Nowadays, when people share their dreams with me, after congratulating them and wishing them the best, my next statement is: « What's your plan of action to make that dream come true?» Because I realize that most of us don't have a "DREAMING PROBLEM". We know how to dream!!! Some of us can even dream multiple dreams at once. Our real problem is a lack of plan of action to bring that dream to life.
Dr. Myles Munroe stated: "The graveyard is the richest place on the surface of the earth, because there you will see the books that were not published, ideas that were not harnessed, songs that were not sung, and drama pieces that were never acted."
That is a depressing image, but it's also a warning one to let us know that having a dream is not enough.
Shonda Rhimes, one of America's favorite TV producers, best known for shows like Grey Anatomy, Scandal, How to get away with Murder, and most recently Bridgeton wrote:
« I think a lot of people dream. And while they are busy dreaming, the really happy people, the really successful people, the really interesting, powerful, engaged people? Are busy doing."
Read that again!!! It is safe to assume that she was warning us not be so caught up in our dream, that ALL WE DO IS DREAM!!! And that the real happiness and fulfillment can only be achieved by people who are willing to put in the work, and the best approach to ensure that our long-term work produces the expected outcome is to have a solid plan of action.
If like me, you are working on a new project or have this dream in your heart that you want to see come about, below are some of the "must" steps that need to be in your plan of action:
BUY yourself a notebook and WRITE your dream on the cover as a title. For example: (Pastry Chef.. Fashion Blogger... Budget Analyzer... Associate Degree... or Bachelor degree... Supervisor... etc.)
WRITE down the dream or the project in details in the first page. Something magical will take place as you are writing those words. It's like serving notice to the universe that you are about to birth something, and telling it to get out of your way.
MAKE A LIST of things you think you need to accomplish that dream or project. Then, go research what people who have actually done it say you need. Don't rely on your own knowledge to reach a place you have never been, when there's Google, YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, etc.
MAKE A LIST of the changes or sacrifices that you are going to need to make to see the manifestation of that dream. Every successful person had to pay a price for their dreams. You have to pay for yours too. And trust me, you want to pay full price and not cut corners, because those receipts are going to come in handy when people try you to undervalue you or your work. So let me ask you this: "Are you willing to pay the price required for your dream?"
Now WRITE the plan of action- ALL OF IT!!! So you can always have the bigger picture in front of you. However, be flexible and willing to adjust that plan as many times as you need to.
For example: You might want to open a store next Summer, and find yourself pregnant
this December. The store can still be scheduled to open in 2022, it just might have to be
postponed for Winter 2022, instead of Summer 2022. Hey, it's still 2022 and you are still
on schedule :-)
Now, LET'S GO TO WORK!!! Whoop Whoop!!!
To conclude, I would like to share one of my own shortcomings with you. For three years, I owned an online store, and if I am transparent, it was a disaster. I was losing money, was mentally and physically exhausted. My son was frustrated at times, because most of our weekends and afternoons were spent working and doing photo shoots for the business instead of relaxing. A lot of people I trusted, used my lack of knowledge against me and tripled their price. Most family members and friends didn't support me. They even stopped liking my social medial posts. So when COVID-19 hit, even though I had this big idea to revamp the store, and already purchased my ticket to Dubai, part of me was relieved because I had the perfect excuse to close down the shop, and blame it on the pandemic.
But the truth of the matter was I didn't know WHAT THE HELL I WAS DOING... and the reason I didn't know what the hell I was doing was because I never really took the time to sit and write the dream and the plan of action. I thought having the dream and the passion were enough. And I was wrong!!!
So those recommendations above are the steps I should have taken at that time, and that I did when I launched this blog. I am not going to tell you that everything is great this time around, but I can assure you that it's way smoother. Plus my son and I are enjoying both each other and the journey.
So after reading all of this, are you ready to make some serious money moves? Comment below to let me know or add your own spices to the article.
Until next time,
Emma
I am so ready to make these money moves girl!
Great read! The dream must be clear to you first in order to come to pass. Dream, write, plan and execute; and revise as needed.
Absolutely! It is not enough to dream it. We have to act on it. Unfortunately, we get caught up on our daily routine and forget that our dreams will only be dreams if we don’t start working on it today.
While working 2 jobs, I started taking classes in order to open a travel agency for handicapped people. To help me stay on track when I feel discouraged, I put a VISION BOARD in my living room as a daily reminder.
Excellent read!! Thank you for sharing your transparency as a female entrepreneur. I agree dreaming requires action steps. I have always been a dreamer, however, my 9-5 and life caused me to stop dreaming. I had become complacent with my life. When the company, I worked for closed down, I began dreaming again. My unfortunate experience end up being a blessing in disguise, my dream became a reality and I open up my etiquette consulting business.