Hey ,

In my last email, we talked about why goal setting might not be working for you.

I finally learned what was holding me back all along:  I was stuck in a cycle of following the advice of others and what they thought I should be.  I was putting so much time and energy chasing other people’s dreams and what they thought should be done.  I also did not have a clear vision of what MY business would look like and what I needed to do, every day, to get there.

Some of us start thinking that we're too old to start thinking about a new job, a new career, a new project. Have you ever thought of writing a book? I know some of you have.  You are listening to other people’s opinions or maybe your own negative ones and you are burying your dreams deeper and deeper.

The #1 regret of the dying is this: "I wish I'd had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me."

Take a look at these people who pursued a new passion later in life!

1. Colonel Sanders.  

He held several jobs, including farmer, fireman, streetcar conductor and insurance salesman. At 40, he began running a Kentucky service station.  He franchised in 1952, at the age of 62.

2. Julia Child

She started her career at the CIA where she helped develop a shark repellant.  When she got married she took a cooking class at Le Cordon Blue - and was deemed “unqualified” to move into the haute cuisine course.  She did not give up and at 49 she published “Mastering the Art of French Cooking”.  Two years later, in 1963 her TV Show, The French Chef, debuted.

3. Grandma Moses

Better known as folk artist Grandma Moses, began painting, as a hobby, at the age of 77, to keep busy and out of mischief.  She was charging $3 to $55 for her original pieces, and her prices skyrocketed to $10,000 by the time she died at the age of 101.

These are only a few examples and there are many, many more.

There are many tools out there to find out and uncover your dream because sometimes it is buried so deep inside of you that you don’t even know what it is? Or you're afraid of bringing them to life.  This is where doing a self-analysis, looking inward first to wake those dreams up is crucial.

A simple tool I like to use is finding out your Ikigai.  Ikigai is a Japanese concept that means "a reason for being". The word refers to having a direction or purpose in life, that which makes one's life worthwhile, and towards which an individual takes spontaneous and willing actions giving them satisfaction and a sense of meaning to life.

You can find your Ikigai by answering these four questions.  You can have multiple answers for each question and then narrow it to one.

1. What do I love?
2. What am I good at?
3. What can I be paid for?
4. What does the world need?

Of course, it’s not that simple, but it’s a start to wake up that passion, purpose or dream inside of you.

There is a more complete solution coming soon.

Hit reply and let me know what you think of those 4 questions?  Are they making you look inward?

Everyone who sends me one answer to each question will get a little something special. :)

Joanne