How to create your personal statement
Purpose-grounded goal setting for your life
Back in 2018, I came across a slide deck while searching Google, trying to figure out my life purpose, direction, and goals: Lessons from my 20’s by Ryan Allis. It’s quite long (1285 slides) and took a number of different sessions to engage with all the exercises. I sifted through each prompt and jotted down my responses. While tedious, it was worthwhile because from it I found this phrase: Alexandra, the Community Voice person. I also wrote the beginnings of my personal statement. It’s been refined (read: shortened) over the years, included on resumes, grad school applications, and instagram bios.
This is my personal statement today:
I cultivate spaces of love for all to thrive and pass it on.
My business, Intentional Things, and this Substack is a direct result of the clarity that comes from having a personal statement. The jobs I’ve taken and courses I’ve enrolled in have further shaped me into this person. It is a 13-word declaration of who I am and how I hope to show up as in the world.
