Dream the Painting

"First I dream my painting then I paint my dream.” –Van Gogh

Hi and welcome back to, “A Dare a Day”! A few weeks ago, as part of a training exercise at work, I worked with a group of peers to assemble a puzzle. The task was to assemble a puzzle as a team with several obstacles, one being that were weren’t given a picture of what the completed puzzle would look like. We began by assembling the border pieces and gathering like pieces but without knowing what the picture was, we were moving at a snail’s pace. After a few minutes, the facilitator of the exercise gave us a picture of what we were assembling and all of a sudden, our mission was clear and we finished the puzzle within a few minutes.

As I reflected on the exercise, it occurred to me that it is analogous to how we can go through life if we don’t have a clear picture of what it is we want for ourselves. You might say, “I want to be healthy”, but what exactly does that mean? What would it feel like to be healthy? What would a typical day of your healthy life look like? Do you spring out of bed in the morning full of energy? Do you run marathons or play a favorite sport with ease? Neglecting to describe in vivid detail what this means to you is like trying to put the puzzle of your life together without a clear picture of what you are trying to accomplish. Your days can seem like random “pieces” without a clear focused goal. No wonder many people feel like they are simply drifting through life!

For today, I dare you to choose one area of your life in which you would like to experience something different than you are experiencing now and write out in detail what the new and improved experience looks like to you. For example, if your job situation isn’t ideal, write out what your ideal job does look like. Write in detail from waking up in the morning on your way to you job through when your head hits the pillow at night.

Keep your picture close to you for one week and read it at least twice a day. Allow yourself to feel the feelings as if it’s already manifested itself in your life. Close your eyes and pretend it’s happened. Doing so will set your inner compass towards that goal even if you’re not exactly sure on how it’s going to happen. Don’t worry about the “how”. That tends to show itself once you are clear on the “where”, that is, where you want to be.

Thanks for reading today and daring to dare!