she knocked on thousands of doors, and it led to this...πͺ
Published 16 days agoΒ β’Β 2 min read
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purpose + possibilities.
Yesterday was Memorial Day in the U.S., a day set aside to honor the people who gave everything in service to others. π«‘
Since the idea of "servant leadership" has been engrained in me since I was a teen, service is something I'm always mindful of.
Heck...that's the whole point of purpose, right?
It's all the things you love plus what comes naturally to you, used to make someone else's life better.
That's it. π―
I think we sometimes overcomplicate purpose because it doesn't announce itself in some grand, serendipitous way.
It's usually pretty constant and so instinctive that you don't even notice it. Or you dismiss it because it couldn't be that easy...or could it?
After all, Lauryn Hill did say, "It could all be so simple, but we'd rather make it hard."
But making things hard is not what my friend, Sharonda Stewart, owner of The Appliance Gals, has done throughout her career.
She's been in service to people her entire life, long before she had a business card to prove it.
She grew up knocking on strangers' doors, 90 hours a month, because she genuinely believed she was helping. π
She waitressed and went above and beyond not for the tips, but because that's just how she showed up.
She walked into broken-down kitchens across Atlanta and told people the truth, even if the truth cost her the sale.
Nearly 15 years later, The Appliance Gals has a 4.8-star Google rating and 230+ reviews because service is Sharonda's way of being. It's her one move. ππΎ
How the skills she built knocking on strangers' doors became the foundation of a 15-year business
Why honesty (even when it's inconvenient) turned out to be her greatest competitive advantage
What it looks like to leave everything behind and still carry the most important parts with you
How to find the through line in your own story, even when the chapters don't seem connected yet
If you've ever wondered whether the work you've already done is actually preparing you for what's next, Sharonda's story may give you the signs you're looking for.
Service doesn't have to be grand to be meaningful...
Take a minute to notice how you're already in service to the people around you. What's the thing people always come to you for? The problem they hand you because they know you'll handle it?
Sharonda didn't set out to build a business around service. She just kept showing up the way she always had. Chances are, you're doing the same thing. π«ΆπΎ
purpose + our people.
And speaking of service...
I LOVE serving the creative community in Atlanta through CreativeMornings.
This Friday, we're gathering at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution for a conversation with Monti Carlo β author, Food & Dining Editor at the AJC, award-winning TV host, and a leading voice in modern Puerto Rican cuisine β all around the theme CREATE.
π Friday, May 29 | π₯― Bagels, coffee, live music, and a conversation worth having.
"The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well."
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