Stage 1: Call to Happiness

How to Know Your Calling

To determine our calling, simply ask yourself: What am I uniquely able to do that no one else could do in quite the same way? Each of us has a distinct combination of talents, connections, experiences, and energy—an alignment that no one else possesses in exactly the same way. Given these gifts, what is Life asking of you?

For me, I have an uncanny ability to take complex ideas and make them highly relatable. I love traveling to new communities, sparking fresh initiatives, and bringing people together to create lasting change. I am passionate about righting wrongs, fostering fairness, and advocating for the underdog. More than that, I have a knack for attracting others who share the desire to make a difference.

At this stage in life, my goal is to become an influential thought leader with a simple yet urgent message: We can and should end poverty.

Upon reflection, I realize that I now have the financial independence to choose how I spend my time in ways that maximize impact. I also have a partnership with a large organization committed to helping people make and work plans out of poverty. In collaboration with them, I helped secure a $25 million grant to assist hundreds of families currently relying on public assistance in transitioning into stable, long-term careers. This initiative represents a much larger model than anything we achieved before—one that lays the foundation for transforming public programs in a way that meaningfully reduces poverty rates.

For me, the Call to Happiness means settling into the pursuit of an essential strategy. I believe mine is to support the next generation of emerging leaders in maximizing their impact on creating a world free of poverty and full of happiness. 

We are calling this effort NextGen Impact. Over time, it will become our hallmark program driving all our work with The Poverty Solution—and perhaps extend into complementary agendas like sustainability.

What is your Call to Happiness? If you have that whole-body “yes” when you answer this question, you are on your way. If not, take the time to listen within and ask yourself: What is mine to do next? What does Life want from me?

"Call to Happiness"

Acrylic painting by Scott C. Miller

To purchase prints please contact [email protected]

“A Glint of Hope” (Associated with ‘Call to Happiness’)

On the shore of my bay

I ran through wetted sands

towards a strange sparkle on the ground

flickering like a lighthouse

tucked in the rhythm of the tide.

 

 I found the glinting thing

sticking half-way out of the grit

and in front of my toes

was a bit of sea glass.

Where it was from, I didn’t know,

but I heard a whisper of joy. 

 

Whether it was a bottle or window

it had long since worn away

into an odd gritty smoothness

and a matte white as translucent

as it was opaque.

As I held it to the sunset

it refracted into a chromatic map

the shape of mountains and hills

with streams and valleys

around cities with old, distant names.

 

The wind seemed to tug on me

and waves gently lapping my feet

pushed me out into the sea.

Now, all I can think of

is who I might be?

 

When the glint of fate catches your eye

With lady destiny you must abide!