| ACHIEVING YOUR DREAMS
SECOND ACTS:
Authors, Stephen M. Pollan and Mark Levine wrote a very readable and interesting book, Second Acts: Creating The Life You Really Want, Building The Career You Truly Desire (Quill, 2003). It is filled with lots of stories, exercises, and information about how to achieve your desired dreams or new "second act" as they call it. Daily, we have examples of our neighbors, friends, and family that have created new second acts. Here are some famous people who have made dramatic changes (past and present):
- Grandma Moses from domestic servant and housewife to artist.
- Tom Clancy, from insurance broker to writer of military thrillers such as, The Hunt For Red October.
- Paul Gaugain started his career as a stockbroker. His new career came through his weekend hobby: painting.
- Ray Kroc, was floundering in his careers as a jazz pianist and in real estate, until he began a journey into marketing which lead to marketing a "Multimixer" that ultimately evolved into the start of McDonald’s.
Why don’t we do what we really want? I hear from people daily about their about their dreams. What is holding us back? It could be:
- Financial/Family Obligations
- Too Difficult To Achieve
- Feeling That Their Dreams Are Just Dreams And Not Practical
- Physical Restrictions
- Dreams Might Appear Silly Or Insignificant
- Lack of Self-Confidence.
Consider this question: What a new act might do for you?
- Create Optimism About Your Future
- Infuse Enjoyment In To Each Moment
- Spark A Creative Burst
- Give You A Feeling That You Have Purpose
- Connect You Better With Others
Dreams are not realized without hard work according to Pollan and Levine. The process of your reaching your dreams is important, and as part of that process you need to: DEFINE YOUR DREAM. The nub of your dream is to answer these two critical questions:
- What do you want?
- How do you know when you get it? In order to answer these two critical questions, you must explore:
- Your Passions
- Your Strengths and weaknesses
- From Whom And/Or Where Might You Get Information About Your Passions
- The Needs That Are Underlying Your Passion
- Your Choices and Narrow Your Dream
As a result of this process – Are you more excited, raring to go as they say, or giving up on the idea totally?
In order to do or create this, the Second Act, authors feel that you need to develop a "Second Act Mindset." A Second Act Mindset means looking at how you can positively become or do what you want. They call the process: Nine Building Blocks for a Second Act. The Nine Building Blocks include:
1. Reaching Out For Help And Giving Back In Return
2. Embracing Conflicting Needs Not Settling
3. Planting Lots Of Seeds
4. Looking At Your Opportunities
5. Tackling Your Talents And Shortcomings Being Honest
6. Looking At Life Through Dual Lenses (Present And Future)
7. Letting The Journey Happen (Controlling What You Can)
8. Believing You Are Unique And Embracing Your Incomparability
9. Being Optimistic. Having Hope In The Future
And then there are numerous closed doors
(barriers to achieving your dream). Among them are:
- Age
- Money
- Geography
- Physical Condition
- Training And Education
- Timing In Your Life
- Fear Of Success Or Failure
- Self-Esteem
It is important to identify these barriers before you start your journey. What are your most significant hurdles or obstacles? Can you rank them in order of difficulty to you? Can they be overcome? Sometimes, your perception is reality. If you cannot envision a new future, it will not happen. It is important to tackle these perceptions and hurdles head on. For instance, one of the main concerns is money, this hurdle can be approached through a variety of strategies from:
INCREASING REVENUES
- Asking For A Raise
- Taking A Part-Time Job
- Increasing Your Rates
- Converting Assets To Cash
- Boosting Your Unearned Income just to name a few.
Or conversely, you look at ways to cut your living expenses:
- Refinance Your Mortgage
- Transform Your Consumer Debt
- Relocate To Lower Your Cost Of Living
- Trim Other Areas Of Coverage From Life Insurance To Auto Insurance just to name a few
Every new step is the beginning of a new act. Here is the impact of that change. The authors (Second Acts) had this to say," I have learned an important lesson. I already knew, both first-hand and through my clients, that launching a Second Act and finally leading the life of your dreams could turn your life from black and white into Technicolor; it could bring joy to an otherwise humdrum existence."
So what are you waiting for? I have personally started my "Second Act." Who knows, a third or fourth act could be in store for me (or you) as well?
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