Dreams On Wheels Part III: Olympic Dreams

Dreams On Wheels 2012 Tour Route

Thought for the Day: As I prepare to start my Dreams on Wheels 2012 tour tomorrow, the Olympics are in full swing. When I began planning the tour, I did not realize that the Olympics would coincide with my trip. I regret that my TV viewing time, as well as my time for writing blog posts about the stories of the athletes, is limited, since I love the Olympics. In particular, I find the stories of the athletes' overcoming adversity inspiring. Olympic athletes are true 'wake up dreamers.' They can inspire us all to push ourselves & reach our own personal best.

Triumph

Jordyn Wieber Tears

Often their dreams to attend the Olympics start when they are children. Their parents enroll them in a sport and they discover their passion. Many children dream of becoming a world class athletes, but to make it to the Olympics they must train diligently for many years before they are old enough to qualify. Years of early morning practices,  countless competitions, wins and losses, triumphs and failures, as well as tears of joy & tears of disappointment, mark the journey towards their dreams. It takes talent,  perseverance, and passion to make it to their Olympic dreams. There are many obstacles that get in the way. The newscasts are filled with tales of bouts with injuries, cancer, loss of loved ones, financial hardships that could easily stop many people from continuing on the path to their dreams. When they overcome adversity and reach the Olympics the achievement is even sweeter. Winning is glorious, but just being among the world's greatest athletes should be enough to make every Olympian proud.

Athletics lend themselves to quantifiable tasks which can be measured by numbers of repetitions and the results can also be easily measured. In life not all dreams are as easy to map out and measure. However, when you chart out your dreams, you can find ways to measure and assess your progress.  'Wake up dreams' using the Dream Positioning System, can help you map your way to your dreams. Listen carefully to the stories of the athletes. Let them inspire you to start moving towards your dreams.

No 'wake up dream' is too small or too lofty to aspire to reach. Tomorrow I will be starting the Dreams On Wheels 2012 book tour, celebrating dreams & dreamers, the release of my new e-book versions on Amazon.com, The Wake Up and Dream Challenge, benefiting 21 dream nonprofit organizations helping people overcome adversity and reach their dreams. I will be visiting with three of the charities benefiting from my book, Boaz & Ruth, Elimination of Prejudice & Menorah Park. I will tell you more about them in subsequent posts.

Dreams On Wheels is also a traveling positive psychology research project complete with a Dream Team of interns conducting & filming interviews with people along the route, in NYC, Philadelphia, Washington DC & more. I was into positive psychology long before it had an official name & hope to discover how Americans' dreams are faring in these tough financial times. The tour & clips from the interviews can be followed live & on multiple social media sites.

I hope you will make some time while you are watching the Olympics to visit my blog & facebook page to hear how people along the way are meeting the challenges of today's world as they move towards their dreams.

Part II: Dreams On Wheels Six Days and Counting

Thought for the Day: "The world needs dreamers & the world needs doers, but above all the world needs dreamers who do." Sarah Breathnach
In case you missed any of the countdown photos, I've included some alongside this post. I have had a lot of fun preparing these photos. I hope you like them!

It is hard to believe that Dreams On Wheels 2012 tour is just six days away! I am definitely a dreamer that does whatever I can, but as the tour approaches, I have my hands full. There is so much left to do in preparation, that I have little time to write my blog. As a psychologist, I see this journey as a traveling research project. We will be finding out how people's dreams are faring in these tough economic times. The journey is positioned to inspire people and celebrate the American Dream. I am hoping to meet as many people as possible along the way & learn from them about their hopes and dreams. What is helping them? What is holding them back in their search for their dreams? If they are stuck, I hope to be a catalyst to enable them to start moving. If they have found creative ways to progress towards their dreams, I want to share their stories to inspire others. My interns will be helping to videotape conversations with people along the route.

We start out in Connecticut & will be making stops in NYC, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington, DC, Pittsburg, & Cleveland. Even if you are not on the route & cannot meet me & my team personally, you can follow our journey online & I would love to hear from you. I'd like to know what your dreams are & how you are doing as you work towards them. Have your dreams been postponed or fallen by the wayside due to the economy or personal challenges? Do you have an inspiring story to share? I will be reporting the stories I hear as well as ideas I suggest or discover from the people I meet.


If you know someone who might be interested in this journey, please share this post with them as well.

 'Wake Up Dreams' are the dreams and aspirations that wake us up, inspire us to take action & make what may seem impossible happen. So follow us & see how you can become a 'Wake Up Dreamer!'

There will be daily updates on Facebook, twitter, Google +. Please join the conversation, share your stories and dreams.