Default to Yes! (Your Extraordinary Self): For Healthy Mind, Body & Spirit

It's Not Too Late. Your Dream is Waiting.

Juli Reynolds Episode 88

Send us a text

Welcome to another extraordinary week!  

The Truth About Timing

It's a common misconception that certain opportunities are bound by time. If you've ever thought, "It's too late for me," you're not alone. But the truth is that it's never too late to set goals or pursue dreams that have been in your heart for years. Whether you're 20 or 70, age is not a barrier—experience and wisdom have prepared you for this moment.

Overcoming Lies We Tell Ourselves

We often tell ourselves lies about timing, failure, and our capabilities. Let's address some of these:

  • I'm too old. Age is just a number. Vera Wang became a designer at 40, Colonel Sanders started KFC in his sixties. You can pursue your dreams at any age.
  • I've already failed too many times. Failure isn't the end; it's a comma. Each setback is part of your learning curve. Remember, "I've not failed, I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work" – Thomas Edison.
  • I don't have enough time. Time is about priorities. Consistent, small steps create momentum.
  • I don't have what it takes. This is often a symptom of imposter syndrome. But dreaming isn't about perfection; it's about taking action.

A Framework for Pursuing Your Dreams

When we believe it's too late, we often feel paralyzed. Here is a simple framework to guide you:

  1. Clarify Your Dream: What have you always wanted to do? Writing a book, starting a business, traveling? Write it down. Dreams become tangible when named.
  2. Reframe Your Timing: Ask, "Why not now?" Timing isn't perfect, but it's always possible.
  3. Break It Down: Big dreams can overwhelm. Create smaller, actionable goals. Want to run a marathon? Start with a 5k.
  4. Seek Support: Surround yourself with people who believe in you. Find a mentor, join a group, or share your goal with encouraging friends.
  5. Celebrate Progress: Every step you take deserves recognition. Celebrate milestones to maintain your motivation.

Reinventing Yourself

Pursuing dreams often requires reinvention. This isn't about becoming someone you're not but about uncovering the best version of yourself. Reinvention allows you to adapt and grow into the person your dream requires.

Remember, it's never too late to pursue a dream. Age brings clarity to pursue what truly matters. Start small, take that step, and resist the lies of timing and inadequacy. Your dream is waiting—it can be the most extraordinary part of your life.

So why wait? Let’s embark

Support the show


If you are an action taker, let's connect! I'd love to hear from you! There are a variety of ways we can can connect, what works for you?

  • CLICK HERE and get every episode plus bonus content sent right to your inbox!
  • Schedule your NO REGRETS Discovery Call (20 minutes by phone or Zoom, let's chat about what is coming up for you and what you are wanting more of, or less of)
  • Let me know what it looks like when you default to YES! or just leave me a VOICE MESSAGE.
  • Join the Yes! Book Club
  • You can follow me on Instagram and Facebook @reimaginewellness
  • Want daily inspiration, a space to journal, and set goals - join me in GROWTH DAY. It is part of my daily routine, maybe it will be perfect for you too! Make sure you let me know you joined, I have a gift for you if you do!

Welcome to another extraordinary week. I am going to talk about something that I've been actually processing. A lot lately, and there are just days when I wonder if what I do truly matters and does, does it work that I pour my energy into inspire anyone or make a difference? Am I simply going through the motions of life? honoring that deeper calling within me to live and love, imagine and inspire? And sometimes it feels like those dreams that I've carried starting something new, building something meaningful, stepping out boldly belong to a younger version of me or someone else entirely. And. I start to struggle with what, what I'm doing now, what I'll be doing later. And sometimes it gets a little overwhelming to be in my head about this. So just in processing this, just quiet moments, I can sense that God is not only fine with me as I am, but also calling me to more now. Not out of striving or self promotion, but because moving forward honors the gifts he has given me and the way that he's wired me to grow and to inspire others, I realized that stepping towards out towards my dream is not just about me. And it's about showing others it's possible, no matter how old you are, no matter what. Age you are or stage of life. And so that's what I'd like to talk about today is that just that idea of, it's not too late to ever pursue our dreams or set new goals. And sometimes we can get stuck. And I think a lot of that is because of the lies that we tell ourselves and the comparison that we have with, with our peers or, uh, just in our culture. Life has a way of making us believe that certain opportunities are bound by time and that that ship has sailed on our biggest dreams. if you've ever thought anything similar to it's too late for me, you're not alone. But the truth is that it's never too late to set goals. It's never too late to reinvent yourself or go after dreams that you've carried in your heart for years. I'm going to encourage you to sit down and think where will you be 10 years from now? Will you be living at the same place at the same job with the same habits? If you are satisfied with your life as it is, that's fine. But if you want a different lifestyle, you have to do something about it. Your thoughts today and your habits. Determine to large extent what kind of life you're going to live in the future. Imagine what it would be like if everything was in alignment and there were no obstacles. I love that question, by the way, because it really stretches us. What would you do if there were no obstacles? Money was no object and you knew you wouldn't fail. That miracle question is a good question to ask because it really eliminates all the obstacles and the reasoning and the logic that goes into and just allows you to embrace what you really want. Now, taking that that dream for your life 10 years from now and are you going to just forget about it? Are you or are you going to ensure that your life will turn out as the way you want it to be? You can go move with intentionality and get where you want to go or you can drift and be surprised by where you end up. So that's a lot like letting your circumstances and other people and just chance rule your life and determine how your life will look in the future. Or you can take responsibility for your life and make plans and follow them through and change and improve. And just really that's what it is To train your brain to cooperate with you as you show up in the world in the way that you really want to, You're going to be somewhere in 10 years, and it's going to take about the same amount of effort either way. So you could be where you want to be, or you can be surprised by where you are, and maybe even regret where you end up. So, what are we going to do with all of this? Now, I talked before about the lies that we believe, and that we tell ourselves specifically about timing. One of them is that I'm too old. I heard that one before, and there is That's a really common lie. I was in school with Uh, people who went back to school and felt silly about it and they told us stories about how their family didn't support them and their family thought it was crazy that they were going back to say, this was nursing school. So starting a new career in their fifties And why were they doing that now? And I'm going to say, why not? we know Vera Wang became a designer at 40. We know Colonel Sanders started KFC in his sixties. We've all seen people, women, and we've seen people on the news in their nineties, completing marathons, starting running at, in their sixties and winning races. So there are things that we can do if we set our mind to it. Now, those aren't maybe all things that you want. Maybe you don't want to start a new business. Maybe you don't want to run a marathon, but what is it that you do want? Do you want to take a trip? Do you want to read a certain amount of books in a year? Maybe you want to write a book. lose weight, exercise more, make more friends, be more involved in your community. Be less involved in your community. Maybe you want to find that dream job. There are so many things that we have in our heads that that affect the way we want to show up in the world and maybe we're not there yet. It's never too late. so the truth is that age brings experience and wisdom and often clarity to really pursue what truly matters. If we really want it, it doesn't matter how old we are. We can go after it. I'm going to suggest that a better thought is that my life experience has prepared me for this moment and I'm ready now. So if there is something that you've always wanted to do, it may just not be as far out of reach as you think it is. another common lie that I've heard people tell are that we can tell ourselves is that I've already failed too many times and this one gets me sometimes with the chances. How many chances do I get to really start a business? How many chances do I get to see if I can, if I can get a self sustaining business up and running? Someone said that failure is not a period, it's a comma, and each setback is part of your learning curve. Thomas Edison famously said, I've not failed, I've just found 10, 000 ways that won't work. Failure isn't final unless you quit. So a better thought is, Every setback has taught me something valuable. I'm closer than ever. I wonder if, with all my experience in, you know, business and what it takes if, if I really wanted it and I really put myself into it, how fast I actually could go, um, knowing what I know and having experienced a lot of the pitfalls and in having made some bad investments and how, How that would change my decision making. All right. So enough, another thing that I've heard is that I don't have enough time. life always feels busy and there's never a good time to do something a little crazy, but time is about priorities and not scarcity. So you don't need hours. Each day to work towards a goal, consistent, small steps, create momentum, and you can map it out to fit into your current circumstances. so a better thought might be, I can create small moments to work on my dream. A little progress every day adds up and map it out that way. Create that strategy according to the time that you do have. Everybody has enough time for what they really want. another false narrative is that I don't have what it takes. A lot of times we refer to this as imposter syndrome, and that can convince us that we are unqualified or incapable. But dreaming isn't about perfection, it's about taking action. No one starts out as an expert, but grow through it. comes from trying. So a better thought that I'm going to suggest is I have everything I need to start. I'll grow as I go. I love this one because this is always a good place to start is that I can figure everything out. I have everything I need to start. I'll grow as I go. I love that. So try that out next time you tell yourself that you don't have what it takes to do something that you really want to do. When we believe it's too late, we often start to feel paralyzed. I've, I've heard even younger people in their thirties feel like it's too late to start a new career. It's too late to find a new, to go back to school and to, or to start over. And that is just sad. So I'm going to give you a framework that, uh, that we can use to guide us. I think we all long for being, having some kind of meaningful pursuit. I don't think it's healthy to not be pursuing something that means something to you. So really think about what it is that you want. So first we can start by clarifying our dream. What is it that you've always wanted to do? Whether it's writing a book, starting a business, maybe it's a trip that you've always wanted to take someplace you've always wanted to visit, traveling. Write those things down. And don't make it complicated. Dreams become more tangible when they are named. And a little bit more, um, And you can start to see a strategy when you really set your mind to it and remove the barriers and work within what you work with, what you have already in your hand. So, first of all, clarify that dream. Second, reframe your timing. Ask yourself, why not now? Timing is rarely perfect, but it's always possible. Shifting your mindset to See the present as an opportunity to begin no matter our circumstances and then third break it down big dreams often feel overwhelming and so creating those smaller actionable goals that you can tackle one at a time. You want to run a marathon? Start with a 5k. Fourth, seek support. So, surround yourself with people who believe in you and in your dream. Join a group, find a mentor, hire a coach, share your goal with friends who can encourage you along the way. Find those other people who are doing what you want to do. And find those people who want Maybe you're at the same place that you are and want to set good, big goals too. And then of course, celebrate your progress every win matters and each step you take deserves that recognition celebrate milestones to keep your motivation alive. you don't have to wait for other people to acknowledge or applaud or give you that outcome, drop the attachment to the outcome. And as far as making, when you're wanting to make progress and just celebrate those wins, every win matters. I've learned that working towards something isn't about desperate, that desperate need to prove my worth or achieve a worldly standard of success. It's about honoring the call to, for me, to think, create, and learn. And it's about embracing the fact that I was made to matter. Not in a fleeting, self focused way, but in a way that lifts others up and inspires hope and encourages growth. Even when doubts creep in and I look forward to a day where this doesn't happen as often as it does, when I feel like starting something new is for someone else, I remind myself that God's timing isn't about age. He isn't looking for younger or older people. He's looking for willing people and I'm willing. So I'm going to step forward, take risks and pursue those dreams. not because I need to prove that I matter, but because I know I already do. I'm going to do it to inspire others to find their own courage and honor the creator that made, who made me for this moment, because it's not too late and it never will be. going after a long held dream, a lot of times it's going to require reinvention. And this isn't about becoming someone you're not. It's about uncovering the best version of yourself. Reinvention allows you to course correct. Adapt and become the person that you, your dream requires. think of reinvention, like revising a favorite song or remodeling a home, rearranging a room, reworking a recipe. you probably know the feeling that you get when you rearrange a like maybe you rearrange your living room maybe put a fresh coat of paint, change the color, move the furniture around. It's not really about having a new space, or it's not about having necessarily new furniture or different pieces. It's about rearranging them and bringing them to life. Your core values. So when you're reinventing your core values, stay intact, but your habits, your mindset and your goals might shift to align with the future that you really envision. It's never too late to pursue your dream and whether it's been on your heart for decades or maybe it's just surfaced. Every day is a chance to do something new, to do something powerful, to, to show up in the world in the way that you really want. Start small, take that step, refuse to let these lies of timing and inadequacy hold you back because your dream is waiting, and it can be the most extraordinary part of your life. So why not now? It's not too late. It never was. Let's do this together. I'm on the journey with you. let's honor the creator who made us. Let's show up in the world in the way that we really want to. let's get clear on our dreams. Reframe that timing, break it down, get the support that we need and Celebrate the progress. Every win matters If this topic resonates with you, if this is something that is on your heart to, let me know. get on the email list and share this with a friend. Let's do this together. Let's go on this journey together. want to support you as you show up in the world in the way that you really want to, as you go out and default to yes, your extraordinary self.