Small children are more focused and persistent than most adults. Picture a 4 year old girl who wants her dad to give her a biscuit. She knows she is not meant to have one and that the request is unreasonable and yet she asks for one. Only, she does not ask once but on and on and on until wearily her father, decades her senior, gives in under the "pressure". She can endure numerous knock backs as she only needs one yes. I fully approve the dad in this example eventually giving in as he ultimately rewards her persistence. He also encourages the girl to dare to expect the unreasonable and demand it. As we grow older we forget this and knock backs somehow become so unpleasant it usually seems preferable not to ask or expect.
Astronaut to Loss Adjuster
When we are children we dare to dream to do what we find exciting. Don't worry, I am not about to say we should all strive to become astronauts. However, we start off with our ideal ambitions and then gradually adjust these downwards to what is practical and realistic. Astronaut at 8 years old can become adjusted to Loss Adjuster at 30. In many ways, this is a good thing as the world as we know it would not function otherwise. A reality is that it's a very lucky few who know exactly what they want to do at 16 or 21 and can spend their youth chasing their passion relentlessly forging a life that is as close to their passion as possible.
The Scrap for Security
Most of us have to scrap to find almost any niche in the world where we can pay the bills. This means that during these years of scrap and toil dreams become understandably compromised for practical realities. We should not be ashamed of doing this but should be proud of ourselves. Nobody handed you anything on a plate. Had your father been a tycoon you could have spent 10 years in LA honing your skills and contacts as a film director. That's not the reality for most of us. So your a middle manager in an open plan office with a health plan and a pension? Good for you. You live responsibly, pay your taxes, care for friends, family and others and you have found a niche all by your self. The niche is probably one you never knew existed at the age of 8 or even 18 but you found it and it means you are self reliant. This is arguably the hardest thing many people in the world have to do in their life. Again, you should be pleased with yourself even if you do not jump out of bed with excitement every Monday morning.
Security as a Platform
If you do jump out of bed every Monday morning relishing the working week ahead then you do not need to read much further. However, if this is not the case you do not have to resign yourself that the next few decades will be more of the same. Rather than seeing this comfortable world of security you have made for yourself out of hard work as confining and restrictive, start to see it as a platform or spring board. You probably have some savings, or if not you at least have a trade of some description which currently pays the bills. Now, you can keep on with more of the same and build this security to enable you to do what you want in retirement but that fills few of us with inspiration. Or, you can look to leverage your current situation as a secure platform to pursue those buried dreams that you gave up on long ago.
Dusting off the Dreams
When we are in the middle of our careers and busy living life we tend to forget our old dreams and forget that if we persist our demands will probably be met. When we are young we chat excitedly amongst each other about all the things we want to do and how we don't want to compromise or sell ourselves out. Whilst we were young, we were the same people with the same intellect as we have today. It is easy to dismiss our young selves as naive and laugh of our early notions of what life would be like as exuberance. Now you are into a career but still have a few decades stretched ahead of you now is the time to dust off those old dreams you had when you were young or new ones you have found. Then, start to feel how you felt when you were younger, that anything really is possible if you put your mind to it. Make a list of all the things you remember wanting, no matter how silly they are. Do not overlay your "wisdom" at this stage of what is practical. For example, you may have wanted to be a pro footballer which may now be impossible. However, it reminds you of your passion and interest in the sport and you can dare to dream you could do something connected with it. Once you have put as full a list down as possible then for each one you can doodle ideas of what you could in relation to your dream.
De-Risk Career Changes
Career changes appear risky and scary. The bigger the change or more secure you are now the less likely that any change will come about. Therefore, look for ways to take out the scariness of starting to pursue your dreams. A great example is the British comedian John Bishop. Midway into a career he was a company sales rep with house, mortgage, and family. He then started doing a bit of comedy performing on a part-time basis along side his "sensible" life. After a few years, he had enough confidence that he could make a living from it he gave up his day job. Naturally the first year or two were no doubt tense but he had a good insight into the probability of success. As a result, he now does something he surely loves and the rest off us get some great entertainment. His brand of humor relies on his years of adult experience. Paradoxically the opportunity to chase his dream may have not been possible when he was 20 but was so when he was 38.
Too Young to Do, Too Old to dream
The example of John Bishop illustrates a temporal miss-match for many of us between ambition and ability. When we are young we have ambition and fire in our belly in bucket loads. However, we often know little of how the world works and for various reasons may not actually have the tools to hone in our dream. As we get older, the fire in our belly dulls but our life skill set grows. What you should try and do is drag your ambition and dreams up from your young self and sit them squarely next to your current worldly wisdom. Making a list of dreams, coupled with ideas of how to chase them is a good way of structuring your thinking. You will be able to see opportunities that were not possible when your dreams originally burned strong.
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