🎶 Podcast Intro: Welcome to the pursuing uncomfortable podcast, where we give you the encouragement you need to lean into the uncomfortable stuff life puts in front of you, so you can love your life. If you are ready to overcome all the yuck that keeps you up at night, you're in the right place. I am your host, Melissa Ebken let's get going. 🎶
🎶 Episode Intro: Hi, welcome back to the podcast. I'm so grateful that you tune in each week, and I hope you find some inspiring stories here that inspire you to lean into the difficult and uncomfortable situations and experiences in your life. Have you ever had a feeling of just something is missing? Maybe a little restlessness in your life or maybe just a little unfulfilled? Well, today's guest Claire Compagna had that same feeling in her life and she talks about how she summoned the courage to not only name that feeling but to make a big change in her life. I admire her courage and I'm eager for you to hear her story. If you want to check out the interview, you can hop over to YouTube. That link is in the show notes, along with the link to the blog. 🎶
Episode
Melissa Ebken 0:00
Claire, welcome to the Pursuing Uncomfortable Podcast. I'm so thrilled to have you with us today. I think so many people are gonna relate to your story and benefit from what you have to share. So welcome.
Claire Compagna 0:13
Thank you so much for having me. I am really excited to have this conversation with you.
Melissa Ebken 0:19
Me too. Where are you speaking to us from today?
Claire Compagna 0:23
I am in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Melissa Ebken 0:26
Yeah. And when Claire and I first spoke, we got on a whole different conversation. I love that area. North Carolina is beautiful and I can't wait to get there again.
Claire Compagna 0:38
Um, I'm definitely partial to it. It is beautiful. I'm born and raised here. So.
Melissa Ebken 0:43
So Claire, tell us what you do these days?
Claire Compagna 0:46
Yeah. How To summarize, right? It's, I would say, if I could condense it into into a sentence, it would be that I help people connect to themselves on a soul level. Really, I feel like one of the biggest things society in general is struggling with right now is that lack of connection with ourselves, and therefore with other people and everyone around us. And so I really help people to get back to that place of knowing who they are really on that soul level and not the identities that we've necessarily been given or conditioned to believe are who we are, if you will.
Melissa Ebken 1:33
And I could not be more interested in this topic myself, as a pastor, as a traveler on this spiritual journey. I am always doing this. I'm always looking for more resources and people who do the same work. So it's great to connect with you. And I can't wait to hear more about what you have to share with us. But before we do that, you didn't start here. This wasn't your original plan, was it?
Claire Compagna 2:01
Not at all? No.
Melissa Ebken 2:04
What did you go to school for?
Claire Compagna 2:06
This is a whole nother curveball. I have a degree in packaging science, actually, which probably none of your listeners have even heard of before. If I had to guess
Melissa Ebken 2:12
Its a new one for me.
Claire Compagna 2:20
Yeah, it's a in very brief summary. I liked that it was a mix between business and science, if you will, like there's both the engineering mind and the marketing mind that go into designing and creating custom packaging.
Melissa Ebken 2:39
And what did you do with that after you graduated?
Claire Compagna 2:43
Yeah, exactly. It's like, Oh, do you work at UPS or FedEx? Those were always the questions that I got. And no, is the answer. I, I worked as a packaging consultant. So a lot of people go into packaging engineering, where they actually design the custom bottles, or whatever it may be, I was actually doing a technical sales role. So I spoke with a lot of packaging engineers who did the design work and whatnot, and helped them to figure out if their product was going to work in this specific plastic or glass or whatever it may be, and all that fun, nerdy stuff.
Melissa Ebken 3:22
We're going to need to talk later because I'm going to need some contact information for a lot of these folks, because no your pot your packaging is not working.
Claire Compagna 3:31
Right? Oh my gosh, the amount of text messages I would get for like family members and stuff who really didn't understand what I did. They'd be like, Hey, I've got a complaint for Chick fil A or something. Just like, Guys, I wish I could help you. But I don't make that packaging.
Melissa Ebken 3:46
That's funny. So now you're working on helping people remove packaging, if you will, to take away all of those things that we put on. Our masks and all of those different phases that we wear so that we can really connect with who we are with it.
Claire Compagna 4:07
Totally, yes, I have not thought of it that way. But yes, I'm I'm definitely helping people to take those layers away, and kind of see what's at the core that that they maybe aren't so connected to or even aware of at this point.
Melissa Ebken 4:22
What are some of the methods you use to do that?
Claire Compagna 4:26
How there's so many. I would say it's gonna be different for everybody. Obviously, everyone's very unique to what works and doesn't work for them. And I also believe that I personally go through phases of what works well for me and doesn't so I do want to just like caveat with that to begin with, but I always start with everybody to kind of figure out which path to take by figuring out what they actually care about. Like what matters to you? And that sounds like such a simple question. But how many people actually sit down and ask themselves that? Really ask themselves that question and make themselves answer and narrow it down?
Melissa Ebken 5:16
You are so right. Whenever I I'm just thrown back by this experience that whenever I'm speaking pete with people who want some counseling, or maybe not approach it in that way, but who are having a conversation because they're stuck in one way or another? When I ask them, What do you want? It just is a revelation. I don't know, I've never thought about that. No one has ever asked me that. And I think that's emblematic of what you're talking about that the other are very core at their most fundamental level. If we don't know the answer to that question, then how do we connect with our innermost being?
Claire Compagna 6:00
Absolutely, yeah. So I would say we always start there, like that's step one every time because if you don't know, to your point, if you don't even know what you care about, what matters to you? How can you even do any of the undoing any of the rest of the work to shed those layers away? Because you don't even know which layers necessarily came from you and which ones came from conditioning.
Melissa Ebken 6:25
So that's a big leap. How did you get from packaging science to doing what you do?
Claire Compagna 6:31
Yes, definitely a shift for sure. I mean, I followed my own path of going through this experience myself to talk about pursuing uncomfortable, I felt uncomfortable in my life for I mean, I would say, probably a year and a half, before I really even figured out what was going on. Before I asked the question, what matters to me, you know, and it was one of those situations for me, which is why I feel so passionate about helping other people with this. My life looked really great from the outside. And even from the inside, I couldn't figure out what was, you know, quote unquote, off in my life, because I really had everything I had worked for. I had everything that I thought I wanted. It all panned out the way I planned. So trying to figure out why I still felt like I was missing something was really frustrating, really, really frustrating. And it took me on my own journey of figuring out what I care about, and how to incorporate more of that in my life, what in my life wasn't jiving with that. And it took it took some time to really, you know, get it to a place, I'm still working on it, I will be for the rest of my life, I'm sure as I shift and evolve, but it takes time to kind of fold those things into your life that you do want and slowly shed away the pieces that you don't want.
Melissa Ebken 8:14
I know people who are unhappy in their jobs, and many have the mindset of a job isn't there for my for my fulfillment, a job is there for me to make a living so it can support the things that I want to do. And that's a legitimate place. Absolutely. There are folks who stay in a job that's not fulfilling, and they need it to be fulfilling. And they might be there for years or even decades. And at some point, they feel like they have past a tipping point where they could walk away that well. I didn't do it years ago, that's when I should have done it. And now I just need to ride it out. That is so hard. It's hard to find that time when it's time to pull the plug. So can you take us back to that moment when you decided this is the time?
Claire Compagna 9:08
Absolutely. I fully agree with everything you just said also, I think there's also the layer of the golden handcuffs, if you will, like they call it you know, it's it's hard to walk away when you are getting compensated in a way that maybe following your passion isn't going to do the same thing, at least not to start. But for me, it was again, figuring out what mattered to me sitting down and realizing how much of my time I was spending, doing things that had nothing to do with those values. And for me and my job, I mean, I was doing very well. I was performing well at my job. But I'm over here spending, you know, 60 hours a week, whatever you want to do in your job. Like I'm spending all that time doing something that's not hitting even one of these values for me. And it doesn't mean that you're not good at your job. It doesn't mean you don't even like the people you work with; what you're doing. But it's just, it was not bringing anything that I was hoping my life would have into my life. And for me, it was the time it was like, I can't be putting this much of my time, my energy into this thing, whether it is a job or a relationship, whatever it may be for you. That's not fulfilling me. If it was, you know, a part time situation or something, it may have been different, but I didn't, it wasn't leaving me with time and energy to do the things that would have checked the fulfillment bucket for me. And so that, for me was like a, an aha moment, if you will, where like, I always tell people, I felt more uncomfortable in my current situation than I did thinking about the fear of what may come up if I leave it. And that was my tipping point moment. It was when I realized, okay, yeah, it's scary. It's going to be uncomfortable to pursue something different, but I'm more uncomfortable now than I want to be. So it's worth it.
Melissa Ebken 11:18
So what was that moment, like when you turned in your resignation?
Claire Compagna 11:22
Oh, my gosh. A terrifying, it's, it's terrifying. And you get flooded, I got flooded with guilt. Because I was good at my job. Like, I knew it was going to be a loss for the company to lose me. I felt shame. You know, I felt like I was disappointing. Not only my co workers, my boss, my customers, I'm in sales. You know, I was like, oh, like, this is so hard. My family who just helped me and supported me through college and getting this education that directly led to this successful career like it, it panned out the way it was supposed to. But here I am, you know, just switching the script. And, and it no matter how certain I felt about doing it, it was still so scary. But the second, I was done, like, the weight of the world felt like it was off my shoulders. Truly. Yeah, it was. I didn't, I knew I would feel relief. But the relief I felt was unexpected, the level of relief that I felt.
Melissa Ebken 12:39
What was it like having that conversation with your parents?
Claire Compagna 12:42
Honestly, they have seen that I was gonna be on this path, I think it would have been different if I just hadn't been talking to them the whole time. Like I kind of mentioned before, this, this was one and a half to two years in the making of me, knowing I wanted an out but not not doing it until I was confident that I wasn't going to repeat the same pattern, you know, by having to then go get another job that I was going to not be aligned with. So I made sure that I stayed there while I got really clear on what I wanted. And in that time I, I was, you know, keeping my parents posted with where I was at. So I think that helped. I think that definitely helped lessen the blow to them. It was it was my company who I did leave on very good terms with but they were the ones for sure that felt it the most. Absolutely.
Melissa Ebken 13:44
So then what happens next? You resigned from this job that you had spent years studying for preparing for and doing well. You felt a profound sense of relief. And then what?
Claire Compagna 14:00
Then I actually left and now I'm in that phase right now. So I'll keep you posted. But as of right now, it's it's a whole a whole new wave of mindset work really, that presents itself it's, it's yes, the overarching feeling of I'm doing what I'm meant to be doing this feels amazing. I feel excited to wake up every day, which to me is probably the biggest shift. You know, when you're in a job that you don't love you wake up every single morning, dreading the day ahead, no matter what kind of a day it's going to be you wake up dreading it because you just don't you just don't want to do it. And that is probably the biggest daily shift that I felt I don't wake up even remotely like that at all. I used to have trouble getting up in the morning getting out of bed. I pop up out of bed now. I don't even need an alarm and at the same time, I'm, I did uproot my life, I totally just threw all of my security and my stability out of the window. And I'm now running my own show, which is, you know, it's a whole different beast to tackle mentally. So I'm working through that now. And I'm overarchingly happy. But definitely grateful for all the support that I have to help me through this process and stay calm, stay grounded, stay patient trust in the process.
Melissa Ebken 15:39
How long has it been since you left your job and have started this new chapter in your life?
Claire Compagna 15:46
So I've been working on my business, the entirety of 2022. And right now we're about to enter September tomorrow. So I've been working on my business in the background, but in terms of actually doing it without being at my corporate job as well. It's been one month, on the dot. My last day was the last day of July. And today is the last day of August, that we're recording this. Yes.
Melissa Ebken 16:13
How are you finding clients? How are you finding people to work with?
Claire Compagna 16:18
These podcasts are very helpful, recording podcasts and getting in front of audiences, you know, that aren't familiar with me, but maybe resonate with where I'm coming from. I'm holding a bunch of workshops as well. So I'll hold them either virtually or in person in my local community. And those are really a good taste of what it's like to work with me and what my program offers. I also just now starting to fold in some speaking engagements as well. So like, you know, going to local colleges or local just groups that would resonate with this topic, which I think, honestly, societally most people will, we're all probably aware at this point of the great resignation. Slip, they're they're calling it, I think it was upwards of 47 million Americans voluntarily quit their jobs in 2021. Alone. So this is definitely a theme. And I think the audiences out there, it's just getting them to see me being visible.
Melissa Ebken 17:28
And you have implied that you did a lot of work. A lot of the groundwork while you were still employed. You put together the course that you're going to do or the curriculum or whatever it is that you take people through while you were still working. How did you find the resources for that? How did you put that together?
Claire Compagna 17:48
I worked with a coach, several coaches, actually, Erica Kericho is the main one shout out. And she is amazing, I actually joined her program because it really helps people to build a soul aligned business, which is what spoke to me like the program is literally called Soul Business Accelerator. And I was like, yes, that is what I want. I want it to stay aligned with me with the divine part of myself with the part of myself that's going to actually help transform people and not not turn into just like a profit focused business. I want to help people. And so she really was amazing in instrumental in helping me to create my program and to organically bring in clients and things like that. And in terms of like, time and everything, I just made it work. When you when you're passionate and care about it, I just made the time I was working late hours to just have it work and take on some pro bono clients in the beginning as well, to make sure I had proof of concept like is this program actually going to help people. And once I got that, validation it was it was much easier for me, if you will, using my air quotes easier to actually turn in my resignation.
Melissa Ebken 19:14
And there's a nuance here that's important to highlight. You didn't feel all of these things, the unfulfilled aspect of your life, the out of alignment aspect of your life and just leave your job. You recognize that within yourself and you did a lot of an inner work. And you put together the groundwork and the plans for this new venture before you stepped out of the old. And because you did that, that put the odds in your favor that you weren't going to end up in the similar situation again, you weren't going to have to take another job and repeat the process all over again that you did a lot of work to prepare yourself for stepping out into this new venture.
Claire Compagna 19:59
Absolutely. I probably was at my job for two, two and a half years maybe knowing that I wanted to leave. So there was quite a long what I call the in between period there. And for anybody that's listening, if you're in that period, shout out to you, I know how frustrating it is, I know how easy it is to just feel bitter and resentful when you're in that stage. But just know that you're not going to shock your nervous system, when you come out and make it all that much harder. If you are trying to leave your job and do something that that you love, it really helped me to not panic, you know, when I finally if I had just quit when I wanted to, I would have not had the foundation that I was able to build financially and not had the foundation I was able to build in my business. So it paid off. But it is it's a challenging period to be in, but you will, you will grow immensely in that period, if you just kind of surrender to the process.
Melissa Ebken 21:08
So someone listening to this podcast is really resonating with your message and what you have to say, and they're feeling really drawn to do what you have done. How did they contact you? And what would this person expect?
Claire Compagna 21:25
Yeah, so the the easiest way I would say to contact me is go to my website, clairecompagna.com. Or my Instagram
Melissa Ebken 21:33
That'll be in the show notes, by the way, it'll be just an easy click.
Claire Compagna 21:35
Thank you. Awesome. You can also DM me on Instagram, my Instagram is just Claire.Compagna. And those are probably the best ways to get in contact with me. I have a free 15 minute consultation call. So there's nothing to lose, everything to gain if you do just want to check it out. And I mean, I take everyone through a process, like I said, it is pretty customized, I have six basic steps that we go through. But really, it's it gets customized as we go throughout the process based on what each person needs. But again, it starts with that. Getting really, really clear on what you even care about what you do want in your life figuring out then as the next step, what is in alignment with that today, what is out of alignment with that today. Next step, let's get to the root. Why? Why are those things in or out of alignment? How did you? How and why did you bring them in, if they are out of alignment? That piece can take quite a while. That piece can you know, be be pretty heavy if you haven't ever gone there before. And I have plenty of tools and techniques to get through that depending on what your biggest blocks are. How you're self sabotaging yourself, which is a lot of the time what's happening. And then from there, we once we get past that point we release, release it all, reframe it all, and move forward like officially be done with it and start to reimagine where you actually can be now that you've cleared the space, you have the capacity to make it happen. And we end with creating actionable next steps to how to continue this. And I also leave you with so many different tools and techniques to revisit. Whenever you do hit these stages of feeling like something just isn't quite right. Because it's this is ongoing. All I'm helping you to do is to learn how to connect with yourself; learn how to know what works for you. Know how you can process these situations when they come up so that if and when they come up in the future, I'll be here but you don't need me. You know how to do it yourself, because you are connected with yourself in a way that you were not before we started.
Melissa Ebken 24:04
Brilliant. Brilliant. And as you said, the process is highly customized. So you can't put a specific timeframe on what it's gonna take each individual to complete this. But what kind of timeframe could one expect?
Claire Compagna 24:18
Yeah, absolutely. It's it's a four month program. In terms of how long I typically am able to get through this with people these steps. So there's no specific timeframe to get through each step, if you will, like I said that that getting to the root piece can sometimes be four weeks of that four month timeframe. But I do have calls with my clients every other week throughout that four month timeframe. So basically wherever they're at in the process, I'm there to support them. I'm there to answer questions and there to guide them and if we need to continue, I have an option as well to continue on a month to month basis after.
Melissa Ebken 25:02
So if someone jumped on this opportunity now, as 2023 unfolds. Gosh, year 2023, as it unfolds by springtime, they would have the tools in what they need to take next steps.
Claire Compagna 25:21
Yes, that is the goal. That is definitely what we try to make happen in this container. And the reason it's four months is because that's the length of a season. And I really do like to think of it as this is a season of your life, and you're transitioning to go into the next one.
Melissa Ebken 25:43
This is great. So if any of you are feeling uncomfortable in your skin or uncomfortable in your life, uncomfortable in your work, perhaps you need to peel away some layers and Claire can help you do that. Claire, before we close today, I would like to give you the opportunity to to have the last word if you will. So what would you like to leave the listeners with today?
Claire Compagna 26:10
Thank you. And I would just say, be patient and be compassionate with yourself through this process. I know that it's not an easy one. But the reward on the other side, when you do commit to honoring yourself is so so worth it. So really just give yourself the grace to allow the process to unfold as it's meant to instead of trying to rush through it.
Melissa Ebken 26:43
Thank you, Claire.
Claire Compagna 26:45
Absolutely. Thank you for having me.
🎶 Episode Outro: Thank you so much for tuning into today's episode. If this encouraged you, please consider subscribing to our show and leaving a rating and review so we can encourage even more people just like yourself. We drop a new episode every Wednesday so I hope you continue to drop in and be encouraged to lean into and overcome all the uncomfortable stuff life brings your way. 🎶
