When Life Happens to your Dreams…
Did "life" happen to your dreams? It's never too late to reignite your dreams.
Dreams Interrupted
What do you do when life events knock you off the path to your goals? One year, I developed a compelling vision for seven areas of my life and business. The process that I went through led me to create a plan for the next 12-18 months. Each week, I checked in and made sure I was still focused on my plan. I was on my way to remarkable success!
But three months into the year, life happened. My father-in-law had a major stroke. I was injured in a car accident and required therapy for healing. Later that month my father-in-law and another close relative passed away. Of course, there was other craziness including a new washing machine going on the fritz. None of these events were in my plan for the year. My family and I suffered an emotional and exhausting tailspin for a few months. Financial goals, business goals, personal plans - they all took a back seat to life’s interruptions.
Be Anchored
How has your life interrupted your plans to pursue your business dreams? When unexpected life events happen, how have you picked yourself up and kept moving forward? Like most of us, it’s easy to get stuck and feel ashamed when you’re knocked off track. But there’s no need for shame because it happens to all of us. Detours are just a part of life.
Fortunately, my vision and plan became an anchor to help me refocus and stabilize my thoughts. It was like having breadcrumbs back to the place where I took a detour from my destination. In reviewing my life plan, my business dreams were resuscitated. The plan kept me emotionally anchored while I coped with the recent life crises.
Too often we get distracted by things happening in our lives and we don’t reach our goals according to our desired timeline. Then, we feel stuck. Yet, that is the moment when you need to recognize your power to be the driver. You are free to adjust your goals when life’s uncontrollable events happen.
Even if others get upset with you, be the driver of your growth. Pause and take a moment to reorient yourself. Revisit your vision and assess where you are in relation to your goals. Then you can decide how to get back on track.
Get Back on Track
Getting back on track is more straightforward than you may think it could be. Let’s take for example, a goal to start your business. You may feel far from that goal, but you can begin again by first ignoring your inner critic. Review your plan and assess where you are right now. Then decide what you need to do to get headed toward your desired direction. Take the next step and gain momentum as you move forward.
Maybe you have some business or professional goals that you haven’t achieved. Perhaps you want to spend more time on your professional development or business growth, but you are preoccupied or distracted with day to day demands. Evaluate what is occupying your time and see if you can schedule an extra 30 minutes per day or week. Even a little dedicated time will make a difference.
Pressing Forward
This may sound easy but the reality is hard. Change starts with a shift in mindset. Your inner critic condemns you whether you make right or wrong choices. Learn to ignore your inner critic. Otherwise, you will feel condemned to failure and hesitate to move forward on your dreams.
You may feel you are too far off track with your goals and dreams to ever achieve them. I am here to encourage you. It’s never too late to reignite your dreams. If you don't have a vision or plan for your business, I encourage you to start where you are by making a few goals for this week or even just for today. It's a great way to get back on track when life happens. It will help you build momentum as you work to accomplish your overall goals.