Can dreams come true…or is it just following the process?
Listen here
This is a very personal story to me, yet the message rings true in much of what we do in life…and as the title ask’s “can dreams come true”!
Well yes, they can…because a dream is simply something that we picture in our minds, and that if we believe in enough, we will give our all to achieve.
The slightly less exciting action is “just following the process”! The two phrases that I hear relating to this story are “everything is possible” and “just following the process”! Let me explain!
OK…some years ago, I wrote seven articles for British Athletics on sports psychology relating to endurance running…the learnings being little different to business and everyday life…these where picked up by some athletes in Kenya (Iten, the home of champions), and I struck up a relationship…As an England Athletics accredited endurance Coach, my work is very little different to that used in all walks of life…establishing aims, creating goals, clear two way communication, having a plan, building a team ethos, and creating belief in everyone.
If you then want to develop in all that you do, you have to immerse yourself with the best in class…for me, visiting the “home of Champions” …Iten, Kenya.
My first visit was in September 2021…the experience touched me…the sheer talent of the athletes yet with access to so little of what we just take for granted. On my return to the UK, I knew that I had to do something…in tandem with my new friends in Kenya, we formed a group of six talented runners, yet without hope, structure, guidance or even kit, which includes having secondhand as opposed to new pairs of running shoes.
I write this now from Iten, and while on my third visit. The transformation has been remarkable.
From providing structure, guidance, mentorship, assistance on occasions with food and shelter (think of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs), new running shoes…but perhaps more importantly, belief and a feeling of belonging…being part of a team of six, each with a personal ambition.
Their now two favourite expressions!?
“Everything is possible,” and “Follow the process” …the latter being the training programme set.
To return to the question, “can dreams come true”? let me simply finish by saying…for two of our group, we are predicting 2.04 marathons within 18 months…world class. From no hope and no shoes to plenty of hope and brand-new shoes!
So yes, they can, but commit to hard work, structure and never giving up.
“The surest way to make your dreams come true is to live them.”
― Roy T. Bennett