Wednesday, January 25, 2012

PMC Thought #5: Heart of Success' Law No. 4: Believe in the Power of Dreams

It's been almost 10 days since our last post on our Heart of Success series.  We are now at number four.  Only three more to go and we will be through with our first series of lessons.

For the first time visitors, you may ask why are we talking about Heart of Success if this is Pinoy Millionaires Circle.  Why don't we just talk of being millionaires?  I know you would ask that.  Well, that's because first of all, we would like to set the correct mindset.  If we are trying to climb the ladder of success, we would like to ensure that that ladder is leaning at the correct wall.

So, for those who have just joined us in this series, you may also like to revisit our first article for this series.


To continue,  for today we are going to talk about Heart of Success by Rob Parsons Law No. 4:  Believe in the power of dreams.

There are people who dream dreams.  There are those who achieved and there are those who don't.  To many of us, dreamers are those people who never get things done.  Partly right, partly not.  Because sometimes, all these people need are dream-catchers.  Parsons identified these dream-catchers as men and women of vision, sometimes called 'can do' people.  Dream-catchers are the opposite of dream-killers.

Parsons added that, "...there are lots of disappointments and failures along the way.  But learning how to live with failure is part of the stock-in-trade of the dreamer."


But more than just having a dream is a need to plant a seed.  Ray Kroc, founder of McDonald's, according to Parsons, realized his dream of selling hamburgers all over USA by making a phone call and "asked how much it would cost to purchase some rolls and beef.  It started when he... began."  According to Parsons,
"Almost everybody you meet has a dream.  [I often talked to people who tell me that] one day they will write a book, learn a language, get fit or spend more time with their family.  Every one of those dreams is real and sincere.  And yet few of those dreams will ever be caught-will never be translated into reality.  If dreams are the hope, and beginning is the key, then what stops us from getting started, giving birth to our visions?"
 And the reason we often give for not starting on with our dreams is "Time."  It's as if we are deprived of time more than anyone else.  But the truth is, each one of us is given exactly the same amount of time everyday.  We live in the world where the gadgets we buy and possess are supposed to free up some of our time but in the end, we feel like having less than we used to have.

Dreams, according to Parsons, are contagious.

There was once a man named Roger Bannister who dreamed of breaking the record of running a mile under four minutes.  A lot of people told him that it was not possible and no one has ever done that in history.  Even medical professionals told him that the human body was not designed to endure that kind of torture.  But Bannister had a dream.  In 1954, Roger Bannister finished a one-mile run in 3 minutes and 59.4 seconds.  At the end of 1957, sixteen other people broke the four minute mile barrier.

If you have a dreamer in your company, in your home, in your circle of friends, encourage them to reach for their dreams.  Along the way, he might just influence many others like him - including you.

You have the right to dream to.

Parsons also related his own personal story.  When he was young, at the bottom of his class, he met a man named Arthur who became his dream-catcher.  One day, Arthur told him that he has a gift for public speaking.  Parsons never thought about that before.  But later on, Arthur proved to be correct all along for Parsons became, according to his own words, "a joint senior partner in a large provincial legal practice, had co-founded one of the most successful legal consultancies in the United Kingdom, was lecturing to lawyers across the world, and had been a keynote speaker at international law conferences."  Rob Parsons found his dream-catcher in the person of Arthur.

You and I have our dreams.  But how long are we going to keep those dreams in our pockets instead of planting it on a little pot, putting in a little sunshine and watering it regularly?  If you have a dream, pursue it.  What do you have to lose when you do?  Compare that to what you will lose when you don't.  At the end of our lives, we will not regret the things that we did, but rather the things we didn't do.  Don't let it happen to you.  Be a dream-catcher for yourself and for others.  

At the end of the chapter, Rob Parsons again listed down his "Executive Briefings." Although I am tempted to list them all down here, let me just give you the first one which he called the thieves of time. Here are they:


  • I put off making decisions
  • I don't establish my priorities
  • I can't say "No"
  • I am often interrupted
  • I find it hard to delegate
  • I rarely have time to plan
  • I love meetings
Which of those are the ones who steal your time?  Don't you think it is about time to win over them and pursue your dreams?

***
P.S.

This article and those that precede it based on the book The Heart of Success (Making it in Business Without Losing in Life) by Rob Parsons.  I don't have the rights to reproduce the said books and I acknowledge the rights of Mr. Parsons to it.  I am simply trying to help in spreading the learning I got from reading it. This articles are no substitute for Mr. Parsons' own wisdom.  If you want to learn more, I suggest that you buy the original copy of the book.

P.P.S.

Still on dreams, I once dreamt of writing my own book and I still do.  As of this writing, my own little book "The Five Successful Ways to Fail (Things You Weren't Told About Success)" is already published and available at amazon.com.








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