Years ago, my good sis Michelle told me I have the gift of communication
When she said this, I thought, “Yeah, I have a way of communicating, I can speak to others, teach, write, and use my gifts to convey big ideas”
But what I’ve also come to realise over the years is that my gift of communication fuels my curiosity about language
Hi, I’m Nina, and I’m a word nerd
I get curious when I hear or see a word that I’ve never come across before or suddenly have the urge to know where the origins of a phrase comes from
Even if I’ve heard it lots of times in the past
One such phrase is “North Star”
We often hear people talk about something being their North Star
I’ve always understood what this phrase meant as the thing that gives us purpose or fuels us towards a particular goal
Or our why
But, recently, I’ve been curious about why we say “North Star” in the first place
Here’s what Google told me
I found out that in the old days, before compasses and GPS, people used to use the North Star to navigate
Why?
Because, unlike the other stars, the North Star stays still in the sky- making it a consistent, sure-fire way to know which direction you were in
(If you saw the North Star, you’d know where you were in relation to the north and therefore your intended direction)
So, when you refer to something as your North Star, you’re saying that despite everything that changes in life and the challenges that come with that, your purpose and your why remain steadfast
This is why, in the words of Simon Sinek, we should “start with why” when we think about our goals. (It's certainly what we do for our PR goals at Media Magic- my retreat for business women, experts, coaches and authors who want to uncover a quick and systemised process to pitch the media so that they can get onto more top platforms, be seen as industry experts, and start raking in larger paydays)
While this doesn't exempt you from dark times, it’s the thing you can always go back to, to guide you through them and help you strive for what you want
So, with all that being said:
What’s your North Star?
PS) Want to go from stumped to savvy about your why and how to get PR for your business? I'd like to personally invite you to join me at Media Magic, my retreat where I will be taking you through my system for PR success (The PR Powerhouse Playbook). Will you RSVP by joining here?