Daydream With A Purpose

How to visualize your life into reality.

Everyone has dreams but most people think that they are just that. Dreams. Something that is nice to think about, a good distraction from the realities of the world but they are not tangible goals. The truth is - you have to work for your dreams but they are tangible, you just have to make them become a reality and that requires some hard work.

There are a few things that are key to consider here when you are looking at your future.

1) Know what you want

-Everyone has had dreams since they were little about what they want in their future, dream job, dream house, dream wedding, what do you want to name your kids. It is a natural thing that you are thinking about the future - And it is healthy to do that when you set those goals and dreams to work towards.

-Make your dreams something that you really want in the moment and know that that may change (what you wanted when you were a little girl is probably not what you wnat now and that is okay) but don't change the overall dream - just change and adapt the plan to getting you there.

2) Write it down damnit!

-This may seem silly and arbitrary but this step is really important - You have to write out your dream to make it real. Writing it out puts it on paper and therefore makes it closer to becoming a reality. This step also makes you think about it a little bit more.

-I recently read The Slight Edge by Jeff Olson (great read, highly recommended for personal development) and he gave some great pointers on visualization with the first key step being to put it on paper. The key here is to make this dream something very specific and attainable. Start with broad categories and then drill in on specific goals from there. Use visual descriptors anything to make it more real - even create visuals to go along with it like a vision board. Next you need to assign a deadline to that dream. Something realistic that you can attain but use that timeline as a guide to create a plan. The plan comes next and know that this plan is a starting point only. This plan will change as you go and that is okay as it is meant to be just that something to jump off from. You have to have a plan to get started but you can't spend so much time focusing on the plan that you forget about the end goal and the big picture by getting wrapped up in the details.

3) Keep your eye on the prize

-Literally, look at your dreams every day. By writing them down and visualizing, setting a timeline, creating that jumping off point you have something tangible, the start of a roadmap to get you onto those dreams and don't just stop there. There is a reason why you chose that dream and it is worth it to put the work in to get there. Create a vision board of what you want your life to be. Have short term and long term goals in that board and write out the plan then look at that each and every day, adapting the plan where you need to, but don't let that dream slip from your front view. If you have things going on that are extracurricular that don't push towards your dreams, save them for later. Prioritize these dreams to live the life that you have always dreamed about.

4) A goal without a plan is just a wish

-If you just stopped at writing the dream down - you would have no where to go, and likely it would stay just that - a dream. By setting a plan, that is the kickoff point that will get you on the path to your dream. Have a "plan to start" and work towards that goal then every day in order to get you to where you want to be. Planning takes time and you don't need to know all the details up front but as long as you have that end goal and the fist step on the path, the rest will come to you in good time.

5) How to start

- In the slight edge, Olson discusses how to live "The Slight Edge" in every aspect of your life. That is broken down into a few main buckets such as health, career etc. (read "The Slight Edge" to find out all of these areas) Now, some of these are all intertwined, in fact they all are. But the goal is to break out each of these main areas in your life and create a vision, a dream, for how you want each of these to be and remember to be specific with your details and timeline and then create a plan on how you want to start on the path to that dream. Start with one simple thing that you can do every day - like reading 10 pages of personal development or working out for at least 30 minutes to achieve your health goals. Each of these simple tasks will put you way above everyone else because you have the discipline to get to that success. You can do the one thing a day in each of these areas to acheive your dreams - and the sum of all of that little work will lead you to your dream life.

I also started reading the book "The Secret" recently (another one that I would recommend!) and it explains that the law of attraction is extremely powerful even in your thoughts. The power of positive thinking and envisioning is way stronger than the power of negative thoughts but often we get so bogged down in thinking negative thoughts that we attract negative results in all areas of our life. If we instead, changed our thoughts to positive thoughts and surrounded ourselves with a vision for a successful future, you are bound to get there.

So how will you start? Read some personal development? Start a savings account? Start to workout even 10 minutes a day and build up from there. You have to start somewhere and take that first step - the rest will come if you are consistent. Change your mindset to a positive one and envision your dream life and you will get there!

All of this probably sounds silly and like it has no effect, but let me tell you. I started working out for the first time on a regular plan and schedule in December of last year and here I am now - A coach for one of the top fitness companies in the world, writing a fitness and lifestyle blog and my mindset has completely changed. I am more confident and have attracted other people and things into my life just by changing my thoughts from a negative "I can't do this" "These little things won't make a difference" mindset to - Let me start with just 30 minutes a day, and see what happens and I have seen the results physically which then brought me on this mental and emotional journey. And now, I can't wait to see where my dreams and consistency will take me next! Who's with me?