I believe that 100% of us can build an intentional life and career that we love.

I also believe that 99% of us will be dissuaded by the environment around us and quit.

One comment by someone we look up to and we start revisiting our goals. One conversation with an unsupportive friend and we start rethinking our plans. One misalignment of our talents and we start thinking we have no value to give.

After school, we lose the guided curriculum that moved us forward for two decades. It’s a hard habit to shake and we fall into the trap of running every idea by someone around us, whether they’re suited to provide the best feedback or not.

It’s why lately I’ve become obsessed with the idea of trusting yourself and being your own mentor.

Without an entrepreneurial mindset, we stay in the old way of thinking: following a linear and proven growth path where the answers to our questions already exist, and there’s no gamble to make. It’s a safe space to be in, with little reward.

But if we choose to step into the modern world, where opportunities are at our fingertips, then this whole “asking for advice” thing becomes nothing more than a guessing game. It’s more of an anxiety-inducing space, but one that—when navigated correctly—can lead to massive rewards in every category of life you crave.

This intersection of anxiety and reward is what has allowed for get-rich-quick schemes and other ridiculous attempts at success. It capitalizes on our conditioned need to have someone else give us a step-by-step manual to life.

My thoughts are very much against popular guru advice. We don’t have just one single purpose in life, one that if we don’t uncover means we’re not enlightened enough. Your “life purpose” is not something you simply decide on and then anoint yourself with straight out of school. We have many callings in life that show up at different times. At every stage, at every age, in every situation, we’re able to provide some kind of service and fulfill some level of service. It’s only through hindsight and self-awareness that you can start connecting the dots and discovering what theme has been the undercurrent of your life.

Stop stressing, and let the definition of what that is unravel.

Instead, start paying attention to your gut feelings and your curiosity. The more you develop this skill, the more you can rely on it as your trusted leader for decision making. Follow your curiosity and interests as a sort of “customized curriculum” for growth.

I can’t explain what it will sound like, or how you’ll know when it’s there, but I can share the process for how I got mine to be obvious enough to use it effortlessly.

Every single day, for six years, I’ve been dumping my brain into a journal. It’s a nightly practice that has given me incredible clarity into who I am and who I’m striving to be. I use a journaling app on my phone and prefer it for many reasons—it’s always with me even on travels, I don’t run the risk of losing it, I’m much faster on a keyboard, and a quick search can pull up any past entries that I may want to revisit.

If something made me nervous or scared—did I take action anyway?

If something excited me—how can I replicate this every day?

When a friendship energized me—how can I continue prioritizing it?

And most importantly, as a way to keep myself accountable—how did I make progress toward my goals today?

Basically, this journal has become my daily coaching session. Raw candidness, followed by very frank feedback.

To me. From me.

If you can really master the art of self-reflection, then you can start to build trust in knowing who the real you is. Which means you will confidently follow it to wherever it leads you, without anxiety or the need for external validation, giving you the stability of a safe space combined with unlimited possibility.

You don’t have to be one of the 99% whose ideas crumble due to lack of self-trust.

Do you stand behind your goals with full confidence? If not, try adding in a daily ritual of journaling to become your own mentor.

Get stubborn with making your ideal life and career happen.