It seems I’m on a mission. As with most missions, I’m quite passionate about my point of view. Seriously, there’s lots of evidence to support it’s truth. It’s been said that by the 6th grade our imagination is taught out of us. That’s right, we’re actually taught to be less creative than we are naturally, so that we ‘fit in’ better. I believe that’s a travesty.

In order to be a successful entrepreneur, and further, a fully expressed individual, tapping into our creativity is essential! Not only does the quality of our businesses and lives depend on it, so does the future of the world. It wasn’t that long ago that many couldn’t imagine a fax machine, let alone a phone with calendars and email. Something as now common velcro wasn’t possible, or a dishwasher or even the car. The Wright brothers were lunatics to many… but really they were entrepreneurs who were determined to continue to dream and use their imagination.

In today’s world where events happen quickly, it’s easy to forget that there’s a period of play, dreaming and experimenting to create and build anything of substance. Yes, sometimes we stumble upon a quick fix, but often its years of study and application combined with vision that gets the job done. Giving ourselves room and permission to play, to risk, to fail, to try again… that’s where the juice and the joy can be contained. truly it is the journey as well as the destination that we can value.

So, I’m on a mission! A mission to give ourselves permission to risk, to play to try. We may not always succeed as we’d like, but if we operate from the concept that it ALL leads us to success, then there are no failures. There are only those who embrace their creative imaginations, who are determined to forge a new path, and who are willing to fail forward to learn and contribute to their own education in order to forward the lives of others.

So, dear entrepreneurs and business owners… use your heads and your hearts to imagine what’s next. Thoughts are things, and these ideas will fill our future and allow us all to live richly! Carry this mission forward, we need all the soldiers we can get!

Keep shining,

J.