I have this quirk of creating “made-up” project deadlines before travel, before hosting parties, and at month or year-end.
I’ll suddenly need to tackle that weird pile of papers on the bookshelf before I leave town the next day. I’m overcome with urgency to make a long-overdue phone call or re-sort the kitchen drawer before we get in the car for a trip.
I know not everyone does this (the people I live with are amazed and annoyed by this trait).
Do you have something similar? A compulsion to finish or start something based on an artificial deadline?
As you can imagine, this ramps up for me at the end of the year!
This year, though, I’m redirecting that end-of-year energy toward something more powerful than organizing drawers: strengthening my hope muscle in this moment in history.
How do I not give up but instead lean into what is asked of me (without burning out)?
How do I stay connected to becoming the person I want to be while I am alive on this earth?
This leads me to more “dream tending” and looking at my current and past dreams before the year ends.
(If you missed it, check out my most recent letter about “dream tending.”)
Instead of focusing on what I can complete, I’m focusing on what I want to grow in the future.
And no, not in a “new year’s resolution” kind of way.
I’m not making a list of things I’ll do in a year or ways I’ll change a habit.
I’m filling a deeper well I can come back to for years by reminding myself of the power of my dreams and all of our dreams.
I need to be reminded (and perhaps you do too) of the many ways my dreams have already come to fruition, and of the power we have to create and build something different from what is now.
Here are my reflection questions for more “dream tending” you can borrow:
- What have I dreamed about in the past that has come to fruition (even if in unexpected ways)? Find three examples of past dreams or desires that have come into existence.
- What did I do in the past to help bring that dream to reality? Who else was a part of bringing that dream to reality?
- What do I hope for myself when I look back at my life in my last years?
- What dreams do I want to be a part of supporting for others in my community?
This year has shown us the lengths that humans will go to deceive, dehumanize, and brutally divide us.
My hope for you is that you can also see the power of your dreams and those of the people around you to create a compassionate, joy-filled life.
And that in seeing the dreams you created, and that our ancestors have created, you can dream into the future new possibilities of strength, fortitude, solidarity, peace, and justice.
(Want to get started now? Check out a few ideas down in Beacons.)
🏮 BEACONS
- Sit down with these for 20 minutes before the end of the year, and write about your future dreams. Use the questions above or the questions from my past letter.
- Ask one or two people in your life these same questions, listen to their answers, and share yours. (P.S. You could update these reflections for your workplace team!)
🌊 TIDE TURNERS
More resources & support
This Tide Turners, I am doing things differently and sharing a few of my dreams below in case you would like inspiration for your own reflections.
A few of my dreams that have come true…
When I was 10 and visited Seattle, I dreamed of moving here and living among artists. That dream took decades and unexpected turns, but I eventually lived in an old school building surrounded by artists. Sometimes our dreams come true in ways we don’t recognize until years later.
After I started my business, I dreamed of working with groups of leaders together. I wanted to support people in feeling less isolated and stressed, with the strategy and fortitude to keep leading and to make our organizations and communities more just. Now I run Clear Harbor, where leaders committed to justice find community, coaching, and joy together. Each gathering reminds me that the dream of less-isolated, more-supported leadership is possible.
What am I dreaming up now?
A neighborhood and city that cares about individuals beyond their own families and shared identities. Where people know how to check in on each other, share resources, report and track injustices, know names, nod and offer care and kindness, and teach children about the beauty of human differences. (People in my neighborhood are working on this dream!)
And for myself: that I continue to learn how to be a thoughtful parent and partner, have more slow, creative time to notice the immediate moment, and build a thriving, compassionate coaching practice so that more leaders feel connected, peaceful, clear, and energized to move toward their dreams.