Get Distracted

(#3 in the series: Are You A Dreamer?)

A Surprising Invitation

I was sitting toward the front of the room, ready to be attentive to the speaker.  Before he began, he did a surprising thing.  He invited the audience to “get distracted”…to allow our minds to wander off during his talk.  I pictured being the speaker.  Didn’t he want us to listen carefully to the points he had prepared?  Then he explained his rationale.  It wasn’t that he didn’t want us to listen, however, if we drifted off, he wanted us to notice where we were going.  He said that this is often how the creative mind – divine inspiration even – speaks to us.  His invitation to get distracted was actually an instruction to pay attention to the ideas that occurred to us during his presentation.

Follow That Distraction!

The next time your mind wanders, follow it a bit further and be willing to entertain an entire daydream.  When your pen doodles during a meeting or a phone call, let it go.  Pay attention to ideas as they come.  Inspiration could be speaking to you.

Noticing your distractions is a great warm-up to consciously dreaming about various aspects of your life.

Remembering How To Dream

In the prior issue of this series, I asked you to recall the dreams you had when you were younger. This week, ask yourself: What are my current dreams?

Which area of your life would you like to imagine more vividly?  Are you working on a big project, hunting for a new job, or considering retirement from your current career?  Perhaps you would like to envision a new picture of your health, a certain relationship, or even a fantastic adventure.  Whatever it is, take pen to paper.  Write it down as if it were you conveying a story to someone or watching a movie.  Who are the main characters, what are the scenes, and what happens?  Seeing your dream in writing gives it life.

Remember it’s a dream, not an action plan, so don’t be afraid to make it up.  If at any time you feel blocked, try getting outdoors, breathing some fresh air, or doing something physical.  Return to your dream and see what emerges.  In the next issue we’ll explore: Now that you’ve invited a dream, what do you do with it? 

“A man must have his dreams – memory dreams of the past and eager dreams of the future.”
– Maurice Chevalier