When Dreams become Goals, They are Achievable
As a small business owner looking after my clients is often more important than looking after me and achieving my dreams.
When I founded Brio Design in 2002 at aged 25, I knew that I had to work hard to develop my client base and my reputation. It wasn’t always easy and over the years there have been quite a few business and personal stumbles along the way.
In 2013 my son Arlo was born, and not long after that I became a single parent. I realised that these new responsibilities and challenges meant it was time for me to spend more time looking after me, so that I could be my best for Arlo, my team, and my clients.
While going through my divorce, I met Bret, firstly as my client, and not long after that, I became his client.
I thought I had a pretty good understanding of what I needed for my future. However, after that first session with Bret, when he asked me about my life goals, I realised that I had a pretty good ‘wish list’ but didn’t have the steps in place that would enable me to reach the personal and professional goals that were most important to me. Of course security for me and Arlo were number one on the list but there was a big hairy audacious goal (BHAG) which was special to me.
One of my greatest pleasures is driving old cars, buying my first, a 1967 Fiat 850 Coupe, when I was in year 10. With the help of my dad and grandfather we restored it, and I drove it to school in Year 11 and 12. That was a very special time but my dream from quite a young age was to own a Fiat Dino Spider, something that I was determined would one day become a reality, but when, was the great unknown. It always just seemed so far away from what I thought was possible.
Bret understood this dream and helped me to take it beyond that to something that could be possible, we added it to my goals and we put steps in place regarding how we could get there. Each year we reviewed the individual goals and the timelines, and in September last year, I became the proud owner of a beautiful 1968 Fiat Dino Spider, WOW, that is a day I will always remember.
What owning this car means for me when I drive it, is that all the sacrifices I had made over my years developing my business were steps toward making my dream possible. When I drive my Spider, it gives me such a feeling of success.
Today, I am one of Bret’s best advocates because without his planning tools and dedication to check and review regularly how I am going working towards all my goals, I truly believe I would not be where I am today. It is wonderful to have comfort that I am OK, Arlo is OK, and the business is OK, and on top of all that, I have now achieved my BHAG.
Thanks Bret, for turning my dream, into a reality.