believe are all 00:15:58.299 --> 00:16:06.419 in agreement. Integrity. Integrity. So it could 00:16:06.419 --> 00:16:09.460 be staying relevant, could be just having a single 00:16:09.460 --> 00:16:12.080 conversation that could change someone's life, 00:16:12.200 --> 00:16:15.740 even in the midst of the storm. It could be a 00:16:15.740 --> 00:16:19.539 post. It could be the podcast you're doing. Again, 00:16:19.700 --> 00:16:24.440 we know that Jesus changed the world with just 00:16:24.440 --> 00:16:31.080 12 people. Yeah. David, he led a nation with 00:16:31.080 --> 00:16:34.700 just five stones. Let's not forget Gideon who 00:16:34.700 --> 00:16:39.120 saved Israel with 300. God has always done the 00:16:39.120 --> 00:16:42.679 most with the least in the least circumstances. 00:16:43.500 --> 00:16:48.840 So while you're thinking your pain disqualifies 00:16:48.840 --> 00:16:53.179 you, it qualifies you on a whole new level. Yeah. 00:16:53.519 --> 00:16:58.220 I think from my perspective and from what I've 00:16:58.220 --> 00:17:02.100 learned, first, what pops into my head is, I 00:17:02.100 --> 00:17:04.160 believe it's in the book of Corinthians, where 00:17:04.160 --> 00:17:09.380 Paul talks about how trials produce endurance 00:17:09.380 --> 00:17:11.700 and endurance produces character and character 00:17:11.700 --> 00:17:16.609 produces hope. And another thing we talked about 00:17:16.609 --> 00:17:18.950 during the pre -interview is how the pain of 00:17:18.950 --> 00:17:23.990 whether it's chronic pain or it's like maybe 00:17:23.990 --> 00:17:26.849 you're sick or maybe you're just dealing with 00:17:26.849 --> 00:17:31.069 a external circumstances outside of your control. 00:17:31.170 --> 00:17:34.369 It feels like a curse. It doesn't feel like a 00:17:34.369 --> 00:17:36.289 blessing. It doesn't feel like it's possible 00:17:36.289 --> 00:17:40.569 to be blessed through that situation. But the 00:17:40.569 --> 00:17:46.450 thing is, Like you said before, God uses our 00:17:46.450 --> 00:17:50.910 circumstances in order to help us define the 00:17:50.910 --> 00:17:52.670 purpose that he has put on our lives, help us 00:17:52.670 --> 00:17:54.269 understand the purpose that's already been defined. 00:17:58.750 --> 00:18:06.430 Because if you think about it, we know God to 00:18:06.430 --> 00:18:10.450 be God. He already knew this was coming. Yeah, 00:18:10.470 --> 00:18:15.990 right. He already knew. that this pain this diagnosis 00:18:15.990 --> 00:18:22.049 was coming so if he already knew that it was 00:18:22.049 --> 00:18:25.190 coming he already knew that we could handle it 00:18:25.190 --> 00:18:29.849 but it's not always we can't always handle it 00:18:29.849 --> 00:18:35.089 alone that's um where i think some individuals 00:18:35.089 --> 00:18:41.250 kind of sell themselves a little short when they 00:18:41.250 --> 00:18:45.089 try to go through in isolation there's really 00:18:45.089 --> 00:18:50.029 power in your circle your environment and your 00:18:50.029 --> 00:18:52.849 community especially when you're going through 00:18:52.849 --> 00:18:56.930 something um that's as it relates to chronic 00:18:56.930 --> 00:19:05.250 um chronic pain or illness yeah it's i was saying 00:19:05.250 --> 00:19:11.089 before that Crying pain can feel like a curse, 00:19:11.250 --> 00:19:14.369 but you mentioned the community we have around 00:19:14.369 --> 00:19:19.450 us. And I talked about that a lot on this podcast 00:19:19.450 --> 00:19:25.009 in the past, that I believe it's like through 00:19:25.009 --> 00:19:27.430 my church, through aligning myself with God, 00:19:27.549 --> 00:19:30.990 not only do I have God in my corner, I have the 00:19:30.990 --> 00:19:35.420 people he's put around me. I have friends that 00:19:35.420 --> 00:19:37.579 pray for me. I have people I probably don't even 00:19:37.579 --> 00:19:45.160 know praying for me. And I believe in the power 00:19:45.160 --> 00:19:46.940 of prayer. I don't know what those prayers are 00:19:46.940 --> 00:19:49.720 doing, but I know they're doing something, if 00:19:49.720 --> 00:19:53.240 that makes sense. Because people pray for healing, 00:19:53.299 --> 00:19:55.019 but it might not be the healing I'm looking for. 00:19:56.799 --> 00:20:00.539 I've had to heal from wondering, like, God, why 00:20:00.539 --> 00:20:04.240 me, and using my condition as a crutch. and using 00:20:04.240 --> 00:20:08.539 it as a uh using it like you said sell myself 00:20:08.539 --> 00:20:12.720 short to be like no i can't do that because of 00:20:12.720 --> 00:20:15.339 my condition or it's people are people being 00:20:15.339 --> 00:20:17.900 able to not doing something or failing at certain 00:20:17.900 --> 00:20:19.900 things and people being like well that's understandable 00:20:19.900 --> 00:20:22.839 because you you have this condition that you 00:20:22.839 --> 00:20:25.119 have you have this circumstance that makes sense 00:20:25.119 --> 00:20:28.559 i'm like i don't want to make sense like the 00:20:28.559 --> 00:20:31.890 purpose the purpose are our calling shouldn't 00:20:31.890 --> 00:20:33.809 really, this is just coming off the cuff, but 00:20:33.809 --> 00:20:36.789 our calling shouldn't make sense. Like it should, 00:20:36.789 --> 00:20:38.769 it should make sense to us as we fall on the 00:20:38.769 --> 00:20:40.009 calling, but it shouldn't make sense from the 00:20:40.009 --> 00:20:43.369 external. It'd be like that person, like me and 00:20:43.369 --> 00:20:46.430 my circumstance with chronic pain, I know I can 00:20:46.430 --> 00:20:48.130 achieve more than I can think or imagine because 00:20:48.130 --> 00:20:52.210 that's what God calls me to do. And our, and 00:20:52.210 --> 00:20:56.390 like our pain, it like, it sucks. It sucks to 00:20:56.390 --> 00:20:59.450 be in chronic pain. It sucks to be. uh not able 00:20:59.450 --> 00:21:02.750 to do like things that maybe like me i used to 00:21:02.750 --> 00:21:05.450 be able to drive like like hours and hours now 00:21:05.450 --> 00:21:07.349 i can barely drive like 10 minutes some days 00:21:07.349 --> 00:21:10.650 but i'm able to use the blessing of being able 00:21:10.650 --> 00:21:14.750 to get rides with people and talk with them in 00:21:14.750 --> 00:21:17.789 the car ride talk with them and be able to pour 00:21:17.789 --> 00:21:26.309 into them and then pour into me it's a There's 00:21:26.309 --> 00:21:30.950 so many blessings whenever you look at it from 00:21:30.950 --> 00:21:34.250 the perspective of like, not why me, not why 00:21:34.250 --> 00:21:37.750 this happening to me, but what is this doing 00:21:37.750 --> 00:21:42.309 for me? Right. Exactly. Exactly. I definitely, 00:21:42.349 --> 00:21:45.150 definitely agree with that. I've been in some 00:21:45.150 --> 00:21:49.589 situations where, because I'm going to just be 00:21:49.589 --> 00:21:52.650 honest, I try to pass the test because I don't 00:21:52.650 --> 00:21:56.569 want to go through the test again. So it goes 00:21:56.569 --> 00:22:00.829 back to what I said, my mom, it's not about what 00:22:00.829 --> 00:22:03.109 you go through, but it's how you go through it. 00:22:03.309 --> 00:22:09.289 So trying to get the lesson in the midst is very 00:22:09.289 --> 00:22:12.789 important. What am I supposed to get out of this? 00:22:13.049 --> 00:22:16.630 What am I supposed to give from this situation? 00:22:17.289 --> 00:22:22.650 Because again, why it is personal and it feels 00:22:22.650 --> 00:22:26.710 extremely personal. It still is purposeful. So 00:22:26.710 --> 00:22:31.109 what do you want me to do with what you've given 00:22:31.109 --> 00:22:33.990 me to go through, how you've given me to go through 00:22:33.990 --> 00:22:36.730 and how can I help somebody else? Because a lot 00:22:36.730 --> 00:22:43.470 of times, even growing up in some of the city's 00:22:43.470 --> 00:22:46.690 most underserved neighborhoods, we have what 00:22:46.690 --> 00:22:49.390 we needed because I had a mom who was going to 00:22:49.390 --> 00:22:51.970 make a way out of no way, you know, and they 00:22:51.970 --> 00:22:55.910 say who could. Turn a dollar, turn 15, send it 00:22:55.910 --> 00:22:58.269 to a dollar. So she was going to make a way. 00:22:58.430 --> 00:23:06.789 But even in that, we still were raised that somebody 00:23:06.789 --> 00:23:11.809 else is always worse off than you. So you still 00:23:11.809 --> 00:23:14.569 give. And when you give, it's still a blessing 00:23:14.569 --> 00:23:19.349 to be a blessing. Yeah. So that's one of the 00:23:19.349 --> 00:23:22.269 things that's very important. when you go through 00:23:22.269 --> 00:23:27.349 stuff is to kind of step back and look at how 00:23:27.349 --> 00:23:30.950 is this going to be used to help someone else, 00:23:31.009 --> 00:23:37.490 even in your darkest, darkest places. I, my pastor 00:23:37.490 --> 00:23:44.029 who dealt with colon cancer and that was very, 00:23:44.170 --> 00:23:49.009 very rough to see. And one of the last messages 00:23:49.009 --> 00:23:52.529 that he preached. That I'll never forget is that 00:23:52.529 --> 00:23:56.609 you could be bitter or you could be better. Yeah. 00:23:57.130 --> 00:24:02.529 And what I think that gave him strength in going 00:24:02.529 --> 00:24:05.250 through that very tough storm of dealing with 00:24:05.250 --> 00:24:08.509 colon cancer. You could be bitter or you could 00:24:08.509 --> 00:24:11.269 be better. It's a decision. Yeah. You have to 00:24:11.269 --> 00:24:14.930 remember. You can even say, you know, God, I 00:24:14.930 --> 00:24:18.690 don't like this. I don't understand it. But the 00:24:18.690 --> 00:24:22.849 blessing is. that I'm still here. I'm still here. 00:24:23.170 --> 00:24:29.130 And I would encourage anybody who's dealing with 00:24:29.130 --> 00:24:33.650 anything on a physical level of pain, on an emotional 00:24:33.650 --> 00:24:38.210 level of pain, on a mental level of pain, is 00:24:38.210 --> 00:24:40.869 to honor whatever you're going through. You can 00:24:40.869 --> 00:24:45.730 honor that anger instead of hiding it. Be honest. 00:24:45.829 --> 00:24:50.779 Be real. Talk to God about it. And also I would 00:24:50.779 --> 00:24:55.000 encourage them to separate the diagnosis from 00:24:55.000 --> 00:24:58.720 their identity. So a lot of times I've seen people 00:24:58.720 --> 00:25:03.279 go through situations, let's just say pain. Oh, 00:25:03.359 --> 00:25:07.000 that's so -and -so with cancer. No, that's a 00:25:07.000 --> 00:25:11.059 mother. That's a father. That's a friend. That's 00:25:11.059 --> 00:25:14.720 a fighter. That's a believer. That's a witness. 00:25:16.460 --> 00:25:19.220 I would encourage them to separate the diagnosis 00:25:19.220 --> 00:25:24.319 from their identity. For sure. Choose connection. 00:25:24.480 --> 00:25:26.319 I spoke about that. Choosing connection over 00:25:26.319 --> 00:25:30.980 isolation is very important. I know I've been 00:25:30.980 --> 00:25:34.059 in some tough situations. And another thing that 00:25:34.059 --> 00:25:38.319 my pastor, he was a comedian, so he thought, 00:25:38.400 --> 00:25:41.900 but he really was. And laughter really is a medicine. 00:25:43.579 --> 00:25:45.940 Laughter really, I don't know if you've ever 00:25:45.940 --> 00:25:50.119 done this, been in a, had a down day or just 00:25:50.119 --> 00:25:53.279 put on something funny. Even if it's temporary, 00:25:53.619 --> 00:25:58.039 it really medicates you and gets your mind off 00:25:58.039 --> 00:26:00.920 of what's really going on. And like I said, give 00:26:00.920 --> 00:26:06.640 yourself permission to be human. Yeah. Build 00:26:06.640 --> 00:26:09.380 peace. Excuse me. Go ahead. I'm sorry, Thomas. 00:26:10.039 --> 00:26:13.880 Oh, no, you're good. I wanted to say before you 00:26:13.880 --> 00:26:17.140 said, you said, I'm still, you like acknowledge 00:26:17.140 --> 00:26:20.079 that you're still here. And I love the phrase, 00:26:20.240 --> 00:26:24.519 if I'm still here, God's not done. Yes. Yes. 00:26:24.680 --> 00:26:26.940 And like, if you're still here, if you're listening 00:26:26.940 --> 00:26:29.240 to this episode right now, God's not done with 00:26:29.240 --> 00:26:32.500 you yet. Not done. He's not done. God's got like, 00:26:32.599 --> 00:26:35.039 he's got a calling in your life. You're not, 00:26:35.079 --> 00:26:38.589 you're not disqualified. you're you're at you 00:26:38.589 --> 00:26:41.150 you have the ability to be purposeful outstanding 00:26:41.150 --> 00:26:47.809 unique and relevant yes and yeah like i i want 00:26:47.809 --> 00:26:49.769 you to listen to this episode and actually understand 00:26:49.769 --> 00:26:54.329 what that means because you're not just a like 00:26:54.329 --> 00:26:56.509 you she like she just said you're not a person 00:26:56.509 --> 00:26:58.869 who's just in chronic pain i used to be like 00:26:58.869 --> 00:27:00.690 that was my identity for a while i understand 00:27:00.690 --> 00:27:03.750 like sometimes you're like i i this is me this 00:27:03.750 --> 00:27:06.210 is this is this is who i am now it's like no 00:27:07.439 --> 00:27:10.019 Yes, that's just a circumstance. Circumstances 00:27:10.019 --> 00:27:12.680 don't define your calling, but like she said, 00:27:12.759 --> 00:27:17.299 it can amplify it. But you have to let it happen. 00:27:17.440 --> 00:27:23.299 You have to lean into the blessing. You can't 00:27:23.299 --> 00:27:28.500 look at it like I did as a curse. And it's really 00:27:28.500 --> 00:27:30.359 easy to do that. It's really easy to be like, 00:27:30.440 --> 00:27:34.180 man, my life sucks. And I'm never going to be 00:27:34.180 --> 00:27:35.940 able to do anything because of this circumstance. 00:27:36.240 --> 00:27:40.019 But understand that God uses all things worth 00:27:40.019 --> 00:27:43.759 the good of the kingdom. Does nothing goes, nothing's 00:27:43.759 --> 00:27:47.880 wasted. So guys, I want to, I'm going to start 00:27:47.880 --> 00:27:50.519 wrapping up this episode, but I want to, I want 00:27:50.519 --> 00:27:55.660 you guys to go through those four things, purposeful, 00:27:55.680 --> 00:27:57.779 outstanding, unique, and relevant. And I want 00:27:57.779 --> 00:28:00.960 you to write down areas. how you can be doing 00:28:00.960 --> 00:28:03.220 that in your life. How can you be purposeful? 00:28:03.640 --> 00:28:06.460 How can you be outstanding? How can you, how 00:28:06.460 --> 00:28:09.440 are you unique and how can you be relevant? How 00:28:09.440 --> 00:28:11.980 you can, how can you align what you're saying 00:28:11.980 --> 00:28:14.400 with what you're doing? How can you make sure 00:28:14.400 --> 00:28:19.319 in what you're believing and make sure, and make 00:28:19.319 --> 00:28:21.039 sure that you have integrity in those areas of 00:28:21.039 --> 00:28:25.079 your life. Um, but Chante, I have a few wrap 00:28:25.079 --> 00:28:30.809 up questions. I ask every guest for, uh, what 00:28:30.809 --> 00:28:33.829 would be some of the top resources or I should 00:28:33.829 --> 00:28:36.250 say the number one top resource that you typically 00:28:36.250 --> 00:28:38.390 recommend to people, whether that be a book, 00:28:38.450 --> 00:28:42.470 a podcast, or even a person, what would you, 00:28:42.470 --> 00:28:45.109 who would you, or what would you typically recommend 00:28:45.109 --> 00:28:54.150 to people? I would recommend, well, the book 00:28:54.150 --> 00:28:58.470 of Proverbs is just, just one of my favorites. 00:28:59.569 --> 00:29:04.509 books in the bible about life life application 00:29:04.509 --> 00:29:10.369 um that's one of my favorite things but um my 00:29:10.369 --> 00:29:16.509 mentor and coach dr darius daniels wrote a book 00:29:16.509 --> 00:29:20.990 in pursuit of calling which is an excellent resource 00:29:20.990 --> 00:29:28.069 and it outlines and directs you to remember that 00:29:28.069 --> 00:29:33.250 everybody has this uniqueness about them and 00:29:33.250 --> 00:29:37.609 they have purpose in the earth to do what they 00:29:37.609 --> 00:29:42.329 were created to do and just in line with this 00:29:42.329 --> 00:29:46.670 conversation you're still created to do something 00:29:46.670 --> 00:29:51.730 yeah even in pain you may have to pivot how you 00:29:51.730 --> 00:29:56.289 do that and there's power in the pivot yeah You 00:29:56.289 --> 00:29:58.589 may have to pivot how you do that, but you were 00:29:58.589 --> 00:30:04.849 still uniquely designed for a purpose in this 00:30:04.849 --> 00:30:09.430 earth. So I would encourage people to really 00:30:09.430 --> 00:30:13.970 remember that. Yeah. Awesome. Thank you. Thank 00:30:13.970 --> 00:30:20.029 you for those. I think. I'm trying to remember. 00:30:20.329 --> 00:30:24.750 Hazel. She recommended Dr. Darius as well. So 00:30:24.750 --> 00:30:28.250 I want to read one of his books before I reach 00:30:28.250 --> 00:30:35.130 out. But yeah, I appreciate. He recommended him 00:30:35.130 --> 00:30:38.829 for the next question. But next question is, 00:30:38.910 --> 00:30:41.670 who do you know that I should know? Who is somebody 00:30:41.670 --> 00:30:43.970 that you would recommend for the podcast? Somebody 00:30:43.970 --> 00:30:47.970 that would be a great connection for me to have? 00:30:50.029 --> 00:30:55.670 I was going to say Hazel. I was going to say 00:30:55.670 --> 00:31:04.910 Coach Hazel. Definitely Dr. Darius would be an 00:31:04.910 --> 00:31:16.579 awesome individual to have on your podcast. That 00:31:16.579 --> 00:31:18.339 would be an awesome individual to have on your 00:31:18.339 --> 00:31:20.380 podcast. If you could, if you can make that happen. 00:31:20.720 --> 00:31:24.400 For sure. No, I, you know, I don't assume a no. 00:31:28.059 --> 00:31:30.859 I know he is a, he has a larger platform, way 00:31:30.859 --> 00:31:34.900 larger platform. I know he's a, but I, I would 00:31:34.900 --> 00:31:36.940 be blessed to have him on. I listened to a couple 00:31:36.940 --> 00:31:41.799 of his messages, but, and then how can people 00:31:41.799 --> 00:31:46.099 find out more about you? Sorry. No, go ahead. 00:31:46.200 --> 00:31:48.319 I'm sorry. Oh, no, you're good. You're good. 00:31:49.220 --> 00:31:54.960 So I can be reached on Instagram at the poor 00:31:54.960 --> 00:32:00.579 coach. And my website is born to poor dot com. 00:32:01.599 --> 00:32:04.180 And if you would like to email me, you can email 00:32:04.180 --> 00:32:07.779 me at info at born to poor dot com. I'm looking 00:32:07.779 --> 00:32:13.859 forward to starting off. Twenty twenty six with 00:32:13.859 --> 00:32:19.180 some great. Great topics. One of the topics will 00:32:19.180 --> 00:32:24.319 be what about your friends? The relationship 00:32:24.319 --> 00:32:26.779 audit you did not know you needed because we 00:32:26.779 --> 00:32:33.059 know relationships are one of the number one 00:32:33.059 --> 00:32:36.660 contributors to our success in life. So who you 00:32:36.660 --> 00:32:40.339 surround yourself with is very important and 00:32:40.339 --> 00:32:42.779 who you keep in your environment and in your 00:32:42.779 --> 00:32:48.059 circle. It's great to build with people who build 00:32:48.059 --> 00:32:53.720 you. So we're going to really tackle that whole 00:32:53.720 --> 00:32:58.640 relation, relational intelligence piece and do 00:32:58.640 --> 00:33:03.380 some workshops around that. Also around boundaries, 00:33:03.740 --> 00:33:08.140 boundaries, boundaries and changing some of these 00:33:08.140 --> 00:33:11.359 patterns that keep us stuck. So you can look 00:33:11.359 --> 00:33:16.380 for that. pretty soon um through the information 00:33:16.380 --> 00:33:19.940 i just provided for sure and we got the born 00:33:19.940 --> 00:33:23.259 to poor .com we got instagram at the poor coach 00:33:23.259 --> 00:33:25.880 and then email if you want to email her she said 00:33:25.880 --> 00:33:29.680 info at born to coach or born to poor .com yes 00:33:29.680 --> 00:33:33.759 but yeah guys thank you again well thank you 00:33:33.759 --> 00:33:38.079 um shantae for joining us uh your message your 00:33:38.079 --> 00:33:40.140 framework is great and i really enjoyed this 00:33:40.140 --> 00:33:44.470 conversation Me too, Thomas. Thank you. I appreciate, 00:33:44.869 --> 00:33:46.789 you know, we've had some little hiccups with 00:33:46.789 --> 00:33:49.809 scheduling and technical difficulties, but all 00:33:49.809 --> 00:33:53.309 will be well. And I pray God's continued blessings 00:33:53.309 --> 00:33:56.750 and favor on your life. And I applaud the work 00:33:56.750 --> 00:33:59.349 that you're doing in this space. That's a very 00:33:59.349 --> 00:34:03.450 unique population that you're reaching, but even 00:34:03.450 --> 00:34:06.549 reaching that population, it reaches others. 00:34:06.609 --> 00:34:09.809 So just, you know, stay encouraged and continue 00:34:09.809 --> 00:34:12.829 blessings upon you. I appreciate that. I really 00:34:12.829 --> 00:34:15.909 do. And for everyone that is listening to this 00:34:15.909 --> 00:34:19.110 episode, thank you. And if you enjoyed this episode, 00:34:19.190 --> 00:34:21.909 share it on Instagram, Facebook, and every social 00:34:21.909 --> 00:34:24.190 media platform that you're on. Again, wherever 00:34:24.190 --> 00:34:26.130 platform you're listening to this podcast on, 00:34:26.309 --> 00:34:29.010 don't forget to leave a five -star review. And 00:34:29.010 --> 00:34:31.670 if you're on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, go ahead 00:34:31.670 --> 00:34:34.210 and leave a review. That really helps the algorithm 00:34:34.210 --> 00:34:37.670 and also lets me know if I'm doing good or not. 00:34:38.090 --> 00:34:42.079 So, guys. Thank you again. And keep pursuing 00:34:42.079 --> 00:34:44.239 your calling. All right, guys. See you next time.