Keri Murphy has had the “entertainment bug” since she was a little girl. That passion led her to work as an on-camera talent for the past twenty years. She has worked on major networks such as E!, The Golf Channel, MTV, and TV Guide Channel, just to name a few.

As the CEO and founder of Inspired Living, Keri uses her on-camera talent and more than fifteen years of entrepreneurship experience to help others ignite their “IT” factor in order to create a life and business they love. Through her celebrity interviews on Inspired Living TV, public speaking, and transformational mentoring and coaching programs, Keri aspires to empower women around the globe to live authentic and inspired lives.

Some people have “jobs” they go to every day, and some people build their careers around something they are truly called to do. I’m fortunate to be in that second category. Inspired Living is my life and my passion. There is no separation between me as a person and the work I do, inspiring people to live the lives they were called to. This is who I am. Although I have been an entrepreneur for many years, it wasn’t until I lost everything and was forced to start over that I can now truly say that I am an entrepreneur.

This is a great time for women. Things are significantly better for women in business than they were as little as ten years ago. There is a global shift taking place; part of that is women feeling free to ask for help in building their businesses. I think that for too long we were trying to do it alone. I know I did! In some ways, it is still kind of a man’s world, and we still have to go out there and prove ourselves. But there has never been a better time to do that.

There is a lot of opportunity for women in business today, and it shows in the statistics on start-ups. I love being a woman in business; I couldn’t imagine being anything else. Some of us still feel that there are limitations on how far we can go because we aren’t men and can’t get the support we need, but I think those limitations are vanishing. I think we are going to see more and more women stepping into their greatness and building multimillion-dollar businesses.

I never think about whether I should do something one way or another on account of being a woman. But there are certainly differences between women and men in the way we function. My partner and amazing “other half” is also an entrepreneur. We are very different when it comes to business and in the way we communicate with each other. Men seem to need to claim their territories, to prove themselves. They want to rationalize things with facts and statistics. I don’t feel a constant need to go out and prove myself. I just talk about what I am passionate about and what I know. Women speak more from the heart than from the head. So it’s important to be who we are, to use our heart and intuition. When we speak from that place, people are more drawn to us. I call that having the “IT” factor! It means being truly authentic to who you are.

So it’s a big factor in my success that I never try to be a man. My success has come from my heart and from collaborating with other women (collaboration is another thing women are good at). Two other components of my success are being true to my calling and not getting stuck in the minutia of running the business. My gift is the ability to go out and share my business and passion with others, to help others see what they are capable of creating in their lives regardless of circumstances. Knowing your strong suit is very important. One of my mentors said to me, “Keri, you should always be functioning at your best and highest use possible.” I think of that regularly and make sure I delegate the things that I am not good at.

Of course, sometimes our strengths can be our weaknesses, too. Sometimes women are so heart-focused that we don’t pay enough attention to the financial or organizational side. We don’t get the necessary systems and operations in place. I now have those systems in place because I hired the right people to make it happen. And I don’t hire people just because I like them. I want to hire people who are better than I am. Men are really great at hiring the right people, but there is a sort of boys’ club where they take care of each other. I think women can gain a lot by doing that. We have this talent for collaborating, but we also tend to look with envy at other women who are successful, rather than find out how they did it. We need to stop competing and start collaborating more; there is plenty of business and people out there for all of us!

The number one contributor to my success is my faith in God, in something that is bigger than I am. I do not believe our dreams and aspirations are an accident. I believe we all are given gifts that we are supposed to share with the world. Not doing so is an injustice to our maker, ourselves, and the world around us.

The next most important factor is something I learned in defeat. I had to close a company that I loved when the recession hit in 2008. However, it wasn’t just the recession. I never had a mentor or group of other successful women to turn to. I also didn’t have a long-term financial strategy or the right financial systems in place, including a forecasting system. I filed for bankruptcy in 2008, sold my house as a short sale, packed up my car, and moved to Los Angeles.

Ever since I was a little girl, I knew I wanted to be a speaker and perform on camera. I knew I could do this, but I had always put that desire in a box and set it aside. I opened that box once in a while when I hosted events or worked on-camera, but I’d close it up again and put it on a shelf, thinking, Maybe later. So when I closed my business, I had nothing left but to open that box. That was when I gave myself permission to do what I knew I was called to do. My new business grew to provide me a six-figure income in less than two years. That didn’t happen because I knew it all. It happened because I was doing what I was called to do, but I had never had the belief I could do it full time and make a great income.

I remember the moment I understood what I had to do. I was in a casting office with at least 200 other women auditioning for a $15,000 job. I waited three hours to get two minutes to prove that I was good enough for this job. I knew I could do it. I had worked on television networks from E! to The Golf Channel. Being on camera was my thing. It seemed absurd that I was going to have just two minutes to get someone to validate me, to tell me I deserved that job. That was the moment the light switched on. I told myself I was no longer going to put off or ask for permission to do what I knew I was supposed to do; now, that is what I share with others. We shouldn’t wait for someone to validate our dreams.

Shortly after that, I launched Inspired Living and I started coaching people on how to build businesses around their natural gifts. I started helping people around the globe realize their potential and ignite their “IT” factor. I realized how important it is to trust your intuition and follow your passion. In order to help people see they were not alone in their quest, I started interviewing celebrities about how they got where they are today. I love sharing these stories because it shows that no level of success is accomplished without overcoming challenges. My first interview was with the star of Hercules, Kevin Sorbo. People ask me how I get celebrities to sit down for an interview with me. The answer: I ask them. I no longer wait for permission. And that is how Inspired Living took off.

I know for many women it is easy just to keep going to work rather than to go out and do what they are called to do. But making a big life decision from the heart is what transforms women’s lives. It’s how I started Inspired Living, and it’s what Inspired Living teaches the women who come to us. When we are inspired … we inspire others!

Women bring so many special qualities to the business world, including empathy and sensitivity. I think being emotional, and being able to share our emotions, is a gift. We can be open and vulnerable in business and still be strong. Men still seem to feel that they always have to be strong—that they can’t let people see their weaknesses or the areas where they lack knowledge. Women can let that guard down, drop the façade. And we can share our triumphs and challenges with each other. I love being a woman in business because I can turn to my women colleagues and friends. I think that’s amazing.

Here’s an example. At a training session in London, I met a woman, Michele, who had been an accountant for thirty years. In a breakout session, she spoke in a way that reached into my heart and soul. Afterward, she told me that was the first time she had spoken in any public arena. I have worked with her for two years, and she has become very successful in her coaching and speaking business. That truly inspires me, and Michele is out there inspiring other women to change their lives. It’s never too late!

My business is about helping women realize who they want to BE in this world and the life they want to (and can) create. But there are ways in which all successful women can and should help others do this. You can be part of an organization like the Women Network and be a mentor to someone who is new to business. I am currently a mentor to two young entrepreneurs in Jamaica through the Branson Centre of Entrepreneurship and I get so much from working with them. You can also write articles, give to underserved women in your community, or give your time, money, or talents.

You get what you give. It doesn’t have to be a lot. Giving back is sharing the energy of the universe, and I think it is imperative to your long-term success. Most of the entrepreneurs I work with who have reached $1 million are very big on giving back. But you don’t have to be an entrepreneur to help other women build their businesses.

There are many ways you can help yourself as well. First and foremost, believe in yourself. Next, listen to that voice inside your soul that keeps nagging you to do what you are called to do. That is a divine gift. Our dreams are not accidents. We are not given these visions and desires without the resources to make them reality.

Here’s the thing, though: You have to be willing to be uncomfortable. You have to be willing to take the steps that are needed to bring your visions to life. Get out of your comfort zone. Too many of us go right back to what we know, to where we’re comfortable, the minute we feel resistance or insecurity. That is why only 6 percent of Americans are making more than $100,000 a year. It’s not that they aren’t smart enough; it is because they are not willing to do what it takes.

I teach people to work on my four Ds: Decide, Dedicate, Develop, and Deliver. How are you doing those four things in your life? Have you even decided what you want to do in your life? You have to get clear on what it is that you want to create. You have to make the decision and then dedicate yourself. Perseverance and tenacity are the differences between those who want something and those who achieve it. You have to be developing always. The minute you think you know everything is when you think you know your limit. So always keep developing yourself so you can deliver your voice, your talent to the world. Dream it. Live it. BE it!