Depression, Purpose and Intuition on the People of Purpose podcast

I met Tanur Badgely at a writing workshop in mid-2019, and we got back together recently to record an episode for his outstanding People of Purpose podcast.

Dogs are always happy because “a dog’s purpose is to do dog well” — they can do “dog” without thinking, and so they are happy automatically. Our problem is that the conscious human mind gets in the way of what would otherwise be automatic happiness.

Thinking gets in the way. Intuition is how we get there. Intuition is ”knowing how to do the right thing at the right time without knowing how”—and, there are lots things that we do that dominate our mental state so completely that they leave no space for the subtle voice of intuition.

My own gradual emergence from depression and towards a greater sense of purpose has been a journey of rediscovering my intuition. My intuition also led me to stop drinking (which was itself the primary reason that my intuition was foreign to me for so much of my life).

Especially as men, purpose is at the core of our identity and our well-being, and intuition is the only voice that will speak our purpose.

I hope you enjoy our conversation.