A passerby saw a child staring into an open field.  Amused, he asked, “What are you looking at?”.  Without hesitation, the child replied, “My castle.”

When I was a little girl, I lived in a big world of imagination.  I didn’t need ‘gadgets’ to help me create adventures. Actually, I needed very little to keep myself entertained.  No matter where I was, I would daydream.

If I was in a snow cave that my brother Ronny and I built, I would daydream of it being a palace and the snow chair a throne.  When we built forts in the woods, I’d imagine we were scouts protecting our land from the “bad guys”.  In my imagination, our tree house was hidden high on the top of an evergreen; although we were only three feet off the ground.  If I was swimming in a lake, I was the female version of the Man from Atlantis.  When I was in the schoolyard I was Jaime Summers jumping off the swing from 100 feet in the air; of course with bionic sound effects!  And if you don’t know what that is, here you go: BIONIC SOUND BITE EFFECT.

We are encouraged to have extraordinary imaginations when we’re young.  The good news is, childlike wonder is timeless.

I googled the definition of daydreaming and Wikipedia was the first to pop up on the screen.  Ahhh, perfect!  I like it.

“Daydreaming is a short-term detachment from one’s immediate surroundings, during which a person’s contact with reality is blurred and partially substituted by a visionary fantasy, especially one of happy, pleasant thoughts, hopes or ambitions, imagined as coming to pass, and experienced while awake.”

What is the purpose of daydreaming?

• It’s absurd ideation.
• It’s chasing after the impossible.
• It’s unlimited freedom in the wonder.
• It’s uncensored thinking.
• It’s creativity without boundaries.
• And most importantly, it kick-starts you in the right direction.

There is significant purpose in daydreaming.  

John Fluevog, my former boss/mentor (and my wonderful friend), is often invited to speak to emerging leaders and fashion designers. The topic he continually empowers in people is the importance of creativity.  He believes our minds are filled with too much clutter and distractions; that we’ve lost the art of originality and have, unfortunately, allowed the internet to water down innovation.  He says, “There are now so many influences on the internet and one never knows what is important and what is not.  It’s now more important than ever to hear and listen to the spirit within you. Everyone else is copying from the comfort of their chair at home.  In order to be original and inventive one needs to go to a quiet place within, not a cluttered place.”  He’s a big advocate of stretching your imagination and getting uncomfortable in your dreaming, so you can create something that is unique, original and extraordinary.

Creating your “castle” begins in your heart.

It begins with desire.

Desire reveals an untold story in its infant stage.

Daydreaming is the first step to making a great decision.

“Little child, why are you daydreaming about building a castle?”
“It’s where I want to live.  That’s the house I want.”

Daydreams reveal desire.  The desire becomes intention.  Intention turns into a plan.  A plan sets goals.  And the goals accomplish the dream.

Daydreaming provides opportunity to believe, and believing creates action.

Remember, daydreaming is the beginning of new thinking.

Daydreaming is believing in what is not yet visible.

Daydreaming has significant purpose when it activates a plan.  It’s a commitment to move forward in what you want, and it challenges the fears that might hinder you from taking your leap of faith.

What would you like to daydream about?  Try it.  It’s the first step in moving from the impossible to the possible.

5 WAYS TO DAYDREAM WITH PURPOSE

Each of these locations create a chill factor that helps you get lost in your thoughts.

1.  Go for a stroll (not a run).  Don’t bring your phone.  
2.  Go for a cruise in your car (not a busy road).  Don’t bring your phone.  
3.  Lie in a hammock (not your bedroom).  Don’t bring your phone.
4.  Sit by rushing waters (not a pool).  Don’t bring your phone.
5.  Sit/Lie in a dark room with one candle (not brightly lit).  Don’t bring your phone.

What do they each have in common?  A slower pace.  Slow it wayyyyy down.  Tranquility is a powerful tool for purposeful daydreaming.

Don’t bring your phone.
Don’t bring your phone.
Don’t bring your phone.
Don’t bring your phone.

Do
Not
Bring
Your
Phone.

WISE WORDS FROM 7 SUCCESSFUL DAYDREAMERS

1.  Albert Einstein:  “Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world.” 
2.  Walt Disney:  “If you can dream it you can do it.  Always remember this whole thing was started by a mouse.” 
3.  Helen Keller:  “The best things in life are unseen, that’s why we close our eyes when we kiss, cry, and dream.” 
4.  Martin Luther King, Jr:  “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.” 
5.  JRR Tolkien:  “I invented that little rhyme about ‘One Ring to rule them all’, I remember, in the bath one day.” 
6.  Neil Armstrong:  “The important achievement of Apollo was demonstrating that humanity is not forever chained to this planet and our visions go rather further than that and our opportunities are unlimited.” 
7.  Brené Brown:  “Stillness is not about focusing on nothingness; it’s about creating an emotional clearing to allow ourselves to feel, think, dream and question.”

Karen Thrall
Business Coach-Consultant | Human Catalyst
Need help daydreaming?  Book a free 20 minute consultation here