Growing up, my friends dreamt of driving new cars. I dreamt of finding a worn out wreck and bringing it back to life. I was given a book called “The history of Ferrari”. I fell in love.
Growing up in a rural town I was never likely to see a Ferrari let alone own one but that never inhibited my fascination. The history, the passion, the courage of one man’s dream to build racing cars captured my imagination. By the age of 8 I was an expert, long before that I had decided that someday, somehow I would own one. From the age of 12 I worked weekends, day and night jobs. People laughed when I told them I was saving for a Ferrari but that was exactly what I was doing. Every small piece was a step closer.
We all need a dream, a vision, it doesn’t matter how crazy or impossible it may seem. The most important thing is that it’s a dream that sets your hearts alight, inspires your passions and fires your emotions. This is your one incredible life, It’s very short so don’t waste a second, be brave, be passionate and paint the picture of the things you love and the life you want. Don’t allow others narrow minds or doubts inhibit your ability to dream. Slowly replace every piece of doubt with a piece of this dream until doubt has no place left to exist.
When your mind is open to miracles they happen
Seven years into my savings I had nowhere near enough but I remained on a mission. Then the universe matched my passion with opportunity. While driving in a remote part of Ireland I saw an apparition. At the back of a house was blue canvas cover; underneath was a tiny flash of red. Immediately my years of reading told me exactly what this was. I plucked up the courage, went in and asked if I could see it. Luckily they agreed. I slowly, carefully rolled away the cover and there it was, in all its glory, Red, faded, in pieces and completely rotted. My heart raced and fell all at the same time but here was my first step.
When we have our life’s vison or picture we don’t always have the process to get there. Often all we have is the first step but that is enough. Once we take it we have a new place to see the world from. Once we take the first step we are closer can see a little further. Don’t wait for the perfect time, or the perfect plan, it seldom comes. Take the first step, be brave, and believe that when you do everything else will open up because when you do, it does.
Keep the dream in front of you: Allow the promise of the future to inspire the present
Maybe I should have walked away but I couldn’t. I knew too much of history of Ferrari, I didn’t see a broken wreck I saw its beautiful heart and soul. Over the next 13 years I rebuilt it piece by piece. I created a wall of images with the same car in pristine condition so when I got frustrated or demotivated I would sit in the driving seat and look at these images and remind myself of what it would become. The promise of the future brought order and inspiration to the chaos of the present. I worked away.
Create YOUR vision board
In life we need to keep our life vision in front of us. We need to keep ourselves motivated and focused on the things we love and are grateful for. It is easy get frustrated or demotivated by the chaos that can sometimes happen. It is at these times we need a vision or an anchor to focus our thoughts and our actions. Create a vision board, put images of the people and things you love most, put images of your dreams that inspire you, create the future you want. A simple image or a word can reset your mind at important times. Focus always on the things you want and not the things you don’t.
Never abandon the present in your pursuit of the future
The biggest lesson came towards the end of the project. The closer I got the more frustration and impatience came into play. I could now see the finish line and it frustrated me that I couldn’t just get there. The little jobs annoyed me and I could no longer see the beautiful red dream. All I could see were the things that weren’t right, the imperfections. I was no longer looking at its beautiful heart and soul. The imperfections stood out more to me than anyone else, all they could only see was the little red car. In my attempt to get to the future or my illusion of perfection I had abandoned my appreciation and enjoyment of the present. I had to remind myself to be proud of all the little steps and little changes. It’s so important not to abandon the present in a chaotic pursuit of the future.
We all make resolutions, set targets and goals but it’s important not to lose the ability to be in the present, to celebrate the little success and the little advances of the everyday. The real key to lasting personal transformation is self-care. Self-care is about totally accepting who you are and loving that person enough to want to support and transform them. Although you may not be the finished picture it’s important that you learn to enjoy and embrace the journey. If we blindly chase a future we risk totally missing the beauty that is in the here and now. Being human is to have imperfections, don’t let these stop you from loving who you are. Accept to change them if you can, but embrace the beauty of being perfectly imperfect, perfectly you.
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