DREAM
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D is for Dream
What do you dream of doing with your life someday?
“If you don’t know where you’re going, then you won’t know how to get there.”
What is the difference between a dream and a goal?
There’s probably no technical difference. But to my process, there is. A dream is the BIG PICTURE of your life and where you want to be in the future. A goal is a step along the way to making your dream come true. Goals are stepping stones, also known as milestones. Goals are made up of Tasks and To Do lists that have due dates attached to them.
When you have a dream you become more passionate. Passionate people are more attractive. Passionate people radiate more energy – they seem to glow. People notice and are influenced by passion. They can be attracted or repelled, but regardless, you have given them a nudge and you’ll be remembered. People who are passionate about their Dreams are healthier (maybe because they care more) than those without. People with Dreams get beyond bad news and hard times quicker and easier than others. When you are passionate about something, you become more charismatic and influential. You become genuinely loveable.
Do you have a dream?
Close your eyes for just a moment and think about this:
When you imagine your future, what would you really love to have in your life 3, 4 or 5 years from now?
Mary Morrisey talks about this in her Dream Builders Workshop. The question you should ask yourself is not what would you like to have. Or what do you need. The question is what would you LOVE to have in your life?
Close your eyes. Let your imagination go. Put extra emphasis on the word LOVE and think about your future. You can skip over all the things you know you don’t want, but remember that sometimes those might be important, too – like I know I don’t want to be around toxic people! You’ll definitely want to spend more time focusing on things that would absolutely make your life awesome. What is your home like? What kinds of vacations do you take and how often and who goes with? What work do you do, or how do you serve the world?
Dreaming is a game of your imagination so don’t limit yourself. Go for it. Remember, there is energy and power in dreams.
Note: A dream is like a GPS. It guides your life, giving you purpose, hope and direction. A dream is the fuel that gives you the energy and drive to wake up and do what you need to do.
Let’s elevate your life!
The UPGRADE Quiz
Every good GPS needs to know a few things: What is desired destination and what are your requirements (priorities) for getting there? That’s it!
(Everything in between is adjustable.)
Where are you going? How important is it to you?
After you know that, we can focus on specific resources to help you get where you want to go. This will save your precious time and money so you can channel your energy towards making significant progress.
Part 2 D has a half step.
Key Mindset Shift Item:
Your Dream is the key to your motivation.
The big secret in the movie THE SECRET was that what you see is what you get. More accurately, what you focus on consistently is what you will bring about in your life. If you can see it in your mind’s eye – you can achieve it. The more vividly you see it, the more likely it is you will get it. If you are not good at visualization (some people just can’t get the knack of it, but don’t worry!) then make yourself a vision board so you have something to focus on.
However, I’m here to tell you your dreams won’t ever come true if all you do is close your eyes everyday and picture it.
Keep on reading if you want to get to the HOW.
Your great big juicy dream is the big vision of your life in the future, but probably has lots of little important pieces to it. Kind of like a jigsaw puzzle; you have to put all the pieces together to see the big picture.
So this is the half step: Take your big dream and identify all the key pieces (especially the non-negotiable pieces) before going forward. We all this chunking.
You can create a little map like the one above, or you can simply itemize your list like the example below:
In my big dream….. xyz the little chunks are:
- I am healthy and fit – I see myself running forest trails and an occassional 5k
- I own my own successful business helping micro business owners expand their reach
- In a small mountain town
- I don’t work nights or weekends
- I live outside the town limits (or at least on acreage so I have lots of space to garden)
- In a big custom-built barn home that has several guest rooms
- With a large vegetable garden
- I drive an old Jeep for fun but mostly ride my bicyle (it doesn’t have to be a Jeep)
- I am happily married (or intimate, committed partner)
- With my adult children nearby
- And a dog or 3
- I love cooking gourmet meals during my off time
- I (we) travel to different parts of the world on our vacations (must travel first or business class or don’t go)
Now that we have the big dream broken down into a list of Must-haves, we’re ready to get to work on bringing these things into reality! It’s a great start to know what your dream. It’s your big WHAT, but it’s not the HOW or the WHY of it. You can learn that in my blog or in the next step – ASSESS.