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Dream Shift
- Dreams are the hopes you've always had for your life and work.
- Risk avoidance is avoiding something new because it might not work out as planned.
What this means for the Older Worker
- You're never too old to live your dreams, even if you need to adjust them to current realities.
- You have everything you need to begin to live your dream. Too many of us use excuses, such as lack of money, to avoid taking the small steps we could take today.
- Fear is a normal part of change but is often an obstacle to change. Face the fear and keep going.
- Taking small, informed steps one at a time will get you where you want to go much faster than taking giant leaps into the unknown. Bigger steps are often unrealistic and can consume more of your energy and financial reserves than it is reasonable to risk at the beginning of a venture.
Rethinking Your Dreams
When our circumstances change dramatically, we might think this means all our dreams are lost. Change can actually represent a positive opportunity to rethink our dreams, keep hold of the important ones, and let the less important fall by the wayside.
As you get older you may need to be more creative about how you realize your dreams. As long as you stay true to the essence of your dreams, there's a good chance you'll be happy and content as a result.
Just as we have to plan our retirement jobs, we need to plan to live our dreams. In fact, we have a responsibility to pursue life and work based on our dreams and passions. That's where we will find the energy to make the greatest contribution to our community. It's also where we find the satisfaction of living well and being productive.
"Shifting" Your Dreams
So, if you don't remember what it was you always want to do, how do you rediscover your dreams?
First you have to give yourself quiet time to think. Whether you do that sitting on a beach, mulling it over in your workshop, or walking in the woods, the important things is to give yourself permission to think about what you'd really like to do. Never mind how much it will cost, or how much time it might take. The first thing to discover is what. How you reach your what is an entirely different practical question that comes later. If you move too quickly between what and how, you'll dismiss your idea or dream before it has a chance to see the light.
Discovering what you want to do now may take a little time and thought. Don't rush yourself; spend the time, write down your ideas, mull them over, dream on them further, and eventually you'll arrive at the right what for you. How you achieve your what comes from the saying: "Where there's a will, there's a way." If you believe you must follow this dream, you'll create a path to make that possible. After all, you're at least half a century old now. You've survived difficult and challenging times in your life, you've accumulated an amazing amount of life experience, and you have a growing wisdom. Now is the time to use it all to do something important for you.
When you commit to this belief, you are adopting an approach called Dream Shift, which is shifting your dream to the front and centre of your mind.
One of the most difficult things you will have to do is give yourself permission to think about and act on your dreams and passions. You are part of a generation used to taking care of others: bringing in the paycheque, raising kids, and possibly looking after everyone and everything while ignoring your own dreams. You may feel selfish putting your needs before those of others. But here's the secret: the more you give to your passion and dreams, the more you have to give to others.
Things to think about
- Your dreams and passions are a call to use your unique skills and talents. They are gifts to the world.
- It's never too late to live your dreams-all you have to do is give yourself permission to do it and then commit time to achieve them.
- It's never too soon to live your dreams-the sooner you begin, the better and more exhilarating your life will become.
Things to do
- Spend time thinking, and if possible, writing about all of your dreams. You'll know which ones to follow- they'll be the ones that generate energy and delight.
- Don't think about money first, it's just an excuse to not move forward with your idea. A big budget idea can have a tiny budget beginning and still be satisfying.
- Once you have some ideas, make a "To Do" list. Break each item down into smaller tasks and check them off as you work through them.
- If possible sight up for the Dream Shift lesson and the other lessons in the Overcoming Challenges workshops of the The Age Advantage Program. You'll meet some interesting folks exploring the same things you are, and you'll learn a lot from them.
Additional information
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New York: Crown Publishers, 2001.
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London: Nicholas Brealey Publishing, 2001.
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New York: Tarcher/Perigee Books, 1992.
The Right to Write: An Invitation and Initiation into the Writing Life.
New York: Tarcher/Putnam, 1998.
The Vein of Gold: A Journey to Your Creative Heart.
New York: Tarcher/Putnam, 1996.
Walking in this World: The Practical Art of Creativity.
New York: Tarcher/Putnam, 1996.
Cohen, Gene. The Creative Age: Awakening Human Potential
in the Second Half of Life. Toronto: HarperCollins, 2001.
Hakim, Cliff. When You Lose Your Job: Laid off, Fired, Early Retired, Relocated, Demoted, Unchallenged.
San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 1993.
Harkness, Helen. Don't Stop the Career Clock: Rejecting the Myths of Aging for a New Way to Work in the 21st Century.
Palo Alto: Davies-Black Publishing, 1999.
Ibarra, Herminia. Working Identity: Unconventional Strategies for Reinventing Your Career.
Boston: Harvard Business School Press, 2004.
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New York: Simon & Schuster, 1998.
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Toronto: Stoddart, 1997.
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New York: DK Publishing, 2003.
Sher, Barbara. Live the Life You Love: In Ten Easy Step-by-Step Lessons.
New York: Delacorte Press, 1996.
Sher, Barbara and Annie Gottlieb. Wishcraft: How to Get What You Really Want: A Unique, Step-By-Step Plan to Pinpoint Your Goals and Make Your Dreams Come True.
New York: Ballantine Books, 1979.
Sher, Barbara and Barbara Smith. I Could Do Anything If Only I Knew What it Was: How to Discover What You Really Want and How to Get It.
New York: Dell Publishing, 1994.
Sinetar, Marsha. To Build the Life You Want Create the Work You Love: The Spiritual Dimension of Entrepreneuring.
New York: St. Martin's Griffin, 1995.
Smye, Marti. Is It Too Late to Run Away and Join the Circus?: A Guide to Your Second Life.
Toronto: Key Porter Books, 1998.
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