In my previous blog I touched upon good stewardship and what this means for us as guests on our planet. That we have the duty to leave our world in a better way compared to when we found it at birth. Today, I would like to deep dive into the pursuit of your dreams as an actual application of good stewardship. And bring this broad concept close to you so you can apply it in your own life.
We all have dreams. Ever since our childhood we have been dreaming to be a firefighter, a veterinarian, a doctor or maybe the president of a country. For me, it was all about being a race track driver. It was not until recently that I realized I could make more of that childhood dream. My life has always been about cars in some way. Being a private chauffeur for CEO’s during my Master studies; graduating at Toyota; and starting my first job at Volkswagen. But it never really touched the actual childhood dream. And that just did not feel satisfying to me. Why? Because these activities were not at the core of the dream I have. And this uncovers an important aspect of a dream: it is what makes us reach an ultimate state of happiness. In essence: we feel as a child once again. Want to know a secret? I feel like a child when I am at a racetrack and I see and hear the race cars and their engines and other mechanics doing their thing to propel these monsters forward. And it feels great!
So why are dreams part of being a good steward? How can dreams help make our world a better place? Because a dream comes from the best intentions that you have. A dream as such makes you a better version of yourself. By being a better version of yourself you are able to be a good steward in life. The pursuit of your dream gives you energy and this translates into other parts of your life. The pursuit of dreams is about identifying the dreams you have and next realize them or get as close as possible to realize them. Let me get one thing very clear: a dream does not need to be world changing per se. It does not have to be on a Mandela or Ghandi scale. Dreams can perfectly be whatever you desire it to be. Whether it is raising your kids in the best way possible so they have a good life. Or landscaping your garden into the way you have always imagined it to be. These are all valid dreams. In addition, a dream has all your values that you live by incorporated in it. A dream cannot have values that you do not agree with or live by simply because it would not be one of your dreams in that case. Would you pursue something that you do not feel comfortable with because it interferes with your values? Exactly! You would not. Looking at your dream in reverse: analyzing your dream allows you to identify what is important to you. What you value in life.
I encourage you to pursue that dream you had as a child. I am pretty sure the first thing that will pop up are barriers: how on earth can I still become a firefighter at age 41? I do not have the background to heal a human or an animal. But let us take a look beyond these barriers. Let us look at what you are capable of. Let us say that one of your dreams is to fly like a bird. Alright, this might sound a bit out there. But, if you think of the options you have to get close to this, you will realize that such a dream is not that far away. You could for example enter a flight course and learn how to fly a plane. Or what about paragliding or skydiving? The options are plentiful if you just keep an open mind and think in possibilities. And at the same time this dream gives you a clear indication of an important value: the act of freedom…
Follow your dream! You are worth it to enjoy the happiness that it unlocks.
visiowal 