A few years back, I had a plan in place to interview some of my favorite musicians and share their stories with the world. And as I looked at my blog this morning, I just realized that this “dream” has now become a reality. That is very humbling! My coach encouraged me to share the story of how it unfolded, as it’s a great example of how dreams often take shape…not necessarily looking like we originally planned!

The background

Four years ago I met legendary musician, Marty Balin (of Jefferson Airplane fame), backstage at a concert. Bill and I got to share some fun personal time with him before the show (go here for the details). I’ve always been drawn to classic rock music and the way it shaped our generation in the late 1960’s, so the conversation with Marty was a thrill.

After going home that evening, I reflected on our talk with Marty and was overcome with a deep need to put it all in writing. It wasn’t the “facts” or the historical details that were important to me. What I wanted to share via my writing was about Marty, the man. The guy who enjoys yoga; the guy who adores his young daughter; the guy who is a great painter. The types of things that most people have no idea about.

You can go anywhere on the Internet to find out which bands Marty was a part of and the names of the albums he’s recorded. That’s not what I’m most interested in. I want to know about the cool guy who’s just like you and me. And I believe that’s also doing the world a service—to learn about legendary musicians as “people”; not as the untouchable icons we’ve made them out to be.

I couldn’t seem to let this go, and the idea remained dormant in my heart.

One year later

It was a full year later when Bill and I caught Marty on the road again. I found him before a show and nervously told him my idea—that I was enthralled with his “story” and I wanted to do an interview with him. I told him I would be submitting the interview to various major music publications.

Marty said, “Great, let’s do it!” and wrote his phone number down on a piece of paper and gave it to me.

Really? It was that easy?

So after the show I went home and got to work. I researched a variety of publications that seemed like a good match for the articles I planned to write. I began a “wish list” of the myriad of musicians I couldn’t wait to interview. I put together a document outlining my goals, outcomes, and intentions. I made a vision board. I was ready to go!

Dashed hopes

But all my enthusiasm was quickly stifled. The more research I did, the more it seemed that there was a big amount of red-tape to get my articles published. Most editors didn’t get back to me. And the ones in the biz who did, said they didn’t take articles from freelance writers so it probably wouldn’t happen anyway. While all this was disappointing, it didn’t stop me from the ‘knowing’ that I would still get these interviews going. Somehow.

Next, Marty and I kept missing each other and weren’t able to connect. We even stayed at the same hotel once and a group of us had dinner together…but the timing simply was not matching up to do a one-on-one interview, no matter how much we both wanted to make it happen. I even had a brand new digital voice recorder that never made it out of the package.

I lost steam. And it all started to feel like an incredible amount of work…and I eventually lost my interest in pursuing it further.

But I didn’t lose my energy and passion for connecting with these musicians and having honest conversations around “who” they are and what brings them joy. For whatever reason, though, it didn’t seem like it was meant to be—at the time. So I put the idea on the backburner. And the idea was so far on the backburner that I kind of forgot about it.

It came back to find me

A few years later, I created my Following Your Joy blog and spent a year laying the foundation and getting it exactly how I wanted it. Right from the start, the joy theme was resonating with readers big-time.

I got to a point where I was excited and ready to start talking to others I admired about how they embrace joy in their lives. Suddenly, it was time to start thinking about my musician friends again!

I tapped back into that excitement I once felt. I called Marty (had no idea if he was at the same phone number or what he was up to) and everything started to unfold beautifully. He was hip to the idea right away and we got our interview scheduled (it’s published now–check it out!).

In the meantime, I connected with another wonderful and joyful musician, Kenny Lee Lewis, of the Steve Miller Band. When I approached him about an interview, he simply replied: “Sounds fun, here’s my cell #.” Again, way too easy!

It was such an honor to interview Kenny (be sure to check out the article here). I’ll never forget him as my “first,” and he set the stage for great things to come. Readers particularly loved learning about Kenny as “real,” and I love that I got to provide another space for him to shine his light.

I’ve got a list of all kinds of cool people I admire who I’ll be interviewing and sharing their stories. Many are musicians, because I’ve got a special passion for music. But many are not—I’ll be interviewing people from all walks of life: Authors, business leaders, stay-at-home moms, adventurers, and a multitude of other amazing and inspiring people. I can’t wait to talk to them about what brings them joy and share their stories here so we can all learn from them!

How cool that I have my own successful blog now where I can interview whoever I want whenever I want and call my own shots. No politics or red tape to deal with and it’s all a breeze…and fun. One of my favorite things to do is to help people shine their lights in the world, and I love that I get to use this blog as a vehicle to do that. Yes!

What I’ve learned about dreams

The Law of Attraction states that we are each responsible for the what and the why of that which we desire to manifest in our lives.

It’s the how that is up to the Universe. And it’s important to be open-minded about that “how,” because it might not look exactly like we planned.

My dream four years ago seems to be the perfect example of how you’ve got to know: 1) What you want, 2) Why it’s important to you, and then 3) Trust that it will all unfold in its right time. This reminds me of a great story I told a while back about trusting in the process of life.

So this morning I smiled and was reminded that yes, this is a big deal. This is a dream I’ve held that is finally coming true. Thanks to my readers for cheering me on, sharing in the excitement, and providing a venue for me to publish my interviews. And special thanks to Marty and Kenny for being a part of the dream…and to so many others to come who I’m excited to introduce here!

I’ll wrap this up with an excerpt of an email from a good friend—one of my cheerleaders who has witnessed the unfolding of this dream over the last few years. She said: “You basically created the medium for these interviews without even knowing it. Who needs Rolling Stone!?”

Amen!

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After we sat down at the candlelight dinner table, the conversation turned to work. Brad started off by saying to Bill: “Tell me again what you do.” And I could tell that Bill was about to give his spiel including the title on his business card and what, specifically, he did for his company.

But before he could get started, Brad surprised all of us—especially Bill—and said, “No, I don’t mean for you to tell me about your job; I know what you do.” He continued, “Tell me what you’re passionate about; tell me what you love to do.”

Woah. Since when has a “work” conversation focused on what you love? What you’re good at? What you’re passionate about? For many of us in business, we are used to spelling out the logistics, the details, the title, the grind…as though it were simply—and only—a means to an end.

The question seemed to take Bill aback, because he stumbled a while with his answer. But I could tell he loved the question and reveled in talking through possibilities and options that excited him. He thoroughly soaked in the significance of this royal, thought-provoking inquiry.

Who doesn’t light up when they talk about what they love?! Try it, just for fun sometime—ask someone what they’re passionate about and watch them come alive, be “in” their body, and share their excitement with true joyful expression.

The question at the table was so big that Bill is still letting it sink in and pondering it. I love that we have such cool friends who care enough to ask what we love.

So how about you. What are you passionate about? Love for you to post your comment below!

Note: You may want to check out this article to help you start to become more aware of what really “does it” for you. :)

Need some help: 1) Figuring out what you love, and 2) Taking the steps to get more of it in your life?

Since February is the month of “Love” (well, every month is about Love, but if you step into a mall or Hallmark store–you know what I mean!), I wrote a guest post called “What Do You Love?” for my friends at Empoword.

Have you ever noticed how one word can get you into a certain mood? This is the strategy behind Empoword. Their products and services—focused around the ‘words’ in our life—help to strengthen us in our journey.

For example, I have one of their cool window clings up on my bathroom mirror that says “Gratitude.” So when I’m drying my hair each morning and my brain drifts to all kinds of trivial stuff (which it does), the word “Gratitude” always catches me. Instantly, it centers me and helps to remind me how grateful I am to be me, to be healthy, and for the day ahead. Of course, my morning isn’t necessarily always that profound; sometimes the word “Gratitude” simply reminds me to be grateful that I am having a good hair day or that Bill wiped off the counter when he was done. It’s all about the little things!

Back to “Love”: You can check out my post here. Special thanks to Stephanie and Wendy at Empoword for inviting me to write a Love post; but more importantly for helping the world choose positivity by becoming more conscious of the words we use.

What’s the word that helps you stay centered and focused?

Have you ever noticed how certain people and situations give you lots of energy, and you feel jazzed in their presence? And then there are other situations or personal interactions where afterwards, you feel completely zapped of energy and feel like doing nothing but collapsing in bed?

Interesting how that works! In my coaching, I encourage my clients to follow their energy. Meaning that when they feel a “call” toward something—whether it’s toward a person, an idea, a place, a project, or whatever—they should go to it!

Follow the aliveness. Follow the joy. Follow the call.

At the same time, when I hear my clients talking about an event that they feel like they “should” attend and there is complete flat-ness in their voice, I have them stop and check-in with what’s happening. It’s obvious to me that there is no energy there…and there’s also an important message for them in that feeling.

Just like everyone else, in my own life I routinely question whether or not something is “right” for me…whether it’s an RSVP for a certain event, taking on an extra project, or reading a particular book. It can be hard to know what the right answer is!

So I pay attention to my energy: Do I feel drawn or called to this thing? Or does my body sink when I think about it? Often I may not know why I feel drawn—or not drawn—to something, and I try not to analyze it. Things are what they are, and I aim to simply follow the energy.

There will always be people who are puzzled by why you do the things you do. And the truth is that we are all coming from our own perspective and no one can truly understand your situation but you. So trust those intuitive messages you receive and follow your energy. For me, life works best when I pay attention, listen, and go where I am called.

Ask yourself:

–What negatively drains my energy?

Begin to notice the people and situations you encounter and how you feel in their presence. Then make adjustments as necessary, as this will help you get clear on where to focus your attention. Begin to eliminate, or at least cut back on, the things that drain you. And of course, keep doing more of what fuels you.

Your energy is your most precious resource, and you are in charge of how you spend it.

What do you need to do differently to live a more joyful life? Be bold and tell the rest of us by leaving a comment below. You never know, you just might inspire someone else to make a new choice in their life!