Anais Nin was a writer who said so many epic things.

She spoke about taking chances when she said, “And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.”  Many of us can relate to this sentiment. It’s so much easier to keep on keeping on.  To do what we need to do day in and day out.

But once remaining there becomes more painful than stepping off the cliff into the unknown, that’s when the real growth and change takes place.  That’s the game-changer.

Anais Nin said, “Throw your dreams into space like a kite, and you do not know what it will bring back, a new life, a new friend, a new love, a new country.”

You don’t have to make the first day of following your dream about quitting your full-time career.  But you can throw those kites into the air.  You can start an evening art class.  Or join a healthy living movement.  You can begin writing a daily journal.  Or making a vision board about places where you want to travel.  These steps alone can fuel your fire and get you moving in the right direction.

As Paulo Coelho once said, “And, when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you achieve it.”  What you focus on gets bigger.  You’ll talk about it more.  People will connect your name to that industry.  And they will think of you when opportunities come up. If you don’t put a voice to your dreams, no one outside your head will ever know they exist.

Is your life where you want it to be?  You are never too old to change directions.  Colonel Sanders, the creator of Kentucky Fried Chicken, didn’t hit it big until age 65.  Laura Ingalls Wilder, of Little House on the Prairie fame, didn’t publish her first book until she was 65. Ronald Reagan didn’t get into politics until he was 55 and he ended up in the White House.

As Anais Nin said, “Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage.”

How courageous are you willing to be?  Your dream coming true depends on how you answer that question.