Many of us seldom let ourselves dream. It seems like it’s not an effective use of our time. But dreaming can be very helpful in moving us toward finding and living our calling.
At Simply Great Lives, we have created seven specific steps for you to live your calling (click here for our free guide, “7 Steps to Live Your Calling Beyond a Career”). The steps are based on our own life experience, my background in social work and our observations as coaches.
working Through the Steps
I’m really excited because right now we are taking our first group of people through the steps as part of a live, webinar-style class. In working with this group, I’ve become aware of how important it is to do some dreaming about what our purpose and calling may be.
Why It’s Important to Dream
I’m encouraging people to do some dreaming about the possibilities. I don’t expect people to suddenly gain a perfectly clear image of what they ultimately will do as their calling. Picturing the possibilities can help people:
- engage in the process
- get excited about their potential
- be willing to do the work necessary to become a person of purpose who make a difference
A Simple Dreaming Exercise
Quite a while ago, John and I did a simple exercise that was easy, yet powerful, in making possibilities clear. It created a reasonably clear image of what we might do as our calling. Actually, we did it as part of our weekly coffee date. (We think about this kind of stuff when we hang out together). You could even try it right now:
Write 5 things you could get excited about doing that would be a benefit to other people.
See, I told you it was simple. Go ahead and give it a try. It should take more that a few minutes.
I still remember some of the things on my list, even though it was probably a couple years ago.. One was to make education on TV (“edutainment”) the norm instead of mindless entertainment. Another was to build strong, vibrant communities in inner cities.Really, I still feel passionate about both of these things.
Dreaming Is Just the Beginning
In Step 5, we help people identify their strengths and passions and combine those into a calling. It’s a pretty thrilling experience. We’ve found, though, that in order for people to really be able to fully engage in that process, they need to have gotten control over their time, energy and money. The first four steps help people manage those crucial life resources. Until then, dreaming can give people the motivation they need to move toward their calling now.
