"A life of purpose – living for something bigger than yourself – is not about achieving your dream job or the ideal circumstances or the perfect timing. Yes what you have, where you are, right now, on purpose."
- Make It Happen, page xviii
"Many of us fear that if we slow down even the tiniest bit, we will no longer be productive."- Make It Happen, page 8
Casey’s personal story is one of overcoming her fears. Throughout her adult life, she struggled with a strong desire to be perfect in her endeavors – to have the perfect body, to have the perfect life, to have the perfect business. These are all illusive ideas of what we think we should be striving for, but really they are fueled by our fears. But as Casey points out, “fear can hold us back from making what matters happen”.
The core of living a life on purpose is about knowing what matters most and pursuing them in the face of your fears. Casey points out that it is important to recognize the difference between normal and abnormal fear. “Normal fear keeps us from jumping off a cliff; abnormal fear keeps us from taking a leap of faith towards something that matters”. Abnormal fear is also what convinces us that what matters most is not actually important. It makes us dim ourselves down for no good reason. Interestingly, Casey talks about fear of success as being one of the biggest internalized fears that women have. I can relate to that. When we fear success, we often really fear that if we reach our potential then we won’t be able to manage the responsibility that comes with it, or that we won’t be able to sustain it. The repercussion of this kind of thinking is that we deem ourselves unworthy and keep playing small.
"Busy is the enemy of peace. Don’t be afraid to put the brakes on."- Make It Happen, page 97
I have read countless books about time management over the years and one of the recurring themes in all of them is that we have to defeat the notion that being busy is an indication of success. Usually the conversation centers on the fact that we need to let go of just aimlessly filling our time so that we can focus on our priorities. But what Casey points out that is unique to this conversation is that busy disrupts the peace of our lives. It’s not just about focusing on the tasks that matter most; it’s about cultivating peace in our day-to-day. This is completely counterintuitive to how we usually think about the benefits of overturning the notion of “busy.” As I tried implementing this in my own life, I’ve found it incredibly liberating. It took a bit of time to adjust to having quieter, slower days where I just focus on three to five key tasks, but I’ve found that I have made a much more significant strides in my work.
Casey suggests that if the goal is progress, not perfection, there are a couple of questions that we can focus on to simplify.
"Focus on progress, not paralyzing perfection."- Make It Happen, page 145
In addition to sharing her inspiring personal story, Casey offers readers some practical advice for creating a life they love on purpose. “What seeds can you plant now of the living legacy you want to pass on to others?” That is the question that Casey suggests thinking about first as you try to determine what is most important to you. In addition to that, Casey offers up five steps to create a life on purpose:
Casey provides many valuable and inspirational lessons about creating a life that matters. Her inspiring story shows us that a combination of faith and action makes the impossible possible.
Lara Casey is a believer in the “impossible.” She is the publisher and editor-in-chief of Southern Weddings, which encourages couples to plan a meaningful beginning to married life. Lara’s first book, Make it Happen: Surrender Your Fear, Take the Leap, Live on Purpose, released in December 2014 (Thomas Nelson Publishers). She frequently speaks on goal-setting, mission-centered business, and faith. Lara lives in Chapel Hill, NC, with her husband and daughter, Grace.
