An Exercise in Active Dreaming
“In the depths of winter I finally learned that there was in me an invincible summer.”
-albert camus
Though we may be digging into our projects and feeling motivated by New Year’s goals, Winter is nevertheless our yearly chance to dive real deep- with personal healing, defining our purpose, developing our businesses and gathering our strength so that all can be fully realized in coming months.
This takes challenging ourselves to find pace and seek thoroughness. We live in a world high on speed and overwhelm, especially in the west. Winter teaches us to slow down enough to let things unfold to their full potential. To contemplate the many paths before us long enough to sense which way to go next.
This doesn’t mean that we need daydream all day or get stuck in ideation.Instead, we can balance active dreaming with hearty rest & renewal; and then move forward wisely, courageously.
Try the prompt below to inspire “active dreaming”.... And try to identify one day this week for a radical-slow-down. Unplug for a full 24 hours. Take a long bath (that might be radical for some!). Go to sleep at 6:30pm… define what a radical slow-down looks like to you. What’s the outcome you’re looking for? Challenge yourself, schedule it in, and do it! Hint: If it doesn’t feel like a radical idea in your current life, it’s not slow enough. ;)
5-10 minute Active Dreaming Exercise
-Get comfy; close your eyes; take some deep breaths.
Allow your energy to move down from the mind/brain, where it so often congregates, down down into the heart and the belly. Move the energy gently down until you feel very relaxed in your body, gently letting go of all the stress, worries and rush.
Now, think of that one dream that you are working towards. It can be as big or small as you’d like, so long as it’s dear to your heart.
Once you have it in mind, spend 5-10 minutes visualizing it coming true in as much detail as possible. Just for these 5-10 minutes, don’t worry about how it’s going to come true. Go deep with the power of visualization, and SEE yourself living life, just like now, except that this dream has come to pass.
What does it taste, sound, feel, and look like to have reached your dream or goal? Where are you? What are wearing? Who is with you? What’s happening? Imagine, in as much vivid, riotously joyful, full-on glory, what it’s going to look like.
Return to the present moment and hold the end-outcome lightly in mind as you go about your tasks and activities. If ideas, exact steps, or inspiration comes to you, jot them down or better yet: just do them. Trust and work with what’s coming up.
Bonus Step: Try this every morning, for just 5-10 minutes. Each day, see if you can visualize an important step you took, a detail about how you achieved this dream, some action that you took to bring it forth. Believe it’s already done. Live into your next best steps from the attitude that it’s already been achieved. Take bold action, then rest. Repeat.
“The clearer you are when visualizing your dreams, the brighter the spotlight will be to lead you on the right path.”
Gail Lynne Goodwin
Hey Love,
Is this your year? Are you ready to fully embody your dreams and make -not a little- but BIG movement on the next chapter of your life & work?
My name is Amanda Young. I’m a Transformative Business & Mindset Coach. Take an hour and RiseUp with me. I can’t wait to hear your story & offer you deep, professional insights from my 15+ years as a conscious entrepreneur, spiritual teacher & feminist changemaker. There’s no obligation. Just a desire to actualize your dreams, and soon.
I look forward to talking with you.