Personal Growth Planet Blog

As a child, I dreamed of being a Country & Western singer (I don’t even know if such a musical category still exists today). I would sing as I did my chores, sing as I walked to school and sing every other moment I could.  I even had a stage name picked out for myself– it was Dusty Rose, I think.

I’m not sure if my elementary school-aged self really believed that one day I would be a professional singer, but it was certainly an enchanting dream. As I got older, my aspirations for what I wanted to be changed.

It was beginning to be clear to me that once I became an adult, I would be a particular thing. In my mind, this was a career-oriented woman– possibly an attorney or someone in politics.

From my perspective at that time, I was on a trajectory headed for a specific place and time when I would actually live out the vision/s that danced in my head.

As you might already know about me, I do not sing Country & Western songs under the stage name Dusty Rose. I am neither an attorney, nor am I in politics.

And, I am an adult. I am at the designated time and place in life where I used to think I would be those things about which I dreamed.

This is the place where many of us begin to question it all. “What does it mean that I am not what or where I always aspired to be?”

The questioning and wondering can easily lead a person to feel as if he or she has missed “the” chance. It can start to feel too late and even a relatively young in years person can believe that he or she is too old to live those delicious aspirations.

I’m here to remind us all that, despite what you might be thinking to yourself and in spite of what you may even hear from others, it is NEVER too late and you are NEVER too old to point yourself toward your dreams and go there.

Open up and listen.
At some point in your life you may have set aside your vision for your future. This could be because you settled down, started a family and it seemed like there was no time or energy to pursue your dream.

It may be because you encountered a set-back or a block and ended up believing your dream was impossible for you to ever realize.

For whatever reason, you put that dream “on hold” or banished it from your awareness completely. There’s nothing wrong with shifting priorities and even being flexible as your desires change and grow.

But, for many of us, we simply stopped dreaming at all at a certain point.

This is completely understandable as the busy-ness of life can require a lot of time and attention. However, when you look up from the incessant grind of your life as it is and you feel sad, angry, wistful or resentful because this isn’t the life you “signed up” for, it’s time to start dreaming again.

Give yourself permission to aspire toward something more, something better.

This doesn’t necessarily mean that what you have right now isn’t worthy of appreciation and wonderful in its own way. It also doesn’t necessarily mean that you will end up leaving your family in the dust as you travel the world.

What you choose to do in response to your dreams is up to you.

But don’t use the excuse that you’re too old or it’s too late for you to start moving toward the thrilling and soul-nourishing kind of life that you’ve always wanted to not even try.

You might set aside a pocket of time every week for dreaming. Find a private and comfortable spot and sit down with a pen and paper.

Ask yourself this question: “What would I be and do if I had complete freedom in my life?”

Now, write down or draw whatever comes to your mind. Let yourself imagine what it is that you aspire to do, be and have and then play it out on paper.

Rethink what is possible.
Once you know– or have remembered what your dreams are, you might feel some discomfort. There are probably legitimate reasons why you either set aside, stuffed down or threw out those dreams.

It’s quite likely that you cannot see how something like _____________ could ever really happen in your life, how it would fit with your job, family, location, schedule, budget, etc.

Take a deep breath. Next, find ways to loosen up your view of what’s possible. Rethink what you CAN do and what CAN happen.

Leave a door, window, even a little crack in your belief system open to what seems improbable (or even impossible) to you at this moment.

As you continue to tap into those excited and eager feelings about your dreams, stay open to opportunities that can point you in the direction you want to go.

Before saying “no” to some offer or invitation, pause and ask yourself if this could move you closer to your dream.

This is what a dear friend of mine did a few months ago…

Recently I had the pleasure of watching this friend of mine– who is in her mid 30s– act professionally in a production of a Shakespeare play.

Of course, I found my friend’s performance and that of the entire cast enjoyable But, what I found truly inspiring is the fact that my friend was following one of her dreams. Over a decade (or more) ago, this friend was in quite a few theatrical productions. She was in her element on the stage.

She set all of that aside when she married and then had two children. During those years of raising children and going about her life, my friend continued to dream of acting and performing on stage again.

I know that she treasures every single moment that she’s spent with her children and that she plans to continue to be the engaged mom to her kids and loving partner to her husband in the future.

Now, however, she is also living her dream to perform. Even after all of those years, it was not too late. She is not too old.

So, what are you dreaming of?

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Tags: acting, aspirations, beliefs, Dream, old, opportunities, personal growth, singing