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How Do You Make Your Dream Become A Reality?

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It’s A Choice You Make…Or Not!

It doesn’t matter if you’re dreaming about building a new home, a successful business or a great life, you have to choose to make them a reality. The importance of intentionality to dreams is critical to the outcome.

This week I’ve been working on finalizing the proposal for my niece Hannah’s out of the box home. This is the dream house that is going to be built using salvaged grain bins and some conventional construction. We began discussing this project a year ago. Some will think that’s taking too long. It’s important to realize that dreams don’t magically become a reality overnight. Dream building is a process that requires time.

There are 5 things needed when choosing to turn a dream into a reality:

1st you need to realize that it’s your responsibility. You’re responsible for your dreams becoming a reality. This doesn’t mean that crazy unrealistic dreams will happen (see needs 2 and 3). On the other hand too often we let our own limiting beliefs keep our dreams from becoming a reality. You are the only one who can control your own thoughts. Our thinking dictates our decisions and we are where we are because of those decisions…good or bad.

2nd you need clarity of purpose. I believe our dreams are one of the ways God tells us what His plans are for our lives. If we believe what it says in Jeremiah 29:11, “I have good plans for you, not plans to hurt you. I will give you hope and a good future.” If our dreams are in alignment with God’s plans, then there is no reason they shouldn’t become a reality. God will move mountains to make our dreams real. It’s up to us to be ready to move ourselves.

           

3rd you need guidance. Often when building dreams, we are going into unfamiliar territory. Whether it’s building your first home or starting a new business, you probably won’t have the experience or knowledge needed. Dream building can be a lot safer and more fun if you have an experienced guide. I don’t know about you, but I wouldn’t go climb a mountain with out a guide that had been there and done that.

4th you need to act. A dream won’t just build itself, it requires action. This is one of the scariest things about turning dreams into reality. People generally approach action in one of two ways. Either they jump right in without thinking or they don’t do anything while over thinking it. Experienced guidance can help balance these opposing positions and help you to move forward with your dream while minimizing disasters. When faced with doing nothing or doing something you better choose to act if you ever want your dream to become a reality.

5th you need to persist. I think this is the most important one. If you ever hope to get your dream built you will need persistence. There will be disappointments that will cause you to want to quit. There will be times when you are so tired you don’t think you can do one more thing. You can begin to convince yourself that it wasn’t real…it was just a dream. This is the point where most dreams die. Somehow successful people continue moving forward when others quit. Sometimes God see’s fit to give us a wakeup call.

As Hannah and I work together to build this project it will be the building of two dreams, both hers and mine. We will each take RESPONSIBILITY for our part. We will continue sorting things out and finding the CLARITY for the dream. We will accept and give GUIDANCE when and where needed. We will intentionally ACT to keep moving closer to the completion of those dreams. Above all we choose to PERSIST and never quit until our dreams become reality.

If you or someone you know needs help finding solutions for building dreams, contact us in the comment section below.

How Important Is an Experienced Guide When Building Your Dream?

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Been There Done That, Now Let Me Help You

We all have areas in our lives in which we are more skilled and knowledgeable than others. These areas of talent are fewer than the more common areas of our lives. This is why it’s important to find those qualified professionals to guide you through places where you are less qualified.

Recently I was working with a customer that gave me a home blueprint they were considering building. It was a large one-story home (2975 square feet) over a full basement. The proposal to build their project was more than they had budgeted.

Now what do we do?

After spending some time visiting with them there were several options that were discovered. Things that the novice wouldn’t consider or understand how it would affect the price. This is one of the benefits of getting experienced guidance early in the process.

The first thing was to figure out what the priorities were. Here are a few:

  • Dollars were a concern, as is almost always the case – This can be addressed by stacking the construction. If a second floor is included in the overall square footage less foundation and roofing is required to achieve a similar total square footage. This decreases the per square foot price.

 

  • Style and architectural design – During the discussing it was discovered that she wanted a wraparound porch which wasn’t a part of the first plan but fit in nicely on the second one.

 

  • Additional optional living space – Space for family during the holidays and for visits. Space for mother to live during the week when she is in town working.

By offering them some guidance and knowing what questions to ask we were able to come up with a plan that is going to meet the majority of there needs and wants at a 25% reduction in price. This is what I can offer with my almost forty years at the school of hard knocks.

The benefits of working together on any project has value. This value increases exponentially as the size of the projects increase. A new home is definitely a sizeable project.

One of the biggest challenges with building a dream is getting all parties involved moving the same direction. Too many times these parties are pulling in different directions. Just like two horses pulling together as a team can accomplish more, we can do the same thing. That team of horses need someone to take control of the reigns and give direction. We need that same kind of guidance.

I think guidance is the most important thing to building a dream. I also think it’s one of the most overlooked and under used pieces of the process. We all have our strengths and weaknesses. It is up to each of us to know what ours are and give or get guidance where needed.