I learned this, at least, by my experiment: that if one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours. He will put some things behind, will pass an invisible boundary; new, universal, and more liberal laws will begin to establish themselves around and within him; or the old laws be expanded, and interpreted in his favor in a more liberal sense, and he will live with the license of a higher order of beings. In proportion as he simplifies his life, the laws of the universe will appear less complex, and solitude will not be solitude, nor poverty poverty, nor weakness weakness. If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them.

Henry David Thoreau, Walden

This excerpt from Walden has been ringing in my head today. There are several things now accomplished from my 2021 goals and there are almost as many left to finish in the second half of the year. Additionally, the past week has helped me dream bigger and start adding to my dream list which will be the backbone for my 2022 goals. Many castles have been built in the air, now is the time to build the foundations under them.

After some invigorating and relaxing boat time with the boys today I faced a choice. Sit down and relax or prep my breakfasts and lunches for the upcoming week. One of my goals is a focus on eating correctly and intentionally rather than going solely by desire and convenience. If I prepare in advance I eat healthy. If I relax and don’t prepare I eat much less healthy and watch the scale move in the wrong direction. In making a simple choice this afternoon I was actually making a choice which will have a huge impact on this week and the weeks after. I chose to spend the next hours in the kitchen preparing.

What I find interesting is that this one step really makes all the difference for me much of the time. I like to go with my gut and instincts, but so often my life is much improved by focused and intentional preparation. The more I take my time to walk through the details of a strategy of almost any sort the more likely I am to be successful. Even though I know that about myself I still hear that little voice in my head telling me “you’ve got this, just chill, relax now, figure it out later.” If I give in to the voice my chances of success decrease tremendously. If I remember to focus and prepare the odds are more in my favor.

As I led with tonight, the past week has been amazing for the creations of castes in the air. This evening I was reminded of the importance of building the foundations under them. They don’t just magically happen on their own. Focused and intentional preparation is the first step towards living into those dreams.

Thanks!!!