The American Dream Project is your project, and it’s about your life. It was launched six years ago to discover what the American Dream is for the 21st century. It took me all over the country doing town hall meetings, honoring amazing people who had decided to live amazing lives without asking for permission. The journey of those public meetings led to a multi-award winning PBS show. A revealing survey was put up on our website designed to help people understand where their life was satisfying and where it produced chronic stress. Nearly 25,000 Americans have taken the survey giving us a crystal clear picture of how we are thriving, coping or stressing over our daily lives. All of these experiences led to me write Save the World and Still Be Home For Dinner, a book about the formula for living and working to make your distinct difference and live a balanced life.
As my life got busier with my leadership consulting practice, I intended to wind down the American Dream Project. It consumes time and resources that swamp our micro-staff and is financially draining. But just like the American Dream itself, the Project refuses to wither. Instead everyday new visitors find our website, take the Dream Life Assessment and sign up for the blog. It simply is a topic many of us still want to talk about. So instead of neglecting the American Dream garden we’ve decided to nurture it.
You’ve told us what you’re most interested in. And it’s what Thomas Jefferson said. We are most interested in our pursuit of happiness. What’s encouraging is that today we don’t have to search blindly in the dark to pursue our own happiness. There are literally hundreds of research projects on the subject and they point to the same things.
Our major sources of personal happiness are:
1. Your relationship with children or friends 77%
2. Contributing to lives of others and making your difference. 75%
3. Your love life with your spouse/partner. 73%
4. Your sense of control over your own destiny. 66%
5. The enjoyment you gain in your leisure time. 64%
6. The fulfillment of your spiritual life. 62%
(Source: Authentic Happiness)
You’ll note there is nothing about politics that makes us happy. I told Candie, our webmaster, that people like to talk about politics but are more deeply interested in living their lives in the best possible way. We have one vote for the country, but we have all the votes of how we live our lives. So we are going to tailor our content to feature about 30 percent of the time ideas on how our nation might renew itself to enable all of us to better pursue happiness. On this topic we are fiercely independent and are sickened by the evidence that our government’s policies are being auctioned to the highest bidder on a daily basis. I believe we still have a sense this is not the best we can do as a nation. More than anything we are hoping we can all at least root for common sense and the common good. But today’s politics seem to be producing more wackiness than wisdom. So perhaps our best choice in a turbulent world is to optimize what we can control. And that’s our lives. It is time to think independently, vote wisely, and live smart.
So 70 percent of our content will focus on how we might better pursue our dream life no matter what the external circumstances. I often wonder if we somehow could live in a bubble that blocked out the violence of our daily news how we might choose more calmly to live fearlessly. How might we make smarter decisions and have wiser thoughts and more loving moments? After years of first hand investigation I am absolutely convinced all of us can pursue the foundational drivers of happiness, which are the daily joy and meaning that comes from living at a sustainable rhythm that erases stress and eliminates regret. When we optimistically focus on what we can control, we can make real progress toward our dreams. Always.
So we’ve redesigned the American Dream Project website with more ideas on how to take control of our future (Learning Centers), to host webinars and download features. We are inviting some other voices to be heard, and as always we encourage your ideas, voice, and inspiration.
We are also kicking off the re-launch with over 30 short video coaching clips that offer examples of how to approach today’s great challenges and seize great opportunities. Through them I hope you’ll find new ways of looking at your current circumstances.
The American Dream Project is a volunteer enterprise. Its expense far exceeds any product sales. We are looking for an interactive (web 2.0 focused) agency to partner with us to expand our reach and magnify our positive impact. Finding a well-matched partner willing to do this pro-bono will not be easy. We are looking for expertise, a values match, and a passion for our purpose. So if you know of an agency or expert freelancers willing to volunteer their time that might fit this description, please be a matchmaker and let us know via the Contact Us form on the website. In the meantime we will continue to send our blogs, improve our content and invest in our future.
To give you a chance to look at the new and improved website, click here
To get the 10 Things Americans Are Doing Now to Live Their Dream Life, click here. It’s a good way to compare what you are doing against the powerful trends that are shaping how we are choosing to make our best life.
May all your dreams come true!
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