Reigniting The Dream
What’s wrong with wanting to discover and conquer the world?
I totally get past explorers like Captain Cook, Joseph Banks, Burke & Wills and our now modern day enquiring minds like Neil Armstrong and Richard Branson, wanting to go where no-one else has gone before, with a common cause and a dream to open places up to others so they could gain knowledge and have a better life – I totally get it!
Have you ever thought that you would like to discover a new concept or create a new model of something that took off around the world and made a real difference in the lives of people and businesses? Well the fact is you can – but you need an enquiring mind and an understanding and acceptance of the need and importance of change.
One of the challenges though, is that things move so quickly now. The ability to consider an idea for an extended period of time usually means that someone else fills the gap and makes what you were thinking about, actually happen.
We certainly see it in the area of fashion. Within hours of garments hitting the runways in Europe or a royal wedding dress being designed, there are copies ready to send to stores. Someone’s dream can be everyone’s reality in just hours.
But dreaming is not always about creating something new from scratch. It can also mean building on things that you or others have already done. Creating a new model, or just making something better than it was.
In fact, people are more likely to grasp a concept quickly if it is a version of what they already know. A good example
of this is when you spend time with a Holden ‘rev head’. Once a Holden freak – always a Holden freak. The look may change, but the reason for being a Holden freak does not.
I am a strong believer that when the mind becomes lazy so does the
person. When the mind stops creating so do we. And when we get lazy and stop creating we become frustrated, depressed and cynical, all qualities that then cause a creative block and make us mediocre.
None of us like to dwell in this arena for too long.
It really doesn’t matter what other people think you can achieve, or the limitations or expectations they place on you; it is what you believe you can achieve and whether or not you have the passion and desire to make it happen.
So ask yourself this question; Is it time to reignite my dream?
I truly believe that we are all on this earth to achieve something more than just surviving, building assets and acquiring massive wealth. obtaining wealth through hard work is not wrong in itself, it is very wrong if it stops us from achieving the things that bring sustainable fulfillment and satisfaction.
Now I know you might be thinking that this is all a bit spooky, or even a bit Zen, well life is a bit spooky and a bit Zen.
It is also full of hard work and full of disappointments but it can also be full of great achievements.
It’s about getting our motives in line with our actions and realising that all of us have a responsibility to the greater good. If we get the right ducks in a row we can experience an enormous sense of achievement and meet our needs at the same time.
In the life of most businesses, 2009/2010 will go down in the records as a tough yet ‘character building’ time.
Some people discovered that they actually had very little character while others discovered their real character and a new passion for the dreams that they had always wanted to achieve.
It made people stand up and say “I can make this happen”, it toughened us up, and that can only be a good thing.
Above all it made people re-evaluate their lives and their dreams. Many made decisions to make the things happen that they had been thinking about for years.
So 2011 is also the year to reignite my personal and professional dreams. To use the skills obtained through tough situations and to lead the way in helping others to realise their dreams also.
To do this I have created a simple model to help guide me to success.
Whenever we are dreaming or looking to create something new there are four stages that we need to go through to ensure we are committed to the dream and prepared to let it live. I call it -The Innovation Change Model.
Step 1. LIKE IT
For your dream to be realised you must actually like the idea. This does not mean that you will have all of the answers, but you should be prepared to play with the idea, research it, dream about it and give it a life.
Step 2. LOVE IT
This is the stage where you move the idea from your head to your heart. Where you are totally committed to working on making it happen. No love relationship will ever be perfect, but when you are in love you are prepared to do anything to make the relationship work; so too with our dreams.
Step 3. LIVE IT
This is when you become the dream. Like Gandhi said, “you must become the thing that you wish to see”. It must now be a part of what you do and how you speak.
Step 4. LET IT GO
This step is the step that will ensure your dream is sustainable. So many great ideas are smothered because people would not let them go and therefore would not let them grow. If you are not prepared to ‘Let It Go’ and let it grow, then you will in turn not grow yourself. But plan the ‘Let It Go’ strategy at the beginning – not at the end. If you master this then you will go on to do other amazing things.
In March 2011, I had to ‘Let It Go’. The business I had built over 18 years now had to fly.
It was time to reignite the dream and it was time to grow.
And so the new Proteus was born.
By Des Penny
CEO & Founder | Proteus Leadership
Proteus Leadership is one of Australia’s premier leadership training and development companies. Proteus Leadership provides leadership courses and management training to a range of industries and assists organisations to build positive workplace cultures, implement change and Create Great Leaders. Proteus also facilitates a range of world-class management courses, workshops, conferences and events across Australia and beyond with the sole purpose of bringing leaders together to connect and grow.
“Our core purpose is to Create Great Leaders that will in turn build Great companies and develop Great teams.”
