1. Welcome to: Living Your Dreams & Overcoming Obstacles
Section # 44
Jen Alexander

2. "Obstacles cannot crush me; every obstacle yields to stern resolve
"Obstacles cannot crush me; every obstacle yields to stern resolve." - Leonardo Da Vinci
Who can tell me what Da Vinci meant when he said this?
What does ‘Stern’ mean?
stern1   (stûrn) adj. stern·er, stern·est
Hard, harsh, or severe in manner or character: a stern disciplinarian. See Synonyms at severe.
Grim, gloomy, or forbidding in appearance or outlook.
Firm or unyielding; uncompromising.
Inexorable; relentless: stern necessity.
What does ‘Resolve’ mean?
re·solve    (r-zlv) v. re·solved, re·solv·ing, re·solves v. tr.
To make a firm decision about.
To cause (a person) to reach a decision. See Synonyms at decide.
To decide or express by formal vote.
To change or convert: My resentment resolved itself into resignation.
To find a solution to; solve. See Synonyms at solve.
Doesn’t he mean Obstacles is stopped by his unyielding decision about his future, his ideas, and his intensions?

3. Defining Your Dreams… What is a dream? What is YOUR dream? -Money?
-Security?
-Fame?
-Happiness?
What do you think a dream is? Can we construct one set of absolutes and says “This is a dream!”…if so, what would you say they are?
Think back to your childhood when ALL things were possible! When nothing seemed so large it was out of your reach. How many of the dreams you had then are still your dreams today?
What is your dream today?
What do the dreams of adults most often involve? Money, security, fame or happieness? Can you think of other things adults dream of?

4. Dream = Goal
Do you believe a Dream and a Goal are indeed the same thing?
Now that we’ve discussed dreams, let’s talk about goals.
Are dreams and goals the same?
Why or why not?
Define a ‘dream’…
The dictionary defines a dream as: A condition or achievement that is longed for; an aspiration.

5. -The dictionary defines a dream as: A condition or achievement that is longed for; an aspiration.
Define Goal
-Goal is defined as: The final purpose or aim; the end to which a design tends, or which a person aims to reach or attain.

6. -Goal is defined as: The final purpose or aim; the end to which a design tends, or which a person aims to reach or attain.

7. Though they have slightly different meanings, it’s hard to have one without the other, and it’s hard to have success without either!
The meanings are closely related, but they are not the same thing.

8. Success!
Defined in the dictionary as "the achievement of something desired, attempted, or intended"--meeting one's goal(s).
If you long for something (the definition of a dream) you also desire it. Aim (in goal’s definition) means To direct toward or intend for a particular goal…therefore you can not have Success without a dream, and a goal.

9. Success Simply Means… meeting one's goals--whatever they may be.
Everyone can have their own measure of success.
What is your goal? 
Success means different things to different people—it’s simply meeting your goals no matter what those goals are.
To a blind man success may mean he is able to live by himself and be self-sufficient.
To a child success may be not striking out on his turn up to bat in a game of baseball.
To a mother success may be seeing her achieve their goals and dreams.
To you success may mean passing this course, and graduating college!
This is because everyone has their own measure of success, and how they measure success changes.

10. What is your goal? What is your goal?
Read some of the goals students listed and discuss them!

11. How Do I Achieve Success?
Have a dream!
Set a goal you believe in!
-a positive attitude is essential!
Now how are you going to achieve success where these goals are concerned?
First you MUST have a dream!!!
You must set a goal you believe in (and if you’ve already done this you are one step ahead in the game).
You have to stay positive! If you aren’t positive about your goals, no one will be!

12. Create a vivid mental image of the life you want.
Begin using your imagination to create the changes you would like to make in your life.
Create a vivid mental image of the life you want.
Think like a child again!!! Children imagine themselves as many things, doctors, lawyers, actors, singers, mothers, teachers…the list is endless. They use their imaginations, and they believe they can be whatever it is they choose. For the few of us who don’t lose that sense of imagination, we truly can be everything we imagine we can be!
Imagine you are successful in whatever you want to be successful in, and you will be well on your way to achieving your goals.
Creating a vivid mental image of your life as you envision it, and holding strong to that vision is essential.

13. Be clear about what you want. Focus on your dream.
Keep your focus on what you want rather than what you do NOT want.
Be clear and stay focussed on what you want! Don’t focus on negativity, instead focus on the positive aspects of your goals.

14. Believe in yourself! 
Acknowledge yourself for each step you take toward making your dream come true.
If you don’t believe in YOU, nobody else will either!

15. Don’t Wait! If you wait, sometimes you miss a great opportunity!
Seize the moment, and don’t be afraid to go for it!
Opportunity is everywhere. When it knocks at your door seize it! You never know when you may say no, or turn your back and then never again get the opportunity to do a certain thing. If an opportunity arises that will help you to attain your goals and dreams, don’t wait, go for it!

16. Don’t Let Others Steal Your Dreams!
No matter how far-fetched others may think your dream is, remember, what you dream is what you achieve!
People often laugh at the dreams of others. Often it is because they long ago put their own dreams on a shelf, and now they can’t find them. It’s important never to listen to those who tell you “you can’t!”
Remember, What you dream is what you achieve!

17. As You Change… So too will your dream!
It’s ok for your dream to change and grow as you do, but you must never lose site of it, even when things go wrong!
Of course you aren’t a child, you’re all young adults. The dreams you have now probably aren’t the dreams you had as a child. If they are still the same dreams, they may be modified a bit from what they were when you were younger…and that’s ok.
As you continue to grow in your maturity, and age in years, your dreams will evolve as you do also, and that’s OK!
Dreams can change and grow as you do, but it’s important no matter how much your dreams change, that you never lose site of them when things go wrong!

18. And things WILL go wrong!
Because things will go wrong!
Things ALWAYS go wrong!
There will be days when it seems like your entire world has been turned upside down. We’ve all experienced them. It’s those of us who persevere that will eventually reach our goals and achieve success.

19. This couldn’t be more true!
Overcoming Obstacles
Someone once said:
“If you can’t hit a curve ball, you’ll never make it in the big leagues!”
This couldn’t be more true!
Overcoming the obstacles that will liter your path is of the utmost importance. Hitting curve balls MUST come naturally to you if you want to make it in the big leagues!

20. it’s not what happens to you, it’s what you do about it!
Because in the long run,
it’s not what happens to you,
it’s what you do about it!
Set-backs WILL happen, it’s what you choose to do about them that matters!
Because something we all learn eventually is that it’s not what happens to you, it’s what you do about it!
Set-backs are going to happen, that’s a fact! It’s how you choose to deal with those set-backs that will set you apart from others, and potentially change your life.

21. Don’t Fear the Obstacles In Your Path!
Failure will occur, but when you stumble,
you MUST get back up and try again!
Failure happens, but if everyone who failed, quit, nobody would ever accomplish anything of value!

22. --Charles DuBos, French critic
"The important thing is this: to be able at any moment to sacrifice what we are for what we could become."        
--Charles DuBos, French critic
Charles DuBos, a French critic once said:
“The important thing is this: to be able at any moment to sacrifice what we are for what we could become.”

23. Many Have tried & failed…
R.H Macy failed 7 times, before his store in New York caught on.
English novelist John Creasey got 753 rejection slips before he published 564 books.
Baseball legend, Babe Ruth struck out 1,330 times; but he also hit 714 home runs.
There are many famous people who tried and failed numerous times before becoming great successes.
R.H. Macy, John Creasey and Babe Ruth are among them.

24. So don't worry about failure
So don't worry about failure. Worry about the chances you miss, when you don't even try.
Worrying about failure is a waste of time that could better be used taking advantages of the chances there are for your success!

25. Abraham Lincoln didn't quit.
He once wrote:
"The sense of obligation to continue is present in all of us. A duty to strive is the duty of us all. I feel a call to that duty."
Abraham Lincoln was an inspiring speaker and writer! He said and wrote many things that still inspire dreamers everywhere!

26. After losing a Senate race he said:
“The path was worn and slippery. My foot slipped out from under me, knocking the other out of the way, but I recovered and said to myself, 'It's a slip and not a fall.”
Many of you may not know that Lincoln lost a Senate race before he went on to become our 16th President of the United States, and you don’t know about it because it’s not what he’s remembered for. He’s remembered for his decisions in office, the speeches he gave and his life as a leader which was a great example of success!

27. "Go confidently in the direction of your dreams.
Live the life you've imagined."            
--H. D. Thoreau
So tonight I will send you off with the words of a great author and philosopher Henry David Thoreau: “Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you’ve imagined!”
** Henry David Thoreau (July 12, May 6, 1862) was a noted American author and philosopher who is most famous for Walden and his treatise on civil disobedience. He was born in Concord, Massachusetts and graduated from Harvard in 1837.
Hailed by some as the first environmentalist, Thoreau was a profound philosopher on the human condition. His essay Civil Disobedience was inspirational for Tolstoy and Mohandas Gandhi.

28. Works Cited A Third Serving of Chicken Soup for the Soul
Chicken Soup for the Mind: 101
Chicken Soup for the Soul Live! Vol. 3: Living Your Dreams & Overcoming Obstacles
These books and the video were written and compiled
by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen
Word meanings taken from