Paul Burns - Driven by Identity Not Circumstances
Dream Big Podcast with Bob Goff and Friends
Bob Goff
4.8 • 1.9K Ratings
🗓️ 15 September 2021
⏱️ 31 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
It’s easy to get distracted by our circumstances- whether it’s how our body feels, an urgent problem to solve at work, a house filled with noisy kids, or the latest news headline. Our distractions are just that- distractions from what’s most important.
So what does it look like to navigate through those distractions? We can’t control the world around us, but we can develop habits that help us stay focused and centered.
There aren’t many people I’ve run across who do better at living a focused, centered life than my friend, Paul Burns.
Paul Burns is a believer, builder, maker, dreamer, husband, father and also happens to be a senior executive at Twitter. At Twitter, Paul helps brands, businesses and people see the power of conversation to change the world. Paul believes that when we begin to have more open, healthy and loving conversations (especially about the things we disagree on), we are one step closer to looking more like Jesus. When he's not at Twitter, Paul helps lead a non-profit organization called Matthew House where he helps inspire hope, restore dignity and empower independence for refugees around the world (matthewhouse.ca). Paul lives in Toronto with his wife Olivia and two boys Anderson & Wesley and can be found on Twitter and Instagram @paulburns
Also on the episode:
Producer & Co-host : Scott Schimmel
The Dream Big Academy
Living a focused, engaged life of love, adventure, and impact shouldn't be a mystery.
It's what we're all wired for, it's what we all long for. But, it's not the norm. From all the places I've traveled to and the people I've met, I know that most people don't experience that kind of life. They feel...
Like they're missing out on a different life, a life that others seem to experience.
That it should've all just worked out by now, but it hasn't.
Frankly, like they're languishing- and this must be as good as it gets.
But, there's so much more...
That's why we started putting these digital courses together. I can't travel everywhere, and not everyone can travel to me. But, what if there was a way to share life together and walk through these simple ideas I've been learning?
Before, we've released these courses one at a time. Then we'd close the registration. But through the pandemic, we learned that a LOT of people want to keep growing, and they're looking for a framework they can trust.
So, we put them all together- 6 interactive digital courses. Two specifically designed to help you identify and unleash your big ambitions. One for budding authors. Another for speakers. A course for your family. A course for your career. With more coming in the future.
And, since we already have Bob Weekly as a monthly subscription for exclusive content, we threw that in there, too.
The Dream Big Academy is the place to go for people wanting to get serious about the shape of their lives.
I'd love for you to learn more- maybe even watch a short webinar we put together that goes into more detail.
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Well, come back to another episode of the Dream Big Podcast. |
| 0:11.6 | I'm your host, Scott Shimmel, and maybe you've had an experience like our families |
| 0:15.6 | had recently where you're distracted or something kind of takes over. |
| 0:19.7 | We are family get exposed to COVID, and our three kids had to stay home from school |
| 0:24.6 | or still home. |
| 0:26.4 | So what does our family look like right now? |
| 0:29.0 | We're inside again, kind of like it was early days of the shutdown. |
| 0:33.6 | Can't go anywhere, not supposed to do anything. |
| 0:35.6 | And so all day long, kids are home. |
| 0:38.7 | And the feelings of boredom, the kind of petty fights that our kids are getting into squabbles |
| 0:44.0 | all day long. |
| 0:45.0 | And gosh, it can feel like it's taking over everything circumstances. |
| 0:49.4 | We all get distracted, right? |
| 0:51.2 | We all get distracted. |
| 0:52.2 | Whether it's something going on with our health or it's unresolved conflict in our family |
| 0:58.4 | or it's a problem at work, and maybe just maybe you're also the kind of person who gets |
| 1:03.8 | distracted by the latest headline, latest headline in the news. |
| 1:08.0 | We've heard of Twitter, right? |
| 1:09.4 | We have a guy on the show today, Paul Burns, who's an executive at Twitter. |
| 1:15.2 | Can you imagine a platform that could be more distracting potentially, the latest hot |
| 1:20.7 | news, the latest pundit, the latest critique, the latest crisis, the latest scenario that's |
| 1:28.1 | going to grab your attention. |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Bob Goff, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of Bob Goff and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.

