The Dream Dean

Friday, August 13, 2021 (Day 225)

Relaxing Music for the week: Finding My Way: Liquid Mind (9:20) – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TpG6TUM1USs

Question: When have you felt at your richest?

Answer: It’s Friday the 13th! Great day to be alive!

When have I felt at my richest? If it’s based on money, this is probably the time I’ve felt at my richest. If the question is about something other than money, then not as much. But it’s a work in progress. I’ve been really, really, really, thinking about my work and my life lately, thinking about ways that I can serve even more profoundly than I have in the past. I’ve been reading more interesting books lately, hoping to see things through a different lens. Financially, I’m taking the steps necessary for Rebecca and I, as long as we’re still together, to retire comfortably. I also want to make sure that the ladies in my life (Rebecca, Amanda, and Bethany) are taken care of if I’m not around. So now, I can focus on the work and the life. For example, this morning was the first time I rode my indoor bike and didn’t feel dead legs – and had a good ride. And I’ll share some of the work stuff in “other Stuff” below.

Other Stuff

I think I mentioned that I was reading the book, “The Art of Aliveness: A Creative Return to What Matters Most” by Flora Bowley. It’s only 99 cents on Kindle right now (here’s the link: https://www.amazon.com/Art-Aliveness-Creative-Return-Matters-ebook/dp/B08HP5YN6J/ref=sr_1_2); if you’re into self-help and connecting with the deeper parts of yourself, you definitely want to get this one. I’ve only read the Forward, the Introduction, and the first two chapters (Start By Remembering and Work With What’s Working) and have already modified my definition of purpose, as well as noted a few other gems:

• Life is just one big experiment, in every moment, every day, for the rest of your life. It takes considerable practice to handle constant change. You have to keep doing it, again and again, experimenting to find out what works and what doesn’t – and then keep going.
• How about this question when thinking about what you want to do in the world: What tugs at your soul, aching to be expressed in the world?

And the last gem this morning was one that I’ve been thinking about for several years, ever since I read Eric Barker’s “Barking Up the Wrong Tree: The Surprising Science Behind Why Everything You Know About Success Is (Mostly) Wrong.” In it, he shared his two simple rules for success: (1) Know Yourself and, (2) Find the Right Pond. For those who know Life Design Catalyst work, I’ve come up with three Simple Rules for Success, adding to Eric’s research: (1) Know Yourself. (2) Serve Profoundly. (3) Find YOUR Right Pond. The serving piece is why each of us was placed on this Earth. Anyway, It works as the framework for the “HHS125: What Could I Do With My Life” course. However, I didn’t have a framework for the “HHS135: Build a Better You” course – until today. Here goes:

Framework: Simple Rules for a Better You

1. 1. Let go of what is no longer serving you.
   2. Be willing to step into the unknown.
   3. Cultivate connection with what matters most.
   4. Repeat.

(P.S. As I was writing this, I changed the framework from “Simple Rules for Creating a Life” to “Simple Rules for a Good Life” to “Simple Rules for a Better You.” I’m sure I’ll come up with something else within the next couple of days.)

I’m sure I’ll need to plus it out more, but it’s a great way to connect with the essence of the class, which is understanding your story, take a look at what’s working and what’s not working, then identify and engage in the things that matter most to you, especially when looking into the future. This is one of those things that last forever; if you are alive, you need to be engaged in these steps – if you’re interested in personal growth. If not, then go your own way. Anyway, I’ll play with this and see how it works for me. In fact, here are my new definitions of purpose, meaning, mission, and vision (which are the foundation for Life Design Catalyst work):

• Purpose: A sustained, fully-engaged commitment to future-directed goals and activities that empower you to explore, cultivate, and express a more honest, inquisitive, and ever-evolving version of yourself in service to something bigger than yourself.
• Meaning: The reason and significance behind who you are, what you do, and why you do it. It is something you develop, something you share, and something you create throughout your life, which can be formed in every moment through impactful positive experiences and/or significant negative experiences/trauma.
• Mission: A mission is an important task or duty that you are given to do. Your mission is the “work” that ignites your unique gifts in service to something bigger than yourself, something that matters to you so much that doing it makes a positive difference in the world.
• Vision: The use of imagination and wisdom to paint a vivid mental image of what you want to achieve in the future, based on your goals, dreams, and aspirations. Your vision is your desired future state as it captures the essence of where you want to go, serves as the inspiration to give your best, and shapes the reason why you are doing what you do.

Okay, that’s all for now. I need to get ready for my next meeting.