"Your Life Potential" 🦋

Collage: Justine Anweiler, The Big Core Gift, 2024.

I don’t think it’s a coincidence that I received my Core Gift around the same time I was encouraged to watch The Big Door Prize.

You see both of these entities collided in my life to ask the same questions:

Why am I here?
Is there a compass?
How do I find it?

And since receiving my Core Gift (Helping people fully express who they are. I give it by helping them to know when to get into the nitty-gritty, realize they can’t think through their emotions, draw on the compass of self, and believe change is always possible.) I have grappled with this idea of:

What does it mean?
And how do I use this as my compass moving forward?

And whilst I enjoy asking myself these questions and playing with these concepts like a chewed piece of bubble gum. I much prefer to have the Universe respond. And that she did – through a show with a blue butterfly machine, called the Morpho 🦋

In The Big Door Prize, a mysterious arcade machine arrives in a small town and produces blue business cards that say “Your Life Potential”. On the card inside is a phrase that holds the individual’s potential, or in this discussion, their Core Gift.

The potentials begin to take on a chaotic life of their own, leaving everyone to wonder what does this mean? As the viewer you too are perplexed until Chris O’Dowd’s character (Dusty) says (near the end of Season 1):

⚠spoiler alert⚠
“The thing that’s written on your card that’s not the job you’re meant to have – or the destiny – or your goals – or whatever. It’s not the end of the road, it’s a turn. It’s an arrow. It’s the thing you need to be told about yourself to point you in the right direction.”

And I think that’s true with this too. To discover your Core Gift is to feel like you have been given a sacred map to a planet you’re not even sure exists. You have more questions than answers and you wonder if the planet you’re searching for is the very body you inhabit.

Dusty goes on to say “We’ve been asking the wrong questions: where did the Morpho come from? What’s inside it? How does it work? But – what we should have been asking is: What’s inside of us? How do we work?!”

So what if I applied these reflections to my own experience? Rather than questioning the process, the timing, or the wordsmithing of my Core Gift – I instead focus on:

If this lives inside of me, how does this work?

Ultimately giving the gift room to breathe, take up space, and get sticky.

Thank you to Alice Hahn & Amy Wilson for stretching the bubble gum of Core Gifts with me – to Myles Pasion & Zil Ricker for entrusting me to be their Core Gift facilitator – and to Bruce Anderson for his life's work at the Core Gift Institute

Article FAQs generated by AI
1. What does it mean to have a Core Gift and how can it serve as a compass for one's life journey?
Having a Core Gift means possessing a unique ability or purpose that guides your actions and decisions. It serves as a compass by helping you understand your strengths and how you can use them to navigate life's challenges and opportunities. Reflecting on how this gift operates within you can provide clarity and direction.

2. How can one practically apply the concept of their Core Gift to everyday life and decision-making?
To apply your Core Gift practically, integrate it into your daily routines and major decisions. Identify situations where your gift can be of value, and use it to approach problems and opportunities. Regularly reflecting on your Core Gift can help align your actions with your true purpose, fostering personal growth and fulfillment.

3. What can we learn from The Big Door Prize about understanding and embracing our potential and inner workings?
This show teaches us that our potential is not a fixed endpoint but a guiding force that directs us towards growth and self-discovery. The show highlights the importance of introspection and understanding our inner workings to unlock our true capabilities. By focusing on what resides within us—our desires, strengths, and unique traits—we can better navigate our personal and professional lives. Embracing this understanding encourages us to express ourselves authentically and respond dynamically to life's challenges, fostering resilience and continuous personal evolution.