It was not about being happy as in sheepishly happy, blissfully unaware of reality. It was about feeling happy with yourself within whatever reality is around you. It was not about setting goals for the future. But about allowing yourself to dream impossible dreams. You see, people often mix dreams with goals. Goals are something you know you can achieve. And while it is good to have them, it is also slightly boring isn’t it? Why would I be motivated to get what I know I can get? When I know that I can do it, I’m kind of limiting myself with what I can do.
Dreams don’t have to be “realistic”. In fact, this sounds like an oxymoron to me – dreams are unreal by definition. Dreams are not reflection of our reality, but creation of our mind. And why would any mind being too practical and efficient want to waste his time creating something that is already there. I want to make my dreams indecently bright and shockingly big. And since they are not my goals, I don’t have to “work towards” them. All I have to do is trust that they will happen. One way or another, partially or in full, we do get our dreams come true. If we only let them. People tend to be narrow minded about paths to take. If we know where we want to get to, we assume we know which steps to take from A to B. And this is a good strategy for something routinely automatic. To learn the steps and let your unconscious mind take you there day after day after day until there you are. I like this approach very much. I’d like to set to autopilot as many things as possible. It will free my time, my heart, my mind for more exiting things, for going off the beaten path, for taking side roads and explore the possibilities never considered before. Who said that dreams should be realistic anyway.
There was a story told by Michael Neil. He had a dog, a very yappy little bundle of joy, always ready to play, always eager to get engaged. More then anything else he liked fetching the ball. He could do it endlessly, even when he’s body can’t cope with the excitement any more, he’d still run forward to fetch the ball even before the ball was thrown. He always fetched that ball, he was very good at it. And he was always overexcited carrying the ball back time after time after time. But it was just the same plastic ball, the same old game. Though the doggy had somewhat unhealthy anxiety to play it over and over again. There is a metaphor in this story. We can set up goals, condense them into balls and throw into our future. And do it endlessly for as long as our feet serve us. And just perform the “go fetch ‘em” routine for the whole of our life and get exited and get worn out by repeating a task in a loop. The goals could be different, thrown further or nearer. But it is still the same go fetch routine. I want to walk into my future at my own pace. I do not wish to set up a goal to be there at particular time and place. I am not aware which road I have to take. But I know that while on my way I can always choose the other way to go because it will still take me to where I want to be. I trust my navigation instincts.
This was the first change I’ve noticed in myself after the seminar. Before last weekend I couldn’t even let myself to think of a future. Didn’t want to make plans for next year, next month, even tomorrow. It felt safer to live by today. One day at a time, a moment after a moment. I still don’t do plans, mind you, this hasn’t changed. But for the first time in the last year and a half I can actually look into the future and see a picture perfect of the masterpiece my life will be. I don’t have details defined with the sharp strokes, but then I don’t need them either – it is much more exiting once you get there, to be surprised with the colours you didn’t expect at all. Opening my mind to the idea that there is a future…so simple, yet so magical. And once you draw that picture of your future, all you have to do is – to remember it always. And because this picture is a nice picture, it will always give you an inspiration to keep walking towards it.
I’ve made few friends on the seminar. When we were leaving, we exchanged addresses and inspirational notes for each other. One of the notes left for me says: remember your future.
Dreams don’t have to be “realistic”. In fact, this sounds like an oxymoron to me – dreams are unreal by definition. Dreams are not reflection of our reality, but creation of our mind. And why would any mind being too practical and efficient want to waste his time creating something that is already there. I want to make my dreams indecently bright and shockingly big. And since they are not my goals, I don’t have to “work towards” them. All I have to do is trust that they will happen. One way or another, partially or in full, we do get our dreams come true. If we only let them. People tend to be narrow minded about paths to take. If we know where we want to get to, we assume we know which steps to take from A to B. And this is a good strategy for something routinely automatic. To learn the steps and let your unconscious mind take you there day after day after day until there you are. I like this approach very much. I’d like to set to autopilot as many things as possible. It will free my time, my heart, my mind for more exiting things, for going off the beaten path, for taking side roads and explore the possibilities never considered before. Who said that dreams should be realistic anyway.
There was a story told by Michael Neil. He had a dog, a very yappy little bundle of joy, always ready to play, always eager to get engaged. More then anything else he liked fetching the ball. He could do it endlessly, even when he’s body can’t cope with the excitement any more, he’d still run forward to fetch the ball even before the ball was thrown. He always fetched that ball, he was very good at it. And he was always overexcited carrying the ball back time after time after time. But it was just the same plastic ball, the same old game. Though the doggy had somewhat unhealthy anxiety to play it over and over again. There is a metaphor in this story. We can set up goals, condense them into balls and throw into our future. And do it endlessly for as long as our feet serve us. And just perform the “go fetch ‘em” routine for the whole of our life and get exited and get worn out by repeating a task in a loop. The goals could be different, thrown further or nearer. But it is still the same go fetch routine. I want to walk into my future at my own pace. I do not wish to set up a goal to be there at particular time and place. I am not aware which road I have to take. But I know that while on my way I can always choose the other way to go because it will still take me to where I want to be. I trust my navigation instincts.
This was the first change I’ve noticed in myself after the seminar. Before last weekend I couldn’t even let myself to think of a future. Didn’t want to make plans for next year, next month, even tomorrow. It felt safer to live by today. One day at a time, a moment after a moment. I still don’t do plans, mind you, this hasn’t changed. But for the first time in the last year and a half I can actually look into the future and see a picture perfect of the masterpiece my life will be. I don’t have details defined with the sharp strokes, but then I don’t need them either – it is much more exiting once you get there, to be surprised with the colours you didn’t expect at all. Opening my mind to the idea that there is a future…so simple, yet so magical. And once you draw that picture of your future, all you have to do is – to remember it always. And because this picture is a nice picture, it will always give you an inspiration to keep walking towards it.
I’ve made few friends on the seminar. When we were leaving, we exchanged addresses and inspirational notes for each other. One of the notes left for me says: remember your future.