Transcript
Kimaru: Welcome to the Spark It podcast with me, Helen Kimaru and Patrick CJ, as he likes to call himself. And on today's topic, we we'll be diving into the topic of finding your purpose.
Kimaru: Is it a journey or a destination? So yeah, Patrick, welcome to the podcast. How do you feel today?
Patrick Abure: I feel very good, Kimaru baby.
Kimaru: Are you excited about this topic?
Patrick Abure: oh yeah. ah i Honestly, i think I am. And at the same time, I definitely do not know like if it is something that we can cover in like a couple of minutes because I feel like
Kimaru: ah huh
Patrick Abure: It's a huge topic that would take so much time to like completely dissect it.
Kimaru: the who
Kimaru: That's true.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: So what would you say is purpose according to you?
Patrick Abure: I mean, it's so one thing i i would start with is that purpose is definitely journey rather than just some destination that we are going like um or heading to or going to reach someday.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: It's something that definitely we do not just find one day. For me, I think purpose is something that grows as we grow.
Kimaru: who who
Patrick Abure: And now I look at purpose more from... the perspective of my faith as ah an adventist i know like some people um link purpose for example to maybe culture um maybe to their life experiences or maybe their choices and things like that i think there are others too that maybe born with their purpose and
Kimaru: Okay.
Patrick Abure: i I could say Jesus Christ.
Kimaru: Okay. Oh, yeah, sure. If you say that, yes. Uh-huh.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. But I think from ah the perspective of my faith, um my faith as an Adventist teaches me that
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: My purpose is to serve God.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: um My purpose is to serve others.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: And it's to help make the world honestly ah better place.
Kimaru: Okay.
Patrick Abure: And so for me, purpose is that.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: It's being able to serve God, to serve others, and to, in one way or the other, make the world better than I found it.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Wow, interesting.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: ah
Patrick Abure: Yeah. Right.
Kimaru: I think you kind of almost answered that the question of, ah because what I wanted us to cover today is whether something like, if have you found your purpose? ah Is purpose something you're born with? Or is it something like you kind of grow into?
Kimaru: Something like that. Yeah, and definitely talk about if we have found our purpose.
Patrick Abure: Right.
Kimaru: So you've said, you've mentioned Jesus. I think, yes, for sure for him, his purpose was just one. Come save the human race. Yeah, makes a lot of sense.
Patrick Abure: Yeah, yeah.
Kimaru: So, oh, interesting. I like your definition of purpose, actually. So ah do you think you've found your purpose?
Patrick Abure: i I would think, yeah. um And again, really, so this is a very relative thing. When we talk about purpose, it is very relative.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Okay.
Patrick Abure: Because it definitely, what purpose looks like for me,
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: might not be what it looks like for you. Or maybe the other person listening to us or watching us.
Kimaru: Okay. Yeah. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: For me, it's about God. um Serving God, serving others, making the world better place.
Kimaru: yeah
Patrick Abure: And so for me, I feel like I have been able to find a that um at least from a little bit earlier I would say, a part of my life because so became an Adventist.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: I think probably when I was maybe 12, twelve
Kimaru: Oh, wow.
Patrick Abure: I'm maybe 13. Yeah.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: That was when I got baptized.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. and And I think since and then, have had an incredible experience of being able to commit my life to service, service to God and service to others, but also service to myself.
Kimaru: the
Patrick Abure: Yeah, because I believe like taking care myself is also part of my purpose.
Kimaru: ahha
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: interesting oh
Patrick Abure: Yeah. So... I've had the pleasure of basically, like, for example, being able to go out to preach um to people the gospel of Jesus Christ, but at the same time being able to ah set up an organization and different other initiatives that are helping people
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: making their lives better every day in so many other ways, whether it being Sesi Uganda, whether it being Jebs to apply, whether it being Wani.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: who
Patrick Abure: And another initiative that we are currently building, it's helping change lives.
Kimaru: you
Patrick Abure: and And I think for me, it's serving it's serving my purpose or what I am meant to do in this world.
Patrick Abure: And yeah, I hope it is helping me make a difference because I feel like it is.
Kimaru: and so according to you purpose is something that should help you like make a difference and it should serve you serve other people and serve god
Patrick Abure: that that That is what I see Papas as.
Kimaru: okay
Patrick Abure: And this is really mostly from a very Christian understanding, right?
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: And which was why I said, this is a very relative thing.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: it will probably it It will definitely, not just probable, it will differ a lot.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Okay. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. From person to person or community to community.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: But from I think from a Christian perspective, most people will agree with me.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: that our purpose of being here is to serve God, to serve others, and to make the world a better place.
Kimaru: is
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: Interesting. You've mentioned some of the things you are doing. In another episode, we talked about SESI and the work you are doing to help communities ah in Uganda, their host communities and refugee communities.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: ah Definitely, we need to cover that.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: So for anyone... who has not listened to that episode maybe they should go back and get to hear your inspiring story uh you've also mentioned that these these are the initiatives you're working on like kawani and jobs to apply that you feel a part of your purpose could you tell us a little bit about those two and what exactly you are doing and how many people you are serving
Patrick Abure: Well, so with Wani, so Wani is basically a hiring platform that is built for nonprofit organizations that are looking for looking to hire people that have the passion for their mission and impact.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: And it's also for people who are interested in nonprofits, people are very passionate. about nonprofits and the work nonprofits to, to find these organizations and be able to work with them.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: And so in a nutshell, what we do at Jobs to Apply is connecting passion with mission.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah, so we are basically allowing these organizations to be able to find people that have the passion to accelerate their own missions. And this means sharing jobs or hiring ah people within on our platform.
Patrick Abure: um and very many other things, honestly, ah to helping people maybe write their resumes and cover letters so they can stand out when they apply for a job and something like that.
Kimaru: who
Kimaru: Okay.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: um Yeah, and with WANI, honestly, our goal is to help nonprofit organizations and individuals and businesses to be able to build an online presence online
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: that allows them to, one, make money, two, attract the funding and support they need could be from their supporters or donors or any other person that might be interested in supporting their work, ah especially for nonprofit organizations, but also to advance advocacy for organizations and individuals that,
Kimaru: who
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: um are working towards, for example, raising awareness about things that affect our communities. Could be maybe climate change, refugees, and vitamin, other things of interest.
Patrick Abure: So yeah, ah with WANU, we are helping these organizations so build websites within their budgets.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Yeah.
Patrick Abure: And with Jobstupply, helping these organizations hire people who are talented,
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: um qualified but who have the passion because one important thing I have learned from working with non-governmental organizations is sometimes the degree or the skills the person brings is not enough you need people that have the passion for the work because it can be a little bit bumpy yeah
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Yeah.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. That's true.
Kimaru: Yeah.
Kimaru: Hmm. Interesting. I think you forgot to mention how big a job to apply as ah but as a platform is
Patrick Abure: Honestly, i think as of um as of January, we we were serving over 45,000 people every day.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Oh, wow.
Patrick Abure: And right now, it has probably gone way over.
Kimaru: Hmm. Interesting. Uh-huh.
Kimaru: Wow.
Patrick Abure: by maybe 20,000 more or 30,000 more because we haven't yet done the statistics.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: ah We do it quarterly. So I think once it is done, we'll be able to tell.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: But as of right now, we are serving over 45,000 people every single day
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Wow.
Patrick Abure: And people who go to our website, we receive insane number said never ah visits every month.
Kimaru: And... Uh-huh.
Kimaru: Uh-huh. The traffic is so high. Yeah.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: Oh, wow.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. Like in a month, we receive over 91,000 visits on our website.
Kimaru: Oh.
Kimaru: Oh, wow. That's a lot. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. Every single month over that.
Kimaru: Oh, wow.
Patrick Abure: It's insane.
Kimaru: Yeah, I think literally you're going to be a leading platform. And also to mention that this platform was launched, I think, in June of 2024.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: Yeah, so it's not even one year old, but the impact has been impressive and the numbers and people looking for opportunities, the fact that they trust your platform and that, that's a really good purpose.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: No.
Patrick Abure: I know. i know.
Kimaru: Uh-huh.
Patrick Abure: and And honestly, as long as it's helping someone's life improve, I think it's worth it.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah, it's worth it because honestly, we we started JobStop Live with my colleague Isaac when we had so much on our plate already going on with school, with organizations, and very many other things that we are working on, like personal projects.
Kimaru: Yeah. Yeah.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. is
Kimaru: yeah
Kimaru: who
Patrick Abure: And so to be able to still find tiny time for JobStop Live and to see
Kimaru: yeah
Patrick Abure: what it has become from what it was like a couple of months ago to now is, is quite impressive.
Kimaru: who
Kimaru: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: And, and honestly, this is probably something that I don't know if Isaac, our CEO allows me to share this,
Kimaru: Oh, wow.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: but I feel like, It's probably not too bad, but what we invested into Jobs to Apply, build it, ah when we were working on it, our projection was that it would take us probably year or two for us to break even, as in, you know, the costs, what we spend.
Kimaru: who
Kimaru: who
Kimaru: who
Kimaru: who
Kimaru: Yeah, yeah.
Patrick Abure: us
Kimaru: who
Patrick Abure: Surprisingly, though, we were able to break even within seven months or six months of launching the platform.
Kimaru: Wow.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: That's impressive. Good job.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. Yeah.
Kimaru: ah ah hu
Patrick Abure: yeah
Kimaru: Interesting. Wow. Huh.
Patrick Abure: yeah
Kimaru: That's really, honestly, you guys are doing and an amazing job. I see how many followers you have on LinkedIn.
Patrick Abure: yeah
Kimaru: I think I checked today, must be like 61,000 plus followers on LinkedIn and a lot of subscribers for your newsletters.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: it's, it's really impressive as a person who receives your newsletters every day time you post right in my DMs, you know, uh,
Patrick Abure: Thank you.
Kimaru: Yeah, I think yeah you're doing amazing. And I feel like um that's a really good way to sort of find your purpose.
Patrick Abure: yeah
Kimaru: Could we, from your personal experience with Jobstor, Playa and Wani, could we say that maybe sometimes when we pursue our passions, we end up finding our purpose? Is it okay to assume that?
Patrick Abure: ah Could you say that again? i think I didn't catch it.
Kimaru: yeah I was saying, is it okay from that story you've just told us, is it okay to assume that sometimes when we pursue the things we are passionate about, we end up finding our purpose?
Patrick Abure: Yes.
Patrick Abure: Yeah, I don't disagree with that. In fact, I totally agree.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: ah Yeah, with the claim you make. Yeah, absolutely. Yeah.
Kimaru: Wow.
Patrick Abure: I think...
Kimaru: Interesting.
Patrick Abure: i think
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: We can see those examples all over our us.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Like all around us, we can see those examples of basically people finding their purpose from following their passion.
Kimaru: Yeah. Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: um Talk about football, for example.
Kimaru: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: Right.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: we We have people that basically, you know, play soccer or football and, you know, they discover like, you know what, that is what they're good at.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: And something that they see as maybe their purpose is helping others rediscover or develop that talent.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm, mm-hmm, mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: And so it becomes not just about playing soccer.
Kimaru: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: It also becomes about helping develop the talent of others and helping them pick up better versions of themselves. Yeah.
Kimaru: Sort of like inspire them. Mm-hmm, mm-hmm, mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: I know. Yeah. Yeah.
Kimaru: Hmm.
Patrick Abure: and And probably if they hadn't pursued that path, they probably wouldn't have like gotten to that point where they're like, you know what? I actually need to support others as well.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. Because there's something special about, I don't know, a hands-on experience of doing something.
Kimaru: know
Patrick Abure: Yeah. That is just different.
Kimaru: whom
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: interesting
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: Oh, wow. Do you... that I am so happy to hear that you...
Patrick Abure: Let me tell you this.
Kimaru: Okay. Okay.
Patrick Abure: So in high school, my my teacher used to come to class and tell us this, and this this has never been true than today and so forth.
Kimaru: okay
Patrick Abure: You know, he kept coming to class and saying, because...
Patrick Abure: I probably shouldn't generalize everyone, but
Kimaru: That's what he would say.
Patrick Abure: and no, that is not what he would say, but I don't want to generalize it for everyone who was in my class.
Kimaru: Okay.
Kimaru: Okay.
Patrick Abure: but
Kimaru: Deliver it the way you received it.
Kimaru: your own perspective. Okay.
Patrick Abure: Yeah, ah we were a class of students who were really hard to deal with sometimes.
Kimaru: okay
Patrick Abure: At least a lot of us, we're little bit hard to deal with.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: And so he would come to class and says, if you guys don't want to learn right now in class, the world will teach you.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Ooh. Yes. True.
Kimaru: In Kenya, we say, yeah, ita funzo na ulimu ngu.
Patrick Abure: You will learn from the experience.
Patrick Abure: Yeah? Yeah?
Kimaru: Yes. They say, aie fundo amamaa ho fundza now liw ah directly translated to he who is not taught by the mother will be taught by the world.
Patrick Abure: I couldn't agree more.
Kimaru: Ah, interesting. Okay, so the teacher would say that and then?
Patrick Abure: Yeah, he would he would say that because as a way to basically, we're not a lot of time paying attention, you know, when he's in class and things like that.
Kimaru: yeah
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: But as I grew and go to learn more and to understand what was going on around me and like also reflect on my own journey and what I would want in my life to be about and things like that, I got to see he was so right.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Okay.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: He was absolutely right.
Kimaru: And you actually bring a really good point. Like when finding your purpose, part of it is reflecting about like those things, the choices you make and, you know.
Kimaru: who
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: So you you are reflecting and thinking, what is this thing i want to do? Have you ever thought about like your legacy? Is that something that bothers you? Because I feel like legacy can also be tied to purpose.
Kimaru: Have you ever thought about like, what is this kind of legacy that I would want to leave behind?
Patrick Abure: Honestly, ah not exactly in the sense of legacy. No, I haven't thought about it that way.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: But what I have always thought is that, one, I i want to be able to live a life of service.
Kimaru: Hmm.
Patrick Abure: a life of service to God.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Okay.
Patrick Abure: I am a believer. So I believe in God.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: I believe in faith.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: um I want to live a life of service to others in my community and so forth.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: And to help basically just make the world a little bit better than I found it.
Kimaru: Okay.
Patrick Abure: For me, thats that is what I think about.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Right.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: And every day I'm thinking of ways I could help advance that.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: um Yeah. And I mean, honestly, it's not like always easy, right?
Kimaru: ah have
Patrick Abure: it's It's not always that. So sometimes there are some shortcomings and difficulties. But I think I know what I want to live in terms of the kind of life.
Kimaru: Yeah. hurt her
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: Interesting. Wow.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: Hey. So if somebody is trying to sort of find their purpose, you would probably tell them the best thing to do is to what, like, what should, what should they think about Should they think about what they are passionate about? Do they need to reflect?
Kimaru: on what they they want their future to look like or what they want people to associate them with or what would you advise somebody who is feeling like, oh, I have not found my purpose. Because I have found people, I've talked to people about purpose, by the way, and you ask people whether have they found their purpose.
Kimaru: And sometimes people struggle to actually sort of like, you see the way you've pinned down your purpose to service, whether it's serving God or serving humanity.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. Yeah.
Kimaru: There's some people who struggle with sort of identifying exactly what their purpose is. What would you tell somebody who is struggling to find their purpose?
Patrick Abure: You know, um, what I would say is that it's totally fine to be in such a situation.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Like it's really fine for me.
Patrick Abure: purpose is not about having all the answers.
Kimaru: Oh, hmm, good.
Patrick Abure: No, it's about paying attention to what excites you
Kimaru: Yeah, true.
Kimaru: Mm, mm-hmm. Mm, mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: um and where you want to make a difference.
Kimaru: Mm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: I think that is the most important thing.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: It's not about, you know, having all the answers and ticking all the boxes.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. ah hu ah
Patrick Abure: Because honestly, it's hard to find answers to everything.
Kimaru: i mean
Kimaru: That's true.
Patrick Abure: I have so many questions that aren't answered.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. And if I am to wait on answers to those questions, I wouldn't do anything.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. That's true.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Like you wouldn't do anything. Meaning of life, for example.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: It's a huge question. that can be a huge determinant of purpose.
Kimaru: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: It's hard to find an answer to that.
Kimaru: That's true. Actually, yeah. hit
Patrick Abure: So think for me, really, finding purpose is not just, you know, you don't need to know how all the answers. No.
Kimaru: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Just pay attention. What excites you?
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Where do you want to make the difference?
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah, it's it's totally fine. and And honestly, like another thing is
Patrick Abure: no purpose is small.
Kimaru: Wow.
Patrick Abure: Like literally no purpose is small.
Kimaru: Interesting.
Patrick Abure: Like whether you are helping one person or you're helping many, your purpose matters.
Kimaru: Yeah. Yeah.
Patrick Abure: In my opinion, it does. It doesn't have to be this huge thing. For example, maybe someone would be like, you know, oh, Patrick has a non-governmental organization that is helping thousands of people.
Kimaru: who
Kimaru: yeah
Patrick Abure: My purpose has to be something that does that.
Kimaru: will
Patrick Abure: No. No. Your purpose could be helping just the one person.
Kimaru: who
Patrick Abure: Could be helping someone actually in your household, in your family.
Kimaru: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: Could be your purpose. Or could be helping a neighbor or a child in school.
Kimaru: who who
Patrick Abure: Maybe become better in handling their homework. Because you never know, right?
Kimaru: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: What you do now, what it will result in the future.
Kimaru: That's true.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. Like, you can never tell. And so purpose is not, you know, no purpose is small.
Kimaru: Yeah. i think that's actually very encouraging. Yeah. For people who might be thinking like it has to be grand. Yeah. Grand actions. Grand impact.
Patrick Abure: No, no.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah, yeah. Like, it doesn't have to be that way.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. I mean, i I really do understand that things like passion, experience, and even our faith and service all play a role, you know, sometimes in helping us find our purpose.
Kimaru: Yeah.
Kimaru: who who
Patrick Abure: Yeah. Sometimes we go through ah really bad experience and that experience becomes the bedrock for our purpose.
Kimaru: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: um You know Terry Fox?
Kimaru: oh Yeah. The one who used to do...
Patrick Abure: Yeah. so
Kimaru: Is it the person who used to do the building or it's not that one?
Patrick Abure: he he He was cancer patient.
Kimaru: Ah, maybe I don't know that one.
Patrick Abure: he he
Kimaru: It's another theory I know.
Patrick Abure: Basically, one of the leg was like...
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: He's Canadian, you know? He ran like...
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: ah um
Patrick Abure: I don't know. Is it called a marathon or something? But, you know, like running across country to raise funds.
Kimaru: Yeah. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: for for people with cancer and things like that.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: um That purpose was from his experience.
Kimaru: Yeah. Yeah.
Patrick Abure: If it wasn't for that, it wouldn't. And I think you could think about also families.
Kimaru: a
Patrick Abure: You know, they go through very traumatic experience and they end up maybe starting a foundation.
Kimaru: yeah
Kimaru: oh
Patrick Abure: Or maybe a fund to help some other people who are going through the same thing.
Kimaru: who
Kimaru: yeah
Patrick Abure: so So, like, when you look at all these things around us, you see that experiences actually do play a huge role.
Kimaru: a
Patrick Abure: Yeah. and and And some people, you know, why i was saying that it's really good.
Kimaru: Oh, wow.
Kimaru: Uh-huh.
Patrick Abure: It's good for for people to be in that stage where they're asking questions.
Kimaru: Uh-huh.
Patrick Abure: It's a stage that never stops. I still have questions I ask.
Kimaru: Uh-huh.
Patrick Abure: I believe I have found my purpose.
Kimaru: he
Patrick Abure: But I still have questions. And I think it's okay for people to be in there um because there are people that have found their purpose through like um inquiry, like being able to reflect on all these questions and so forth, and then discovering suddenly answers to those.
Patrick Abure: And I think that is how science functions.
Kimaru: and That's true.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. At the end of the day, you find, oh
Kimaru: Uh-huh, you're like, yeah, we discovered. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: So, but I think the point I want to make is that
Patrick Abure: no one wakes up one day in the morning knowing their purpose.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: At least from my own experience. I didn't wake up one morning and I knew instantly or instinctively what my purpose is.
Kimaru: Yeah.
Kimaru: a
Patrick Abure: No. Yeah. I had to try, fail, learn, and grow. Like literally along the way.
Kimaru: Wow. Interesting.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. Like I...
Kimaru: Uh-huh. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: As a Christian, I have been in and out of the church so many times.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: But one thing I know deep down that never goes away is that de deep, deep motivation.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: that deep, deep, I even don't know how to explain it. It's like a passion, a burning fire deep inside that wants to serve God, to serve others, never goes away.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Uh-huh. uh-huh mm-hmm
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: stuck with you
Patrick Abure: And so these days, even when I do that, i i make sure that whatever I am doing is contributing in one way or the other towards that.
Patrick Abure: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: that makes sense okay have you ever
Patrick Abure: Mm-hmm. Yeah.
Kimaru: Do you think you've ever felt at some point like you've lost track of your purpose? Or maybe you feel like you're stagnated at some point and you feel like you're not leaving your purpose or maybe achieving the things you need to achieve towards your purpose?
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: did Have you ever had that feeling?
Patrick Abure: ah So before I answer that question, something that I thought would be very helpful um
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: for people who are in the verge of discovering their purpose is to ask themselves some questions.
Kimaru: who
Kimaru: Okay.
Patrick Abure: Like, for example, what problems in the world make you want to take an action?
Kimaru: ah Interesting.
Patrick Abure: Yeah, like there's definitely always that one pain point for us that we really feel like, I wish this issue could be addressed.
Kimaru: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: You know, something that you're really passionate about that you think should be addressed, but for some reason, maybe it's not being addressed.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Yeah.
Patrick Abure: Or maybe the way it's being addressed now, you see it's not the best.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Yeah.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. um Oh, you could ask yourself, um what do people always, like, when they come to you ask for your advisor?
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah, because some people, some people are, again, going back to the point that others are born with their purpose.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: Yeah. Maybe you have the answers that people need so that becomes your purpose to help people solve their problems.
Patrick Abure: ah
Patrick Abure: Yeah, exactly.
Kimaru: here
Patrick Abure: Like, you know, some people go to school, most people go to school to become counselors.
Kimaru: sir
Kimaru: ah hundred who
Kimaru: Yeah, that's true.
Patrick Abure: Like most people go to school. But there's some people who are just good at actually helping you manage or overcome whatever you're going through way better than counselors.
Kimaru: Yes.
Kimaru: Yeah.
Kimaru: Sounds like my friend.
Patrick Abure: They're not trained.
Kimaru: They ask the difficult questions and then they they they leave you thinking like, hmm. Uh-huh. Uh-huh.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. I think like if you can figure that out, sometimes it can help you.
Kimaru: Uh-huh.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. In moving towards understanding what your purpose is.
Kimaru: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: And. Another that is perhaps really a good question to ask is what makes you lose track of time when you do it?
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: If there is someone that has really, i would say, drilled drilled this concept into my brain, it's one of my professors.
Kimaru: Ah.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Sometimes you have to find out what is that one thing that you can do effortlessly.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Yes. Yes, I agree. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah, like effortlessly.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: you No one has to tell you like what to do, how to do it for how long.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Comes naturally.
Patrick Abure: You know how to do it.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: You instinctively love to do it.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Yeah.
Patrick Abure: You don't need an external motivation.
Kimaru: I agree.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. Like the motivation in there.
Kimaru: who
Patrick Abure: And I think for me, when you get to that point, you have your purpose already.
Kimaru: who
Kimaru: Wow. Interesting. Yeah, because for me, if you had asked me what my purpose would be, would say it could be like that thing that sets my heart on fire.
Kimaru: Just wanted to do it.
Patrick Abure: Yes.
Kimaru: Yeah. Yeah.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. Yeah. You know, this is controversial.
Kimaru: Wow. who
Kimaru: Okay.
Patrick Abure: i
Kimaru: The disclaimers you are giving today. We are listening. ah of whom
Patrick Abure: Because some people will disagree with it, right?
Kimaru: um Okay. Okay.
Patrick Abure: Depending on where they're coming from.
Kimaru: who
Patrick Abure: for some people, they actually discover their purpose from an early stage and
Kimaru: who
Kimaru: Yes.
Patrick Abure: That thing could be, for example, gaming. Now, why I'm saying it's controversial.
Kimaru: who
Patrick Abure: Parents.
Patrick Abure: Parents might have a different plan for you, you know.
Kimaru: a want you to become a doctor.
Patrick Abure: Exactly. and and I don't think there's this there iss no one parent who is comfortable with you just sitting, you know, 10 hours or something playing games and so forth.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. who
Patrick Abure: But there are people that actually find that very fulfilling.
Kimaru: Very. who
Patrick Abure: Yeah. And it through in doing that, they are also helping put smiles on other people's faces. Yeah.
Kimaru: Interesting.
Patrick Abure: So, which is why for me, I feel like, you know, no one purpose is small. Or no purpose is of more value than the other.
Kimaru: and
Patrick Abure: No, papas is papas.
Kimaru: That's true. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: You just find which works for you and run with it.
Kimaru: Oh, wow. ah That's that's very um it's very good insights, actually.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: I asked you a question before, yeah and then you took us back to that. um
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: The question was whether you've ever, like, have you ever felt like you've sort of stagnated in your purpose, or you're not making any progress, or even like you've lost your purpose at some point, or for you it has just been clear, like day and night?
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Okay.
Patrick Abure: So today I'm sharing a lot of what I believe in.
Kimaru: Yeah, it's okay. It's okay. The platform is all yours. Uh-huh.
Patrick Abure: For me, I do think that purpose is not fixed.
Kimaru: ah he
Patrick Abure: It grows as you grow.
Kimaru: for who
Patrick Abure: For me, that's that's how I look at it.
Kimaru: v
Patrick Abure: not It's not constant. Yeah. um the It's not like change, you know? Change, you know, change is constant.
Kimaru: Uh-huh, uh-huh, uh-huh.
Patrick Abure: You like it, you don't like it, it will change you.
Kimaru: Yeah. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: But I think purpose is it's not that way.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: It grows, it evolves as you also evolve as a person. Yeah. um So when I was younger,
Patrick Abure: know, as a kid, you know, they'll be asking like, yo, what do you want to be when you grow up and things like that.
Kimaru: me
Kimaru: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: And for me, it's always been, oh, I want to be a lawyer.
Kimaru: who
Patrick Abure: And I remember bringing this up last time.
Kimaru: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. And it was also hugely influenced by who I had around me.
Kimaru: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: I had a relative, a brother, who was a lawyer.
Kimaru: who
Patrick Abure: And so for him, that that that that is supposed to be the path for me too.
Kimaru: it
Patrick Abure: Yeah. And as a kid, I never took it serious, right? Like not very much.
Kimaru: yeah
Patrick Abure: But when i when we lost him, he got murdered.
Kimaru: Oh no, sorry to hear.
Patrick Abure: um
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. when When we lost him,
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Oh, that da flame became even more stronger.
Kimaru: Ah, it was ignited. oh I see.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: wow. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Being super strong, especially like he go through what he did and no justice done.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: just murder, cold blood, no justice done.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: No one wrote the book. I think for me, it became very clear then that this was really something I wanted to do.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. And honestly, it's still something I want to do.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. um
Patrick Abure: One day I'm going to do that. I already have plans for that.
Kimaru: Low? You're going to do low?
Patrick Abure: ah I plans for that already.
Kimaru: Oh, wow. Interesting. Uh-huh. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: But, yeah. But I think the point is that as I became a refugee, it became a little bit different, right?
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: um
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: i I got more like, you know what, I actually found a lot more fulfillment in serving others.
Kimaru: Okay. Okay. Okay.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. um In serving persons that are going through really difficult stuff, um helping them improve their lives and being able to see the change you're making.
Kimaru: who
Patrick Abure: I think it's like so heartwarming, like it warms my heart.
Kimaru: who
Patrick Abure: and And I think for me, that shows how my purpose kept evolving because I think as a child, I thought it was about helping others find justice.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Yeah. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: I still have that in mind.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Yeah.
Patrick Abure: haven't lost it, but I think I have also integrated other elements.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. So I do think that, yeah, it's definitely it's definitely not it's not fixed. And honestly, life changes us
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: That's true.
Patrick Abure: Like, the challenges we go through can show you ah new path.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: that might become your purpose, maybe something that you've never seen before.
Kimaru: Okay.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. And I think for me, it was the case when I became a refugee.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: It showed me something that I would never have seen.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: who
Patrick Abure: um Yeah. Like literally. so
Kimaru: Wow. injur Yeah. ah From what I'm hearing, purpose sometimes does not stay consistent. it can change. You can outgrow, maybe you are living a certain purpose right now. You outgrow it after some time, depending also the experiences you go through in life. Like for you, you always wanted to be a lawyer.
Kimaru: And then at some point, displacement gave you a new purpose to serve other people, certain organization, and do all that you do with SESI. so um So I guess the word of encouragement here is that it can evolve.
Kimaru: You know, I've ever gone through an experience where I thought that I had found my purpose.
Patrick Abure: Oh yeah.
Kimaru: This is it. This is exactly what I'm supposed to do for the rest of my life. And when that thing stopped, like the wheel stopped turning, actually, I got stuck.
Kimaru: And now I felt like... you know, it's like I'm just there, i don't know what exactly to do next. And it didn't, it did feel so bad actually. So that's was asking that question about whether it changes.
Patrick Abure: Honestly,
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Right, right. Like,
Patrick Abure: sometimes I feel that purpose does change.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: It does change because our skills, our interests, and opportunities change.
Kimaru: oh Mm. True.
Patrick Abure: Yeah, when those things change, at least for me, I feel like when they did, my purpose also changed.
Patrick Abure: And actually, now that you've said
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: oh thats how you you had a very strong, um like,
Patrick Abure: a sense of purpose for something.
Kimaru: Mhm. Mhm.
Patrick Abure: And then eventually it went.
Kimaru: Mhm.
Kimaru: yeah
Patrick Abure: For me, this is what I think about.
Kimaru: wa
Kimaru: who
Patrick Abure: And um I'm going to use this analogy because I am here. I come from a family of farmers.
Kimaru: who
Patrick Abure: We farm a lot. We have a lot of trees at home and things like that, fruits.
Kimaru: okay
Patrick Abure: and I feel like purpose is like a tree.
Kimaru: Wow.
Kimaru: Okay.
Patrick Abure: Could be a fruit or whatever, but it's it's maybe like a tree.
Patrick Abure: It starts a small.
Kimaru: who
Patrick Abure: very small but it grows it grows with the time with the care and with experience yeah for me that's how i look at it so it means that
Kimaru: who
Kimaru: who
Kimaru: who
Kimaru: wow okay
Kimaru: That's true.
Patrick Abure: exactly
Kimaru: ah who
Patrick Abure: It is that once you've discovered it, it doesn't mean it's always going to be there if you'd not give it the time, the care and care to build the experience.
Kimaru: o
Kimaru: who
Kimaru: man
Patrick Abure: Yeah. Before you know it, it will start to feel like it's not your purpose again.
Kimaru: that's true
Patrick Abure: Yeah. You remember like being able to do something effortlessly?
Kimaru: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: but That should be like a very big indicator. It's like, ah you're still there. All right, all right.
Kimaru: Interesting. Uh-huh.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: So I think for me, I feel like that you should be able to, you should not actually, you you you shouldn't be afraid pivot, like to pivot if you need to.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah, if if something no longer feels effortless to do, or if it no longer feels right, I feel that it's okay for you to move in a new direction.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Ah. Uh-huh.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Wow.
Patrick Abure: Yeah, like...
Kimaru: That's true. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah, because otherwise you... What would you be doing there? Because...
Kimaru: He's just stuck and stagnating. He'll be like, I lost my purpose, guys. Uh-huh.
Kimaru: Uh-huh.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. and
Patrick Abure: And honestly, it can sometimes feel bad, you know, um when when you find yourself in such a situation.
Kimaru: Yeah, true. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: But I really do think
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: you shouldn't.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah, like right now, i do not feel bad at all that I haven't gone to law school yet.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: No, I don't feel bad about it. um
Patrick Abure: i've I feel this is still something I can do. And this is the beauty of life, honestly. Like, as long as you still have life, the blessing of life, you can always do whatever you want to.
Kimaru: who
Kimaru: yeah true wow
Patrick Abure: Yeah. So if you if you really do feel like, you know, it no longer feels like it, um yeah, you should probably change.
Kimaru: who
Patrick Abure: You know?
Kimaru: and
Kimaru: wow yeah this goes out to everyone who is feeling like they' are stuck in their purpose it's It's okay. You can stop right there and find a new purpose because it keeps changing and evolving.
Patrick Abure: Absolutely. and
Kimaru: Wow.
Patrick Abure: Absolutely. And honestly, yeah?
Kimaru: Let's... Mm-hmm. No, continue.
Patrick Abure: No, I was just saying that when you find yourself, i i i I feel hesitant to use the word losing your purpose because I feel like you actually don't lose it.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: it's maybe that it's changing or you're pivoting to something else
Patrick Abure: Exactly.
Patrick Abure: Yes. Oh, you've discovered a new path.
Kimaru: yeah a new one yeah who
Patrick Abure: Yeah. you It's not like you lose it or something. I wouldn't put it that way. Yeah. But I think that for me, you shouldn't be afraid to change course or to try out a new path.
Kimaru: who
Kimaru: who
Patrick Abure: um I think it's okay to do that. Yeah, for me, it doesn't mean like you felt.
Kimaru: o
Patrick Abure: Yeah, it means you're human. You're human, man. Yeah.
Kimaru: Yeah, that's true. Now that you've also talked about like being afraid and all that, to pivot and all that,
Patrick Abure: yeah
Kimaru: You know, there are also some people who maybe have a bit of self-doubt. Like they know they're supposed to be doing something, but they don't do it because they are feeling like either know they're not good enough or maybe feeling like, like you gave an example of you doing something big, like you are serving a community in large numbers.
Kimaru: um maybe somebody is seated somewhere and they're like, you know what? I would want to do something like something similar to what Patrick does. But now they start doubting their their journey. They're like, I don't think I can do it.
Kimaru: oh you know, you have those like limiting limiting thoughts and beliefs a about your journey. What to do tell such a person? Because I feel like sometimes those are the things that hold us from achieving our purpose, whether big or small.
Patrick Abure: Absolutely.
Patrick Abure: You know, my experience,
Kimaru: Uh-huh.
Patrick Abure: I have felt like I have lost it before.
Kimaru: Mmhmm.
Patrick Abure: And so many times, actually, um
Patrick Abure: But I think I kept going back. You know, there are these cases where I have faced rejection.
Kimaru: Okay.
Patrick Abure: um Yeah. And depending on what you're getting the rejection for, Oh my God.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: It can hurt.
Kimaru: Uh-huh.
Kimaru: I know, yeah, rejection is not good. It it doesn't come easy.
Patrick Abure: No, it doesn't.
Kimaru: It hits so hard.
Patrick Abure: It doesn't.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Oh yeah, it does. um So I have first rejection. I have first uncertainty where you don't know where the food you're going to eat later in the evening is going to come from.
Kimaru: Oh
Patrick Abure: have first situations where ah whole week I'm struggling to find what to eat.
Kimaru: oh wow.
Patrick Abure: That kind of uncertainty.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: um But I've also felt like self-doubt
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: so many times.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: And self-doubt is our biggest enemy.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Like, it's u always finding ways to take hold of you.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Yeah.
Patrick Abure: And if possible, but to even like overpower you.
Kimaru: Uh-huh.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. Just like you said, you start feeling like, you know what?
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Maybe you're not good enough. oh Maybe others are bigger. You know, imposter syndrome start coming in and stuff like that.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. yeah ah her he
Patrick Abure: Yeah. But
Patrick Abure: out of all of this,
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: I think for me, I each time found a way to like go back, go back to asking why.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah, like to I think that sometimes we lose track because we we don't go back to our why very often.
Kimaru: Yeah.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Why did you start yeah
Kimaru: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: Why are you doing what you are doing?
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Like for me, i think each time I go back to really remind myself of my why, it keeps me moving because it reminds me oh the reason why I do what I do.
Patrick Abure: Like with Ceci, I felt so many times where i was like, you know what?
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: All right, this is enough. Done.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. who
Patrick Abure: And then I still go back to my why. And I find a reason to continue because my why reminds me of why I need to continue and why it's important i do.
Kimaru: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. But also, and I remember telling you this, i think in one of the episodes that we had,
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: I think talking to people inspire me.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. That's true.
Patrick Abure: um Whether people who have done more than I have or people who have done way less than I have, I have found talking to people really inspirational.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: okay mm-hmm
Patrick Abure: Like in so many ways, um mentors, friends, and community. And I can tell you again, like, you know, friends like those of jexona those of romeo those of one of us those of jill and very many other guys honestly that i've had the the opportunity to work with and collaborate with and learn from and and get challenged by and things like that i think like
Kimaru: mm-hmm mm-hmm mm-
Kimaru: for
Kimaru: who
Patrick Abure: those helped me in a way to overcome sometimes the self-doubt.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. Yeah. um And I think honestly, for for someone who is like experiencing something like that, it can be really nice to do that.
Kimaru: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: Like it it was good.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: It was like the medicine I needed to keep going.
Kimaru: who
Patrick Abure: Yeah, and
Patrick Abure: another thing would be taking small steps.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Ah, true, true.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah, sometimes just like helping one person can remind you of your bigger purpose.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: oh
Patrick Abure: Yeah, it can help remind you of the bigger picture of why you're doing what you do.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Yeah. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. So I would think... that if someone can do some of these things, I think it can be really nice.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Like, you know, talking to people, taking small steps, um going back to asking, you know, your why, I think can really be
Patrick Abure: super valuable.
Kimaru: hope
Patrick Abure: Like really, yeah.
Kimaru: Wow.
Kimaru: Interesting.
Kimaru: Oh, yes. Pitting wisdom.
Kimaru: that's very interesting honestly yeah because i think sometimes people hold themselves back because they don't want to try like you're supposed to maybe be you are good at something you could start a youtube channel and talk to people about stuff and they're like yeah you know maybe i'm not good enough but at least you've demystified that start small talk to people allow your community to support you in your journey Yeah, and you can be able to probably overcome stuff like that that holds you back, which is super interesting.
Kimaru: So, okay.
Patrick Abure: Absolutely.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. who
Patrick Abure: Actually, if I could say something quick.
Kimaru: um okay
Patrick Abure: um So for me,
Kimaru: who
Patrick Abure: what what day see, like feeling self-doubt in what you're doing or maybe in your purpose, sometimes it's like,
Kimaru: <unk>
Patrick Abure: it's like walking through dust. I don't know, how do you call like heavy dust?
Kimaru: Heavy dust.
Patrick Abure: Yes.
Kimaru: Ah.
Patrick Abure: Because for me, I come from South Sudan. We have dust there.
Kimaru: Oh, really?
Kimaru: Oh, no. Don't say.
Patrick Abure: Our roads and roads are not tarmacked everywhere.
Kimaru: Uh-huh.
Kimaru: Oh, sense. hit here you you wo me
Patrick Abure: so when a car is ahead of you and is speeding, you can't see anything.
Kimaru: Oh my God. ah
Patrick Abure: So i I don't know how to call that heavy dust, where basically...
Kimaru: You have to wait for it to settle.
Patrick Abure: Yeah, I mean like the kind of dust where you are actually unable to see through.
Kimaru: hu
Kimaru: o it becomes foggy and it is dust fog of dust let's call it that
Patrick Abure: Yeah. Exactly. It's like a fog. I think.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: they will say dust is constant like the kalahari yeah who
Patrick Abure: Yeah, I think self-doubt can feel like walking in a fog.
Kimaru: Wow. That analogy.
Patrick Abure: Yeah, you may not see the whole road, like literally.
Kimaru: Uh-huh. Uh-huh.
Patrick Abure: Difficult.
Kimaru: Uh-huh.
Patrick Abure: And of course, it's a tough place to be in.
Kimaru: who wow
Patrick Abure: When you're going somewhere and you can't see anything, who knows what you'll step on.
Kimaru: hurt him
Kimaru: that analogy ah
Patrick Abure: But I think for me, taking small steps will lead you forward through that fog.
Kimaru: who
Kimaru: Yes.
Patrick Abure: You know, a little bit careful.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: You probably have seen this in movies.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. but
Patrick Abure: Where people will be going very slowly. Others are holding each other and things like that.
Kimaru: Yeah. They're trying to figure it out. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah, something like that.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. So the good thing is that at least you take the steps forward. You don't just, you know.
Patrick Abure: Yes.
Kimaru: um Okay.
Patrick Abure: Small steps. Baby steps.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. as long as As long as you're moving.
Kimaru: Interesting. interesting
Patrick Abure: i think there's a guy who said that you should keep moving.
Kimaru: ah
Patrick Abure: if If you're not running, you should be, what, walking?
Kimaru: who
Patrick Abure: If you're not walking, you should be crawling. And then if you're not crawling, you should do something. There's a guy...
Kimaru: yeah just keep moving at the end of the day
Patrick Abure: Yes. The goal is to keep moving.
Kimaru: No, I agree with you honestly. Yeah, I think that's that's actually very true when you're finding your purpose or trying to find it and pursue it.
Patrick Abure: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: You have to just keep trying until you figure it out.
Patrick Abure: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Like there was this video I was watching today. of a guy here in Kenya who gives advice on um skills that people should actually pursue.
Patrick Abure: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: And especially he talks a lot about graphic design, web design, and stuff like that. So he says when he was trying to build his personal brand online, he's also a comedian. So he thought that he would get numbers and whatever by doing a bit of skits and all that.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: But what happened was he was just getting a bit of the numbers on social media, but that wasn't also adding up to the purpose.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: like What he wanted was to push his brand and help people sort of navigate, learn these skills and maybe gain employment and stuff like that.
Kimaru: So for him, the skills were just a distraction, but they were not helping him achieve
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: his purpose so and he had to um he had to stop doing the skits now and focus on now building the like the brand how did he want people to perceive him or the or his brand and where did he want to see that go and right now he's actually a big shot like people when you hear his name you associate him with that specific thing
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: Oh, that's fantastic. What's his name?
Kimaru: he's called elvis
Patrick Abure: Oh, that's nice.
Kimaru: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: will check him out.
Kimaru: Yes, yes, please. Yeah. So how can somebody connect purpose to service?
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: Like, for example, for you, ah you've connected your purpose to serving people. How can people connect purpose to such serving, whether it's people or whatever they want to serve?
Patrick Abure: Honestly, i feel that connecting purpose to service is just natural.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: It's very, very natural in the sense, for me, I feel like inherent in purpose is service.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Ah. Oh, that's like the bottom line.
Patrick Abure: da That is how I look at it.
Kimaru: Uh-huh.
Patrick Abure: Yeah, like, because think about so many people that
Kimaru: Okay.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: have found their purpose. You will notice most of them, most of them connect into service.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: At least like, I don't know, a lot of them. Yeah. whether it what Whether it is building, for example, the skills of people, the goal is that it ends up being a form of maybe these people are serving others or something like that.
Kimaru: who her
Kimaru: Mhm
Patrick Abure: whether it being building maybe a product, the goal is that whatever that product is, would be able to satisfy the needs of people.
Kimaru: Mhm Mhm Wow Okay
Patrick Abure: Service. um So I feel like inherent in purpose is service.
Kimaru: who
Kimaru: who
Patrick Abure: Yeah. Yeah.
Kimaru: wow okay
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: And also, I think it still goes back to what you had said earlier on, like when trying to find your purpose, like what is that thing you see is maybe going wrong somewhere and you feel like it shouldn't be working like that.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: You feel like that need oh finding a solution for it. So, yeah.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: Interesting. Interesting.
Patrick Abure: Yeah.
Kimaru: Okay.
Patrick Abure: Because i I feel like
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: you're unless and Unless, God forbid, your purpose is really anti-human, I really see that whatever the purpose is would, in one way or the other, help make human life better.
Kimaru: Uh-huh. Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: That's true. I agree with you, honestly.
Patrick Abure: Yeah, unless you're... Yeah. Anti-human.
Kimaru: ah
Kimaru: Wow. Hmm. you've really said interesting things like you've already you've you know you've already touched on your purpose specifically as patrick you've also talked about like how people can find their purpose which includes them reflecting on like the things that interest them maybe like their passions uh overcoming self-doubt accepting that sometimes uh
Patrick Abure: Yeah. Yeah.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. Yeah.
Kimaru: your purpose can change or evolve and all these amazing things.
Patrick Abure: yeah
Kimaru: Wow. That's really interesting. So what would be like, what would be the key takeaway that you would want anybody listening to this episode or watching us to take away from this conversation? And I'm really glad that you actually found your purpose and you're pursuing it honestly, diligently. And people should actually also, before you answer, they should check out jobs to apply if they are looking for non-profit jobs ah opportunities and also there is fellowships and grants and all these amazing things over there yeah and also the ones who need like services like a website designed for them they should check Wani yeah I think we'll put them on the link on the description especially on our YouTube channel so that people can check that out but so what would be like the one thing that you or a few things that you want people to take from this discussion today
Patrick Abure: Yeah, yeah.
Patrick Abure: Yes.
Patrick Abure: Honestly,
Patrick Abure: i think it would be... um
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: for people to stay open, stay open, stay curious and keep growing because purpose isn't about finding a perfect answer or finding all the answers.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Okay.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: I think for me, it's about learning.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: It's about trying and failing and learning and failing and learning like that.
Kimaru: Mm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: and And through that experience, growing every single day.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: I think for me, um that is like something so, so important. And maybe... Another thing is for someone to understand that no purpose is too small.
Kimaru: o
Patrick Abure: Oh, one is more value than others.
Kimaru: The other, yes.
Patrick Abure: Purpose is purpose.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm, mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. um if If what you do helps even one person, it matters and it is worth doing it.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Yes. Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah. So for me, I would think that really it's basically for people to keep, you know, doing that. And
Patrick Abure: if if you feel like you've lost your purpose, although I do not want to use that word, if you have found a new path, your purpose appears to have evolved.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Yeah.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: I think... you know, take one small step forward, you know, and and find another way.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm.
Patrick Abure: Yeah, I think, yeah, and that would be it for me.
Kimaru: Yeah.
Patrick Abure: Like, honestly. Yeah. But I think most important.
Kimaru: Mm-hmm. Yeah.
Kimaru: Uh-huh.
Patrick Abure: I feel that No matter where you are in life, your purpose keeps unfolding.
Kimaru: Uh-huh.
Patrick Abure: It keeps changing. It keeps evolving. It grows as you grow. So keep growing, keep learning, and of course never stop believing your impact matters or what you do matters.
Kimaru: hit
Kimaru: Yeah, that's true.
Patrick Abure: That's important. Yeah.
Kimaru: Wow.
Patrick Abure: Yeah, that would be it.
Kimaru: Damn. Okay, interesting. Wow. No purpose is still small, ladies and gentlemen. And whatever it is that ignites your heart on fire, pursue it diligently and make a difference your big or small way, whichever it works.
Kimaru: Yeah, so thank you so much for joining us, Patrick, and for giving us a very thought-provoking conversation and your insights into the topic and also sharing your personal experience with finding your purpose.
Patrick Abure: You're welcome.
Kimaru: You're doing amazing, and I'm proud of you. And people should also, by the way, in terms of purpose, you should also go listen to his other episode on quitting his family business.
Kimaru: and starting a nonprofit, which is part his purpose. It's very, very interesting conversation that I'm sure will inspire you and spark some interest in you to take action and pursue your dreams and make an impact in your community or even in your own personal life, honestly.
Kimaru: Yeah, so thank you for tuning in, for following us on all our social media platforms and for engaging with us. If this episode sparked something new, don't forget to subscribe, leave a review, and share with someone who needs a little inspiration.
Kimaru: Also, follow us on all our social media platforms at the Spark It podcast. See you next time on Spark It podcast.
Patrick Abure: The Spy Kid Podcast.
