True confession here. I’ve been crying a bit lately, and that’s not typical for me. This has been an interesting season. While I have been absorbed in all the things I do to make a living, an emotional nerve has been hit.
I see that many friends and industry colleagues have been taking their kids to college. This represents a change in life for kids and parents. I’m guessing many are also feeling emotional about leaving the son’s and daughter’s they have raised to become adults on college campuses.
It started to hit me when moving my son into his dorm. I took a detour when I went to take trash to the dumpster. Walking around his relatively small campus, what was happening really hit me.
The little guy we raised has grown up. My wife and I are very blessed to see the man he has become.
This campus has a few rocking chairs with the inscription DREAM BIG on them. As I sat in one of those chairs, my ADD mind wandered in different directions. Through some tears, I reflected on dreaming big. Dreaming big is not just for young adults who are starting their college journey. It’s also applicable to old people like me who want to dream big and make their lives count for something.
I took note of this school's DREAM BIG theme when we visited the college before. The DREAM BIG chairs are still prominent on the campus, but now, they have a new slogan; DREAM BOLD.
DREAM BIG and DREAM BOLD are similar, but different. During this time of reflection, I did a word search to explore the differences. Here are a few definitions:
BIG: adjective, bigger, biggest.
1. large, as in size, height, width, or amount: a big house; a big quantity.
2. of major concern, importance, gravity, or the like: a big problem.
3. outstanding for a specified quality: a big liar; a big success.
4. important, as in influence, standing, or wealth: a big man in his field.
5. grown-up; mature: big enough to know better.
6. doing business or conducted on a large scale; major in size or importance: big government.
BOLD: adjective, bolder, boldest.
1. not hesitating or fearful in the face of actual or possible danger or rebuff; courageous and daring: a bold hero.
2. not hesitating to break the rules of propriety; forward; impudent: He apologized for being so bold as to speak to the emperor.
3. necessitating courage and daring; challenging: a bold adventure.
4. beyond the usual limits of conventional thought or action; imaginative: Einstein was a bold mathematician. a difficult problem needing a bold answer.
5. striking or conspicuous to the eye; flashy; showy: a bold pattern.
6. nautical. deep enough to be navigable close to the shore: bold waters.
Jumping out at me from the BOLD definitions are: not hesitating to break the rules of propriety; necessitating courage and daring; challenging; beyond the usual limits of conventional thought or action; imaginative.
When FreePromoTips was created back in 2005 to help others, as I was helped in the promotional marketing industry, there was nothing quite like it. What we do with this PPAI award-winning program and the other things we do are not conventional.
Seeing the explosion of online video, we created YourPromotionSolution.com, a video resource website offering short videos from a few forward-thinking suppliers who want to help distributors sell their products.
Our wellness initiative, SuccessFit4Life! was birthed from my own personal journey. With the encouragement of an amazing group of people, as an old, formally fatter guy with a fused ankle, I started to get active. My life has changed. SuccessFit4Life! is about encouraging people on their wellness journey…wherever they want to go.
The words BIG and BOLD work well in the entrepreneurial world. It comes naturally for me to focus on making a difference in my community, my industry, and my personal life. Sitting in a DREAM BIG rocking chair at Life Pacific College I reflected on the dreams I have for my son, but I was also reflecting on the dreams I have.
We all have Big Dreams for our kids and we should all have Big Dreams for our lives. Wherever we are in life, I believe everyone has the opportunity to DREAM BIG and DREAM BOLD.
© 2016 Jeff Solomon, MAS