Rekindling Your Dream
“I’d forgotten it was okay for me to dream!”

“I’d quit dreaming – I was just living day by day.”

“This is the first time I’ve ever said my dream out loud!”

These are statements from participants in a recent seminar series I led.

Everyone has dreams, for themselves, and for others. Dreams are about what you can do to make this world a better place. God has given them to us.

Sometimes life suppresses our dreams. Life becomes more about surviving than thriving.

Sometimes other people suppress our dreams. We’re influenced to choose paths and vocations that will lead to “success,” and to forget our dreams because they seem risky or foolish to others.

Sometimes it’s momentary success that suppresses our dreams. Life becomes comfortable, and we’re enjoying where we are so much that we push our dreams aside.

We’re made to have dreams, and if God made us to dream, He also has given us what we need to achieve our dreams.

Ever notice that enthusiasm goes together with someone who is following his or her dream? Could that be because the Greek roots from which the word enthusiasm derives are “God in us?”

Rekindle your dream! That may require considerable effort if it's buried deep inside you, but it’s worth it to bring it back to life. It’s what you were made to do!

Then begin work to accomplish your dream. Share your dream with others. Chart out the steps and begin taking action. Find the help and support you need to succeed.

Be all God meant for you to be!

If I Had It To Do Over Again
“If you could live your live over again, what would you do differently?” was the question asked to 50 people over 95 years of age. Tony Campolo in his book "Who Changed the Price Tags?" reports that the answers fell into three categories.

“I would reflect more.”

“I would risk more.”

“I would do more things that would live on after I die.”

Are you applying these principles in your life? Or are you on track to simply echo these same answers when you come near to the end of your time on earth?

What’s interesting about all three answers is that they require us to step out of our comfort zones. Abundant living doesn’t result from following the path of least resistance. Abundant living is the result of intentional planning and actions.

Reflection requires lifting yourself out of the rut your life can fall into, where you’re just reacting. For most of us, that means creating time and changing behaviors, not comfortable things.

Risking requires stepping out of your own comfort zone, and often the comfort zones of those closest to you.

Doing things that will live on after you die requires a focus on others rather than self.

I encourage you to step out of your comfort zone and begin applying these principles in your life. Let me know if you’d like to talk about how coaching can support you in doing so.


A Shot on Goal Is Never a Bad Play!
It seems we can always think of a thousand reasons not to do something that maybe we should. Most of these have to do with fear of failure or rejection.

Wayne Gretsky, the National Hockey League’s all-time leading scorer, said, “One thousand percent of the shots I don’t take don’t go in.”

While we may have a thousand doubts, there is only one reality: If you don’t make the attempt, it won’t happen for sure.

This was brought home recently by a story a member of the Job Seekers group I work with told me. Someone told her about a job posting on a website. But when she got to the site to post her resume, it was no longer accepting applicants. Taking “a shot on goal,” she immediately went to the office in person to ask if she could leave her resume, and was allowed to do so. In the end, she got the job even though over 200 others had submitted online resumes and in spite of being told that the process of accepting resumes was finished.

Was this a long shot? Sure. But sometimes long shots are successful. And one thing we know for sure, she wouldn’t have obtained that job if she hadn’t taken her resume to the office.

Was there a high chance of failure and rejection? Certainly! None of us could have blamed her for not taking the shot. But she did, and she scored.

Want to achieve your dream or your goals? Take more shots, even long shots!

About Mapmaker Coaching
Mapmaker Coaching is a resource for the crossroads of your life.

What I do is help people take action to achieve their dreams.

These dreams usually involve their careers, their businesses, their ministries, or their retirements.

I help people achieve their dreams through coaching, a series of weekly conversations in which we together develop plans, review progress, and chart next steps. It's effective, it's enjoyable, and it's affordable.

I offer a free session so that you can learn more about coaching and how it can help you achieve your dream.

Personal Notes
I enjoy speaking to groups of all types, from service organizations to church groups. Just contact me to talk about your group's speaking needs and how I might serve you.

My web site has been revised and hopefully better communicates what Mapmaker Coaching is about. I'd enjoy receiving feedback from you on the newsletter and the web site.

Please feel free to share this newsletter with others. They can subscribe for themselves by going to my web site.

Our son John's tour in the Middle East is finished, and we and his wife Catherine are pleased to have him home in Houston. Sara completed her visit and work in Uganda, and we were able to spend some great time with her in London before returning to Houston. Mark and Kathy are in Midland and thriving. The desert can be a good place!

Jim