Tag Archives: dreams

One of the most popular posts on the blog here seems to be the 100 Goal Challenge post, so I thought I’d do an update on where I’ve gotten in almost 2 years.

As a reminder I broke my goals down into my Defining the Best ME categories (Mental, Physical, Wisdom) with some actions fitting into more than one category.

1. Start/Run my own business
   • I’ve achieved this one! Once I worked out I wouldn’t be able to go back to my full time job at the Council, I began doing some consulting work. My business, LiveKen, focuses on helping others to live simple, sustainable and meaningful lives with or without chronic illness. At the moment I’m focused on finalising the Foggy Frog picture book, helping one local Council to develop a 3 year Environmental Action Plan, and another to develop a biodiversity hot spot map and fact sheets for local schools.
2. Have 2 children/start a family
   • Not yet, as per my recent posts E and I are currently discussing our options. I have a few health issues that need to be sorted out before we can begin trying.
3. Develop/run educational resources/sessions for business, community and schools/unis
   • See number 1 – I’ve started doing this. I’d like to increase this over time.
4. Visit the Great Barrier Reef
   • Not Yet.
5. Visit Tasmania
   • Not Yet.
6. Work internationally
   • I have in the past but would like to again.
7. Travel to Europe/UK
   • Not Yet.
8. Do 30 minutes walk/run/ride daily
   • Building up slowly, currently doing a short ride every 2-3 days but no dedicated walks (just step count that I mainly get around the house).
9. Daily yoga
   • Hit and miss on this one at the moment.
10. Daily meditation
    • Most days I get this.
11. Travel to Africa/See wild Gorillas
    • Not Yet.
12. Participate in 12hr Rogaine (I did this when I first got ill – before I realised how serious it was – and would love to have the energy/low pain levels to do it again)
    • I participated in a 4hr one on the weekend (managed about 2 and a half hours).
13. Contribute to charity regularly
    • I contribute to charity on an adhoc basis at the moment.
14. Publish Foggy Frog Picture book
    

    The dummy book for Foggy Frog…

    • This is much closer now! Today I’ve finished the inside pages (we need to print to check colours), we now just need to design a few cover options for our backers to vote on.
15. Work nationally
    • Have done in the past but want to expand current business when I’m up to it.
16. Have annual holidays
    • We do this, at least a short camping trip each year.
17. Build own house
    • Not Yet.
18. Annual income of $100,000 (This one I’m really not sure about, I’d be happy with earning just enough to live off, but the process said to dream big so that’s what I tried to do)
    • Not yet, and still not sure about this one… I may end up changing it next time I review.
19. Retire with enough financial security to continue annual holidays
    • Not yet, but I think we’re on track to do it.
20. Celebrate our 50th wedding anniversary
    

    On our Wedding Day
    Photo (c) M. Vovers, 2011

    • It’s our 5th this year (a 10th of the way there)!
21. Continue to learn something new each year
    • I believe I’m on track with this. I’m constantly trying new things.
22. Learn to sew my own clothes
    

    Patterns I’ve bought but not sewn yet

    • Still just doing basic sewing at this stage (pillows, napkins, blankets, etc)
23. Live as sustainably as possible
    • Working on this one… I’m still decluttering and removing unnecessary items from our lives, aiming to buy second hand as much as possible, and reducing our waste stream as much as possible.
24. Complete my Bachelor of Education
    • I have decided not to continue with this one, instead I’m aiming to complete my Certificate IV in Training and Assessment.
25. Help others live sustainably
    

    The last campaign I ran before getting ill in 2013. Focusing on riding and travelling to work.

    • Working on it. I discuss ideas in my blog, and I’m working with local Council’s to move communities towards more sustainable options.
26. Help others understand chronic illness
    • Working on it… The picture book will be out soon
27. Have monthly dinner parties with family and friends
    • This has not been happening so far.
28. Have monthly games afternoons with friends (board games)
    • This hasn’t happened monthly, but we have had more games afternoons than in the past.
29. Clean out old and unused things and give to people who will use them
    • I’ve been doing this, but it is an ongoing process.
30. Set up my own space for sewing, drawing and studying
    • I now have my desk set up in the study for drawing and studying, and a small desk for sewing in the spare room.
31. Plant and maintain veg garden
    

    Our veggie garden last year

    • There is currently nothing in our veggie garden apart from herbs but I’m working on this one.
32. Find a mentor(s) to help me achieve my goals
    • I think this is an ongoing thing… Just taking advice whenever I can from where ever I can.
33. Schedule time weekly to reflect/review my goals and achievements
    • I’ve been keeping a daily journal instead.
34. Achieve work/life balance (need to work out what this actually means to me)
    • This is my focus this year, I feel I’m finding more balance at the moment.
35. Have a weekly ‘date’ with E
    • We aim to do something together each week, even if it’s just a games night at home.
36. Pay off our mortgage
    • We’re working on this one. Thanks to support from E’s parents we have gotten the mortgage below $100,000.
37. Only buy quality items
    • Ongoing, but a focus whenever we buy things.
38. Save 10% of my income
    • Ongoing, I have set up an automatic transfer to put $45 into my Super account each fortnight (retirement fund here in Australia) and automatically have 10% of anything I earn through my casual work go to Super. I haven’t worked out if the $45 a fortnight will add up to 10% of what I earn through consulting this year yet.
39. Organise a financial plan
    • I have a very simple 5 year plan written up and a budget that we work within (I try and keep it flexible as long as we don’t go into debt throughout the year). I haven’t fleshed out the plan with detail yet.
40. Teach my children how to save, invest and create wealth for themselves (need to teach myself this first so I know what I’m talking about… still not too clear on investments and wealth creation)
    • Slowly teaching myself through reading books and blog posts on financial management so that when we have children I can teach them.
41. Teach my children to live sustainably
    • Need to have children first!
42. Ensure I have regular health checks
    • I see my doctor and specialists regularly.
43. Read every week (would love daily if possible)
    • I read a lot of blog posts these days, I want to work on reading more physical books as well.
44. Learn to live a fulfilling life with my chronic illnesses
    

    Retrieved from Facebook.

    • Working on it! I’m getting better at pacing and have managed to add in activities that fit with my values and make me feel like I’m contributing to my community.
45. Swim regularly 1-2 x a week
    • Waiting for our local pool to open as there really isn’t anything close to us at the moment.
46. Visit T in Hong Kong
    • Not yet, planning to visit her this year some time (she’s coming here this week to go camping with me and E over easter).
47. Develop networks to help make my ideas reality
    • Working on it.
48. Visit Japan
    • Not yet.
49. Teach my children to cook
    • Need children first.
50. Schedule time to draw
    • Haven’t made this regular yet.
51. Learn to belly dance
    • Not yet.
52. Get a family dog
    • Not yet.
53. Participate in a yoga/health retreat
    • Not yet.
54. Find a hobby E and I can do together (used to hike regularly but I’m not up to that at this stage)
    • We’ve been playing a lot more games together. I’m hoping to add short walks back into our routine.
55. Learn to be more assertive
    • Working on it.
56. Get monthly massages
    • I’ve been using my massage chair regularly.
57. Learn to play the guitar better
    • Not yet.
58. Write 2 blog posts a week
    • Most weeks I’m achieving this, some weeks I only manage 1 if I’m extra busy or in a crash.
59. Spend a day by myself every 6 months focusing on reviewing and renewing my goals and plans
    • I’ve done this maybe every 12 months so far, I still would like to increase it to every 6 months.
60. Find a weekly routine that works (I feel very flustered lately as I can’t settle into one routine with things changing all the time)
    • This is still constantly changing but I’ve found a flexible schedule works better for me. Instead of a fixed routine I’ve been working to only schedule 2-3 activities a day and leave a lot of space so I don’t get flustered.
61. Write a will
    • Not yet.
62. Go on a 4 week holiday by myself
    • Not yet.
63. Write regular articles for other blogs/websites/media sources
    • Not yet. I need to be more consistent writing for My Invisible Life and other people who have contacted me.
64. Learn to cook more delicious and healthy dairy and gluten free meals
    • I’ve increased our repitoire of meals but this is an ongoing goal.
65. Spend time in nature regularly
    

    A bird bath on a community walking trail near work.

    • I try and spend some time outside each and every day.
66. Enter writing competition and win
    • Not yet.
67. Organise an annual event to raise awareness of, and funds for research into, chronic illness
    • Not yet.
68. Act as a mentor for someone
    • Not yet.
69. Have quarterly girls nights/afternoons/days with my closest friends
    • I’ve caught up with people a bit more regularly but not quarterly yet.
70. Get Foggy Frog into libraries, schools and homes around the world
    • I’ve had one library contact me already. I need to publish the book first though.
71. Keep a gratitude jar and read the contents yearly
    

    My gratitude corner (bedside table)

    • I’ve moved away from the gratitude jar, instead I include gratitude in my weekly ‘Share My World’ post and write in my journal.
72. Create a neighbourhood/community sustainability group to catch up and share ideas
    • Not yet.
73. Be present and mindful every day
    • I’m getting better. This is a work in progress goal.
74. Develop a morning and evening routine
    • Morning – check emails in bed, dress (shower if necessary), breakfast and tea, one major task.
    • Evening – dinner, tv with Erik, teeth and pills (shower if necessary, sponge bath otherwise), journal, meditation.
75. Keep a regular journal
    • I’m using it to track my daily activities. I set up to 3 activities each night for the next day and then add extra if I manage more during the day.
76. Incorporate physio recommended exercises/stretches into daily life
    • I’m doing this. I do my pelvic stretches throughout the day and I’m currently focused on maintaining my step count.
77. Declutter my life
    • Working on it, I’ve removed many items from our house but still working to declutter my calendar and feel that this goal is an ongoing work-in-progress kind of goal.
78. Spend a weekend away with E every 6 months
    • This hasn’t happened but we have had a few weekends away in the last few years and have a few planned for this year.
79. Learn more about business management and marketing
    • I read blogs and books to help me better understand what I should be doing with my business.
80. Deliver a TED talk (about my work and education programs?)
    • Not yet.
81. Smile every day
    

    Christmas 2013…

    • I think I’ve achieved this one… To be honest I haven’t tracked it but know that I smile quite often.
82. Learn to deal with conflict
    • Working on it. I’m getting better at dealing with conflict and standing up for myself.
83. Write every day
    • I write my to-do list every day. Once a week, I write my blog posts. I would like to add more writing.
84. Frame our pictures and display them in the house
    • Not yet, reconsidering as I’m reducing the amount of ‘stuff’ in our house.
85. Interact with people who support my vision
    • Doing this as much as I can.
86. Make a firm career decision and pursue it
    • Still working on this. I’ve got a vague idea of where I want to go but need to clarify some details.
87. Be well regarded and respected for my work
    • Not something I feel comfortable judging for myself but from the feedback I get I’d say I am.
88. Develop a realistic business plan, implement the plan and follow through
    • Because of my health I’m still struggling to develop a realistic business plan that can be implemented and followed through. At this stage I’m just working to complete the projects I have already and then I’ll reassess this.
89. Assist 10 people to live a fulfilling life with a chronic illness
    • Not yet, working on it.
90. Get my superannuation strategy working for me
    • Working on it, I’m making sure that I get something into my super regularly.
91. Maintain a healthy weight
    • My weight has stayed about the same for the last few years.
92. Have regular skin checks
    • Had one a year and a half ago. I believe they suggested every 2 years.
93. Have monthly goals to focus on
    • This hasn’t been working for me. I need to reassess the goals that I set.
94. Build a team around me to help me reach my goals
    • Working on it.
95. Be around for my children as much as possible
    • Need children first.
96. Visit my Uncle in Vietnam
    • Not yet.
97. Buy local as much as possible
    • I try and do this. Still working on improving this.
98. Focus on experiences not possessions
    • Working on it.
99. Eat vegetables with every meal
    • Mostly.
100. Focus on the good things in life
     

     I found this little guy while walking with a friend Christmas Eve 2012… He made us smile, we took photos but left him for others to find and enjoy as well.

A quick No Buy Challenge Update: I did swap one top I hadn’t worn in over 6 months for a new striped top which I’ve already worn 3 times in the last week. Other than that no purchases for me this week.

Have you completed your 100 Goal Challenge?

If so, what have you learnt from reviewing the goals you’ve set?

If not, has my list helped you identify a few more things you could add to your own?

As discussed in last week’s post about Finding Your Passion, the first steps are to undertake the 100 Goal Challenge and use your answers to identify your Driving Emotions.

I shared my Driving Emotions and their definitions in the previous post and as requested I’m sharing my list of 100 Goals with you today. I apologise in advance for the lengthy post (I’ve tried to break it up with images so it’s not just text). I hope the goals inspire you and help you in creating your own Life To-Do List (100 goals).

Looking through them I think I can break them down into my Defining the Best ME categories (Mental, Physical, Wisdom) and some fit into more than one category.

Here we go:

1. Start/Run my own business
2. Have 2 children/start a family
3. Develop/run educational resources/sessions for business, community and schools/unis
4. Visit the Great Barrier Reef
5. Visit Tasmania
6. Work internationally
7. Travel to Europe/UK
8. Do 30 minutes walk/run/ride daily
9. Daily yoga
10. Daily meditation
11. Travel to Africa/See wild Gorillas
12. Participate in 12hr Rogaine (I did this when I first got ill – before I realised how serious it was – and would love to have the energy/low pain levels to do it again)
13. Contribute to charity regularly
14. Publish Foggy Frog Picture book
    

    The dummy book for Foggy Frog…

15. Work nationally
16. Have annual holidays
17. Build own house
18. Annual income of $100,000 (This one I’m really not sure about, I’d be happy with earning just enough to live off, but the process said to dream big so that’s what I tried to do)
19. Retire with enough financial security to continue annual holidays
20. Celebrate our 50th wedding anniversary (It’s our 3rd this year)
    

    On our Wedding Day
    Photo (c) M. Vovers, 2011

21. Continue to learn something new each year
22. Learn to sew my own clothes
    

    Patterns I’ve bought but not sewn yet

23. Live as sustainably as possible
24. Complete my Bachelor of Education
25. Help others live sustainably
    

    The last campaign I ran before getting ill in 2013. Focusing on riding and travelling to work.

26. Help others understand chronic illness
27. Have monthly dinner parties with family and friends
28. Have monthly games afternoons with friends (board games)
29. Clean out old and unused things and give to people who will use them
30. Set up my own space for sewing, drawing and studying
31. Plant and maintain veg garden
    

    Our veggie garden last year

32. Find a mentor(s) to help me achieve my goals (I’ve found one business mentor already since setting this goal, but I feel that I would benefit from a team of people I can go to for advice/support)
33. Schedule time weekly to reflect/review my goals and achievements
34. Achieve work/life balance (need to work out what this actually means to me)
35. Have a weekly ‘date’ with E
36. Pay off our mortgage
37. Only buy quality items
38. Save 10% of my income
39. Organise a financial plan
40. Teach my children how to save, invest and create wealth for themselves (need to teach myself this first so I know what I’m talking about… still not too clear on investments and wealth creation)
41. Teach my children to live sustainably
42. Ensure I have regular health checks
43. Read every week (would love daily if possible)
44. Learn to live a fulfilling life with my chronic illnesses
    

    Retrieved from Facebook.

45. Swim regularly 1-2 x a week
46. Visit T in Hong Kong
47. Develop networks to help make my ideas reality
48. Visit Japan
49. Teach my children to cook
50. Schedule time to draw
51. Learn to belly dance
52. Get a family dog
53. Participate in a yoga/health retreat
54. Find a hobby E and I can do together (used to hike regularly but I’m not up to that at this stage)
55. Learn to be more assertive
56. Get monthly massages
57. Learn to play the guitar better
58. Write 2 blog posts a week
59. Spend a day by myself every 6 months focusing on reviewing and renewing my goals and plans
60. Find a weekly routine that works (I feel very flustered lately as I can’t settle into one routine with things changing all the time)
61. Write a will
62. Go on a 4 week holiday by myself
63. Write regular articles for other blogs/websites/media sources
64. Learn to cook more delicious and healthy dairy and gluten free meals
65. Spend time in nature regularly
    

    A bird bath on a community walking trail near work.

66. Enter writing competition and win
67. Organise an annual event to raise awareness of, and funds for research into, chronic illness
68. Act as a mentor for someone
69. Have quarterly girls nights/afternoons/days with my closest friends
70. Get Foggy Frog into libraries, schools and homes around the world
71. Keep a gratitude jar and read the contents yearly
    

    My gratitude corner (bedside table)

72. Create a neighbourhood/community sustainability group to catch up and share ideas
73. Be present and mindful every day
74. Develop a morning and evening routine
75. Keep a regular journal
76. Incorporate physio recommended exercises/stretches into daily life
77. Declutter my life
78. Spend a weekend away with E every 6 months
79. Learn more about business mangement and marketing
80. Deliver a TED talk (about my work and education programs?)
81. Smile every day
    

    Christmas 2013…

82. Learn to deal with conflict
83. Write every day
84. Frame our pictures and display them in the house
85. Interact with people who support my vision
86. Make a firm career decision and pursue it
87. Be well regarded and respected for my work
88. Develop a realistic business plan, implement the plan and follow through
89. Assist 10 people to live a fulfilling life with a chronic illness
90. Get my superannuation strategy working for me
91. Maintain a healthy weight
92. Have regular skin checks
93. Have monthly goals to focus on
94. Build a team around me to help me reach my goals
95. Be around for my children as much as possible
96. Visit my Uncle in Vietnam
97. Buy local as much as possible
98. Focus on experiences not possesions
99. Eat vegetables with every meal
100. Focus on the good things in life
     

     I found this little guy while walking with a friend Christmas Eve 2012… He made us smile, we took photos but left him for others to find and enjoy as well.

 What I’ve learnt from creating this list

The following are the key important things I’ve pulled from my list:

• Helping others/Educating and Awareness Raising. As I go through this list I can count over 10 items that relate to helping/teaching others about different things.
• Having a support team and strong relationships with my family and friends.  Again multiple items on the list focus on spending time with or identifying others who can help me/I can help them.
• Sustainable living. In terms of how I live my life, my financial security, and how I interact with others, having a positive impact instead of a negative one is key.
• Structure and Simplicity. In order to manage my illness and remain as healthy as possible I should aim to have some structure in my daily/weekly routines and I should simplify as much as possible. (This will be a focus of a future post)

Have you completed your 100 Goal Challenge?

If so, what have you learnt from reviewing the goals you’ve set?

If not, has my list helped you identify a few more things you could add to your own?

(c) Megan S, December 2013

Today I want to talk to you about passions and dreams. No matter where you are in life you will always have at least one passion and one dream. These may change as your life does but they are always there.

My whole life I have been passionate about the environment and about caring for others. The form these passions took in my life and my dreams for my future evolved as I grew and changed as a person, but they’re still here.

Me and my siblings

As a child, my passion for the environment took the form of enjoying being outside playing in nature. I always wanted to look after any young children (babies) I saw and was always trying to help my younger sister and brother whenever I could.

As I got older, I got involved with volunteer work through St John Ambulance Australia and the St Vincent De Paul Society. I spent a lot of time learning about different animals and visiting the zoo, and would go for walks when ever I was stressed out or upset.

At university I want really sure what I wanted to do so I completed a double degree in Arts and Science which focused strongly on environmental topics. My volunteer work dropped off because I didn’t have time with study, work and a new found social life.

My working career so far has incorporated both my passion for the environment and helping others, through a strong focus on community engagement and education in all my sustainability roles. My dream was to get a property where I could run sustainability and conservation related workshops, seminars and camps for corporate, community and school groups.

Photo (c) Megan S, November 2013

Since becoming ill, the focus of my passions and my dreams have changed. I would still love to get that property and run those workshops, but I know it is not a viable option while I’m this unwell.

In the mean time, my current dream is to maintain some form of education around sustainability but to also increase awareness of these illnesses I’m struggling with.

My current passions are:

Creating and distributing sustainably made products through my sewing and card making.

Handmade wheat bag set currently available on Foggy Frog Creations Photo (c) Megan S, January 2014

Increasing awareness of Invisible Illnesses through the ‘Foggy Frog and the Pain Gang’ campaign.

Foggy Frog (c) Megan S, January 2014

As you can see, my underlying passions have not changed, but the dreams and the way these manifest in my current life have changed dramatically over time.

Real passions drive our lives. We may alter the way we interpret and embody this passions in our life, but if we are to be happy with the challenges our lives throw at us we need to make sure we are living in a way that fulfills our passions.

Our dreams may not become reality in the way we want or expect them to, but if we let ourselves be truly happy our dreams will come true!

Have you noticed a change in the way you are fulfilling your passions as your life changes?

What are your passions and dreams?

So recently I’ve been having some very vivid, emotional but somehow all muddled up dreams.

Most of my dreams have included a mixture of people I know now, people I knew in the past and people I don’t know at all. They don’t necessarily include events I’ve actually experienced but the feelings and emotions I’m waking up with (sometimes in the middle of the night) are ones I can vividly remember feeling when I was younger.

It would be fair to say I grew up in a broken home. My parents separated when I was around 6 years old, my sister was around 2 and my brother not even one. The separation and divorce did not go that smoothly and I can remember quite a few arguments between my parents when we were being dropped off for custody visits.

On top of that when my father remarried the woman he married had 3 older children of her own and they fostered a child as well. As a step family they were completely dysfunctional (if you’re reading – sorry dad, you didn’t make the best choices :-)). We used to visit every second weekend and for the first half of every school holidays. During that time we’d hardly get to see dad because he was off working and it felt more like our step mum viewed all of us kids as slave labour. When we did get to see dad he was exhausted as he seemed to be working night and day.

This led to many, many nights crying myself to sleep and wishing I was back home at mum’s house. Again, sorry dad but I never felt like I was home when we were there. I had a lot if mixed up emotions at this time.

I loved both of my parents but at times I wasn’t sure that either of them loved me. On several occasions I even considered running away, which seems to have been a subconscious consideration as well because I sleep walked out of the house once and woke up in the neighbour’s yard and had to knock on the back door to be let back in.

The feelings of worthlessness and insecurity transferred across to how I acted at school. I had a lot of trouble making friends and when I did make friends in was never sure if they actually liked me. This fear I’ve only recently lost in the last 5 years as my relationship with E and our closest friends has blossomed.

These dreams I’ve been having have made a lot of the fear and insecurity I experienced when I was younger resurface.

This could have been a bad thing and dragged me down into depression, but as I’m trying to take the positive approach to this illness, I’ve been applying that to my dreams as well.

Whenever I wake up experiencing those dark and confusing emotions I’m attempting to sit back and analyse what has caused it and see how I can reevaluate the situation to be more positive. This means I’m looking both at the situation that occurred in the dream (if I can remember it) and trying to find what situations in my life may be stressing me out to cause these dreams.

So far I haven’t been able to work out what the real life cause of these feelings are but I am learning new ways to cope with these feelings as I recover from my late night (sometimes multiple times a night) wake ups with my heart racing and the intense tightness of a scream or a cry in my chest.

The best way I can get through these dreams is to believe they are occurring for a reason and they are there to help me heal from the emotional damage of my past.

Have you experienced a recurrence in emotions about events you thought were history for you? How have you dealt with those situations?

Do you believe your dreams can help you heal?