Three Essentials For Achieving Your Dream

Do you have a dream?  I hope so!  I'm reminded of the song from one of my favorite movies, South Pacific.  The lyrics go something like this:  "You got to have a dream.  If you don't have a dream... how you gonna-have-a dream come true?"  At the Called Woman Reinvention Convention 2014 we had a lot of dreamers who are invested in making their dreams come true!!

The Dreams of Conference Participants

This year proved to be one of the most exciting conferences yet as we listened to speakers, gave away books and other resources and shared our stories.  Everyone had a story to tell of overcoming great odds;  depression, negative mindset, difficult family situations, financial problems, lost jobs. Nevertheless there were plenty of dreams expressed.  We had each participant write down their dream and drop it in a bowl as they came in.  At lunch we read them and gave away inspiring  books.  Here are some samples of the dreams:

• Retire, travel the world, live at the beach
• Have a full time ministry of a children's ranch
• To have financial security
• To have a successful speaking and writing career
• Transition to my own business
• Write a devotional on Isaiah
• Be successful in selling and writing educational and fiction books for children

 Everyone left renewed in spirit and empowered to take the next step in making their dream a reality.  Listen to one of our participants who attended the conference the day after learning that her job was being eliminated:

Three Essentials to Take the Next Step

In my presentation on, "Where Do I Go From Here? I shared the three essentials that you must have to take the next step and turn a dream into a reality.  Here they are:

1. Be a learner--It is so important to continue to learn through books, classes, online training and conferences.  At the present time, I'm taking three classes; one at a local university and two coaching/training programs which I access online.  As long as you are learning you are growing.
2. Be a risk taker-- Just learning new things isn't enough.  You have to take action.  It doesn't have to be perfect.  It doesn't even have to be big.  Just a tiny step counts.  But it takes action to achieve a dream.  No one ever finds themselves in a new place by sitting still.
3. Finally, find and join a supportive group.  Nothing is harder than going it alone. For many dreamers, our co-workers, friends and family members don't have the same vision and don't offer support.   It is necessary to find or create a supportive group.  Here are some possibilities that the Called Woman offers:
1. Join our Facebook page.  You can comment and ask questions:  www.facebook.com/thecalledwoman
2. Join www.48days.net and in particular our Called Woman Group.  It's another great place to get support and advice.
3. Join our Reinvent You Mastermind Group just starting up in April 2014.  You will have three coaches devoted to making sure that you have the support and information you need to achieve your dream.  You can read all about it and sign up on our website here:   www.acalledwoman.com

Do you have a dream?  What is your next step?  How can I help you achieve it?

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How to Make a Dream Come True!

My three year old friend, Carleigh, recently explained to me how to create a garden.  "First, you dig a hole and put in the seed and cover it with dirt,"  she told me enthusiastically.  "Then you put in some worms and they (her voices drops to a whisper here) poop in the dirt.  (Now she is practically yelling with excitement) "And then, voila, you have a garden!"  Pretty simple don't you think?

How do you start a new venture?  You make a list of what you want to do.  You research the alternatives.  You pick something and do it.  You add energy, excitement and fun.  And voila, you have a new venture!

My friend Ellen and I did something like this last weekend.  Ellen and I both love to visit thrift stores, yard sales and any other similar venue in search of treasures.  Ellen has always wanted to resell her treasures in her own brick and mortar shop.  She has spent quite some time researching how others do this.  Last year she experimented with participating in several craft shows where she sold the results of her many creative talents. Then this year while we were shopping in an antique and gift shop in Blairsville, Georgia, she engaged the owner in conversation about renting a booth in the store.  It was a very reasonable price, the shop was well designed and she was very interested.  She considered the idea, the pros and cons for about a month and finally, I offered to join her in the booth rental since I too have collected quite a bit of resale-able treasures.  We made arrangements, set a date to move in and voila, a new venture has begun!

But wait... We were having a lot of fun and excitement but how could we share our new venture with our friends?  We decided to have our own Grand Opening.  We picked a date, stocked up our booth, planned a party at my house for after-shopping-refreshments and fellowship and .... voila!  We have not only a new venture but a new venture shared.

Seth Godin calls this type of activity "ship it!"  So many of us have dreams we never follow, ideas we never hatch, products we never ship.  We overwhelm ourselves with questions of when and how and what ifs.

My inspiration and mentor for all of my new ventures in recent years from writing a children's book, to developing a Called Woman's Conference to  writing my latest book on following your calling has been Dan Miller of 48 Days To The Work You Love.  He has recently finished a new book that is a collaboration with his son, Jared called When Wisdom Meets Passion.  It promises to be the best read yet as he  explores not only how to follow your dream but the differences and challenges generations encounter as they discover and follow their dream.

What is keeping you from living your dream?  What if you found your passion, nurtured it, encouraged it and then just shipped it?  Then voila... you'd have a dream come true!

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