A week or so ago I mentioned how extremely blessed I am to have some amazing women in my life who keep my attitude positive, my spirit uplifted and my vision inspired. It is one of the best things about the work I do, and I am thankful for it every day. That same week, I got to attend a weekend retreat with some of the top women in our company. I was blown away. So much to learn. So overwhelming to be in the presence of such grace, knowledge, experience, beauty.
I learned a lot over the course of the weekend, many related to business, some related specifically to our business, but many things just about life and how to live a better one. In one of the classes, our teacher talked about dreaming. Not the kind you do when you are asleep. The kind you do about your hopes, your future, your life. She asked us to think about what a kindergartner says when you ask them what they want to be when they grow up. I have a kindergartner (and a preschooler and a third grader) so this was easy for me. They say something like this: "I want to be an astronaut and an artist and a firefighter and a ballet dancer and a singer and a book writer and the President."
What does a kid graduating from college say when you ask them what they want to be when they grow up? What does a 30-something or 40-something say when you ask them what they want to be when they grow up? "Uhhhhhhhhhhh....." Sad, isn't it? At some point we all had a whole bunch of dreams for our life, but somewhere along the way, many of us forgot them or gave up on them. We lost our dream mechanism-our ability to dream big dreams for our future, to see our lives as an amazing possibility, to plan for wonderful things to happen.
So she gave us an assignment. Write down 100 dreams you have for your life. One hundred. Oh, that's easy, I thought. Umm hmm. Try it. No really, I want you to try it. You don't have to show anyone. You don't have to do it all in one day. You don't have to go out and buy a special notebook to write your list in. They don't have to be written in complete sentences. But I would love for you to get busy, take a few quiet minutes for the next few days, and make your list. It's harder than it sounds. I thought I had plenty of dreams. There are lots of things I want to do before my time is up. But honestly, I got stuck around #26. I kept thinking and pushed through to #53. Now I'm stuck again. GASP! I have some more work to do.
Another thing that surprised me was what I think my list says about me. I had very few things on there about me. I want to do lots of traveling and take classes on a bunch of stuff, but beyond that, what showed up on my list over and over are the things I want for the ones I love. Now, it's not that I didn't think I cared about those things or that I think it's bad to want things for your family. I just thought when given the freedom to dream about what I want in my life, that my list would be a lot more about me. In fact, for the next 47 things I need to write down, I am going to try harder to focus on the things I dream for myself. That's the idea, after all.
I was also pleasantly surprised that a whole lot of my dreams were about learning things, going places, and having new experiences. Yes, I am super thrifty, some might even say cheep. I am the coupon queen. I never met a screaming deal I didn't like. The little voice in the back of my mind always said that I would go a little crazy with the budget if I had the opportunity and an unlimited budget. So I was pleased to see that while I could spend a whole lot of dough on doing things, it's not likely I would be piling up a mountain of stylish sweaters, slamming shoes and sparkly jewelry as I secretly feared I would if given the opportunity.
There are two more things I loved about the list. First, not everything was out of reach. Some things on my list I could be and should be working on right now. What am I waiting for? When I grow up? Well, NEWS FLASH, SISTER!! I AM A GROWN UP! I just need to get to it! And the last thing I love about my list is that it reminds me that who I am is very much who I have always been. Once you get past #26, you have to really open up your mind and think some thoughts you probably haven't thought in a good long while. But the same ones are still in there, just like they were when you were fourteen. It's kinda nice.
I'm still at work on my list. I've given myself only a few more days to finish it up no matter what it takes. I'd love to hear if you start writing your own list and what you learn from it. And remember to DREAM BIG, my friends.
I learned a lot over the course of the weekend, many related to business, some related specifically to our business, but many things just about life and how to live a better one. In one of the classes, our teacher talked about dreaming. Not the kind you do when you are asleep. The kind you do about your hopes, your future, your life. She asked us to think about what a kindergartner says when you ask them what they want to be when they grow up. I have a kindergartner (and a preschooler and a third grader) so this was easy for me. They say something like this: "I want to be an astronaut and an artist and a firefighter and a ballet dancer and a singer and a book writer and the President."
What does a kid graduating from college say when you ask them what they want to be when they grow up? What does a 30-something or 40-something say when you ask them what they want to be when they grow up? "Uhhhhhhhhhhh....." Sad, isn't it? At some point we all had a whole bunch of dreams for our life, but somewhere along the way, many of us forgot them or gave up on them. We lost our dream mechanism-our ability to dream big dreams for our future, to see our lives as an amazing possibility, to plan for wonderful things to happen.
So she gave us an assignment. Write down 100 dreams you have for your life. One hundred. Oh, that's easy, I thought. Umm hmm. Try it. No really, I want you to try it. You don't have to show anyone. You don't have to do it all in one day. You don't have to go out and buy a special notebook to write your list in. They don't have to be written in complete sentences. But I would love for you to get busy, take a few quiet minutes for the next few days, and make your list. It's harder than it sounds. I thought I had plenty of dreams. There are lots of things I want to do before my time is up. But honestly, I got stuck around #26. I kept thinking and pushed through to #53. Now I'm stuck again. GASP! I have some more work to do.
Another thing that surprised me was what I think my list says about me. I had very few things on there about me. I want to do lots of traveling and take classes on a bunch of stuff, but beyond that, what showed up on my list over and over are the things I want for the ones I love. Now, it's not that I didn't think I cared about those things or that I think it's bad to want things for your family. I just thought when given the freedom to dream about what I want in my life, that my list would be a lot more about me. In fact, for the next 47 things I need to write down, I am going to try harder to focus on the things I dream for myself. That's the idea, after all.
I was also pleasantly surprised that a whole lot of my dreams were about learning things, going places, and having new experiences. Yes, I am super thrifty, some might even say cheep. I am the coupon queen. I never met a screaming deal I didn't like. The little voice in the back of my mind always said that I would go a little crazy with the budget if I had the opportunity and an unlimited budget. So I was pleased to see that while I could spend a whole lot of dough on doing things, it's not likely I would be piling up a mountain of stylish sweaters, slamming shoes and sparkly jewelry as I secretly feared I would if given the opportunity.
There are two more things I loved about the list. First, not everything was out of reach. Some things on my list I could be and should be working on right now. What am I waiting for? When I grow up? Well, NEWS FLASH, SISTER!! I AM A GROWN UP! I just need to get to it! And the last thing I love about my list is that it reminds me that who I am is very much who I have always been. Once you get past #26, you have to really open up your mind and think some thoughts you probably haven't thought in a good long while. But the same ones are still in there, just like they were when you were fourteen. It's kinda nice.
I'm still at work on my list. I've given myself only a few more days to finish it up no matter what it takes. I'd love to hear if you start writing your own list and what you learn from it. And remember to DREAM BIG, my friends.
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