Some people stay away from the door for the chance of it opening up. ~ Billy Joel

The Garden is an occasional series featuring the steps fellow readers are taking to lovingly grow their dreams… one day at a time.

Photographer and Arts Lover Duane Gamble

I first met Duane Gamble two summers ago at the annual Work at What You Love seminar. That’s when I learned that this mechanical engineer with a passion for freelance photography was steadily working towards completing a book that he hoped to add to his current profit center.

Like many great small business ideas, Duane’s book was born from personal frustration. You see, Duane also runs a business called Creative Photo Products. Just as it sounds, Duane creates and sells a wide range of products featuring photographic images including note cards, tote bags, T-shirts, pillows, gift enclosures, framed prints, clocks, refrigerator magnets, and bookmarks. Finding suppliers, vendors and manufacturers often proved difficult as did figuring out how to buy supplies in large enough quantities to make his finished product profitable.

“I had to become my own detective,” says Duane. “After all those years of finding sources for raw materials and figuring out all of the manufacturing, product development and marketing, I became a knowledgeable expert in finding resources for creative people and self-employed people trying to market and promote their creative products.” Well, a year later Duane published his first book, The Visual Arts Resource Manual and it is chock full of helpful resources designed to save artists time and money. To learn more, go to DuaneGamble.com

Animal Lover Nancy Frank

Talk about planting seeds and watching them grow! I kind of stumbled on Nancy Frank’s site after she posted a comment on a blog. That’s where I learned that in her life Nancy has been the Founding Director of two wildlife rehabilitation centers in southern Wisconsin, operated a dog training school in Milwaukee, and established Dog Days of Wisconsin Summer Camp for Dogs and Their People.

In addition to her current “job” operating Opportunity Llamas farm, Nancy recently another venture called Companion Paws CompanionPaws.net. The organization seeks to meet both the needs of independent seniors, who wish to continue to share their lives with animals, and of the animals they care for.

I know first hand how important animals are in an older person’s life. I lost both of my grandmothers in 2005. The grandmother I was closest to took care of my dog Cokie whenever I traveled out of town to speak. He essentially became her sixth grandchild. She and I talked every day by phone. Her first question was always, “How is Cokie?” Her second question was, “How are you?” There is no doubt in my mind that Cokie kept this 93 year old young.

After falling and breaking her hip, my other grandmother spent a little over a year in a nursing home. Cokie loved his frequent visits to the nursing home but not nearly as much as my grandmother and the other residents loved seeing him. This small dog brought such love, companionship, and comfort to both grandmothers. I hope you will consider making a small donation to this worthwhile cause. I know it will go a long way in helping Nancy to continue her heart work of bringing the joy of animal companionship to seniors.

Massage Therapist and Educator Stephanie Manriquez

Perhaps most gratifying is getting to watch a dream grow over the course of nearly a decade. For the last few years the Changing Course home page has featured the story of Stephanie Manriquez. Our first connection came in the form of a handwritten note included with her subscription to the original hardcopy version of this newsletter.

Stephanie was 50 at the time and thinking about quitting her job in Tacoma, Washington to move 300 miles to attend massage therapy school. She wanted to know, "Am I crazy?"  I told her that if making a major work and career change is your dream, she’d be crazy not to go for it.

Well, Stephanie did go for it. A year later this single mother of six grown children wrote to say she’d put her belongings into storage and moved to Bend, Oregon – a place she’d left seven years before and “had missed ever since.” There she rented a room from an old family friend, got a part-time job at Starbuck’s because they offer full-time medical benefits to part-time employees, and became a full-time student in a licensed massage therapy program. 

It was a huge transition, but Stephanie loved every minute of it. “Every day is wonderful and the feelings that come from being back home are beyond words. I love my new life and am looking forward to graduation this year. The mountains are snow-covered, the trees are so green and the sky is bluer in Bend. I can walk to work, to school and the store. What more could one ask for? It was scary and exciting all at once, but I took a leap of faith and have never regretted the move. Money isn't everything and life is much too short to squander it.”

She went on offer this advice, “I notice the same theme in all your stories, the fears, the hopes and the relief once the move is made. If I could say one thing to help one person take the plunge, it would be that the benefits far outweigh the rest!”

I had lost track of Stephanie until five years later when she wrote to let me know she had indeed achieved her dream of becoming a licensed massage therapist… and then some. In that time she had earned her Associates degree in Applied Science in Massage Therapy, opened her second office practice, worked with a panel for the National Board of Massage Therapist and Bodywork, was teaching in the massage therapy program at Central Oregon Community College, and was working on a Bachelor's degree from Eastern Oregon University. “Things have been GREAT for me” she said. Adding, “I made hard decisions and risky choices to start over almost 6 years ago. I have NEVER regretted my decision one moment!”

It was great to know that Stephanie had “made it.” But this very determined dreamer was not done yet. Nearly ten years after that first note to ask if I thought her dream was “crazy” I received still another update.

“Well,” says Stephanie, “life just keeps on getting better! I now own a small massage school Massage Now Learning Institute (MassageNow.org)  that works with people that need to license in Oregon to practice massage therapy… I have three more massage rooms in Sunriver, Oregon for a total of 6 rooms, and I have 12 Licensed Massage Therapists working with me. I am now close to 60 and life just keeps on getting better! Keep on doing what you do to encourage others to go for it!”

While Stephanie, Duane, and Nancy chose different paths, each of their journeys began the same way… with a single step. What small step can you take today to growing and nurturing your own dream of creating the life you really want? 

About the Author

Outside the job box expert, Valerie Young, abandoned her corporate cubicle to become the Dreamer in Residence at ChangingCourse.com offering resources to help you discover your life mission and live it. Her career change tips have been cited in Kiplinger's, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today Weekend, Woman's Day, and elsewhere and on-line at MSN, CareerBuilder, and iVillage.com. An expert on the Impostor Syndrome, Valerie has spoken on the topic of How to Feel as Bright and Capable as Everyone Seems to Think You Are to such diverse organizations as Daimler Chrysler, Bristol-Meyers Squibb, Harvard, and American Women in Radio and Television.

Find more articles written by Valerie at ChangingCourse.com/articles/

Barbara Sher’s Write/Speak Program:
Write Your Own Success Story

Here's how Barbara is describing this new program:

For years, after every one of my workshops people come up to me and say, "Barbara, I've found my dream! I want to do what you do!" To help them, I've scribbled down the system I've developed and sent them off to do the best they can. But I knew they needed more. A lot more. People who dream of helping the world through writing and speaking need a guiding hand, a mentor to show them the way.

When I began teaching people how to find their dreams and make them real over 30 years ago, I was treading on new ground. The career I wanted didn't exist yet, and I invented it as I went along. Since then I've published 7 bestsellers, spoken to hundreds of audiences and been on national TV many times. My secret? Knowing exactly what I wanted my audiences to understand and knowing how to turn that message into a clear and readable book.

I believe we must develop and use our gifts -- that we owe our special abilities and the lessons we've learned to the world. If you have a story to tell, a message that will help the rest of us, we need to hear it. And I want to show you how to say it.

Note from Valerie: These programs are all full as of 3:25pm ET; however, I thought it was a great program that you might want to learn more about. You can sign up for the waiting list (see below) for this round and if there's enough interest, Barbara may add another session this spring.

This new series is being presented in three parts:

WRITE YOUR OWN SUCCESS STORY PART I

How to be an author and speaker: finding your voice and your mission. Basics and practice of the technology you'll need for the program and for a successful career.

1-Day Tele-workshop: Saturday January, 27, 10am - 4pm. (ET) Tuition: $325.

WRITE YOUR OWN SUCCESS STORY, PART II

Designing and beginning your book and your speaking career:

3-Day Retreat: Thursday, March 22, 6pm - Sunday, March 25, 4pm
Location to be announced.
Tuition: $2800 (Sign up before February 15: $2400)

Enrollment limited to 15. Fee is for tuition only. Travel and accommodations are not included. Email Barbara if you have questions at bsherny@earthlnk.net. 

WRITE YOUR OWN SUCCESS STORY, PART III

Putting your career into action: Leading your workshops and writing your book. One session (and one chapter) every 3 weeks

12-Session Telecourse: April - November 2007

$4200 tuition includes personal work with Barbara. Enrollment limited to 9.  

Each session will be 90 minutes long, in the evening. Dates to be announced.

If you would like to be on the waiting list, send a 30% deposit, or $2,525, via Paypal to bsherny@earthlink.net. If she is unable to include you, she will refund your money. Please don't sign up if think you might not be able to make it. There's very little room and if you cancel, you'll receive a refund only if she can replace you. If there's enough interest, she may begin another program in the spring.