I Have a Dream! 

Unless you been living under a rock, you have heard the “I Have a Dream” speech by the civil rights activist and preacher Dr. Martin Luther King. This speech was spoken by Mr. King on August 28, 1963 during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom at Lincoln Memorial. As a kid and even as a young adult I really didn’t get the significance of this speech. I’ll be honest I simply thought it was about African American’s having the same rights as White’s. Being African American myself I just didn’t connect at the time. Fast forward a couple of years and I start asking myself a question many people do. 

What is my calling? 

I used to have no idea what it was. Nothing seemed to interest me. The interesting thing that was happening to me though, was God was giving me dreams, flashes and visions of a life that I didn’t think was at all possible for me.  I saw myself in a fulfilling career, a family, and full of unbelievable joy. God also showed me why he created me the way he did. I am a born talker but throughout life I learned to be quiet because I was tired of people talking behind my back about my talking and having a full conversation with someone only for them not to be listening. Then a good friend told me “The people who need to hear you will”, this changed my life. I started seeing myself work for Fortune 500 companies, sports franchises, and some of the most popular brands around the world. John Ryan summed it up in his article” Leadership Success Always Starts with Vision. The title of the article is a jewel to anyone who’s wondering where to start. This article gave me new perspective on leadership and that sometimes you must crawl before you walk. I work for my state’s local government office. I was blessed when I got the job at age 23. I was fresh out of college with an Associate degree in hand with no place to go. Job’s weren’t calling, so I took it upon myself to enroll in a university to further my career. I was so lost, I ended up majoring in Business Marketing which at the time I had no passion for. I picked the field because it seemed like the right thing to do. As soon as I started my classes I got a call from the State of Alabama about a clerk position that an agency had an opening for. I went to the interview and I nailed it by having a great interview and as my former boss said, “I came in with a suite (Always dress professionally when applying for jobs).” This job was not my dream career, but I worked hard and now I’m a Statistician for the state. I realized that jobs are hard to find, so I try my best not to give up. I believe earning my master's degree in Strategic Communication will give me the edge I need to move up to the next level. I don’t take my job for vain though. If there is something my department is trying to communicate, I try my best to help and get the word out. I like to lend my help when my co-workers need creative ideas to get messages across and I’m known for being an awesome speaker in my department. My thinking is I can start using strategic communication now as I build my way up to a fulfilling career in the field of strategic communication. 

How Can You Make the Vision Come Alive? 

The number one thing I suggest is fake it to you believe it. Maybe you're working as cashier at local store or serving hungry people at restaurants, but that is no excuse to not use your communication skills. If you take a little time and effort you will be surprised at just have a positive voice can change the people around, you and your customers. I have a part time job at local store. I make the best of it by socializing with the customers, and making it point to speak to each. There have been several times when a customer tells me I should be on TV show like QCV or the Home Shopping Network. They also let me know I have a voice that needs to be heard. That is one of the best feelings when a customer tells me this. I also believe in writing your visions and dream down. It’s good practice to keep a journal by your bedside to record your dreams. When you start reviewing them, you’ll be amazed on how your dreams are talking to you. Prayer also works! Ask God or whoever you believe in to show you the way. It never fails.  Finally, vision boards are a great way to keep focus. 

What is a Vision Board? 

Vision Boards are usually a collection of pictures and images that you cut from magazines and post on posters and other things at the begging of the new year to help you stay focus on what you want that year. When you obtain something on your vision board you take it off and add something new to the board. 

I believe in creating a career vision board. 

This board can start at any time of the year when you start to realize what you want out of your career.  I dig through old magazines and google pics to post pictures of successful women dressed for their careers, business slogans, slogans about communicating, pictures of places and different parts of the world, and just anything thing that speaks about succeeding and communicating. I get a huge board and tack the pictures on the board. I look at these pictures almost every day to keep me motivated on what I want in life. This has been a big help for me, especially when I’m down and want to give up. 

Like Dr. Martin King and other visionaries know that dreams are real and come true. Never give up and ALWAYS keep your eyes on the prize.