Getting Unstuck: Awakening to Life's Purpose – a Transformation Story with Garry Turner
“There was something energetic going on in my body that said, ‘Garry, wake up, you know, this. This clearly isn’t everything that you thought life was going to be.’ And that realization started me positively on this journey of curiosity and discovery.”
Today on Getting Unstuck
Our lives are rarely linear. Most of us start out “here” and then make a series of twists and turns. Sometimes we’re the driver. Sometimes fate and opportunity take the wheel. And sometimes someone else says “I’ll drive.”
In this series we’re calling “Transformation Stories,” we depart from our traditional format where we talk to an expert about some aspect of change. Instead, here we interview one individual about how they came to be where they are today. We’ll focus on a turning point, or catalyst that propelled them from a less than desirable situation to one that’s more aligned with who they really are and where they want to be.
In this episode of “Getting Unstuck,” we talk with Garry Turner, a self-described “interpersonal catalyst.” He is part of what I’ll call the “humanizing the workplace movement” – an informal group of individuals who are dedicated to helping businesses awaken to the idea that their people have to come first. Garry supports this movement as a keynoter, and through his workshop facilitation, one-to-one and team coaching, and his “Value Through Vulnerability” podcast. And perhaps most interesting, he supports this movement by bringing about change within his own organization.
But it wasn’t always so.
This graphic illustrates the thought process Garry takes when delivering workshops both within and outside of his work organisation.
Listen for
Garry’s midlife awakening
– “I affectionately call it a ‘midlife awakening.’ So what actually happened was, I had achieved a nice car. I had the nice house, I had a pretty good sounding job title. You know, I was really at the Pinnacle. I had a very decent salary – so a lot of the stuff that we've been brought up on that matters. I had it all, but I sat there hollow, literally hollow.”
Why know one’s life purpose matters
– “My life was without purpose until I had this awakening. And since I made that conscious shift into service, over self-service, everything has opened up. Literally, everything's opened up.”
The critical importance of remaining curious
– “I still have that curiosity to be open to exploring what more might be possible, rather than staying in that feeling not good enough.”
How not to wait for change from higher up in the organization
– ”We didn't ask permission; we just did it. We didn't wait for someone to mandate it. We didn't go to the CEO and say, ‘Can we do x? Can we do y? ‘I just used my experience and that of my network and with the courage of my manager to say, ‘Look, there's no downside by running an experiment.’”
“I think we all need a bit more courage, and it’s not easy. But it’s the right thing for if we want to live a purpose, if we want to transform ourselves to be the best version of ourselves. We all need a bit of courage. ”
Garry (far left ) part of the speaking team at a “Humans First Club” event
For more information
Essentialism by Greg McKeown
The Happiness Advantage by Shawn Achor
Quality of Mind retreat
Value Through Vulnerability podcast