Do you have big dreams? Can you identify a specific calling? Do you remember the adrenaline rush of picking up momentum towards something you felt would never happen? Have you been part of fleshing out an idea and brainstorming all the ways and means of transitioning it into a reality? I have, and I LOVE that feeling. It feels like charging up a mountainside, with all the energy in the world, just to see the view from the top. When you reach the top, the world opens up. The sky is blue, birds are chirping, and everything is possible. It feels powerful. I wish I could capture that moment and bottle it. I would open it and drink it when reality sets in.

More often than not, in reality, the scenario feels different. It feels more like a cat who used all its energy to tree itself in hopes of catching a bird. Eventually, it has some very uncomfortable moments, hours, or days. More than once in my life, I have had those moments too. You know the ones. It is the moments when you realize, as fun as “up” was, “down” will require lots of work. Ick, right? AND, from that point, down is the only viable option.

I have some good news. There is a reason we don’t find dead cats in the tops of trees. They can get down. They may be momentarily stuck, but eventually the will to survive kicks in. Cats eventually make their way down on their own. I am not making that up. I heard that straight from a veterinarian. We, too, have the skills to survive our tallest of “ups”. Dreaming is fun but it is only the beginning of the journey to success.

In my experience, the value is in the valley. Only when we come down from our mountaintop or get out of the treetop, can we make progress. Progress happens while putting one foot in front of the other on terra firma. When we get serious about chasing a dream, pursuing a calling, or being victorious in personal battles, we have to be just as willing to keep pushing at our low points as we are to charge mountainsides when things are great.

I certainly prefer charging mountainsides, but I find myself in a valley at the moment. I chased a calling. I treed myself. The moment arrived when I realized “down” would require work. Now, I am working it out while hoofing through the valley. I wouldn’t call it fun, but right here is where growth occurs. The growth that happens in the valley becomes the energy we use to charge up the next mountainside. So, I press on.

Next week, I will take some time to work through what it means to work out your mountain ideas while you are in the valley. In the meantime, look around. Take in your view.

Where are you today? Are you charging a mountainside? Is the wind, having its way with the tiny branches at the top of the tree, only adding insult to your injury? Are you working out your mountaintop ideas while you are hoofing it through the valley? Wherever you are, hear this: Be present, whatever phase.