During my travels, an inspiring story about the power of dreams was shared with me by Marcia Wieder, America’s Dream Coach. I met Marcia at her home in Tiberon, California, overlooking San Francisco Bay. As we sat on her patio on a bright summer afternoon, she told me the story of what transpired on the chilling day of September 11, 2001; a day that everyone remembers.
I was supposed to be doing a workshop on dreams to a group of executives in the sunglass industry. Of course everyone was preoccupied with the events unfolding on the television, so I proposed three options to the group. One was to do nothing, and just cancel the workshop. The second was to have a discussion on something completely different. Or, they could move forward with the conversation on dreams in spite of the horrible events. They agreed to stay on course with the original plan. And with the horrible events unfolding in the background, we talked about dreams, passion and living incredible lives. It was one of the most profound experiences of my life. Before the workshop got started, my voice was weak. I felt powerless and had no energy. As the workshop got under way and people started defining their dreams, the energy increased and passion flowed in the room. Everyone in the room was tapping into something very powerful. Everyone felt alive.
Marcia’s story is a powerful demonstration of how dreaming gives us energy. Focusing on dreams and keeping them front and center helps bring alive passion, in spite of the reality around us. Unfortunately, as we get older, we lose our dreams. We become mature and responsible. We focus on what we think we should be doing. We get “real” jobs. Goals replace our dreams. And then when we are old, grey, in a wheelchair, and feeble, we reflect back on what could have been. We wonder how it slipped away and wonder why we didn’t do something about it when we were younger and had the energy. Take the time to dream…now.