“And, when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.” ― Paulo Coelho
This is one of my absolute favourite quotes from Paulo Coelho, writer of one of my favorite books, The Alchemist. It sums up my entire year to be honest, all of the goals that I set for myself, all of my travel plans. A year ago, I didn’t know that I would be sitting here reflecting on 2016 and all of the places that I had only once dreamt of visiting. This year has been simply mind-blowing and transformational; I traveled to 4 continents, (North America, South America, Europe, Africa) and ticked 5 places off of my bucket-list, all while holding down a full-time job! So, don’t tell me you don’t have time to travel.
People ask me every day, ‘how do you do it?, and sometimes even I get stumped on exactly how I seem to pull off these amazing adventures, but when I sit and reflect on life and the how, it’s always one common thread, I speak things into existence. I give my dreams life, I don’t simply let them live as dreams. I decide what I want and let the universe do the rest. Believe it or not, you have the power to do anything you want to do. Sounds cliche hey? But, it’s the truth. I’m a living, breathing, traveling example! You’ll never know if you don’t try, right?!
One major example. In 2015, my travel bucket list consisted of the following five places:
- Brazil
- Africa
- New Orleans
- Jamaica
- Greece
Guess what, we’re in the month of December 2016, and I have visited every single one of these places, with the exception of Jamaica! Did I ever in a million years think I could visit this ambitious list? Hell no. I didn’t know where I would get the money from, but I knew I had to see these places for myself, so I put it in the universe. When I looked at my 2014 list and witnessed my travel dreams unravel before my very eyes in 2015, I was in awe! How did this happen?! It happened because I made a promise to myself that I would see as much of the world as I realistically could while encouraging others to do the same. I prayed about it, then I set it and forget it. The rest as they say is history!
If I had doubted myself about my ability to travel around the world and create this platform after all of my previous efforts, I wouldn’t be here to spread a word of encouragement. They say ‘doubt kills more dreams than failure ever will’, so whatever it is that you are dreaming of in 2017, put it out there in the universe; make it a reality. Your dreams may not consist of traveling around the world like mine is, but it’s something. Whatever it is, go for it. Do it! Life is too short not to live out your wildest dreams!
All fired up about 2017 goals? You’re ready to make a commitment to actively pursue your dreams. Here’s one important thing to remember, you gotta put in work! I’m not going to sit here and say the only thing that you have to do to achieve your goals is to put it into the atmosphere, of course it comes with a little or a LOT of hard work. When I made my travel bucket list, I didn’t just wait for the plane ticket to drop in my lap. I did some research; I looked for cheap airfares and accommodations. I figured out what I wanted to see, what I wanted to do. I did my part. So remember, while the universe will do it’s part, you must also do your part!
