John C. Maxwell - My Dream Map

MY DREAM MAP

2009 by John C. Maxwell

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, scanning, or otherexcept for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Published in Nashville, Tennessee, by Thomas Nelson. Thomas Nelson is a registered trademark of Thomas Nelson, Inc.

Published in association with Yates & Yates, www.yates2.com.

Page design by Mandi Cofer.

Thomas Nelson, Inc., titles may be purchased in bulk for educational, business, fund-raising, or sales promotional use. For information, please e-mail Special Markets@ThomasNelson.com.

Scripture quotations taken from The Living Bible, 1971. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

ISBN 978-1-4002-8074-2 (IE)

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Maxwell, John C., 1947

My dream map : an interactive companion to put your dream to the test / John C. Maxwell.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN 978-1-4002-0256-0

1. Motivation (Psychology) 2. Success. I. Title.

BF503.M385 2009

158dc22

2008054603

Printed in the United States of America

09 10 11 12 13 QW 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

This book is dedicated to Margaret Maxwell,

the girl of my dreams. On June 14,1969, we were married.

Since that day, we have been living the dream together.

I cannot imagine my life without her. Margaret, happy 60/40!

CONTENTS

Thank you to Charlie Wetzel, my writer, my writer for his assistance with this book in developing a process that will help others create a map for their dreams.

Ive been writing books and teaching at conferences for more than thirty years, and one of the things Ive discovered is that many people can have a difficult time taking general concepts and applying them to their specific lives. Its not because of lack of intelligence or desire. Its just that examining themselves and putting principles into practice can be daunting. Thats one reason Ive included application exercises in most of my books.

At the same time, I dont want to bog down people in numerous activities that take too much time. My advice to people who read my books is generally to use the application exercises if they help, but to skip them if they can easily figure out how to apply the concepts to their lives on their own.

But what if you really want to dig in and do substantial work to apply what youre learning from a book? How do you take the learning process to the next level? What if you would like to delve deeper into the process of discovering your dream while reading Put Your Dreamto the Test?

My Dream Map is my answer to that question.

A dream is an especially difficult thing to describe. Dreams arent concrete until they come to pass. Before then, they are like clouds. When both of us look at a cloud, you may see one thing while I see another. And the picture you see in one moment may quickly change when the first wind comes along. As time goes bya day, a week, or a yearyou may not even remember what you once saw. Thats why I offer this book as a way to make your dream more concrete. Lets face it: when it comes to giving voice and life to their dreams, most people need some help.

When I got the idea for writing Put Your Dream to the Test, I almost didnt move forward with it because of the nebulous quality of dreams. I had seen too many speakers and authors talk about dreams using what I considered to be smoke and mirrors, making claims such as, If you can dream it, you can achieve it. Not true! Ive dreamed about winning an NBA championship, but I guarantee its never going to happen!

This book is designed to help you discover and define your dream. My desire is to help you draw a map that you can then use to achieve what you were created to do. If you want to really dig downor if you want to help someone else do itthen this book will help. To create your dream map, you will need to answer some questions. You will have to spend time thinking and journaling. You will need to talk to people. If youre a person of faith, you should devote time to prayer.

Start by taking the Dream Test that begins on page 1. Read PutYour Dream to the Test (either straight through or a chapter at a time). Then work your way though this book. There are ten sections, one for each of the ten questions found in Put Your Dream to the Test. The bottom line is that you will have to engage in a process.

How long will that take? That depends on you. The amount of time will be affected by how self-aware you are, how honest you are about your strengths and weaknesses, your history, and how much time and energy youve already given to the subject in the past. But isnt your dream worth it? Trust me, the time you spend will be an investment in yourself. Taking several weeks or months to greatly increase the odds of your success will be well worth the effort. Nobody wanders his or her way to a dream, and nobody achieves a dream by accident. Dont shortcut the process and risk cheating yourself out of your dream!

So, are you ready to give it your best shot? Are you willing to do the hard, lonely, inglorious work thats necessary for achieving a dream? Remember, alls well that begins well. You can discover your dream. And you can actually live it.

The first step in creating a useful map is knowing your starting point. Take the following test to help you make that assessment. Think of it as a way of writing You Are Here on your dream map.

For each statement below, please respond by writing the number that best represents your current life (not where others think you should be, where you wish you were, or where you hope to be someday):

0No

1Somewhat

2Yes

1. The Ownership Question: Is my dream really my dream?

A. I would be the person in the world most pleased if I accomplished my dream.

B. I have publicly shared my dream with other people, including those I love.

C. My dream has been challenged by others, and I still embrace it.

D. As Ive gotten older, I have become more certain that my dream is really mine.

E. I believe that my dream is in alignment with the purpose of my life.

Score for This Section_________

2. The Clarity Question: Do I clearly see my dream?

A. I can explain the main gist of my dream in a single sentence.

B. I have spent many hours defining my dream in great detail.

C. I have written a clear description of my dream that includes its main features or objectives.

D. I could answer nearly any question about the what (if not the how) of my dream.

E. I have revised and written my dream more than once.

Score for This Section_______

3. The Reality Question: Am I depending on factors within mycontrol to achieve my dream?

A. I know what my greatest strengths and talents are, and my dream relies heavily on them.

B. My current habits and daily practices strongly contribute to the potential success of my dream.

C. I expect the realization of my dream to be one of the most difficult things Ill ever do.

D. My dream is likely to come true even if I am unlucky, if important people ignore or oppose me, or if I encounter serious obstacles.

E. I am willing to pay any and every price needed to achieve my dream as long as it doesnt violate my personal values.