Dream Bigger

It is a new year, let’s dream bigger! Steve Harvey asks the question is the lid still on? in his book, Act like a Success, think like a Success. (One among many books I read in 2014) He encourages us to take the lid off. For me this is about how we get in our own way. He goes on to talk about dash deposits. These are simple efforts you make daily to reach your goals and vision for yourself. As Steve Harvey puts it, “Any small or large activity or action that adds to the quality of your life and your family’s is a dash deposit.”

This is a new year so how can we take ourselves to the next level. In my reflections as we transitioned into this New Year, I asked myself, what works and what doesn’t work? I know for me, meditation and yoga works. I know being without vegetables and fruit doesn’t work. I know blogging and writing works for me. I know having any lack of sleep and/or sleep interruptions doesn’t work for me. What good thinks will you take from last year and what will you let go and leave behind?

Let’s step out of our history. Let’s avoid Albert Einstein’s definition of insanity: doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result. It’s great that my theme for 2015 of awareness and authenticity is aligned with this message. In order to raise our self awareness, self assessments need to happen. Not in a harsh way but in an honest and compassionate way. If you are honest with yourself and know your strengths and weaknesses that is half the battle toward achieving your larger vision of yourself.

If you really want to get out of your own way, you will raise your awareness about how you get in your own way. Dreaming big does not necessary mean that we are in daydream states thinking about fantasies. It is more about being aligned with our true selves so much that we are so fluid and transcendent that all we want appears. It is about being focused and reminding ourselves constantly to focus on what we want so it grows. Avoid focusing on what you don’t want.

So how can we dream bigger? We must work to remain open to all possibilities. Have more faith and put some gum shin into creativity and even imagination. Carmine Gallo, shares four criteria for dreaming bigger in his book, The Innovation Secrets of Steve Jobs; big dreams are bold, specific, concise and consistent. Naturally, he uses Steve Jobs as an example to demonstrate all these ideas. Gallo also brings up the point of teams and how dreams are actualized though teamwork and committed team members. Probably the most challenging piece of dreaming bigger is communicating the big idea.