This year, a dream 8 years in the making finally came true for me! That dream was spending a month every winter in a tropical location.
When I worked as an accountant, taking a month of vacation in January or February was absurd and impossible (year-end close followed by tax season).
My dream didn’t come to pass exactly as I had hoped. It was even better!! On my last full day in Venice, Florida for the winter, I reflected on all the unexpected blessings.
- Six full weeks in Florida, not just four
- A free place to stay, despite having money saved for accommodations
- Lots of quality time with my 76-year-old Dad, with a pinkie swear to do it again next year
- Played more and better golf the first 90 days of this year than I did in all of 2021
- Visits with my aunts, uncles, and my best friend
- Ate so much delicious seafood, I should be a mermaid by now
- And countless other delights I will treasure for years to come
I think it’s important for you to know the steps I took to make this happen, bringing this dream into fruition.
How to Make Your Dreams Come True
Step 1: Define the goal.
This might seem obvious, but I needed to clarify my dream. What exactly did I want? Why did I want it? I wanted to spend at least one month in the winter away from the Cincinnati area and in a tropical location. Why did I want it? I hate the cold weather – and I love the beach!
Step 2: Supercharge the goal with positive emotion.
For years before this dream came true, I wrote and said mantras like, “Of course, I spent every February on a tropical beach!” I even had a 7.77 carat blue zircon ring custom made 7 years ago as a “mini vision board” of this dream (the blue stones remind me of the ocean, and the gold of sand.) Having the visual reminder kept me focused, motivated, and excited about achieving this goal.
Step 3: Remove obstacles.
Almost 5 years ago, I stopped doing my accounting consulting work, even though it paid well. I’m not going to lie. Giving up almost $25,000 of annual income felt excruciating at the time. I had to figure out how to replace that income with other sources. But if I didn’t let the accounting gig go, I wouldn’t see my dream of spending a month near the beach in winter.
Step 4: Act as if it’s coming true.
My dream would not arrive if I didn’t make room for it! I began to rearrange my coaching business in such a way to support me taking a month mostly off in the winter. Covid certainly helped me to expedite the process of no longer coaching clients in person, and transitioning into a 100% virtual business model. I knew I would still coach my 1:1 clients while in my tropical paradise, but that’s all. I found another financial coach I trust to whom I delegate my money wellness webinars. He was grateful for the business and I was grateful to have a trusted “substitute teacher” for my corporate clients.
Step 5: Be flexible with how it happens.
I envisioned renting a condo on the beach for the month of February. My husband would come down and stay with me for 10 days (he still works corporate, so his schedule isn’t as flexible as mine.) During the rest of the time, I figured that my Dad would come down for a week to play golf, and my best friend, Nicholle, would join me for some beach time.
When I told my Dad last summer that I had everything lined up – time in my schedule, the money to do it, the business pieces in place – he said something I didn’t expect. “I think I’d like to spend the whole winter in Florida. What if I rent a place big enough for both of us… and our visitors?” Because my Dad would be down in Florida for three months, he would need his car down there with him.
This meant I got to spend even more time in Florida! I drove down with him the first week of January, got him settled and stayed for a few days before flying home. Then I flew back down to stay for my month in February. And of course, I just HAD to fly back down at the end of March to help my Dad pack up and drive home. So, I got to spend a total of six weeks this winter in Florida, playing golf, laying by the pool, walking the beaches, and eating delicious seafood. Dreams really do come true, but not exactly the way I planned it.
The moral of my story is this: Don’t give up on those dreams and desires of your heart. Some take longer to manifest than others, but the long hoped for ones are deliciously sweet when they come. But your dreams won’t come true through wishing alone. You have to take deliberate steps to move towards them if you want to make them a reality!
What dream are you currently working on, to make it a reality?
P.S. Want access to the mindset tools I use to make all of my dreams a reality? You can find them in the Magnetic Money Mindset™ Bundle.