Category: dreams

choices, decision-making, dreams, money, time

Beautiful: When It Comes to Dreams, Knowledge and Heart Are More Important Than Money

Christa Avampato

3c80a0916199a692da2f1c3a572eb9a0“Empty pockets never held anyone back. Only empty heads and empty hearts can do that.” ~ Norman Vincent Peale

Money takes its lead from the heart and the mind. If we have true passion to do something, that kind of passion that refuses to take no for an answer, then somehow we will find a way to afford that dream. We will sacrifice for it. We will compromise and make certain concessions in other areas of our life in order to see it through. We will make the time for it. We will find a way to make the money to fuel it.

When we consider how to spend our time, we should put the logistics aside. They are important, but they are secondary. Our focus should be what we care about and why it matters. The “how it will get done” details will flow from there.

business, dreams, entrepreneurship

Meet Ritc Founder, Dave Goldberg

Christa Avampato

Dave and I went to business school together. Ever since we have talked about what it takes to leave behind a steady job for the sake of building something of our own. I made that jump in June and Dave is on his way as well with the founding of Ritc. Congrats, Dave. Welcome to the movement!

I felt it even today. The encroachment of failure. The feeling like I was losing ground, giving up, just letting opportunities pass. It’s not a good feeling, but unfortunately it’s one that I’ve been quite familiar with throughout my life. When I think about it, the feeling has been part of a larger pattern that I feel has stymied my progress many times.

Step 1 – It starts with an idea or an opportunity. I’m a fairly creative person and I find that I see opportunities and new ideas in almost everything. Mostly this is a good thing.

Step 2 – Sometimes I get very excited by whatever crazy scheme I’m thinking of, so I start pursuing it in one form or another. Usually I conduct some kind of research to test the viability. And that leads to Step 3.

Step 3 – Obstacles. The first major potential failure point.

Step 4 – Fear, Doubt and Uncertainty (FUD).

Step 5 – Give up on idea.

Step 6 – Disappointment in myself. If I didn’t become wildly successful at my idea (due to not actually trying or committing to it), I feel like a loser and I mark it as another personal failure. A failure of my own character. This is very hard to digest. You see for me, my expectations of myself have never been different from my wildest aspirations, and so I set up a system for myself where I always feel that I am an underachiever because I don’t immediately succeed.

Step 7 – Get over it.

Step 8 – Repeat the process all over again. Weirdly, I’m a very optimistic person when the time horizon is long!

Did you catch the step where it all breaks down? It’s definitely not Step 3. Everyone deals with multiple obstacles on the way to achieving anything in life.

Step 4? I used to think so, but I’ve come around on that. I mean, if that’s the problem then I’m in big trouble – I just felt it TODAY for crying out loud! I do believe that over time, I can decrease the FUD factor, but I don’t believe it will go away and I don’t believe that is what REALLY gets in my way.

Step 6? Well, this is something I definitely want to change, but I don’t think it’s the key. I don’t think the key to my success is so…self-aware.

No, it’s not the steps where I feel resistance, whether real or perceived. As I’m sure you figured out already (faster than I did I’m quite sure), it’s Step 5 – giving up in the face of FUD. Giving up is the surest path to not achieving your goals.

But over the last year or so, as I’ve been building my new product and preparing to launch a new venture, I have started to take a slightly different approach. It’s called – DO IT ANYWAY (AKA Don’t Give Up At The First Sign of FUD). I’m going to be afraid. I’m going to be uncertain. I’m going to have doubts. But I believe in what I’m doing, and I’m not going to let those things stop me anymore.

This approach has been working. It’s hard, and sometimes I take 3 steps back before I recover a few steps forward, but I’m making progress. I have a long way to go, and many more opportunities to succumb to Step 5, but I know that I will succeed on some level if I just keep going.

I know that success in my venture is far from guaranteed, regardless of whether I give up or not. In the end I’m not sure that really matters. What matters is that when my daughter asks me if I tried to achieve my dreams, I will be able to tell her yes…I gave it my best shot. That’s my goal.

565295_10100772252127356_1856955235_nDave Goldberg lives in the Washington D.C. suburbs with his wife and daughter. He loves building products, the semantic web, and daydreaming. He is currently building Ritc, a platform to connect, automate, and build applications on the web. You can check it out at http://ritc.io.

action, beauty, decision-making, dreams

Beautiful: The Heart Whispers. Listen Closely.

Christa Avampato

43558321365993583_jZdK8XV9_cThe world has many voices and none of them are perfect for you. They tell stories, many of them important, many of them inspiring. But the only story that will ever help you to reach your beautiful, unique potential is the one you write yourself.

Get quiet, place your hands on your heart, and let the wisdom flow into you. The voice of the heart is soft and kind, but never weak. And it never gives up. I promise you it is there; it’s always there; it’s always been there. Trust yourself more than you trust anyone. You will never steer you wrong.

beauty, creativity, dreams, make, maker, time

Beautiful: Create the Conditions You Need to Do Your Best Work

Christa Avampato

21814379414799127_vbmdhYPx_c“Do not wait until the conditions are perfect to begin. Beginning makes the conditions perfect.” ~ Alan Cohen

Why wait? There will never be a better time to do the best work you can do than right now.

More money won’t help. Neither will the illusion of more time. Focus is gained by focusing. Confusion is sorted out through action. Clarity is gained by deciding to be clear about your priorities.

The conditions around you are always temporary and you have the power to make the ones that are right for you. Begin and the world will mold around your dreams. The Universe loves purpose, passion, and action.

choices, determination, dreams, holiday, New Years Eve

Leap: 2013, We’re On Our Way

Christa Avampato

27795722671860961_UnzCxmWa_c

In the movie Ratatouille, Linguini sets his mind to pull it together and go after his dream with the help of his wee partner in crime. His simple declaration “let’s do this thing” has been my mantra this year.

And what a year it’s been. It was a leap year for me in every sense. I put some old demons to rest. I went after the craziest of dreams. I took big risks. I pushed myself far beyond any limits I thought I had. I won and lost in equal amounts, and I wouldn’t trade a single one of those experiences. I take John Lennon’s advice to heart every single day – I don’t want to die with the music still in me. In every area of my life, I took the chance of looking like a fool because I don’t want to have any regrets. All of these leaps have been totally worth the effort, regardless of the outcome.

Now 2013 is upon us. Rather than making any specific resolutions, I’m taking my cue from Linguini. 2013, I’m coming for you and I mean to make this year a break out year on all fronts. Happy New Year everyone – let’s do this thing!

commitment, courage, dreams, passion

Leap: Unleash Your Inner Hero

Christa Avampato

155303887121906606_PANzROxo_cWe study others to learn the secrets of their success – how they rose to the top of their fields, created a product or service we love, or created an admirable impact in the world. While we have much to learn from others, when it comes to crafting and breathing life into our own dreams we’d do well to be our own heroes, teachers, and advocates. When we believe in our vision, stand by our convictions with passion and grace, it becomes much easier for others to believe in it, too.

Once we decide to be our own heroes, others will be inspired to do the same. And when that happens, people not only meet their potential but exceed it. It’s that achievement that has the power to change the world. To experience real change, we all need to show up in the world as the very best version of ourselves, roll up our sleeves, and strengthen our communities from the ground up. With all the challenges we face, we need everyone at the top of their game and the only one who make that happen is you.

choices, dreams, priorities, time, to-do lists, work

Leap: All the Work We Need to Do

Christa Avampato

230274_480168285369181_1941994014_n We all have our lists: what to do, where to go, who to see, what to plan, what to look into when we have some spare time. I have apps on my phone where I keep lists of lists. And this is why I love this picture from Startup Lab so much.

When we really get down to what matters, what remains when every last list is either complete or discarded, this is all that counts. Did we love what we did with our time? Did we improve someone else’s life just by being who we are? Did we make ourselves useful and helpful?

If the answer to any of those questions is yes, then rest assured that you are on the right track to a good life. And if the answer to all of those questions is yes, then make sure to give yourself a great big hug and a hearty round of congratulations because you are living the secret of life that everyone longs to learn. It’s so simple: do what you love as often as your can, be your best, unique, beautiful self every day, and make the world a little brighter for someone else.

This is all the work we ever really need to do.

adventure, commitment, discovery, dreams, experience, failure, fate, fear, time

Leap: Take the Journey Away from Comfort

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest

“To be fully alive, fully human, and completely awake is to be continually thrown out of the nest.” ~ Pema Chodron

Comfort feels so good that we never want to leave. The trouble is that if we never set out for higher ground, if we never throw ourselves out of our comfort zone and into unfamiliar territory, we don’t grow. We don’t learn just how strong we are. We only build resilience, determination, and grit by remaining focused in the face of discomfort. Life is a continual adaptation to change.

Sometimes, I wish this weren’t the case. I wish we didn’t need a burning platform to truly change our ways. I wish we could learn how to be calm in the face of discomfort without ever having to actually be uncomfortable.

It doesn’t work that way. Life is a full contact sport. We actually have to live it – all its ups and downs and the ride in-between – in order to understand what it’s all about.

For this reason, I don’t get frustrated or angry when the going gets tough. I may briefly feel sad or unhappy that something I wanted didn’t go my way. As a general rule, I give myself about 10 minutes to feel as terrible as I want to feel without passing any kind of judgement. I can sit in the dust of disappointment, shake my fists at the sky, and ask “why, why, why?” as loudly as possible. And then I need to pick myself up, shake off the dust, and get on with my day, grateful for the tough times upon me that help me to wake up and feel truly alive.

So often we hope that the clouds hanging above our heads will magically part but what I’ve found is that the clouds part through our own volition. We decide that it is time to clear them away. We climb up and with our own two hands, we brush them out-of-the-way to let the light in. We are happy, free, empowered, and awake by choice, not chance. We restore comfort in our lives by creating it in every circumstance of our living.

adventure, creativity, dreams, work

Leap: My Five Month Anniversary of Pursuing Career Magic

Christa Avampato
Taken by Christa Avampato in the West Village, New York City

I snapped this photo last weekend in the West Village in New York City. It struck me that this simple piece of sidewalk art is exactly what I’ve been doing since I left my corporate job 5 months ago today. I’ve diligently kept my eye on doing work that matters and takes full advantage of my experience in and passion for education, health, and service.

This road has not been easy. I’ve turned down a number of very tantalizing opportunities in order to stay true to my mission to live a life of my own design. I’ve cobbled together a string of work opportunities that light me up, that have me jumping out of bed in the morning to get going, and over the next week I’m hoping to add a few more. Despite juggling multiple priorities, doing joyful work has actually made me feel more at ease with my calendar. Somehow, time has expanded.

I once heard someone say that happiness is a warm comfort on a cold night. When I put myself to bed each night, I toss up a silent prayer into the Universe that goes something like this – “Thank you, Universe, for the opportunity to add to the greater good, to do exactly the work I want to do, and to rest safely and securely in the knowledge that today my efforts went toward crafting a better world so we can all have a brighter tomorrow. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. I do know how lucky I am, how blessed I am. So long as I have breath in my lungs and beats in my heart, I want to keep moving in this direction.”

For 5 months, this prayer has been answered every day without hesitation. And that is its own kind of magic.

choices, decision-making, dreams, meditation, yoga

Leap: Everything is Difficult

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest

“You cannot dream yourself into a character: you must hammer and forge yourself into one.” ~ Henry David Thoreau

Have you ever shied away from doing something because you thought it was too difficult or because someone else told you that what you wanted to do was too hard? This pesky thought creeps into any and every crevice of doubt – about our careers, relationships, passion projects, and any time we are considering a change of any kind. It is the enemy of good decision-making and the only appropriate response to this thought is a loud, strong “Get out and stay out!”

It’s all tough. Everything you want to do in life has challenges. If you are waiting for the seas to part and the obstacles to disintegrate you are wasting your time and undermining your own strength. The path of least resistance that we hear so much about never said anything about a complete lack of resistance.

For a long time I lived with this conflict: I face a lot of challenges in my life and then in yoga class I hear that we shouldn’t struggle because life is supposed to be easy. Then a clear nuisance revealed itself to me. Life is challenging. We are almost always in the midst of difficulty. However, even a troubled road can be traveled with ease.

We can soften around obstacles so that we can navigate our way around them. We can move our attention inward when we need to replenish ourselves after a long day of work. Life may be filled with struggle but that doesn’t mean we have to be strugglers and take on all of the stress and anxiety that comes with that. To travel a hard road, we need strength, courage, stamina, and resilience – all the things that yoga and meditation provide.

So you go right on choosing your deepest, most passionate dreams, regardless of how hard it will be to bring them to life. Be confident in the fact that everything worth doing requires an effort of some kind. The trick is to also find the ease that lets you enjoy the journey and keeps you motivated to stay the course. Need some help with that? Contact me – my pep talks will make that pesky voice of self-doubt head for the hills.