By Kimisha King
There is a quiet frustration many purpose-driven women carry but rarely articulate, the tension between what they know they are called to do and what their current reality looks like.
We live in a generation that celebrates speed. Overnight success. Viral moments. Instant gratification. Yet purpose, in its truest form, is rarely rushed. It is revealed, refined, and matured over time. And for many women, especially in Africa and the diaspora, the waiting season can feel heavier because it intersects with responsibility, culture, faith, and survival.
I have worked with women across different stages of life, corporate leaders, entrepreneurs, mothers, students, and ministry leaders, and a recurring theme always emerges: “I feel like I’m behind.”
Behind their peers.
Behind their dreams.
Behind the version of themselves they once imagined.
But what if the delay is not denial? What if the waiting is actually preparation?
The Pressure to Perform vs. the Call to Become
In many African societies, women are taught early to be resilient, resourceful, and reliable. We are often praised for how much we can carry but rarely asked how much we are becoming. The pressure to perform can quietly replace the call to become.
This shows up in subtle ways:
Staying in careers that no longer align with our values
Silencing our gifts because they don’t yet pay the bills
Measuring our progress against timelines that were never designed for us
Vision begins to feel like a burden instead of a blessing.
Yet vision was never meant to be a performance metric. Vision is an invitation, one that unfolds in seasons.
Vision Is Not Just About the Destination
One of the biggest misconceptions about vision is that it is only about where you are going. In truth, vision is equally about who you are becoming on the journey.
When women lose momentum, it is rarely because they lack discipline or ambition. More often, it is because:
Their identity has not caught up with their assignment
Their vision is not anchored in their values
They are trying to build outcomes without inner alignment
This is why so many women experience burnout, even when they are doing “good” things. Purpose without alignment becomes pressure.
Faith, Psychology, and the Waiting Season
From a psychological perspective, prolonged uncertainty triggers fear, self-doubt, and comparison. From a faith perspective, waiting tests trust, obedience, and surrender. When these two collide, women often question their worth instead of their strategy.
But faith does not remove the process, it gives it meaning.
Some of the most powerful shifts I have witnessed happened not when women received clarity about what to do next, but when they gained understanding about why the current season mattered.
Waiting seasons refine:
Character before capacity
Wisdom before visibility
Stewardship before scale
Redefining Success on Your Own Terms
Success must be contextual. What success looks like for a 25-year-old building momentum will not look the same for a 45-year-old rebuilding after loss or transition. And that is not failure, it is life.
Women thrive when they are given permission to:
Redefine success for their current season
Move at a pace that honours their capacity
Build sustainably instead of impressively
True vision is not loud. It is consistent.
From Vision to Motion
The women who sustain purpose over time are not the ones with the loudest platforms, but the ones with:
Clear values
Aligned habits
Faith-anchored resilience
Vision in motion is not about doing everything at once. It is about doing the next right thing with intention.
Sometimes the most powerful step forward is not expansion, but alignment.
A Final Reflection
If you are reading this and feeling discouraged, paused, or uncertain, consider this:
What if this season is not meant to produce results but revelation?
Purpose is not lost in the waiting. It is often found there. And when the time comes to move, you will not just move forward, you will move wisely.
About the Author
Kimisha King is a distinguished Barbadian leader, Justice of the Peace, and nation-building transformational voice, widely recognized for her unwavering commitment to equipping others with the tools, strategies, and confidence needed to reach their fullest potential and walk boldly in purpose.
Academically accomplished, Kimisha holds a degree in Labour and Employment Relations, Law, and Government & Political Studies. She also holds a Level 4 Caribbean Vocational Qualification (CVQ) in Assessment for Management and is a certified Internal Verifier for both National and Caribbean Vocational Qualifications.
She is a multihyphenate professional, an accomplished author, publisher, international life purpose coach, visionary strategist, certified master trainer, certified assessor, podcaster, and dynamic content creator. Her work blends purpose, strategy, and inspiration, positioning her as a global voice in empowerment, leadership, and personal development.
As Founder and CEO of Queensmindset Empowerment Inc., Kimisha leads with a mission to uplift and transform the lives of women aged 16 to 60 through her signature framework, Reimagine Your Reality™.
She serves as a Justice of the Peace in Barbados, upholding integrity, civic responsibility, and ethical leadership. Her work has been featured on over 500 media platforms across the United States and Nigeria.
Social media handles:
LinkedIn & Facebook: Kimisha King
Instagram, Facebook & YouTube: Queensmindset
Ghana emerges as a leading and competitive tourism destination in Africa