Image by Falcon Motorcycles via Flickr

Shawn Feddern has a big dream… and here it is in his own words:

“While listening to the radio this morning, I heard Mitch Matthews talk about Big Dream Gathering.

I was very encouraged to know such a group existed and to know that I could share my big dream with others and hopefully recieve and give encouragement to others.

My biggest dream is to use my love of motorcycling to help others see the love of Christ in themselves.  While some of the minor goals to get to this overall goal are a bit selfish in my opinion that is the biggest overall goal of my big dream.  Idealistically i would love to become a builder of bikes and have products that demonstrate love and craftsmanship and beauty through design for the common buyer.
Since my biggest goal is to use my love of motorcycling to help others see the love of Christ, I have started my own blog in order to try to be a witness to others.   It seems easy for some people to say Christ this and Christ that, but I try to do it in a way that Christ is revealed in a non threatening way.

For my selfish dream, I am trying to save up money so that I can learn how to build bikes through a course in Minnesota or Illinios called Chopper College, I may have the name wrong, but I wrote a bit about it in one of my blogs.   I’d also maybe like to take some classes in motorcycle or engine maintanence so I would know how to repair whatever it is i wish to build or make, as I have also toyed with the idea of having my own repairshop/ or buisness.

The biggest thing I need for this dream to become a reality is encouragement.  I know my dream will take time and money, and of course God’s help along the way.  When I try to look at the big picture it’s easy to become frightened.  Depending on who you share things with, it’s easy to become discouraged due to their own understanding and faith.  While this is good in some ways, it’s also very easy to think oh I can never reach my big dream, so why even bother.

In closing, I’d just like to thank you for being an encouragement to me and others in sharing and trying to live their big dreams out.  I’m sure you’ve seen all kinds of dreams, and it has been interesting to read the dreams of others on your website.  I have included a link to my blog so that you can see that as well.  http://onewildridescfedd.blogspot.com/

What do you say?

Do you have some ideas… some connections or some much needed encouragement for Shawn?

Click on comments and let him know!

Kate Phanmaha is working on one of her BIG dreams.  Better said… she’s cooking up something BIG!

She talked with us about it at a recent BIG Dream Gathering… and we wanted to give her a little boost by featuring her today. So check out her dream… in her own words:

What do you think?

Could you help Kate cook something up?  Could you offer her a little encouragement?  Could you offer her some insights or a connection?  Heck, could you offer her a favorite recipe?  I’m sure she take it as she moves towards this big dream!

Just click comments and let her know.

By the way, thanks for dreaming BIG with us all month!  The response has been amazing!  So we have more dreams to feature and we’ll be doing that over the coming weeks in July!  So keep an eye out as we continue to dream BIG into July!

Until we hit a million dreams,

Mitch

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Today’s featured BIG dream is a BIG dream update from Sean Moore!

You maybe remember Sean’s inspiring story from last year.

Rattlebox LIVE

He is the awesome dad, hubby and member of his small community… who had a dream.  That dream was to form a band… and rock the house. (Check out the story by clicking here.)

Now that may sound a little simple… and it would be fine if it was.  We want to celebrate all kinds of dream pursuits!  But as we talked with Sean, we found out that the “why” behind this dream… had a much deeper heart connection than just getting out with the “band” from time to time.  This dream was also important to Sean because of his sister Kendra and her battle with something called Stevens-Johnson Syndrome.  You can read more about Sean’s story in his own words by clicking here:  BIG Dream Gathering – Sean Moore -big-dream-story-2010.

Well, the update is that RATTLEBOX has continued to ROCK!

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Image by thaths via Flickr

Today’s featured BIG dream comes from the heart.  And although it only consists of a few words, it’s one of the most profound dreams that we’ve had submitted so far…

It’s from nine-year-old Jessica.

Here it is in her own words:

“I would like a dad.”

The things she said she has in place:

“A Mom.”

The things she said she still needs:

“A Dad.”

What would you want to say to this brave young dreamer?  Do you have some encouragement?  Do you have some words of wisdom to share? Do you have some ideas for her?

Why not click comments and let her know?

And hey… thanks for being in this together!

Mitch Matthews

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Today’s featured BIG dream comes from Andrew “Drew” Glenn in Reynoldsburg, Ohio!

Here it is in his own words…

Andrew "Drew" Glenn

Background: I grew up an obese child. I was put on a low-cholesterol diet at age 12 to help control my weight. I was made-fun-of all through school, beat up for being the ‘fat-kid’…etc. It was a very painful experience and one that will stick with me forever. But I am blessed to have gone through the pain…because of where God has me right now!! (always a silver lining baby! Whew!)

I want to take my story and pay-it-forward. As you know, I’ve lost over a 100lbs., completed several marathons and ultra-marathons, published a running book about my story and if I can help save one kid, I will have reached my goal!

THE BIG DREAM:

Short-term:
-To create an online environment for overweight children and kids with disabilities that harbors safe, positive and encouraging guidance to help lift them up and provide prudent advice and resources to educate and teach these little people how to manage their weight. Childhood obesity and cyber-bulling are on the rise and I want to provide a resource to guide them away from the hate and into a place they can learn and take control. Build self-esteem and loose pounds. The site will house resources such as: how to diet as a kid; safe exercises for kids; advice for parents; nutrition facts etc.

Long-term:
Build free standing workout facilities for overweight children and disabled children. An environment that they can use (free of charge) without the ‘meat-locker’ mentality. These kids can comfortably gain hands-on training, advice and a facility that harbors lifting them up rather than put them down. As kids become healthier, use them to volunteer to pay-it-forward to new kids coming into the facility. Dispatch the ‘Cupboard-Squad’ (small branded vehicles with food experts) that make house calls to help diminish the garbage in a families cupboards and teach them how to buy smart and cook healthier.

WHAT I HAVE IN PLACE:

Here is what I have thus far: I have the non-profit business model and plan put together. I have a domain name secured (www.AmazingRunners.com). I have a marketing company ready to handle all the web development and social media piece when I decide to pull the trigger. I have a published book that tells my story for credibility. I have the passion of a 6 year old on Christmas morning and a scream of a 4 year old to spread the word!!!

What I need:

Time and money!!!

How can you help?

Well… do you have a “way to go” comment for Drew?  Or maybe a “I have a dream like that too” encouragement? Or possibly a “I know someone who could help you out with that!” kind of connection?  If so, let him know by clicking comments!

Join in the convo!  We’d love to see this big dream get some help, encouragement and traction!  And I’m betting you would too!

So… chime in a let Drew know you believe in his big dream!

Oh… and really help him out by spreading this around Facebook!  You just never know who might be able to help Drew make this BIG dream happen!  It could be one of YOUR friends!

Thanks for dreaming BIG with us!

Stay tuned for more BIG dreams all this week too!

Until we hit a million dreams launched,

Mitch Matthews

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Cover via Amazon

Today’s featured BIG dreamer is Bob Burg.

Bob is a person who is living his big dream by helping others.  He gets to do this through his best-selling books and by speaking around the world.

One of Bob’s books is called The Go-Giver.  It’s an incredible book that he co-wrote with John David Mann.

If you haven’t read it, I suggest you do! It’s a book that has had a big impact on me.  In fact, the concepts in the book helped to encourage me a few years ago when I was about ready to give up on the BIG Dream Gathering and just go back to something “safe.”  If you’ve ever felt “stuck” or tired and you’re not sure how to move forward… this little book will give you some simple but powerful tools to help you get “unstuck” and become a Go-Giver!

Plus, it’s a story that’s a lot of fun to read too!  Trust me.  You’ll dig it.

Okay… so… I’ve wanted to feature Bob in a BIG Dream Gathering Podcast for a while and we were finally able to make it happen!

On this podcast, we…

• Talk about Bob’s own big dream journey and find out how he “got promoted out of” his first career choice.
• Discuss how being authentically you can be the best gift you give yourself AND others!
• Dig into the concept of how premise of “It’s better to give than receive” stops short and can wear us out!
• How you can apply some of the “laws” discussed in the Go-Giver to your own BIG dream journey and help you to make those dreams happen!

So I invite you to check out this PODCAST with Bob and my hope is that it encourages you to keep going after your BIG dreams!

Mitch Matthews, Dondi Scumaci and Bob Burg

Click here to check it out:

BIG DREAM GATHERING Podcast with Mitch Matthews and Bob Burg

I hope you enjoy it… and I hope you continue to pursue you big dreams!

By the way, Bob has made the first chapter of The Go-Giver available for FREE.  So you can click here to check it out.  And I hope you do!

Until we hit a million,

Mitch Matthews

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Today’s featured BIG dream is a bit of an update on a big dream that got posted at a BDG last fall.

LAST NIGHT WAS A BIG NIGHT!

The BIG Dream Gathering had a fun night last night!  Why?

Well… we got to celebrate a BIG DREAM… coming to fruition.

That’s right… A BIG DREAMER… Jay Carstensen hit a major milestone in his big dream journey last night.

Do you remember Jay? He posted a big dream last year… and it was one that seemed impossible when he put it on the wall.  Here he is… talking about it.

But last night… just 8 months after he posted that big dream last November… he had his GRAND OPENING!  That’s right… Jay opened his martial arts school in Des Moines!

How about that?

I’ve got to tell you that it was so cool to be there on the sidelines to see the people who were there to root Jay on in his big dream pursuit!  (Plus, get a little kick-butt-action schoolin’ along the way!)

He’s now teaching classes each night and on Saturday mornings.  Plus, he signed up a big group for one of his self-defense/self-preservation courses while we were all there too!  Heck, it was great to see a group of women learn one technique that would help them get away from someone who grabbed them!  You should have seen it.  They were in their business attire… but they were fired up!  As they tried it… and it worked… they were whooping and haulering… and “feeling the power!”  It was fun to watch!

MY FAVORITE THING: THE GRIN

THE GRIN - Jay at his grand opening!

But my favorite thing… was that little grin on Jay’s face.

That grin that only comes from an inner-knowing.  That grin that comes when you’re on that big dream journey.  That grin that comes when you’ve taken a big step towards that dream.

Jay had “the grin.”

And even though Jay doesn’t usually like to be the center of attention… he stepped up.  He welcomed people into his business. He showed them things.  He introduced them to his current students (who were there in droves and wildly excited for Jay too!).   And he wowed people with some demonstrations.

Yup… it was a MAJOR milestone in his big dream pursuit!  And we are so proud of him for walking it out!

So… what’s next for Jay?  Well, he needs your help on getting the word out about his school.  He’ll do some advertising and those types of things, but he’s wanting to grow it over time.  He wants to gradually grow the school one student at a time… one class at a time.

So if you’re interested in finding out more about the school… or you want to find out more about why this big dream is so important to Jay… connect with him.  You can visit the school’s website by clicking here or you can call Jay directly at 515 255 9698.

You can also check out this recent interview with Jay to find out more about the school and his approach to teaching.

So… okay… what’s the call to action?

Well… a few things.

The first is that I’d ask you to leave a comment to encourage Jay on his BIG DREAM PURSUIT!  Let him know you’re excited for him or that you’re inspired by him… or that you’re pulling for him too!  Also, if you have an idea, a connection or a question for him… let him know that too.

Second… I’d offer you a bit of a challenge.  I’d challenge you to think about your own big dream pursuit today.  What’s something you could do… today?  I can tell you that it was so fun to see Jay’s grin last night.  But I can tell you that there were a lot of small but significant steps that he had to take to get to that point.  He had to get clear on what he wanted to do.  He had to plan.  He had to ask for help.  He had to take risks.

But it all happened because he was willing to take those small but significant steps… every day. And by the way, there were a lot of those “grins” along the way… because Jay has been enjoying the journey too!

So… how about you?  How can we put one of those grins on your face today?  What’s a small but significant step that you could take?  Why not take it?  Think about it.  What if you wound up walking around with a BIG DREAM GRIN on your face all day?  I guarantee that grin will make people wonder what you’re up to… and… like Jay…  you can just know you’re taking some steps towards making your dream a reality!

Keep dreaming big!

Until we hit a million,

Mitch Matthews

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Today… we are featuring the “updated” big dream for Denise Forney.

Featured BIG Dreamer - Denise Forney

The reason I say it’s her “updated” big dream is because Denise has been with the BIG Dream Gathering for a while! In fact, her big dream journey started back in 2008 when she came to her first BDG and she posted a dream that was all about writing kids music.

Then… she started walking out that dream!  And she did it one small but significant step at a time.

She didn’t quit her day job.  She simply started to look for opportunities to flex her “music writing” muscle.  She was involved with the children’s ministry at her church and so she started to write some original songs for that.  Someone asked her if she’d do some songs for a kid’s birthday party… she agreed… and wrote more songs.  She wanted to encourage her own kids to be musical… and BAM… more songs came.

Fast forward to 2010, when she came to another BIG Dream Gathering.  This time she had 14+ original songs written, but now the big dream was to record a CD.  So she posted a dream sheet describing the dream and asking for help.

Get this… someone in the room had a recording studio… and they wanted to help Denise make this dream happen!

Denise Forney - Criss Cross Applesauce

Now… it’s 2011… and Denise has her own CD – CRISSCROSS APPLESAUCE!  How cool is that?

Since she’s been walking out her dream… I asked Denise for an update.  Plus, I wanted to find out what was next.

So here’s her “updated big dream,” in her own words…

You are just the best… thanks so much for continuing to be so encouraging of my dream!

Our big dream is getting this CD into the hands of as many childcare providers, parents and young children as possible!

It always blesses me when I hear stories of families around the country that are listening to the CD with their young tots and enjoying the music. When a child I’m teaching says,

Denise with two of her back up singers getting ready for a gig!

“Konichiwa!” after hearing “Hello Around the World,” or gets excited about recycling after hearing “Let’s Go Green.” Or when another mom can relate how hard it is to be a working parent and drop their child off at daycare in the morning after hearing “Tic Tac Toe, X’s and O’s.” Yes, it’s cool to leave this kind of legacy with my kids… but to know that the songs are touching other families too makes my heart smile. So… the dream continues… with plans in the works for a children’s Christmas CD of songs I’ve been writing for a few years… and fun performances with kids this summer at the Blank Park Zoo (where we’ll outroar the lions!) Wellspring Christian Bookstore, KangarooBoo, and the Great Iowa State FAIR!

How cool is that?!

Denise Forney with her ALL STAR Back Up Singers!

So that’s Denise’s “Updated” Big dream.  We’re excited for her and I bet you are too!  Why not let her know if you have some ideas, connections or encouragement for her?  Just click on comments and let her know!

Also… as I’m wrapping up this post… I’m wondering what Denise’s story might inspire YOU to do today?  What if you took a few lessons from her BIG DREAM PLAYBOOK?  What if you thought about a few of those big dreams that you have and wrote them down?  What if you looked for opportunities to walk them out?  What if you took a few small but significant steps towards them?  What if you got started… TODAY?  What could happen?

Denise’s story is proof-positive that those small but significant steps can add up over time!

So let Denise know that you believe in her BIG DREAM… and also know that we believe in YOURS!!

Until we hit a million,

Mitch Matthews

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We first met Calvin Johannsen at our BIG Dream Gathering at the University of Northern Iowa in early 2010.

Calvin Johannsen

I really connected with one of his big dreams and we started to explore working together on some projects.  That has lead to a freakishly cool working relationship and some amazing videos for the BIG Dream Gathering too!

So… I asked Calvin about some of his big dreams and where he wants to go.

It was interesting because before he started to talk about his future… he started to talk about his past.

He talked about the fact that his big dreams have involved producing cutting edge video for as long as he can remember.  As a result, he would go above and beyond to create it.  For example, when he was at UNI, he took it upon himself to create a “stripped down” video series.  This wasn’t for a class.  This wasn’t for an assignment.  This was just something he did to push himself and see what he could come up with.  (With little to no budget and limited equipment.)

By the way, Calvin won BEST of SHOW for a video contest at the University of Northern Iowa with this!

He has since graduated from UNI and he now has his own video production company called VisualHouse.  The flippin’ cool thing is that he’s been having a lot of success with it.  In fact, to give you an idea of how he’s continued to grow in his craft… take a look at some recent videos that he produced.

In these videos, Calvin said he built off of the experiences like his “Stripped Down” project, but he was able to add additional know-how and new tools.

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Since we’ve declared June as THE MONTH TO DREAM BIG… we’ve been blown away by the dreams that have been submitted so far!  We’re honored to get to hear about the BIG dreams that you’re working on!

Plus… it’s been fun, inspiring and… sometimes… humbling to feature many of them here! We are honored to get to share these BIG dreams and we’ve been loving the encouragement, support and ideas that you’ve been offering through your comments here… AND on Facebook!

Now, speaking of BIG DREAMS and incredible journeys… Kimberly Price… today’s BIG dreamer… has had an amazing journey!  She and her family have walked a road that has been filled with significant challenges and scary moments.  They have faced these things together… and it has led them to an new big dream.

Kim’s story is incredibly inspiring and her heart is the size of Texas!  Plus, she’s got a big dream that you can help with!

Here it is in her own words…

Kim Price - Cancer Survivor and BIG Dreamer!

In June 2009, after 9 months of going to doctors, I was diagnosed with Stage IV non-hodgkin’s lymphoma.

As the mother of 4 young kids I set out on a journey to not only beat the cancer, but find my purpose (God’s purpose) in this world.

Although my world looks and feels much different, I wanted to be clear to those around me that “cancer” was a very small piece of who I am or ever will be,and that it is what I do with my life and my legacy that matters the most!

So…..after I was told I was in remission in June 2010, I started brainstorming and DREAMING about building a community resource center for all those that have been affected by sickness and disease.  A place where individuals and community could come together in one location to connect, find information and support one another.  It isn’t that none of this exists, it does, but it is all scattered in a million different places and hard to find. It can also be very impersonal, and I wanted to create the personal connection that so many desire.  I also wanted a place where individuals who were affected could put all of their links, contacts and information so that those that were supporting them could easily find them.

Kimberly Price with her son!

I have since connected with a group that has the same ideas, mission and of course BIG DREAM!

We are called the Airo Project.

We currently have a website, but are in the middle of a complete overhaul with a NEW bigger mission!

Our hope/DREAM is that with the help of the individuals and the community we can create a user friendly website that not only provides the pieces that are currently missing, but helps bring all that already exists together for all to access.  We also hope to create more community awareness around all those that are affected by sickness and disease and what their needs are, so that we can all become more involved ALL the time in being supportive and UPLIFTING the lives of others.

Kimberly Price with her family!

Please help us GROW and SUPPORT those that are in need!

Thanks!!
Kimberly Price

Do you you have some ideas, connections or suggestions for Kim?

Have you or your family been impacted by cancer and you want to help her out with this BIG dream?

Are you up against a similar challenge to what Kim has faced… and you’re wanting more information about the Airo Project?

Well… if so… click “COMMENTS” below and let Kim know.  I know she’d love to hear from YOU and I know she would appreciate your input!

So… yeah… just click comments and let her know that you believe in her… and you want to see this big dream happen!

Lastly, if you’ve got a big dream to share… just click here to find out how to do that.

In the meantime, keep dreaming BIG!

Until we hit a million,

Mitch Matthews

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