This post is all about how to achieve your dream life.
Do you ever wonder why you seem to be stuck in a job you don’t love? Or why no one seems to recognize your talent? Why clients seem to not value your services and skills?
“You don’t need everyone to love you, just a few good people.” – Charity Barnum, “The Greatest Showman”
The quote above is brimming with simple yet profound truths. All in one short sentence. We don’t need everyone to love, approve of, or even like us. All we need is the “few good people”: our friends, family, and the people closest to us.
When I first heard that quote while watching the movie, it stuck with me. It was a lightbulb moment. To have a joyful, meaningful, and laughter-filled life, we only need the people around us who love us for who we are, the love of the people we admire and trust. Everyone else’s opinion of feelings about us can’t be based on truth or valid– they don’t really know or love us.
The Problem:
The same principle applies also to our jobs, careers, and even our income. Not everyone is going to like, value, or approve of you, your skills and talents, or your work. In fact, most people won’t. Your job is to find the tiny percent of people who will.
I personally experienced this when applying for preschool teacher positions outside of the small, welcoming private school I had worked at previously for three years.
The position at the private school did not pay very well, however the founder of the school knew how to lead people with her vision and get them excited and involved. You didn’t work for the pay; you worked because you knew you were making a difference and were part of something bigger than yourself.
How I Found the Secret to Have Your Dream Life
When I moved to the city and applied for other preschool positions in metropolitan areas, at interviews I was offered minimum wage, very poor benefits, no paid time off. The interviewers seemed shocked when I told them my preferred hourly rate. Besides that, the schools completely lacked the family feel I was used to. I felt trapped. There seemed to be no other way I could get a job teaching children, which was my passion, without selling my life away. The only other option was to be a waitress or work at fast food. Or was it? If people were working at those places for those wages, wouldn’t they have left by now if there was something better?
At that moment, sitting alone in my car in the parking lot after the last interview, I made a promise to myself.
Actually, two promises:
1. I would never give up on myself by taking a job that didn’t value me uniquely or pay me what I knew I was worth.(Even if it seemed like my only option.)
2. I would find a job I loved that ALSO paid my dream salary.
I didn’t know it then, but that’s the moment my entire life changed.
At that point, I didn’t know how I was going to do this. Or what would happen. But I felt a peace, a new confidence in knowing that I would never let myself down again by lowering my standards and not going after my dreams. I finally trusted what God was trying to tell me, I told Fear No. Because Fear is a Liar.
The Solution and #1 Secret to Have Your Dream Life
Two weeks later, I was employed at the job of my dreams with my dream salary. It included all weekends off, all holidays paid off, 2 weeks of paid vacation, starting immediately. My role was to be a personal nanny to a lovely family who needed a Summer Teacher/Babysitter. At my new job, I took kids to swim lessons, parks, rock-climbing, picnics, the zoo, to strawberry farms, and watched LEGO movies,
I was finally able to breathe, My new confidence and peace of mind felt amazing. I finally felt free.
I resolved to hold to my standards, even though it meant turning down every opportunity. It paid off. I found the 1% that valued my skills.
That’s the secret. Ignore the 99% who say you can’t do it, who can’t see your value, Find the 1% who need your unique talents and skills, who will see your value, and your life will change drastically. It takes work. courage, and persistence, but the results are more than worth it.