The arts have long been a cornerstone pillar of our society, but still we are failing the individuals best suited to these careers. Again, it is the young people from dis-advantaged backgrounds who suffer the most.

The question we should be asking is not whether the arts are important, but how do we build a world where people can contribute by being themselves? And more importantly, what happens if we don't?

Our environments shape us far more than we realise. Long before we choose a career, we begin forming ideas about what is possible simply by observing the people around us. We inherit quiet assumptions about success, stability and what a "normal" life is supposed to look like.

But how do we navigate life when you're drawn towards a path that isn’t reflected in your immediate environment?

For many of us, the decisions we make about work are no longer guided by what matters most to us. They are guided by what feels safest. Somewhere along the way, meaningful work became something we were encouraged to pursue only after the bills were paid, the responsibilities were met and every possible risk had been eliminated – Conditions that some of us spend our whole lives chasing yet never obtain.

Millions of people around the world report feeling a lack of purpose in their lives. Even the concept of purpose can feel inaccessible and somewhat indulgent in a world where so many of us are focused on survival. For a long time I shared this view, until I began to understand the way purpose intersects with wellbeing.