Opening Doors for Ourselves and Others

Ten years ago a wise friend said to me that the moment you get clear on what you want, the universe can dump a pile of s*!t in your way.  The bigger the dream, the bigger the pile!  The key to manifestation is in overcoming these challenges and obstacles so you can capture the energy, inner and outer resources and space needed for your vision, dream, and goals to manifest.

In my childhood bedroom, I had a poster with a ballet dancer and a quote about how you can do it if you can dream it.  While a seemingly positive affirmation, this quote actually contributed to a negative unconscious belief that something must be wrong with me if I didn’t achieve my goal or that maybe I’m not worthy of success.  What I’ve come to learn throughout my adult life is that dreams and goals aren’t about the outcome.  The true sense of achievement is held within who we become in the process. 

I’ve never had any issues with dreaming up the possibilities of life and marinating in them with enthusiasm.  Both my parents have always encouraged me to try new things and to never be afraid to follow my heart.  I love visiting the realm of all possibility.  It brings clarity when I feel a bit lost, and it opens doors within myself I wasn’t aware of before.  When one of these doorways to my inner realm opens and I can feel my heart sing, magic starts to happen in my outer world and the doors of opportunity begin to fly open. 

At the beginning of the pandemic, I realized I hadn’t been spending nearly enough time in this realm of higher dreams and found myself throwing out all my old vision boards and personal mapping and planning guides I’d created.  I wasn’t giving up on my dreams.  I just needed to give them some space to explore what’s next and give myself a break to enjoy what I’d already set in motion.  Ironically, the more I slowed down, the more the doorways of new opportunities flew open. 

Whenever I ask someone if resources and opportunities were limitless for them, what would they do or create?  It never ceases to surprise me that most people either don’t have an answer of any sort or they immediately come up with a list of reasons why they prefer to go with the flow of life and setting goals is pointless.

Here’s the thing.  Going into the realm of all possibility isn’t about not being in the flow.  If anything, dreaming up the possibilities is about coming into alignment with the flow of life and your true self.  This practice becomes a source of inspiration and a way to find answers when life gets messy, and it’s the key to calling in the right opportunities. 

Where we can get lost in the process of putting a dream or goal into action is when we attach our worth and self-esteem to the outcome, or we try to control the process.  Life does indeed happen when we’re making other plans and embracing that part of the manifestation equation is a lesson in relinquishing total control.  This isn’t solo creation!  It’s co-creation!  That’s why it can feel so magical and it’s important to embrace the process with a sense of curiosity, adventure, and play. 

As the world has watched the unraveling of the Afghan government and the thousands of people fleeing the country to escape the tyranny they could otherwise face, I’ve been reflecting on how there is a generation of young Afghan women who never knew the oppression their mothers, grandmothers and great-grandmothers experienced.  Over the past twenty years, the doors of opportunity flew open for these women, and they were fearless in following their dreams of becoming artists, scientists, governing officials and much more.  They revolutionized the culture of Afghanistan because in their hearts they always kept the doors of possibility wide open.  They knew all too well what was at stake if they shrunk from their hopes and dreams.

Now those actual doors of opportunity are closing again for the women of Afghanistan, and many are fleeing for their safety and freedom.  As I send healing energy for the entire nation and the safety of everyone involved, I also envision those doors of opportunity remaining open for the women who worked so hard to contribute to the growth of their country and its culture.  Just as we hold the door open for someone, especially when they have their hands full, we can do the same in our hearts for those who are oppressed.

For those of us who live in an open society, the inner and outer challenges we face are often rooted in conditioning from family and society and the stories we tell ourselves about our dreams.  The thing is, they are just that – stories!  Stories are just partial truths of the big picture and when we begin to unravel them, we begin to see they have no power over us. 

Taking a dream from the realm of possibility and breaking through the barriers of our inner and outer challenges takes work, but the kind of work that leaves you feeling full of satisfaction at the end of the day, because all of it was fueled by a sense of possibility that comes only when we keep our inner doors open to opportunities both seen and unseen.