Building Gratitude

As we head into Thanksgiving week, the word "gratitude" gets thrown around a lot. For some people it lands easily, even naturally. But for a lot of people, especially those in career transition or navigating the awkward space between who they used to be and who they're becoming, it doesn't.

This time of year can stir up more tension than comfort. The gratitude posts feel like someone else's language. The forced optimism feels disconnected from your reality. And the quiet moments have a way of turning up the volume on every question you've been trying to outrun.

If that resonates in any way, I want to offer something different this year. Something real.

You're standing in one of the rare moments in life when you get to shape your identity on purpose. Most people never take that opportunity. They move from role to role, collecting titles, fitting into expectations, inheriting an identity someone else built around them.

Corporate isn't the villain here. For many, it's been a great home. For others, it's been a launching pad. And for some, maybe you, it simply ended. Sometimes by choice. Sometimes by circumstances you couldn't have predicted. Sometimes with relief. Sometimes with confusion. Often with a complicated mix of both.

But here's the truth you might not feel yet: when a part of your identity closes, a new one becomes possible. And that possibility, uncomfortable as it might be right now, is something worth being grateful for.

Rediscover the Builder Inside You

One of the most powerful things you can be thankful for this week is the chance to rebuild your identity intentionally instead of accidentally. That's not a light concept. It's not a motivational poster. It's a fundamentally different way of moving forward.

And when people step away from corporate environments, whether by choice or necessity, there's often a moment when they rediscover something they hadn't realized they'd misplaced: the Builder inside them.

I'm not talking about becoming an entrepreneur, or quitting your job to start a company, or branding yourself as anything in particular. I'm talking about the part of you that used to spot problems before they grew, the part that raised a hand when something needed to be said, the part that quietly stepped in and made a difference because it felt wrong not to.

If you've ever found yourself doing that, even in small ways, you've already met your Builder.

Builder is not a job title. It's not tied to whether you're on payroll or on your own. It's not a personality type reserved for the boldest or loudest people in the room.

Builder is a way of operating. A way of thinking. A way of becoming the person your future demands.

Builders show up inside companies as intrapreneurs who make their teams better in ways that never fit neatly on a job description. They show up as entrepreneurs who create something from nothing. And they show up as explorers: people who haven't chosen the next direction yet but are willing to get honest, get curious, and build clarity piece by piece.

Different paths, same identity thread.

Builders create value without waiting for permission. Builders act from their future identity, not their past role. And the moment you realize you have the freedom to choose that identity on purpose, regardless of your employment status, is the moment things start to shift.

But the truth is this: sometimes you have to go down before you go up. Not always. Not for everyone. But that's how it unfolded for me.

When the Old Identity Fell Apart

Over the last two years, I learned something I did not expect to be grateful for. Losing my old identity forced me to build a new one, and that process brought my Builder identity back online.

It was messy. It was uncomfortable. It was the kind of personal work you only understand once you have lived through the silent parts that nobody sees.

One of the harder truths I had to face was how much of my confidence had been tied to things that had very little to do with who I actually am. For years I could walk into a room and people would listen simply because of the company on my email signature. That kind of external credibility is powerful, and it is easy to confuse it with identity.

When it fades, it leaves a gap that feels far bigger than you expect.

Once the dust settled, I began to see the real shape of it. Corporate had given me discipline, structure and the ability to execute, and it had also trained me to wait for permission. Leaving removed the safety rails that had made so many decisions feel straightforward, and it exposed both the parts of myself that were strong and the parts that needed rebuilding.

For a while, I tried to patch the gap with tips, tricks, and routines. I understood the value of gratitude, meditation, and mindset work, but I was using them to avoid the deeper identity work I needed to do. None of those practices meant anything until I knew who I was rebuilding myself into.

The gratitude showed up later, after the confusion faded and I finally understood that the next version of me would have to come from intention instead of momentum. In other words, it had to come from within me.

That realization felt heavier than I expected, mostly because I was not yet clear on the direction I wanted to take myself.

The good news was that I was not starting from scratch. I was starting from experience.

That shift in my perspective was quiet but powerful, and it changed the way I interpreted every step that followed.

Looking Back at the Identity Gap

Looking back, I can see how the identity gap opened. Corporate life had shaped me slowly and silently. It taught me to seek approval, wait for direction, rely on hierarchy, tie my worth to a title and stay inside the lines.

When all of that structure disappeared, there was nothing left to hold onto. What I thought was my identity dissolved, and there was no replacement waiting for me. There was no mentor stepping in with a new version of me. No former boss. No mastermind. No course.

If I wanted a new identity, I had to build it myself.

That meant releasing beliefs that no longer fit, testing ideas, getting honest feedback, rebuilding confidence and taking action long before I felt ready. It meant choosing my future identity before I felt capable of living it.

Eventually, I understood that my Builder identity was not new. It had been buried under job descriptions, performance reviews and the expectation to stay in my lane. This phase of my life did not require reinvention. It required remembering.

And remembering changed everything.

What I Learned When I Finally Found My Builder Again

Reconnecting with my Builder changed the way I approached the next chapter of my life. Once I understood that it had never disappeared, only gone quiet, I stopped treating myself like someone who needed to be fixed.

I was not piecing together a broken identity. I was building a new one from the strongest parts of who I had always been.

That shift made the work feel possible again, and it made the work feel necessary.

The moment I saw that clearly, something else clicked. I did not need motivation or morning routines. I needed direction. Real direction, the same level of direction I had as a corporate executive, but this time fully built by me.

But a clear direction is just the first step. Clarity without focus scatters. Focus without execution stalls. I had to rebuild all three.

And the Builder in me gave me the structure to do that. It helped me get honest about what I actually wanted, choose the direction that mattered, and then start taking steps that lined up with the future I was building.

Your Thanksgiving Gift

This is what I hope you take into Thanksgiving week. There is something to be grateful for even if your circumstances feel complicated.

Losing an old identity can feel like failure, chaos or uncertainty, but it creates a space you cannot access any other way. Most people move through their lives inside identities that were shaped for them. They rarely lose those identities because they avoid the risks that require rebuilding.

Stepping outside that system, whether by choice or by force, gives you a rare opportunity to choose your next identity with intention instead of habit.

When I finally looked at my experience honestly, I started to see what I wanted to carry forward. Leadership. Discipline. Systems thinking. Reliability. Resilience. The ability to create value wherever I am placed. Those traits were real and belonged in my next identity.

The things that no longer served me were just as clear once everything was stripped away. The dependency on hierarchy. The fear of judgment. The instincts that made me wait for permission. Those were habits, not identity. I could let them go.

Once that landed, the Builder became the anchor. It gave me something solid to build around.

The Builder is the part of me that seeks clarity, sharpens focus and acts with intention even when capability is still catching up. The Builder does not wait to feel ready. The Builder brings the next step to life.

And when everything else feels uncertain, the Builder gives you a way forward.

That became the foundation of my new identity. And once I reconnected with it, I could build the next version of myself with confidence instead of fear.

Building Your Vision

When I reconnected with my Builder, another truth surfaced right behind it. Corporate had always provided a built-in sense of direction. There was a ladder, a strategy, a calendar, a set of expectations. Once all of that dissolved, there was nothing pointing me anywhere.

If I wanted a new identity, I needed new clarity. And to replace the direction that a corporate role brings, I had to build a real vision for my life.

Not a mission statement. Not a clever line for a website. Not a Pinterest board full of things I thought I should want.

I needed something deeper. A vision that came from the part of me that is not performing for anyone. The part that knows what it wants without asking for permission or validation.

That level of clarity is uncomfortable. It demands honesty. It forces you to stop projecting what you think would sound impressive and listen to the quieter voice underneath all the noise.

And this is exactly why most people avoid it. It is so much easier to stay busy. It is easier to chase goals that look good from the outside. It is easier to convince yourself that the next title, the next salary band, or the next accomplishment will steady the ground under your feet.

But once I found my Builder again, I knew the next version of my identity could only come from a vision that was true. Something I could ground every present decision to. Something that made the small steps, the hard choices, and the messy days line up in the right direction.

I could not build anything meaningful until that vision was crystal clear.

To get there, I needed a tool that forced me to articulate the future version of myself with precision. Not vague aspirations. Not wishful thinking. A real picture of where I was going.

So I created a prompt that made me answer the questions I had been avoiding. It brought out things I had never said out loud. It clarified what I actually wanted, not what looked good on a performance review or what I thought other people would respect.

That is why I am giving it to you as a Thanksgiving gift. And it really is a double gift.

First, if you want to operate as a Builder from this point forward, using AI is essential. Ignoring it today is no different from a small business owner in 2005 grumbling about the internet and insisting that they did not need a website.

AI is a tool. If used properly, it helps you think with more clarity, see yourself more honestly and move with intention. It is available to you right now, for free!

Builders teach builders through action, so instead of telling you how to use AI, I'm going to show you one powerful example of how you can use it.

Second, this prompt will help you clarify your true vision, the one that comes from the deepest part of you, not the one shaped by external expectations. A five-year identity that reflects what you want at your core, even if nobody else sees it yet.

It is a private conversation with yourself. If you do not like the answers, you can delete them. Nothing lost.

But the moment you run the prompt, you take the first real step toward building the identity you actually want.

Copy it. Paste it into your favorite AI tool. I use ChatGPT and Gemini, but they all will work.

The Vision Builder Prompt

` Act as a $10,000-an-hour executive coach helping me define my ultimate five-year vision as a Builder. A Builder creates meaningful value either inside a company (intrapreneur), by starting something of their own (entrepreneur), or by exploring and shaping their next chapter (explorer).

Your job is to help me uncover which type of Builder I am becoming and what my future looks like.

Important tone rules: be direct, grounded, and practical. No fluff, no clichés, no corporate vision statement language, no therapy talk. Keep it sharp, honest, optimistic, and kind.

We will do this step by step, one question at a time. Keep questions brief and aim for the fewest questions required to reach clarity, target 10 to 15 total. Do not ask multi-part questions unless I request them. Use follow-ups only when needed.

Before we begin, know this constraint: I am looking for a true vision. Not vanity. Not external validation. Not what I think I should want. Help me listen for what I genuinely want at the deepest level, even if it feels ambitious or unpolished. If I drift into "should" or status goals, point it out and bring me back to what is true.

Start by helping me clarify who I am trying to serve in my ideal future. Ask follow-ups until we have a crystal clear picture of who I serve and their needs.

If at any point I cannot answer because I do not have clarity yet, pause and help me discover the answer instead of forcing it.

Next, explore what kind of Builder I am in this future:

intrapreneur, building initiatives, teams, or innovations inside an organization

entrepreneur, building my own product, service, company, or practice

explorer, clarifying the path toward my next role or business.

Once that is clear, ask me about the work I am doing in this future. Focus on the role I play, the kind of organization I am part of or leading, how it creates value and generates revenue, and how I personally contribute.

Help me clarify who benefits from my work, why they choose me or my organization, and what makes my contribution unique.

Then explore what my daily life looks like in this future. How I spend my time, where I live, how I operate day to day, and what my family and personal life look like. Make sure the way I work and the way I live feel aligned with my values and priorities.

Finally, summarize my five-year Builder vision in three parts:
1) a 3 to 5 sentence vision narrative written in my voice,
2) my Builder type and the 3 core standards my future self lives by, and
3) the 3 most important actions I should take in the next 7 days to start building toward this vision.

Then ask me if I agree with the vision. If not, ask clarifying questions until it feels true and complete.

Let's start. Do it. For real. Take 10-15 minutes and let AI help you lock in your future vision.
`

An Invitation for the Builders

I am looking for ten Builders to join me as the founding members of the Unleash Epic Builder Community. It is a place for corporate refugees, operators, creators, and entrepreneurs who want to build their next chapter with people who understand the work, the identity shift and the courage it takes to move with intention.

It might not be a place for everyone, but it will be a place where it is safe to be imperfect, but unacceptable to stay stuck.

Founding members will receive the steepest discount this community will ever offer. You will earn commissions for every Builder you bring in. You will get access to the Builder OS and the exact tools I use to think, plan and execute. You will have access to our AI coaches. And you will help shape a community built around clarity, focus, and action.

This is a community built by builders for builders. Builders who want to do the real work. People who want to create clarity, who want to set direction, who want to create value in a way that reflects who they are becoming.

If you feel the pull to build, whether inside a company, outside one, or somewhere in between, this is your moment.

If you are a builder and the timing is right, I would love to build alongside you.

Oh, and if you ran the prompt and it stirred something in you, even if you aren't sure you're ready to be a founding ambassador, take one messy step this week.

If you want a place to build in public, come with us.

Just fill out this quick form for more info. If the timing is right, I would be honored to build alongside you too.

Let's build our next chapter with intention, and let's be grateful that we get to choose.

Happy Thanksgiving Friends.