The Quiet Warrior Podcast with Serena Low

101. How to Align Your Career with Your Passion and Purpose with Agi Keramidas

• Serena Low, Introvert Coach for Quiet Achievers and Quiet Warriors

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What does it take to step out of the safe and familiar into a life that truly lights you up? Are passion and purpose reliable guides to the work you love?

I sit down with Agi Keramidas, a former dentist turned podcaster, author, and coach, who helps people create lives aligned with their purpose and passion. Agi’s story is one of courage, self-discovery, and reinvention — a journey from professional burnout to clarity about what matters most.
We discuss the mindset shifts needed for a career change or career pivot, how to reconnect with your inner compass, and why public speaking can be a powerful tool for introverts to share their message. Agi also opens up about the pivotal moments that shaped his path and the practices that help him stay grounded through transitions.


In this episode, we explore:

  • The inner work required to navigate transitions with confidence
  • How to find clarity in moments of uncertainty
  • Building a career around your purpose and passion
  • Lessons from leaving a secure profession for a calling you can’t ignore
  • Why public speaking can be transformative for introverts
  • Strategies to overcome self-doubt during a career pivot
  • How to stay resilient when the outcome isn’t yet clear


If you’re at a crossroads in your career or life, this episode will give you both the inspiration and practical insights to take that next courageous step.


Connect with Agi Keramidas:

  • Website: https://personaldevelopmentmasterypodcast.com
  • Book: 88 Actionable Insights for Life


Subscribe to The Visible Introvert newsletter for tips, tools, and inspiration at
https://serenalow.com.au

This episode was edited by Aura House Productions

SPEAKER_04:

Hi, I'm Serena Lowe. If you're used to hearing that introverts are shy, anxious, antisocial, and lack good communication and leadership skills, then this podcast is for you. You're about to fall in love with a calm, introspective, and profound person that you are. Discover what's fun, unique, and powerful about being an introvert and how to make the elegant transition from quiet achiever to quiet warrior in your life and work, anytime you want, in more ways than you imagined possible. Welcome.

SPEAKER_05:

Hello and welcome. Today's guest on the Quiet Warrior Podcast is Aggie Karamidas. Aggie's journey of personal development led him from a successful dental career to becoming a podcaster, mentor, coach, and author. He's the host of the Personal Development Mastery Podcast, which has over 500 episodes and ranks in the global top 1% and distills transformational insights into practical, actionable steps. Aggie's mission is not to inform, but to influence, to inspire action, ignite growth, and help others to create a life of purpose and fulfillment. While he values formal education, he believes that it is the power of self-education and lived experience that drives lasting transformation. Welcome, Aggie Caramedes, to the Quiet Warrior Podcast.

SPEAKER_00:

Thank you very much, Serena, for this uh kind introduction. It's a real pleasure to be here with you today.

SPEAKER_05:

Aggie, my first question has to be formal education. We still live in a culture that prizes going to university, getting the degree, getting the job. So, what triggered your shift from dentistry to the work you now do?

SPEAKER_01:

Yes, and I think that uh there is happening that uh importance, shall we say, of the formal education? I think nowadays, with the very young generation, it uh it feels to me anyway that it's waning, which is uh it's good in many ways. Uh but certainly when uh I grew up, uh university was uh going to university was a sign of status. You know, you were someone, somewhere important by uh going to university. To answer your question, what uh asked me, what uh triggered my change, it was uh my heart's uh desire when I realized after many years of uh working in dental practice. So I've I worked for over 20 years, but many years afterwards I realized that that's not what I want to be doing for the rest of my life until I retire. I don't want to live the same life that my mom lived. I'm giving my mom as an example because she was a dentist as well, so she retired from dentistry. So that triggered, you know, the change. Of course, it uh it has many more layers than that, but uh I'm giving an overview now.

SPEAKER_05:

Yes. And I think it's not easy, and I'm sure at every stage of that transition, you probably asked yourself a lot of questions and you had some doubts about what you were doing. So, what kept you going? What kept you moving on to the next step and the next step away from the dentistry towards what you are doing now? Did you have an idea when you were starting to feel restless or dissatisfied about dentistry, what you wanted to do next?

SPEAKER_01:

At that time I had no idea whatsoever. And that was uh now eight years ago when I first realized that uh this is not for me for uh the future. So uh, and I had just finished the master's degree in uh aesthetic dentistry, so that uh shows the how much I valued uh formal education. Uh since then, hmm. To answer your question, I had no idea at that time, and that's why I embarked on, I like to call it a journey of uh self-exploration, to figure out uh some things about myself, which I never had uh considered before. So I was just 40, 40, 41, and I realized when someone asked me what's most important to you in your life, I realized that I didn't have an answer that I had reflected on. So some simple things like that that led me to little by little uncover my uh what I wanted to do. So no, it didn't happen just like that. It was uh a gradual process, uh a journey. I like the word uh journey, and still is.

SPEAKER_05:

Yes. And I'm glad you mentioned that it's a journey and a gradual process because sometimes we can get very impatient, especially if we've started off being the high achiever, the quiet achiever, if grades came fairly easily and success came early, and then you know you hit 40, 50, and you start questioning your existence or your identity, or where am I going with this? And if I'm not happy to do this till retirement, then I still have quite a few decades of productivity left. How will I use this time? How will I use my my gifts and my talents? And that is actually quite a huge question to ask ourselves at a later season in life as compared to when we're 18 or in our 20s.

SPEAKER_01:

I don't think my an 18, at least when I was 18, that was the last question. Even if you forced me to think about that, I would say leave me alone. But of course, uh, there are uh really important uh questions uh for someone to consider to you know the the the phrase uh know thyself, sometimes I think that in those two words, I can't think of anything more profound wisdom in such a condensed uh uh you know sentence. It's really uh yeah, it's everything, know yourself, know thyself.

SPEAKER_05:

Yes, I agree with you. If we really reflect on know thyself and what it means and what it means for us, we would start questioning a lot more and we might arrive at some very surprising answers. So, my next question to you you mentioned being shy and introverted. How did you go from that to becoming a public speaker and a podcast host?

SPEAKER_01:

Uh again, that was a journey, even though a much shorter journey, but it still was not something that happened overnight. It happened over the period of a few months, actually. It started when I went to a Tony Robbins event, and then I had a realization, a big light bulb moment, that this shyness that you uh said, and me being very reserved in social situations, not being comfortable around people that I didn't know. So all these things came as a realization that this was my behavior, not who I intrinsically am as a person, that's simply a set of behaviors that I have exhibited all my life. And I realized that I don't want to, for the rest of my life, to be the person that is shy to you know walk up to another person that they don't know and say, Hi, how are you? Because I couldn't do that. I was terrified to do that. So when I realized that this was not who I was, but instead it was a set of beliefs or a voice, if you want, playing at the back of my head, then I started taking actions to change that. And because public speaking was something that I was very afraid of, first of all, but also something that I felt intrigued by, and I mean intrigued in the terms of a challenge. I went to there was a free event, and I went there to see without any, you know, uh expectation for you to speak on stage or anything. But at some point the presenter said, Who would like to come to the stage and help me with something? And I raised my head before I even thought about it. Because if I had thought about it, I would certainly not have done that. But you know, I went on the stage, I just wrote some things, and I realized that okay, I didn't die, nothing really bad happened while I was there. I didn't make a fool of myself in all those things that I was, and many people I suppose the fear of public speaking is because of that, that fear of being judged, of being criticized, or even ostracized in the ancient times. So one thing led to another, and after that day, a couple of months afterwards, I signed up. I signed up for a five-day public speaking bootcamp, which that was a very powerful transformation because I walked in on a Monday morning wondering that my accent is really a downside, and the way that I speak uh because of my Greek accent makes it difficult for people to understand me. That was my set of beliefs. And I walked out on that week on uh Friday evening, having delivered two speeches without any notes in front of the whole uh you know classroom. It was about 20 people that we were. So it was very uh I think if there was one answer to uh the way that you asked me the question, then what I did was get myself out of the comfort zone and do something that I knew it would be difficult for me to face. But since that time, I you know something changes when you hear other people give you feedback and say, Oh, your voice is really or your accent, I could listen to it all day. That's uh what someone told me. And I thought, oh my god, I had never received any feedback like that from anyone. So when you get, and I know I'm digressing now, but when you get uh validation, external validation from others, that really helps you reinforce the new beliefs that you are starting to uh make or that you would like to make. So I'll take a pause here because I have gone to a completely different uh direction.

SPEAKER_05:

Thank you so much for that, Aggie. I think we touched on a few very important points. The first thing you said was that the feedback was validation for you because we have one conversation running in our own heads, which is usually dictated by our inner critic. And we can be pretty harsh on ourselves, introverts and quiet achievers, particularly and high achievers. So we are used to criticizing ourselves and being very judgmental. But then when you balance that against how other people see you, then you realize oh, people see me differently. People actually appreciate my accent. My accent is my superpower. My accent makes me stand out, it makes me more visible because people will remember me as being that person that speaks with a Greek accent and a resonant voice, and that makes you memorable. So that's one way of looking at it. And you also talked about the fear of public speaking, which I think is a general universal fear all the world over, regardless of whether we are introverted or extroverted. Everyone fears, like you said, you know, in ancient times it was fear of ostracism. In some ways, it still is this fear of judgments, fear of being the only person standing in the spotlight, everybody looking at you, waiting for you to fail. But I think what I've also learned from my own speaking experience is that actually people are rooting for you because nobody goes to an event and wishes for the speaker to be awful. Exactly. And then they have to sit there for one hour and listen to them speak terribly. They want that person to succeed. They want that person to do really well, tell interesting stories, say something relevant, drop something wise. And so then everybody goes home happy. So I think when we think about it like that, when we remember that we ourselves as audience members are silently cheering for that person who is brave enough to get up on that stage and stand in the spotlight, I think we start to feel quite differently about ourselves.

SPEAKER_01:

Yes, indeed.

SPEAKER_05:

But you also said something else that that was interesting, and that is that you put up your hand and said yes without thinking. Because if you had thought about it, you would have said no. And that is powerful. I think a lot of times we do ourselves a disservice because we overthink it. We allow that thought, all those thoughts to take root. What if I fail? What if I embarrass myself? What if I say the wrong thing, and so on. And so, of course, we talk ourselves into backing out. So perhaps the solution when faced with a challenging thing is to say yes and then figure out how.

SPEAKER_01:

Definitely, and be certainly be more uh spontaneous in uh things like that, because that's what uh I was. If I had not raised my head immediately, then my all my my rational mind and all the the fear would kick in and I wouldn't. So it's important also to recognize that when it comes some uh really inspired idea, because that's what it was. If if if I look at it now, it was inspiration that led me to raise my hand. It happened very, very quickly, intuitively. So when we have that, uh it's great to allow it at the very least, and not suppress it by overthinking it, as you said. Yes, definitely. When you when you know that something is right for you, you kind of know.

SPEAKER_05:

Uh yeah, and that is a whole conversation on the power of intuition. And intuition, I think, is the one that we need to trust more. It's that gut feeling where your body knows this is good for you. This is where you need to rise up to the occasion and speak up. And then if you wait five seconds later, that's where your rational mind kicks in and tells you, no, no, no, it's dangerous to speak up. So, yes, I think I agree with you when it comes to intuition versus reason. Intuition needs to be allowed to be the one that leads you. And you also used an interesting word. You said you you looked at it as the public speaking part of it as a challenge, and that you were intrigued by it. And I think that speaks to that quiet achievers, you know, in inside every one of us, there is that potential that often we don't tap into because we are afraid. But then if we really think about it, we think maybe I could, maybe it's possible for me to. Maybe I have what it takes to be the podcast host, to be the public speaker, to be the entrepreneur. It's just that we are not tested. So when you take it as a challenge, a challenge means it's difficult, it's maybe just a little bit out of reach at the moment, but you can rise to meet that challenge. You do have what it takes. Maybe you need to get some extra training, maybe you need some extra support, but then you can get there. And something in you know that you can get there, that you have what it takes. And I think just that word challenge alone is very appealing to the intellectual side of the quiet achiever.

SPEAKER_01:

Indeed, it is, because I think it implies the word challenge, it implies a push forward of some kind, uh transcending some limitation of ourself in some way. So, yes, I agree with you. Challenges are necessary. I mean, that's and getting out of the comfort zone, that's where the the progress happens. It doesn't happen when you're doing what you are comfortable and familiar with. That just keeps you, I mean, by by definition, when you think about it, it keeps you in the same position.

SPEAKER_05:

Yes, it does keep you small. It's like playing those computer games, and you are invited to level up. You know, you you conquer the the obstacles and you go up another level, and it's fun. It's challenging, but it's fun. So my next question for you would be in becoming the person that you are now and doing what you do now, how do you know if you're making the right move? Because one question that often comes up is what if it fails? You know, what if I regret this? So at each point, how did you decide which way to go or whether you should be turning back and going back to what's safe?

SPEAKER_01:

Yes, there are many levels there to this uh question. One element is the listening, I will use the word listening, but it's not really listening because I can't hear it through my ears, but let's say understanding what my body is telling me. So, for example, if I feel a tightness in my chest, which is or many people experience stress or anxiety in some form of tightness, can be on the throat, the the abdomen, somewhere, I pay attention to it rather than you know ignoring it. So when you pay attention to it and you realize that I feel this kind of uncomfortable, shall we say, feeling, or feeling that uh brings uh about some resistance, what am I doing there? What is happening at this time either around me or inside my head? Because I can create a lot of anxiety without leaving my desk and just thinking about something.

SPEAKER_02:

So um that's one thing to pay attention to that.

SPEAKER_01:

When I realize that I am feeling in a certain way that I don't like to be feeling, then I I do take the time to reflect. I have done this for years and I have seen some patterns that happen. And I will add conversely, there is the the other side of it, is when you are feeling I will say uh content, happy, perhaps not happy. The word I am looking for, the word is enthusiastic. That's more or inspired, or these kinds of feelings. When you feel that, for me it is a sign that you are going towards uh the right direction. So, as a you know, decision, the big decision-making uh process, I would really look at now, anyway, that I have become who I have, I would look to which of the two sides is the one that will make me feel you know energized, enthusiastic, uh versus which option will make me feel you know tight. It will even even if I think about something now, I can sense a you know constriction of my muscles. I've I so I think paying attention to how our body uh reacts to situations and to thoughts is a very good uh tool to implement, to recognize, you know, if you are on the right path on the journey or or not. Of course, you know, it it's not necessarily something that one can do immediately or easily, but it is again something that the more you work on it, the more you learn to trust it and follow it.

SPEAKER_05:

That makes sense because we actually have access to a lot of different kinds of wisdom, but perhaps we have overemphasized the intellect, the rational mind above all else, and then we have perhaps fallen out of use, we have stopped using or become disconnected from the other kinds of wisdom, like the intuition you mentioned earlier, and also this bodily wisdom, bodily intelligence, all the signals that tell us which is the right way to go. And if we are not listening to all the intelligence together, then we are missing out. We we only have access to one small part. But that's a really good reminder to tune into the body and to s to feel which way is the right way.

SPEAKER_01:

Thank you for rephrasing it the way that you did. It's uh it's very I really enjoyed listening to you to you saying back to me what I said. Very thank you.

SPEAKER_05:

You're very welcome. Question about your podcast. What inspired you to start the personal development mastery podcast? And how has it shaped you and shaped your journey?

SPEAKER_01:

Uh it I started it in February 2020. So one month before the the lockdowns uh happened. That was my second podcast. Uh, two years before I had started uh my first podcast with a co-host. And uh in 2020, I started my personal development mastery because of the desire I wanted to interview people, to learn from people rather than have uh a partner, a co-host, and you know, speak uh between us, which was fun, but I wanted something different. So it started as me um exploring how it feels to you know speak with people and ask them questions, and very quickly I realized that wow, this I enjoy doing very much. And just after uh you know, a couple of months later, everyone was locked inside their house and there was so much more time. So I started doing two episodes a week, and then I realized uh, first of all, how long it takes, how much work a podcast uh takes. But uh, more important than that, I realized that this is not I'm not doing this as a hobby anymore. This is really becoming a passion uh for me. And then another couple of years down the line, I realized that that passion has started turning into a mission, which is now, and uh hence you know the 527 episodes we have today uh and carrying on. Uh I don't know if that answers your question.

SPEAKER_05:

It does, it does. And it's also emphasized to me that what started out as an experiment, something you did for fun, it was a hobby, and then it became a passion, and then over time it became a mission. And I think when it's reached that level, when it's a mission, that is something bigger than ourselves. It's no longer about just for my own pleasure. You realize that it's of service to other people, you realize it's touching people, changing people's lives. Perhaps you get feedback, perhaps people leave comments and reviews to tell you how much your podcast means to them or you know how something you said in a particular episode resonates with them.

SPEAKER_01:

Yes. That makes uh such a it's as I was saying earlier about the external validation. When you have uh a listener, and I will invite now anyone listening to the Quiet Warrior podcast to reach out to Serene and say, I listen to this conversation. Because it it means a lot to us as uh podcast hosts to uh receive uh that. Uh otherwise, we're just speaking in front of a microphone. It is it is uh different than public speaking in that sense. It's not you know in front of people, you can't sense the energy of the people.

SPEAKER_05:

That is so true. We could be speaking into the void and not know that anyone is listening.

SPEAKER_01:

That's also, I think, uh a risk and a fear that we have to overcome because you know, you never know when you start doing this if anyone will listen. I think that's the probably the most common fear I've encountered uh when I had was coaching others to start their podcast. Who will listen to me? I know that question very well. I also had the same question.

SPEAKER_05:

I think we all do. Anyone that attempts to come out of their comfort zone to start something from scratch, build something from the ground up with no community, no way of validating just yet, because you are starting at day zero, that is the I think that is the admission price. And you have to be willing to accept that. Maybe nobody will listen, maybe nobody will respond, but I'm still going to show up and I'm still going to speak and I'm still going to share my message because it's important to me. It's part of my purpose. And I find that the the energy that you put out will be reciprocated by people that share that energy, that frequency, who are thinking about the same things, who are also maybe kept up at night, not able to sleep because they are pondering big issues like the ones you talk about in your podcast. And something in there will land at the right time with the right person.

unknown:

Yes.

SPEAKER_05:

And that is magical. And we we can't predict that, we can't control that, and that's why we keep showing up.

SPEAKER_02:

Exactly.

SPEAKER_01:

And may I add to that that it is uh not about the quantity or the numbers of uh how many uh this is it is not a numbers game, even though it is quite you know, for for many it shows like it is, but it is not because the uh as you said, you will attract the the people who resonate with your vibration, with your message that are looking for what you have to offer.

SPEAKER_05:

Um so for someone who is listening to this conversation and who is thinking of how can I stop drifting, how can I start living intentionally, how can I find my clarity and my purpose? What would you say to them?

SPEAKER_01:

Uh the first thing I would do would be to take some time to myself, uh, preferably you know in nature, but it doesn't have to be if you live in the middle of the city, but even though you can go to a park. Take some time with a piece of paper and or a general and write down how you're feeling, how you would like to feel. Uh generally, write down. I mean, there are so many things that I could uh discuss uh as an answer to your question, but I will generally put it if you haven't done so, write down all those things that don't allow, don't just leave them be uh thoughts inside your head. There is a different kind of clarity and power when they are uh written down. So that's one thing I would uh say that gives some initial clarity or some a lot of clarity, depending on what exercises you you do. The other thing which is uh more um, let's say, taking some different kind of action. But I would invite someone listening now to the conversation and has exactly that question that you had uh Sharina, I would say follow your uh curiosity.

SPEAKER_02:

So if there is if you have something that you have been intrigued about, take some small action towards it.

SPEAKER_01:

You don't have to commit to anything, you don't have to, you know, do anything uh difficult, but take some small action towards it. Like you know, write an email to a person that can help you with that, or go to uh the website, a website, and check out information about a topic that you are intrigued about. Take some little action. That's if you are at that stage that you really don't know what you would like to do, take some small action towards the thing that intrigues you. It's different for different uh from anyone, but I think we we know. I mean, uh, if you if you run if you can't think of anything that intrigues you, which some people uh might say that, uh even though it is uh a very effective block of it. But if even if you don't have uh something to intrigue you, you can think about when you were a child. What did you love doing as a child, or what did you want to be when you would grow up? So maybe these are some places you know to start exploring, and that's all I'm suggesting because the the um you know finding clarity, meaning, purpose, all these uh things that uh people say or throw around easily. In my experience, it doesn't happen, at least for most people, it doesn't happen suddenly and in one moment. It is something that you create, you have to progress toward or go on a journey uh toward. So, yeah, these are some um practical things. Follow your uh curiosity. Uh, I like people very much the phrase joyful exploration, uh joy joyous exploration. So, whatever it is, explore it. See, if you like it, you will carry on doing it. You won't have no one will have to motivate you to do it because you something will open inside of you, if I can put it like that.

SPEAKER_05:

And I think that's a very good way to round up this conversation. I noticed a couple of different themes, but the the universal thread that seems to go run through this um conversation we've had is the power of curiosity, of noticing the things that intrigue us, because you've used that word several times today. Of it's so it's not that that purpose is something that's outside of us that we have to go hunting for as though we don't know what it is. I think at the very deep level, all of us know, or at least we have some idea of what that purpose, that calling, that that bigger thing is. Maybe we just haven't identified it in a certain way. Maybe it's not conscious, it's just below the level where we are really conscious of it. Maybe it's just that we have become too busy or we think too much. And so, you know, that the busyness of daily life sort of buries that a little bit. But if we follow the curiosity, there are clues. You mentioned childhood, and I think as children, we knew what we liked. Before we were told we can't do this and you can't do that, and that doesn't make money, and that's not a good profession. We knew what we liked, and those things don't disappear. They will find some way to express themselves repeatedly. So 30, 40, 50 years later, you know, it comes back in some different form. So it's a matter of noticing, and like you said at the start of this conversation, know thyself. Because when we take time to really know ourselves, we we recognize, we realize actually, I know this stuff, I know myself, I know what I really like. Then the next step is, of course, is what you said about taking that little step towards the next step, taking that action, coming out of your comfort zone, doing that one brave thing. So, what is the best way, Aggie, for people to get in touch with you and connect with you?

SPEAKER_01:

If you enjoyed listening uh to this, my podcast is called Personal Development Mastery. You will uh find it uh Apple Spotify everywhere. My website is personal developmentmastery podcast.com. So you can find me. Uh the thing with my name, Agi Keramidas, is that there is no other one. So if you manage to type it correctly on uh the Instagram, LinkedIn, etc., you will find it. There is no other one. Uh I won't, I'm not even going to try to spell it, it's okay. But uh the best the best way is uh certainly my my podcast. If you have enjoyed listening to this, uh please uh join along there and message me through there.

SPEAKER_05:

Yes, we'll make sure to include all the relevant links in the show notes. So make sure if you're listening to this and you have enjoyed this conversation with Aggie Coromedas, do check out the Personal Development Mastery podcast on all the podcasting apps. So thank you so much, Aggie, for sharing your time and your wisdom with us today.

SPEAKER_01:

It was a real pleasure. Thank you, Serena, for the questions that allowed me to express what I did.

SPEAKER_05:

You're very welcome. If you enjoyed today's episode, be sure to leave a five-star rating and review to help the Quiet Warrior Podcast reach more introverts and quiet achievers around the world. And for resources on how to thrive as an introvert, make sure to join the visible introvert community at serenaloe.com.au. See you on the next episode. I'm so grateful that you're here today.

SPEAKER_04:

If you found this content valuable, please share it on your social media channels and subscribe to the show on your favorite listening platform. Together we can help more introverts thrive.

SPEAKER_05:

To receive more uplifting content like this, connect with me on Instagram at Serenalo Quiet Warrior Coach. Thank you for sharing your time and your energy with me. See you on the next episode.