Somewhere Wondering

It’s 1 am or so. I’m not really sure what time zone I’m in. I’m at 35,000 feet somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean on my way to Dublin, Ireland, where I’m presenting a keynote speech in two days.

 I can’t sleep. Everyone around me is. 

Not me.

I’ve tried everything. I’ve already watched two bad movies and had a lovely meal with some nice wine. Listened to some blues, then some jazz, but Nothing, nada. The only thing left is to sit in the dark and think. And I think about how strange yet how beautiful the world is, how all of us humanoids are so very different and yet so much alike. Yes, we all look different and sound different. Some of us use other languages. And we all still have a heart and a brain, but the chasm of similarity seems to end there, because it’s how we use our hearts and brains that is so vastly different. 

I guess that’s what makes life so interesting. 

I’m a watcher. It’s my job to observe, learn, and teach. And sometimes the things that we see, if we’re watching, are truly dumbfounding. For instance, do you ever consider how some people are satisfied with average, while others seek mediocrity? Yet others are always on the lookout for the possibilities life holds. How can people define success so differently? I was fascinated by a documentary about Lottery winners and what happened to their money. In one case, a guy lived in a single-wide trailer, set back down a long dirt road. He drove a pickup truck and worked when he could. 

He won ten million dollars. And yet in 5 years, he had spent the entire amount and was back living in the single-wide down that same dirt road. The conclusion was that he had fun until the money ran out, then went back to a life he felt he deserved. In essence, he was satisfied with mediocrity. He was happy with what he had, no risk, no pressure; for whatever reason, life had taken away his ability to dream. People like this have given up all hope of dreaming, and sometimes it’s just been kicked out of them. They were poor before; they’ll be poor again. 

I work with many entrepreneurs, business owners, and executives as a Master Business Coach. And I’ve learned that you don’t have to live in a trailer house down a dirt road to have no ambition and no dreams. Many of the people that I talk to, in fact, have but one dream. That dream is to achieve the goals their employer has given them. That’s it. Their sole goal in life is to achieve their company’s objectives at any cost. I find executives and business owners who are at the end of their ropes. They have sacrificed their marriages, their family, their friends, all for someone else’s goals. They get blinded to dreaming and possibilities, all in the pursuit of someone else’s gold ring. 

It doesn’t have to be that way. You can turn that around. First, you must recognize that you are in this spiral, one that will only end in losing everything dear to you. Wake up, realize just what’s going on. Force yourself to begin dreaming again, to have a vivid vision of the future. Don’t be afraid of it. Wake the hell up and make some changes. You can still strive to hit your company goals, but you can also begin to seek other, equally important things. Dream like a 7-year-old again—no limits, no restrictions, no restraints. Anything is possible….and it is. 

While others are just trying to survive with that goofy single focus on someone else’s goals, others are looking at the sky and saying, why not me! 

And if anyone tries to browbeat you, or tell you you’re crazy, or threaten your job, then you might need to find a new job. We live in a universe of unlimited possibilities, if you believe it so. Dream big. Dream as if you could not fail, and then see what happens and how your life changes. 

Who knows, it might be fun. And, if someone does try to burst your bubble and get you back into the life of slavery to the job, then give me a call. I’ll come and kick their butt. 

Screw what others think about your dreams. Don’t tell them your goals, dreams, or vision. Just go out there and attack and achieve them. Then take a picture of the looks on their faces when they learn of your accomplishments. 

There is a plaque on my desk that sums it up: “Underestimate me…That’ll be fun!”