8 Powerful Steps to Living Your Dreams RIGHT NOW

8 Powerful Steps to Living Your Dreams RIGHT NOW
11 Oct 2013

Remember when you were little and said you wanted to be ______ (fill in the blank), when you grew up? And you just knew you would accomplish that goal because you had child-like faith (or maybe you were just delusional). Hold that thought. Now take a good look at your life now. Is this where you thought you’d be? Do you wake up every morning excited about using your gifts to make a difference?

Well, I remember waking up one morning (after my coffee) a few months ago and realizing that I was bored. As a creative person, that’s the worst thing you could admit to yourself. I wasn’t excited about the work I was doing every day and felt like my song was dying inside me. I had to ask myself “What did I want to really be when I grow up?” And then I had to figure out how to get there. After taking the following steps, I have found myself on fire again and walking with purpose and passion towards my dreams:

  1. Pray. Surrender. And then LISTEN. I prayed for clarity, purpose, passion and for an answer. Then I surrendered it all. And then I had to be still and listen. Not the easiest thing to do. But in being still, I was able to hear that small voice that told me that I had overstayed my visit in my comfort zone. It was time to move on to the things I had been putting off until “the time was right”—one of which is this blog.
  2. Let go of the outcome. How many times do we talk ourselves out of something we’re excited about because we’re just not sure it’s going to work? Well, I’m going to tell you right now to LET IT GO. Let go of having to know exactly how things are going to turn out and instead focus on putting the best of you into whatever living your dreams means to you—one step at a time. Then trust that once you’re walking in your purpose, life will conspire to see you succeed.
  3. Write it down. As Habbakuk 2:2 says, ““Write the vision and make it plain…” There is a lot of wisdom in the Bible. There is power in writing something down. When I first started my design firm, I wrote down everything I wanted to accomplish in the first three years. Being the person I am, I filed that information away and didn’t look at it again until a couple of years later. And then I laughed because even without looking at my list, I had subconsciously put it in my head and had reached just about every goal I had written down.
  4. Visualize. This is similar to #3 but requires you to put a picture in your mind to go along with what you’ve written down. Years ago, I was going through a tough time and wasn’t sure how to begin putting the pieces of my life back together, my life coach taught me the power of visualization. It’s a process where you envision whatever it is that you want to manifest in your life—a new car, a new job, a beautiful garden—and keep that vision in your mind’s eye until it becomes a reality. Create a vision board with pictures/items representing your dreams and goals and put it somewhere you can see it every day.
  5. Surround yourself with inspiration, motivation and positive energy. For me that means watching at least one inspirational video a day (YouTube) or seeking out motivational quotes that keep me focused on my goals. It also means avoiding or limiting my contact with negative people and energy, while spending more time with people who add something positive to my life and who I can learn from. Then make sure to put that positive energy back out there—like attracts like.
  6. Be honest about your strengths and weaknesses. And then be willing to work on your weaknesses (as Iyanla Vanzant says: Do the work!), while looking at ways to better utilize your strengths. Is there a way to use your strengths in a different arena that you hadn’t thought of, but is exciting to you? Can you partner with someone who can hold you accountable for those things which you know you need to work on? Think of it as personal training for your mind.
  7. Pay attention to your emotions and intuition. Too often we ignore our own emotions when it comes to pursuing our passion. Recently, I had lunch with a friend who had decided that, rather than pursuing her dessert business full-time, she was going to continue running a business that she had no excitement for. But yet, when she talked about her side hustle, her face lit up! There it is. That thing which brings you joy while making a positive impact. Pay attention. You’re not as clueless about what you want as you think you are. You’re just letting fear drown out your dreams.
  8. Just do it! Stop thinking so hard and just implement. That is truly the difference between those who are living their dreams and those who are still chasing them. As you become clear about your purpose, passion and vision for your life, you will find that it becomes easier to put things into motion. Because you can’t sleep until you do!

As a great quote I read recently said: “A woman who walks in purpose doesn’t have to chase people or opportunities. Her light causes people and opportunities to pursue her.” Gentlemen, this goes for you too! As your light shines, doors will open that no one can close. Stop chasing…start living!

What steps have you taken to begin realizing the dreams and goals you’ve put on the back burner?

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Julian B. Kiganda

I hope you enjoyed this post! A little about me: I’m the founder of Bold & Fearless and a Transformational Brand Strategist. My gifting is in helping purpose-driven women transform and build million-dollar brands. I’m also an author, transformational speaker and multi-passionate entrepreneur. In 2014, I published my first highly-acclaimed book co-authored with my sister: Whose Shoes Are You Wearing? 12 Steps to Uncovering the Woman You Really Want to Be available on Barnes & Noble and Amazon. To learn more about how you can connect or work with me, visit www.julianbkiganda.com.




Comments

  1. Alfia Johnson Says: September 2, 2014 at 2:39 pm

    Thanks Julian for this timely piece ,   As the 12 Habits of Highly Successful People dogma states (to paraphrase) : "the universe rewards doers, and not perfectionists".   Perhaps your next entry can address working through setbacks when pursuing your dreams and goals.    

    • Julian B. Kiganda Says: September 16, 2014 at 5:20 am

      Thanks for stopping by Alfia! One of my favorite quotes is: “Perfection is the enemy of progress.” I can certainly write plenty about working through setbacks while pursuing your goals (quite a bit of that is addressed in “Whose Shoes Are You Wearing?”), but I can also tell you that the MOST IMPORTANT thing to keep in front of you while trying to live out your dreams is the “WHY?” Why is it important that you achieve this goal? What is pushing you to do it. If it’s a burning desire that you find you can’t sleep without pursuing, then of then that fire will keep you moving even when you feel like giving up. Stay tuned for more…

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