Bobb Biehl and Paul Swets talk about Dreaming Big

Added March 29, 2008

Joyce: In the Library Reviews welcomes the authors of Dreaming Big: Bobb Biehl and Paul Swets.

The format of your book is both informative and interactive. When you wrote the book, how did you intend for it to be read? Can the principles be applied to individuals as well as to business people?

Bobb & Paul: Yes. Dreaming Big is for all persons who want to be energized by their dreams. It's for college students who struggle to understand what they want to give their life to. It's for people in their mid-life phase who want to launch new ventures. And Dreaming Big is for those nearing retirement who wonder whether there is life after work.

Since work includes such a large portion of our lives, our work or business likely will be a significant factor in our thinking about the future. Ideally our work will provide the resources to help us reach our big dreams.

The book format enables Dreaming Big to be read in small chunks of about 15 minutes each day. This gives us maximum time to think, to do the self-analysis that is needed for us to discover our core vision for our future.

Joyce: "The better your dreams represent what is really in you, the more realistic they will be." This statement from your book caught my attention. How can we know if a dream really fits us? Is it possible to dream too big?

Bobb & Paul: It's possible to dream unrealistic dreams. When I was a youth, I wanted to be a jockey and race horses, but by the 7th grade I was 6 feet tall!

Bobb Biehl and I want the dreams of our readers to fit like a hand in a glove. To achieve this fit, there are a number of questions we need to answer. Dreaming Big leads readers through answering the right questions so that mental fog clears and confidence builds that our dreams are indeed right for us.

Joyce: What are some characteristics of a life dream? How can we recognize it?

Bobb & Paul: In Dreaming Big, we define a Life Dream as a statement of the difference we want to make before we die. This is huge. My guess is that most of us desperately want greater clarity about the meaning and purpose of our lives-not just in a general sense-but in a way that is specific to us as individuals, in a way that takes into account the way God has wired us.

When a dream arises from deep within-the kind that paints a vision of the difference we want to make before we die-it draws upon our personal history, it represents our greatest strengths, it flows out of our core values, it meets the needs of other people, and it transforms wild ambitions into dream energy.

When we get it right, at the depth of our beings we'll feel, "Wow! This is what I was made for! This is what stirs my passions and pulls me into the future-this is my Life Dream!"

Joyce: In the book, you mention the concept of "Life Work" to help a person clarify their direction in life. How is this different from a job or career? How do we determine our "Life Work"?

Bobb & Paul: Some of us just "fell" into a job or career. We didn't think it through. We didn't plan. Nobody coached us. No mentor guided us. What Bobb and I call a Life Work is different. Typically it is based on a careful assessment of who we are. It integrates three areas: our dreams or passions, our personal strengths or skills, and a way to generate income. When those three areas overlap, we have found what we were made to do. Even on Monday morning, we'll want to go to work.

Joyce: It seems that most dreams require some kind of financial backing. Do you have any advice for people who wonder how they will fund their dream?

Bobb & Paul: Many of us are financially illiterate. I was. To expand my awareness, I needed to read books, talk to people I trust, and allow myself to be mentored. I'm still learning about the world of finances, but I do find it amazing how our financial options expand when we diligently search for them.

Joyce: Dreams are often vulnerable, especially during the formative stages. How can we safeguard our dreams in this early stage?

Bobb & Paul: Three ways. First, be mentally alert. Some people-even those close to us-may want to steal our dreams through discouragement or ridicule. Second, be open to wise counsel. We offer guidelines for finding counselors who will take our dreams seriously. Third, be mentally tough. We need to be strong enough to make corrections when they are needed and courageous enough to walk the narrow path alone when necessary.

Joyce: Your book shows that dreams can sometimes cross the line and become all-consuming. Please describe the warning signs that may show that a dream is creating an imbalance in our lives.

Bobb & Paul: In Dreaming Big, we say that a life that is not balanced is like a tire that is out of round and you hear the thump, thump, thump sound. We ask the reader a series of questions to diagnose where the problem is so they can repair it. For example, the reader can do a self-check in eight major dimensions of life that need to be in balance: family, financial, vocational, social, spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical. When these are in proper balance, the reader will sense the purring sound of a motor finely tuned and eager to move forward.

Joyce: Thank you for answering my questions and for writing such an insightful and motivating book.

Dreaming Big is certainly a winner!

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This page was last updated on March 29, 2008

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