A Story Of Personal Transformation With Rick Harrigan

Action's Antidotes

Few people reach where they are looking to go without some form of personal transformation. In this episode, Stephen Jaye talks with Rick Harrigan, whose story of personal transformation involves having what he thought he was supposed to have but coming to the realization that it was not the right place for him. He reached a point where he could not take it anymore. It's a place a lot of people find themselves in. "I don't know what I want to do; I just know I can't do this anymore." Rick now helps others who are in need of similar transformations through his holistic purpose-driven consulting service. Join in this conversation as he takes us throughout his journey, all the while offering some great insights and inspiration to help those of us who are looking for that personal transformation. --- Listen to the podcast here A Story Of Personal Transformation With Rick Harrigan On this show, we are not trying to tell you exactly what your dream, your definition of success should be or specific actions you should take. A lot of it is all about mindset. However, one key component to a lot of different stories about people reaching whatever their definition of success is a story of personal transformation. That being said, I would like to introduce you to our guest, Rick Harrigan, who has his personal transformation story, not only about his transformation but about how he's helping others with their journeys. Welcome, Rick. Thanks, Stephen. It's great to be here. Thanks for having me on. How are you doing? I am doing great. Let's start by talking about your own story of personal transformation. Where were you before you underwent your transformation? "Purpose is not something that takes place outside of ourselves. Purpose is about a sense of being and living into your sense of being." A large part of it starts even in my youth, the messaging that I received about expectations, success and what they meant. That's to say that I came from a blue-collar background, where the idea of success was very much around this white-collar success was pegged to wealth, the white picket fence and a lot of material things. Money was always a source of frustration and a lot of gnashing of teeth when I grew up. That became somewhat ingrained. I went on to college, stumbled into media and became a Corporate Executive in the entertainment realm in Los Angeles for twenty years when all was said and done, over that period, it started well. As my career progressed, I started making more and more money, got the family, the kid and the mortgage. I was doing what I thought I was supposed to do, what I should be doing. There was this little voice whose volume increased and increased that was saying, "This is not what you are supposed to be doing. This is not right for you." By the time I hit my '30s, I was by and largely miserable. It was the classic story of, successful on the outside, miserable on the inside. I ended up feeling constrained by the golden handcuffs where I was making a lot of money, had a lot of bills, expenses, expensive cars and things like that. I felt like I couldn't get out. I felt stuck by the circumstances that I felt I was supposed to create in my life. It was a dead-end street. I ended up completely feeling burnt out, frustrated, stuck, disconnected, kept this sunny, cheery disposition on the outside. On the inside, I realized that what I was doing was not touching any deeper sense of self or contributing to the world or society. I felt like a mercenary who was strictly making money for a corporation. Finally, when I reached the point where I was probably days away from a nervous breakdown, this was Los Angeles, there were a lot of long commutes, I had an epiphany. I read A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle for the third time. I don't know why. I felt compelled to read it yet one more time. It landed with me because I realized the answers to my frustrations and feeling stuck did not lie outside.