Make Your Dream Your Priority

Last weekend a friend wrote that she wanted to find grant funding for her photo documentary. Since we were fooling around with the Google Wave, I could easily research sites for her and post the links into our live chat. I gave her an assignment. She had to get this cutting-edge project funded.

 Many artists and photographers pay the rent with clerical jobs while pursuing their passions. My friend is no different. However she had been laid off. This was the perfect time to find funding for her photography.

 On Monday morning she Tweeted this:

 grants grants grant… where are you??????? i am dedicating the day to online research.. starting… right…NOW!

 She was excited. I went off to work at the office we used to share before she moved to pursue a photography opportunity.

 At work I discovered the person who replaced her was out on an extended leave and we desperately needed help with our database. We discussed hiring my friend to work remotely and were going to call her. I knew, at that very moment, she was excitedly researching her dream.  I knew she’d be interrupted by an administrative job and loose her stride toward her dream.

 So often we shove aside the pursuit of our passions to take care of our responsibilities and pay the rent. We don’t give our best effort to improving our lives.

Last week I read How To Focus On What Truly Matters by Sid Savara, a guest on Zen Habits. His suggestions were fresh on my mind as thought about the possibilities for my friend.

 Sid Savara writes about doing what excites us, “what gets our heart pumping, and what gets us excited to jump out of bed in the morning.”

But my problem has always been taking care of everything for others rather than doing what I want to do. In fact, I often feel guilty about spending time on the projects I enjoy. But after reading this passage, I’ve changed my priorities.

Do it first. In Zen To Done Leo suggests picking your 3 Most Important Tasks (MITs) and doing them first thing in the morning. Similarly, once you find what truly matters, try to take care of it first before spending time on tasks that matter less to you. … I work on my personal goals first thing in the morning, before I do anything else. This way every day begins positively and in line with my future.

Too often I’ll shove my enthusiasm aside and do what I believe is required of me. I’ll answer all those emails for my volunteer duties and prepare for meetings then loose my spirit for the task I really wanted to do. Not anymore. I planned an entire event with the small amount of time available after I did what I wanted to do. I let it slide. In the end, it was fine.

So, make time for what excites you first. Don’t waste it on all the filler.