5 C's Of Manifesting Your Dreams
I've been consciously goal setting for a handful of years now. Before then I never really took the time to reflect on exactly what it is I wanted and why. Mostly I chose the next thing because I couldn't stay where I was.
After college I needed to find somewhere to live and work. So I chose NYC and I continued to pursue dance while waiting tables because that's what I always did. Eventually I realized that although I loved to dance it wasn't something I was willing to dedicate my life to. I continued to wait tables and waited for the next thing to arise as I took different classes on things I was interested in like jewelry making and pottery.
Then my husband suggested I try the yoga class he had been going to. I went, loved it, and decided I wanted to learn more and took the 800 hour teacher training. I began teaching and then a few years later we moved to Kelowna.
In Kelowna, now with a baby in tow and eventually another, I had to financially contribute to our family and needed "a real job" as teaching a handful of yoga classes wasn't cutting it. This is when I started to really explore my dharma, passions, and talents. It was then that I began consciously designing the livelihood and lifestyle I wanted. Hence Align and Thrive and Empowered Living were born.
The latest dream I've manifested is combining my love of travel with yoga into a yoga retreat. If doing a yoga retreat and going to Bali are one of your dreams, you should come.
If I were to codify the key components of making things happen it comes down to these 5 C’s:
- Clarity
- Commitment
- Courage
- Community
- Creation
Clarity: You need to create space to reflect on and clarify what you want. This requires getting off the hamster wheel of life, pressing pause and getting out a journal to write down your deepest desires. Make sure the things you’re going after are indeed what YOU want, not what’s expected of you. Are they in line with YOUR values or someone else’s?
Commitment: Once you determine what you want, then it’s a matter of committing to making it happen. A great way to ensure you do is to take action immediately. Set things into motion. I find that if I tell someone right away that I’m going to do something, I’m way more likely to follow through. Don’t leave great ideas in your head, get them out into the world straightaway or they wither and die.
“If you’re interested, you come up with stories, excuses, reasons, and circumstances about why you can’t or why you won’t. If you’re committed, those go out the window. You just do whatever it takes.” — John Assaraf
Courage: Don’t wait for confidence before you take the leap. Confidence comes after you take action. Courage is what you need to muster to step boldly forward in the direction of your dreams. This means silencing the naysayer in your head and just going for it. Build your wings on the way down.
Community: You don’t need to do it alone - nor should you. In fact, good luck if you're trying to figure it all out yourself. Put yourself in the way of teachers, peers and community who has what you want and they will pull you up. It's a more streamlined way to manifesting your dreams.
Creation: One definition of creation is "to come into being". This is about breaking it down into manageable chunks, scheduling it in and sticking to the plan. This obviously requires good time management skills and work ethic. I've compiled come resources for that here.
What are your dreams? Hit "reply" and let me know. If you're clear on what you want but you're not making them happen - ask yourself: which C are you missing?
