I’ve shared this story a few times in the past. It was a life changer for me.
Reflection
Has someone ever blessed you with a nugget of wisdom that has remained with you forever?
I have a handful of words of wisdom that I’ve never forgotten.
I was given one over fifty years ago while basking in the sun and sitting on a hot asphalt basketball court at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.
I was at summer basketball camp, and each day, we would pause and listen to a guest speaker who was there to help us become better basketball players and young men.
The speaker on this day was one of the greatest coaches in Ohio High School basketball history–Paul Walker, coach of the Middletown Middies.
As I recall, Coach Walker asked us to raise our hands if we had a dream. The majority of us raised our hands. Then he asked how many of us had written that dream on paper? All of us lowered our hands.
He then said some of the most profound words I’ve ever heard, “A dream remains a dream until you write it down. When you write it down, it becomes the start of a plan. You can’t execute a dream, but you can execute a plan.”
Then he told us that once we got home, we were to write our dream on an index card and hang it where we would see it frequently.
Truth
I put that advice into practice after I got home from camp that year, and some fifty years later, I’m still reducing my goals to writing. I’ve replaced index cards with my journal because I journal every day.
Questions
What new dream(s) and goal(s) are percolating in your head?
Have you written it/them down?
More Truth
Something magical happens when you put your dreams in writing…I always write from experience.
Proverbs 21:5, “The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance, but everyone who is hasty comes only to poverty.”
PS…see “P” below.
P.E.A.C.E.
Jay@EagleLaunch.com
P.E.A.C.E.ful Living…
Plan – A dream/goal remains a dream until it is put into writing. Putting your dream or goal in writing is the first step in creating a PLAN to achieve it. When you fail to plan, you plan to fail.
Effort – Turning your dream/goal into reality requires a commitment to putting forth consistent and focused EFFORT toward the execution of your plan. Nothing great in life happens without working hard.
Attitude – Your chances of achieving your dream exponentially increase if you believe you will achieve it. Always remember that your ATTITUDE determines your altitude in life.
Community – Nothing great in life happens by doing it alone. The chances of achieving your dream expand as your COMMUNITY of positive mentors and coaches expand. You become the average of the five people you spend the most time with…and yes, spending time with “people” through books and instructional videos factors into your average.
Energy – Chasing and achieving your dream requires optimal mental, physical, and spiritual levels of ENERGY. Take care of yourself; no one else will.
