During hard times, look ahead

 When hard times hit, it's good to look ahead. Imagine yourself five, ten, or twenty years down the road. What do you hope life will be like then, and how can you pave the path to that destination?

As I read a lot of troubling news this morning, I was reminded of the fact that looking ahead in life does give us good energy to deal with the present struggle and move into a hopefully better future. How do we look ahead?

Choose a future age and time

First choose an age and time that you want to imagine. If you're young, you might choose an age and time twenty years from now or if you're older, you may decide that five or ten years is enough. 

Write about and/or create an image of the life you want to have at that time

Make time to dream about that future time and age, then via words, collage, drawing or vlogging capture that future place with as much detail as you can. As you imagine, try to include the following aspects of your future life:

• what will you look like and feel like
• who will be in your life
• where will you live--what is the community like, what is your home like, what is the landscape like
• what will you be doing and who will you be doing that with
• what will bring you joy
• what challenges might you face 

Figure out what it will take for you to achieve your dream self and life

Once you know what you want, figure out how to get there. As you figure this out, consider these factors:

• the money you need to earn and/or save
• the study or apprenticeship you may need to do
• the people you want to associate with
• the behaviors you'll need to hone and employ
• the routines you will need to follow
• the items you will need to rid your life of and the items you will need to add to your life

Read about, watch films/documentaries about, and meet with people who have achieved the kind of life you want to have

Often the lives we dream of are outside of the scope and knowledge of the people we know. For example, when I was in high school, I really wanted to have a career in educational television. Honestly, it would have been a super career choice for me, but no one around me supported that vision and I gave up on it. Had I taken the time to do a little more research, I likely would have ended up in that career field which, in hindsight, would have been a better fit for my life in many ways. I ended up choosing to teach which was also a good choice in many ways, but this situation demonstrates to me that people have to take their dreams and pursuits seriously as that's the only way to achieve what it is that you want to achieve. 

Decide on the kind of person you hope to be and the kind of community/world you want to live in

As you dream, think beyond yourself into the community and world you hope to live in, and let your dreams lead you to getting involved in the kinds of groups that help to create that kind of world/community. The people and groups we get involved with greatly impact who we are and the communities we live in. 

I wish you well on your dreaming and then your journeying--I plan to do this dreaming myself today. Onward.