Dream Storm: Dreams = Reality
As I sit at Starbucks, enjoying a tasty Pumpkin Spice Latte, I begin to think back on how we started our business. It started with a crazy dream to run our own photography business and live life for us. At the time we started our business, it was hard to imagine that in less than three years, both Liz and I would be working full time for our business! Over those three, and now almost four years, we came to realize that the dreams we dream are often actually too small, because when you take the first step, no dream is to big to be turned into reality. Hopefully you all will be able to look back three years from now and think the same thing about your dreams.
If you followed along for our last two posts on Dream Storming by now you should have found your inspirational space and have a list of 3-5 BIG dreams. Now it’s time to turn those dreams into reality.
1. Take the first step
Before any dream can become a reality, you must take action, face your fears, and take the first step. Let’s start with the first dream on your list. Write out three simple things you can do now that once accomplished, you will be one step closer to achieving your goal. The key here is to start small. We want to slowly build momentum and see progress quickly. Trying to accomplish your entire dream all at once will just make you frustrated and ready to give up.
I recently posted on our Facebook page that one of my dreams was to one day have a product or book we create sold in Williams-Sonoma. This is obviously no simple task and will take a ton of work. But first, let’s start small, simple and fun, because if you are not having fun then what’s the point? The first step I am going to take as soon as I finsih this post is to go to Williams-Sonoma to really peruse the store to see what types of things sell well, how they are styled, and how we could create something that might one day sit alongside the same shelves. We LOVE to entertain are always drawn to the cookbook section and fun little prepared food gifts. Who knows, maybe one day we will have our own book on entertaining for couples. Although simple, even just the thought of taking the step to get out of the house, and envision a product we create being sold in Williams-Sonoma is invigorating. And that’s the point, we want to start small, take a little step, and then a bigger step, and before we know it, we will have an avalanche of momentum behind us. Not sure where to start? Well, that brings us to part 2.
2. Ask for help
When we started our business, we had absolutely no idea what we were doing. We LOVED photography, capturing photos, and had a pretty good understanding of how to use our cameras, but after that, we were absolutely lost. So we asked for help. It was amazing to see how much people were willing to share when we simply asked for help. At one point or another, every great idea, business, or product started at exactly the same point yours did. Most people are extremely grateful and take great satisfaction in helping other’s achieve their goals. As long as you are genuine, appreciative of their time, and grateful, more often than not, when you ask for help, someone will extend their hand to lift you up.
3. Surround yourself with people that will hold you accountable to your dreams
Accomplishing a huge goal and turning dreams into reality is tough work. Along the journey, it is often easy to get discouraged. You might hear “no” or “I’m sorry” a lot so it is extremely important to have someone that will hold you accountable to your dreams.
We recently posted about creating a Board of Life Directors. One of the purposes of creating our Board was to surround ourselves by people that will hold us accountable. You don’t have to create your own board but we’d love it if you did. Instead, start by simply telling a friend your dream and ask them check in with you at the end of each week. Or, ask them if they would mind if you sent them an email once a month listing the progress you have made on your dreams. Knowing that there is someone you can share your thoughts with is a huge motivation to turn your dream into a reality.
4. Make your dreams known
If there is just one piece of advice you take from this post and put into action then this is it. Make your dreams known. You would not image how much of an impact this has had on the success of our business. The more you talk about your dreams to people the more opportunities that will present themselves. You never ever know who someone might know or what someone might need.
Don’t be afraid to share you dreams. We recently mentioned that we would LOVE to photograph a couple for a wedding or engagement session in Europe. We let people know about our dreams and that we were traveling to Europe earlier in the year. By doing so, the opportunity to photograph one of our Brides during her dress fitting in Barcelona and a couple for an anniversary session in Paris presented itself. We are confident that this would have never happened had we not continually shared our love of travel and dream to shoot in Europe with the world. Check out the photos from our Paris session here. We would still love to photograph an actual wedding in Europe (Italy or France to be specific) so let us know if you know of anyone in need of an international wedding photographer! :)
If your still reading at this point, it’s time to take the first step. Leave a comment below and let us know what your dreams are. You never know who might be reading this post! Go make your dreams a reality!