Rêves

Last month I made a dream come true.  

The dream started big and loose and, over time, crystallized and translated to action.

The Big Dream is to live my most authentic professional life aligned with and including all I love.

More specific version is to do what I love in a place that I love in a way that feels whole to me.

The even more colored-in version is to create a thriving coaching business that is flexible and portable so I can work where and how I want, and share that experience with those I love.

The Ready, Aim…. make it happen version was to move my business to Paris for a month in 2018, coach my existing clients from across the pond, and involve my family and close friends in the fun.  Because, why not?!

I get a lot of questions about this experience; seems to capture the imagination. Probably because we all have dreams – in various stages of crystallizing.  Whether your dreams are in the loose stage or crisp and focused, I offer some personal learnings for you to consider on your path.

Dreams are amazing: I picture them like the flow of water. Starting as a tiny trickle, they burble along slowly in the background – a gentle hum. Almost imperceptible. My dream was burbling quietly in the background forever it seems. And, as I got clearer on my interests, my passions, what I care about – and I listened more deeply to the voice inside me – well, the sound got louder.  

Color in dreams: The more detail I could give my dream, the easier it was to move it forward. I gave it texture and detail – a timeframe, a setting. Coloring is meant to be playful and relaxing. Not every detail needs to be known at the onset. Sometimes coloring is very abstract. There is always the opportunity to add more colors, touch something up – or even erase. My brain was so grateful to know what I was questing; to be provided a map.

Each step counts: Lots of little movements – each uniquely powerful – add up to achieving goals and making dreams real. Sure, the culminating story of moving to France for a month is sparkly. One could argue the smaller steps over many years are less of a compelling read. Yet, they all count. The trick was to start. And then, whenever possible, I made choices that aligned with my dream. I experimented with virtual coaching when I would travel, I built coaching retreats that brought me to France, and, importantly, I talked about my plans.   

Creating is a powerful act: I feel sort of like I wrote a book about having an international coaching practice and a “Parisian” life – and then I stepped in the book and bought a baguette! Did you ever see the original Mary Poppins movie? When Mary and Bert jump into the chalk pavement and go to the country fair? Like that. Exhilarating! Last month I would walk down the rainy Paris streets, thinking, “this business didn’t even exist a few years ago, and now here I am, in Paris, coaching from my sweet little apartment”. I might have even been a little smug. Creation feels powerful.  

The dream isn’t a checkbox: Yup, I could check the box that I “did it”, but it doesn’t feel at all like something to mark off a list. Instead, it feels like a puzzle piece fitting into my path. The experience simply isn’t over. The words that I use to describe my time there – joyful, challenging, surprising, overflowing – sometimes hard, mostly beautiful – well, these are the same words I use to describe all of life. The feelings around the dream are, in fact, the point. And, lucky us, these feelings are often accessible while en route to creating the dream.  

I love France: if you thought I’d say more about that, you are right. You’ll find that here.

What are you wondering while you are reading this? Does it make you curious to explore your own dreams? If so, here are some questions to get you started:

What dreams are burbling along in the background for you? For your business? For your life?

If you shone a spotlight on your interests, your passions, your values – what would you see? And how would they flow into your dreams – making them clearer?

From that clarity, where might you aim?  

And what steps – of any size – might you take to move forward today?

What are you waiting for?

Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. – Goethe