The Lost Button: Recent Episodes
Purposeful
We help young people figure out their future life + career. The Lost Button helps you find your place in the world and a career you love. Hosted by 20-something-year-old entrepreneurs Elizabeth Knight and Conor McLaughlin, each episode tackles a different challenge young people face, from finding a job you’re passionate about, to managing stress and burnout. Whether you’re starting a new chapter in life, like graduating from school or university, or searching for a purposeful career, we can help you. Powered by ed-tech startup Purposeful - the cooler cousin to traditional careers counselling.
Last ep for season 2 :( This time Liz is not the one asking the questions, but the one answering them. Pia (the producer) wanted to learn more about Liz and how she started Purposeful at 19, started her second business Next Revolution at 22, and where she has time for it all. If you'd like to start your own company, or want to learn more about the life of a start-up founder, this episodes for you! Are you also a young person finding your path in life? Join the club! Get amongst our community via the website, follow us on IG for daily inspo and laughs, and DEFINITELY rate and subscribe to our poddy, on whichever platform you’re joining from. We are also always looking for new people to feature in future episodes, so if you’ve got a story to share, email us at elizabeth@purposeful.org and we’ll be in touch.
Are you curious about the world of startups? Want to accelerate your career journey and work on solving world problems? Or have a innovative idea you want to develop? This episode is for you!
Often students feel as though after uni they must work in traditional paths, in established corporations and developed industries. Startups on the other hand may seem risky, especially for parents who've followed more traditional paths.
But with more risk, comes more reward. So in this episode we speak to Cam Ensor, Student Fellowship Associate at Startmate, about breaking down the myths of working in startups. Cam shares his entrepreneurial journey, pros & cons for working in a startup, how to choose the right startup and his advice for students.
We also hear from young startup gurus, Kai Lovel, Mihailo Bozic and Elaha Gurgani on advice they have for young people interested in working at a startup.
Are you also a young person finding your path in life? Join the club! Get amongst our community via the website, follow us on IG for daily inspo and laughs, and DEFINITELY rate and subscribe to our poddy, on whichever platform you’re joining from. We are also always looking for new people to feature in future episodes, so if you’ve got a story to share, email us at elizabeth@purposeful.org and we’ll be in touch.
TIMESTAMPS
Cams Interview: (8:56)
Have you recently graduated high school and are about to enter the big world, starting university, tafe, work or taking a gap year? This is the perfect episode for you!
Hosts Liz and Conor with Josh Farr, founder of Campus Consultancy, discuss all things making the most out of your first year outside of high school. Josh and his team have helped over 30,000 students develop leadership skills and increase student employability. The first year after graduating high school can be scary, so Josh shares some very purposeful wisdom in this episode for young people about to experience a new journey in their lives.
If you know someone who is about to start university, share this episode with them!
Are you also a young person finding your path in life? Join the club! Get amongst our community via the website, follow us on IG for daily inspo and laughs, and DEFINITELY rate and subscribe to our poddy, on whichever platform you’re joining from. We are also always looking for new people to feature in future episodes, so if you’ve got a story to share, email us at elizabeth@purposeful.org and we’ll be in touch.
CONTENT WARNING: Mental Health.
Feeling lost is something many, if not all young people face. And this disconnect can impact our mental health. In today's episode we discuss how purpose is related to mental health and why so many young people are struggling with feeling lost.
We also interviewed Jake, a youth mental health advocate and one of our new team members at Purposeful. We hear about Jake's journey through high school and how he discovered his authentic self.
Are you also a young person finding your path in life? Join the club! Get amongst our community via the website, follow us on IG for daily inspo and laughs, and DEFINITELY rate and subscribe to our poddy, on whichever platform you’re joining from. We are also always looking for new people to feature in future episodes, so if you’ve got a story to share, email us at elizabeth@purposeful.org and we’ll be in touch.
If you or someone you know needs help you can call lifeline on 13 11 14 or chat online.
MENTAL HEALTH RESOURCES:
Head to Health (to find digital health resources)
Beyond Blue (anyone feeling depressed or anxious) — call 1300 22 4636 or chat online
Black Dog Institute (people affected by mood disorders) — online help
Lifeline (anyone having a personal crisis) — call 13 11 14 or chat online
How can you share your value at work as a young person to get where you really want to go?
As a graduate the workplace can be intimidating. When you have little experience, imposter syndrome can creep in. If you want to move into a new role or get promoted, this episode is for you!
In this episode we hear from Emma, an experienced strategist, who's recently been promoted to her dream job. We hear about her career journey after university, and her advice for valuing your work and asking for what you really want.
Are you also a young person finding your path in life? Join the club! Get amongst our community via the website, follow us on IG for daily inspo and laughs, and DEFINITELY rate and subscribe to our poddy, on whichever platform you’re joining from. We are also always looking for new people to feature in future episodes, so if you’ve got a story to share, email us at elizabeth@purposeful.org and we’ll be in touch.
Are you a young person interested in a career with impact? This episode is for you!
Meet young changemakers Jae and Araan, founders of Radiant. Radiant empowers young people to be changemakers in their community and learn about how they can make an impact and be involved in decision making. This episode features inspiring advice for young people interested in making a difference in their community and globally.
Are you also a young person finding your path in life? Join the club! Get amongst our community via the website, follow us on IG for daily inspo and laughs, and DEFINITELY rate and subscribe to our poddy, on whichever platform you’re joining from. We are also always looking for new people to feature in future episodes, so if you’ve got a story to share, email us at elizabeth@purposeful.org and we’ll be in touch.
Transitioning from school or uni to full-time work isn’t always easy, so if you are about to clock into that full-time employment life, this ep is for you!
In honour of Conor starting a full time-job next year, we spoke to 4 recent grads who have incredible lessons to share and advice for anyone about to step into full-time work.
We also spoke to Jono from EarlyWork, a community and job listing start-up for young people to find meaningful work. We discuss the challenges young people face finding meaningful work and landing careers in the start-up space. Jono also gave us his take on how to make meaningful decisions when choosing your first grad job.
Are you also a young person finding your path in life? Join the club! Get amongst our community via the website, follow us on IG for daily inspo and laughs, and DEFINITELY rate and subscribe to our poddy, on whichever platform you’re joining from. We are also always looking for new people to feature in future episodes, so if you’ve got a story to share, email us at elizabeth@purposeful.org and we’ll be in touch.
When we get asked what we want to do in our life, people expect you to be set on one idea...
While it’s true our parents' generation often had only one career, gen z is expected to work 18 jobs across 6 careers! This huge difference has created career expectations that don’t exactly meet reality - and the idea of having multiple changing careers has left us feeling overwhelmed. Which is why in this episode we debunk the myth of having a ‘perfect career path’, reframing anxiety into excitement. Because let’s be real, if you knew exactly what you were going to be doing 5, 10 years from now - life would be a lot less fun.
We also spoke to doorman, Joe Webhe about his own zig-zag career and how he started his co-wrote the book ‘18 & Lost’ to show that there is no perfect path after highschool.
Are you also a young person finding your path in life? Join the club! Get amongst our community via the website, follow us on IG for daily inspo and laughs, and DEFINITELY rate and subscribe to our poddy, on whichever platform you’re joining from. We are also always looking for new people to feature in future episodes, so if you’ve got a story to share, email us at elizabeth@purposeful.org and we’ll be in touch.
Why don’t we learn real life skills in school? The mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell, but how the hell does that apply to real life?
School curriculums have not really kept up with our ever changing world. Leaving young people without real-world skills to enter further education and the workforce. We discuss what the future of education looks like, and how this will better prepare students for the contemporary world of work. In the meantime, the good thing is that you can start to learn these in-demand skills now - outside the classroom.
This episode we interview Byron Dempsey from Driven Young. Byron is passionate about educating young people about practical life skills. In this interview we hear about Byron's career journey and how he has built a community around his podcast. Byron also shares with us the top 10 topics we didn’t learn in school but should have.
Are you also a young person finding your path in life? Join the club! Get amongst our community via the website, follow us on IG for daily inspo and laughs, and DEFINITELY rate and subscribe to our poddy, on whichever platform you’re joining from. We are also always looking for new people to feature in future episodes, so if you’ve got a story to share, email us at elizabeth@purposeful.org and we’ll be in touch.
Graduation means stepping into a world of unknowns… Regardless of whether you’ve just completed school, uni, TAFE or an apprenticeship - this is for you!
But of course, this wouldn’t be an episode about graduations without a big fat congratulations!
In this ep, we discuss all things graduation and learning to live with the fear of the unknown. Whether you have a plan after graduation or not, it can be both exciting and scary to move on from everything you know.
Our guest on this episode is a total ray of sunshine: Tahlia! She has literally just finished high-school and hosts her own podcast, Good Luck Charlie, where she documents her experiences growing up. She’s shared with us how she’s suffered from burnout in her final years of high school, and Tahlia is looking forward to taking a gap year to explore, learn and recharge. We absolutely loved hearing her perspective on going into the next year without a plan - and we’re sure this episode will be relevant for any new grads, regardless of which stage of life you’re at!
Are you also a young person finding your path in life? Join the club! Get amongst our community via the website, follow us on IG for daily inspo and laughs, and DEFINITELY rate and subscribe to our poddy, on whichever platform you’re joining from. We are also always looking for new people to feature in future episodes, so if you’ve got a story to share, email us at elizabeth@purposeful.org and we’ll be in touch.
WELCOME TO SEASON 2! We are so excited to be back for another season of The Lost Button. We have curated an incredible list of guests and stories to share with you - helping you figure out your future one chat at a time.
In our first episode of season 2 we talk about the catch 22 scenario of needing experience to get experience. When an entry level job description requires 3-5 years experience, how can young people compete and find meaningful work? We interviewed Ajay, founder of EntryLevel to find out.
Entry level is a startup offering virtual work experiences to learn valuable skills directly applicable to existing employment opportunities. Ajay shares his lessons from getting jobs with no experience and how he aims to empower 1 billion people to find meaningful employment.
Are you also a young person finding your path in life? Join the club! Get amongst our community via the website, follow us on IG for daily inspo and laughs, and DEFINITELY rate and subscribe to our poddy, on whichever platform you’re joining from. We are also always looking for new people to feature in future episodes, so if you’ve got a story to share, email us at elizabeth@purposeful.org and we’ll be in touch.
We are conditioned from a young age to conform to society’s expectations. With messages from parents, teachers, pop culture and societal norms dictating what success looks like and the path to achieve it - doing your own thing can be pretty uncomfortable at first. Parents are often the first people we go to for career-related advice. But what if their expectations of your career don’t match your own? How do you navigate the tricky situation when your career plans differ from what they had decided for you? It’s hard. And here at Purposeful, we know just how daunting it can be to create your own way. That’s why in this episode we share practical advice on how to face the challenge and find the confidence to choose your own path. We also speak to Ruby, a pastry chef who has created her own path, going against society's expectations of her by trading the corporate ladder for baking delicious food.
Are you also a young person finding your path in life? Join the club! Get amongst our community via the website, follow us on IG for daily inspo and laughs, and DEFINITELY rate and subscribe to our poddy, on whichever platform you’re joining from. We are also always looking for new people to feature in future episodes, so if you’ve got a story to share, email us at elizabeth@purposeful.org and we’ll be in touch.
Feeling deflated after job rejections? Applying to jobs and getting no response at all?
Rejection hurts. When you put in hours into applications, resumes, interviews and assessment centres - rejection can be painful. It literally feels the same as experiencing physical pain.
So in this episode we discuss how to shift your mindset on rejection and develop diverse strategies to get your next job.
This episode we interview Sienna, who has had her fair share of job rejections. Sienna is a young newly graduated barista who has incredible wisdom to share to inspire you to rethink job rejections in a new way.
Are you also a young person finding your path in life? Join the club! Get amongst our community via the website, follow us on IG for daily inspo and laughs, and DEFINITELY rate and subscribe to our poddy, on whichever platform you’re joining from. We are also always looking for new people to feature in future episodes, so if you’ve got a story to share, email us at elizabeth@purposeful.org and we’ll be in touch.
What is a vision and why is it important?
Having a vision for your future means you know where you’re heading and why you’re going there. Having goals puts you on track to be 10 times more successful than if you don’t.
This episode we discuss how creating a vision for your life is the first step in actualising your goals. We discuss two of the best ways to create your vision and how you can implement them in your life as a strategy to achieve your dreams.
We also interview George, a 23 year old on a mission to change the way the world washes. An entrepreneur with a vision, George has an inspirational story of how he started his own business Wash Bloc, and how his vision has propelled him into a purposeful future.
Are you also a young person finding your path in life? Join the club! Get amongst our community via the website, follow us on IG for daily inspo and laughs, and DEFINITELY rate and subscribe to our poddy, on whichever platform you’re joining from. We are also always looking for new people to feature in future episodes, so if you’ve got a story to share, email us at elizabeth@purposeful.org and we’ll be in touch.
Is luck really up to chance, or is it about creating opportunities?
What if getting career lucky is less about the right place, right time, and more about the right mindset and right decisions? In this episode we talk about how to stop relying on chance and getting in the driver’s seat of your future. The result? You’ll be able to create your own luck. This week we interview Roger (AKA Dj Rog), who shares his epic story on how he developed his two passions into a career as a swiftie Dj and psychologist.
Are you also a young person finding your path in life? Join the club! Get amongst our community via the website, follow us on IG for daily inspo and laughs, and DEFINITELY rate and subscribe to our poddy, on whichever platform you’re joining from. We are also always looking for new people to feature in future episodes, so if you’ve got a story to share, email us at elizabeth@purposeful.org and we’ll be in touch.
What is the secret to really standing out? To landing your dream job? In a world where we’re encouraged to fit in, keep up with the trends, and follow the rules; the secret to success is not found in being the same as everyone else. It’s in being your authentic self! But here at Purposeful, we know that ‘be yourself’ isn’t really great advice... So in this episode we unpack helpful ways to actually uncover and show up as your authentic self. This week we hear from our very purposeful friend Jia, who’s taken a meaningful path to becoming the most authentic version of herself.
Are you also a young person finding your path in life? Join the club! Get amongst our community via the website, follow us on IG for daily inspo and laughs, and DEFINITELY rate and subscribe to our poddy, on whichever platform you’re joining from. We are also always looking for new people to feature in future episodes, so if you’ve got a story to share, email us at elizabeth@purposeful.org and we’ll be in touch.
Got that dreaded feeling that you’ve made the wrong career choice?
When you’ve felt certain about your path for so long (maybe even since you were a little kid), coming unstuck and realising that you might have outgrown your career choice can send you reeling.
It’s one of the most painful problems we see young people experiencing at Purposeful, and everytime we hear someone’s story, it breaks our hearts a little.
Most people form ideas about their career path in their late teens...only to try the jobs out for real in their early to mid 20s (think med, law, commerce). It’s not that crazy to think that you might change your mind during that time! So why do we put so much pressure on ourselves to make the ‘right choice’ based on the ideas of our teenage selves?
In this episode we debunk the ‘sunk cost’ myth - of the time and energy you’ve spent so far, and share strategies for developing your anti-dream job as an antidote to finding yourself lost later in life. Liz also shares her love letter to all of you struggling out there...
We share our favourite interview so far, with 24-year-old Summer, a final year med student who (after seven years of study) has just realised it’s not the path for her. Her authenticity and courage is so inspiring - this one is worth a listen.
Are you also a young person finding your path in life? Join the club! Get amongst our community via the website, follow us on IG for daily inspo and laughs, and DEFINITELY rate and subscribe to our poddy, on whichever platform you’re joining from. We are also always looking for new people to feature in future episodes, so if you’ve got a story to share, email us at elizabeth@purposeful.org and we’ll be in touch.
Feeling burnt out? From blurred lines between work, friends, home and alone time (boundaries? what are they?), increased working hours and expectations (the 9-5 is dead), not to mention a global pandemic, it’s no wonder we’re experiencing stress at an overwhelming rate.
According to Deloitte, 84% of millennials have experienced burnout, comparatively higher than the rest of the population! So don’t worry you’re not alone.
It’s time to stop wearing ‘being tired’ like a badge of honour, and to find more sustainable ways to live and work that don’t leave us emotionally and physically exhausted. This topic slaps hard with Conor + Liz, who’ve got some stories of their own to share, and ideas for how to recover from and prevent burnout in the future.
This week we hear from Bela, 20-year-old, self-described slashie // aka she does a little bit of everything!
PS: thank you for all the love on our podcast launch! Make sure you follow to get episodes EVERY WEEK from here on.
Are you also a young person finding your path in life? Join the club! Get amongst our community via the website, follow us on IG for daily inspo and laughs, and DEFINITELY rate and subscribe to our poddy, on whichever platform you’re joining from. We are also always looking for new people to feature in future episodes, so if you’ve got a story to share, email us at elizabeth@purposeful.org and we’ll be in touch.
How do you define success? If your definition is based on perfect grades, getting a “good” job, and doing what you’re told to do because that’s what you should do - then we need to talk.
We all have a path that’s been written for our futures. The one that our family (cough, cough our parents), teachers, friends, and* society *have mapped out for us.
So many of us chase after that written path and traditional idea of success, desperately hoping that it will make us happy. And then when it doesn’t...we’re completely lost.
Beyond getting a high ATAR, that 7.0 GPA, an amazing grad job and making lots of money...what does success look like to you?
In episode #5, it’s time to talk about success. Throw all your preconceived ideas out the window, it’s time to dig deep and find what success looks like to you. If it didn’t matter what other people thought of you, what would you do with your life then? And once you’ve worked it out...how do you challenge people’s expectations for you and follow a path that you love?
We chat about all things success, and our strategies for creating your own way in the world, and defining success on your own terms.
Plus, this week’s Lost and Found features 23 year old DJ and photographer, Dylan, who threw the traditional route out the window and created his own path and profession.
Are you also a young person finding your path in life? Join the club! Get amongst our community via the website, follow us on IG for daily inspo and laughs, and DEFINITELY rate and subscribe to our poddy, on whichever platform you’re joining from. We are also always looking for new people to feature in future episodes, so if you’ve got a story to share, email us at elizabeth@purposeful.org and we’ll be in touch.
Most of us spend THOUSANDS of dollars in uni and TAFE fees, only to get to the first day on the job to realise that actually...we don’t really like the path that we’ve chosen. Agh!
What if you could save yourself money and time wasted, by approaching your search for purpose like a scientist?
In this episode, we trade in finding what feels ‘right’ to you, for putting your assumptions about career + study choices under the microscope. So get out the goggles and gloves, welcome to the science lab of career exploration. But no, put the bunsen burner away - our science is a bit different to your Year 10 days.
Career experiments are a sure-fire way to methodically investigate your options, and use a data-driven approach to finding your dream life + job. We share a bunch of an examples (Conor is a pro at this!) and how you can design career experiments to help you get unstuck, fast.
And because we love a good segue, we chat to Arianne, an almost scientist, and 22 year old mechanical engineering student and ultimate frisbee champion. She’s also the most logical guest we’ve had on the show so far...for anyone with a numbers brain, this one’s for you!
Are you also a young person finding your path in life? Join the club! Get amongst our community via the website, follow us on IG for daily inspo and laughs, and DEFINITELY rate and subscribe to our poddy, on whichever platform you’re joining from. We are also always looking for new people to feature in future episodes, so if you’ve got a story to share, email us at elizabeth@purposeful.org and we’ll be in touch.
If you’re in your late teens and early twenties, you’re part of Gen Z, the ‘rudderless’ generation, aka directionless and lost! At least that’s what the media has to say. Many of us tend to float through our career decisions, or fall into our careers by accident.
The BIGGEST question we get asked at The Lost Button is “how do I choose the right path for me?”, so we thought it would be a great topic to kick off ep #3. How do you find direction in your life and career? When you’re faced with lots of options, or none at all, how do you figure out which path to take?
We explore how you can use your values to direct you and make the right choices for you. On the journey to finding yourself, your values are your compass. Understanding them and using them as a practical decision-making tool is one of the most powerful ways to find purpose and be fulfilled by the path you choose!
Tune in to learn more about our values, and how you can put them into practice in your life + career choices. More importantly, what happens when you don’t follow your values too.
And for this episode’s Lost and Found, we get to chat to one of our favourite guests so far! Gareth is a 23 year old men’s health advocate and aspiring personal trainer. But he hasn’t always known what he wanted to do...learn about his journey to finding himself.
Are you also a young person finding your path in life? Join the club! Get amongst our community via the website, follow us on IG for daily inspo and laughs, and DEFINITELY rate and subscribe to our poddy, on whichever platform you’re joining from. We are also always looking for new people to feature in future episodes, so if you’ve got a story to share, email us at elizabeth@purposeful.org and we’ll be in touch.
After happiness, passion is one of the top things Gen Z looks for when deciding on their future career path. We don’t just want to make money from our work, we want to do a job that we love and that has a meaningful impact in the world too.
So just ‘follow your passion’ and ‘do what you love, you’ll never work a day in your life’, right? Wrong. Controversial POV, but we think these cliches are the worst!
They put a new kind of pressure on us, because if we can’t find our passion, we feel like failures. At the same time, they don’t offer any practical tips or strategies for actually finding passion in our lives.
We’ve got some healthier ideas about passion for you to subscribe to, and a shift to your mindset you NEED in order to bring passion into your work and your life. And once you’ve found your passion, how can you profit from it and actually make it your job??
In ep #2, our guest on the Lost and Found is Harry, a 21 year old public health student, who’s finally found his why, and we love his authenticity and honesty about his journey to finding it.
Bonus content, this is also the first episode where Liz mentions Taylor Swift...but unfortunately, not the last...
Are you also a young person finding your path in life? Join the club! Get amongst our community via the website, follow us on IG for daily inspo and laughs, and DEFINITELY rate and subscribe to our poddy, on whichever platform you’re joining from. We are also always looking for new people to feature in future episodes, so if you’ve got a story to share, email us at elizabeth@purposeful.org and we’ll be in touch.
WELCOME to the first episode of The Lost Button! We are stoked to be joining you in navigating the highs and lows that come with figuring out your future.
In ep #1, we chat about why so many students + young people in Gen Z are feeling lost, and our top tips for getting unstuck and ‘finding yourself’. We’ll remind you that no matter how old you are, or what you think you should have achieved, it’s okay not to have all the answers just yet. Being lost is a natural part of life!
Today, Pia the 21 year old agricultural science student has hit The Lost Button, and tells us about when she was lost af...
Hit play to hear Pia’s story, and be guided by our advice and suggestions to help her (and you!) figure it all out.
Are you also a young person finding your path in life? Join the club! Get amongst our community via the website, follow us on IG for daily inspo and laughs, and DEFINITELY rate and subscribe to our poddy, on whichever platform you’re joining from. We are also always looking for new people to feature in future episodes, so if you’ve got a story to share, email us at elizabeth@purposeful.org and we’ll be in touch.
So you’ve hit The Lost Button, now what?
Join 20-somethings entrepreneurs, Elizabeth and Conor, as they explore all of the challenges faced by young people in the midst of figuring out their future. We’re about real, raw honesty and all the highs and lows that come with this stage of life.
Each episode tackles a different challenge young people are facing, from finding a job you’re passionate about, to managing stress, and early-career burnout. We’re talking life, purpose, careers, and everything in between. All of the good stuff, none of the fluff, and certainly no old-school career mindsets around here.
Get ready to binge listen, laugh and learn, because it’s time to get in the driver’s seat of your future. The Lost Button will be hitting your feed on July 21.