A man was sitting at the porch and watching his grandchildren playing in the park. As he sips his hot cup of coffee, he thinks about his dreams and asks himself how he can better further his plans to expand his business and give back to the community. At the age of 77, he is still dreaming for something big.
You are not too young or too old to be bold for your goals.
Don’t settle! Life is excited for you. You may be a teenager, in your 20’s, 30’s, 40’s, or even older.
One Sunday, I met with five youth leaders – Gemma who just finished her doctorate studies, Jim and Jane who are in college, Gary who is in Grade 9, and Betty who is planning to come up with an event for the youth. These five youth leaders are in varying ages – three of them are young while the two are not so young.
These five are busy with their personal lives. They are in different endeavours in different levels and in different areas. Oh yes, they also have different eyes, different styles, and different smiles. But there is a commonality in them: I sensed that they have big dreams and they are on fire with aspirations.
Gemma who has been teaching for five years did not settle. She pursued further studies and now she just got her PhD. Jim, aside from studying in school, has been active in his youth organization. He has been going around the country and abroad to help further the cause of young people. He has been to Thailand, Korea and Africa. This young man is learning and contributing a lot to his group.
Beside Jim is Jane who said she was taking up BS Chemical Engineering. I asked her, “Is being a Chemical Engineer your childhood dream?” She smiled and thought for a while. Then she replied, “Not exactly but I love Science!” Gary, who is seated next to her, was all ears and wearing a full smile. He is the amiable yet silent guy.
We asked him some questions but he did not utter a thing. But with his smile and the sparkle in his eyes, I sensed that he is thinking about something grand. He wasn’t able to articulate it at that moment but I like to believe that there is something great in him – a potential waiting to be unleashed.
At the end of the table is Betty. We turned our attention to her, “How about you?” She just said, “That’s a wonderful question… difficult to answer!” Then she blinked like a baby and fell silent. To that particular question, she did not answer a thing. But what was good about her is she exerts effort to organize an event for the welfare of the youth. Now that speaks loudly of a dream she has in her heart.
Different ages, styles and personalities do not deter someone from firing up a dream. So regardless of your age, you’ve got to reignite the fire of your dreams.
What are your dreams? What have you done to achieve them? What will you do to achieve them? Or have you stopped dreaming? Maybe, it’s time to reconsider. The past year, what have you done to fulfil your dreams?
Reassess. Evaluate your daily and weekly schedules. Do they lead you to the achievement of your dreams? If yes, congratulations! If not, get back on track.
To dream is for everyone. To the not-so-young, don’t say dreams are just for the young. To the young, don’t say that achievements are just for those of old age.
Have you heard of that old man (in his 60’s) who took the Philippine bar exams in 2014? Have you heard of the young teenage boy who spoke on the famous stage of TEDTalk? Have you heard of that man who started speaking at the age of 13 and is now a bestselling author and a widely sought-after speaker?
These people had dreams regardless of their age. Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “The time is always right to do what is right.” Jumping off from this solid statement, Jim Key (2003 World Champion in Public Speaking) went on to say, “If it’s right for us to dream as children, then it’s just as right for us to dream as adults.”
If you think you are too young or too old to start dreaming and achieving something, think again. You are not too young or too old to aspire for more. Yes, you too can dream!
(This is an excerpt from the book Living Large in the Little Things by Chris Dao-anis. This book is available at Mt. Cloud Bookshop, Casa Vallejo, Upper Session Road, Baguio City. Chris is also a trainer and speaker on communication and personal leadership. For talks and trainings, email him at chrisdaoanis@gmail.com or visit his website at www.chrispoweracademy.com.)
