A Day of Hope

Many of us know the feeling of forgotten hope, that feeling like you have lost yourself. Like time is passing you by and you’re unable to see yourself in the overwhelming swirl of this crazy life. So many other things have taken over your time and your zest for life: kids, family, relationships, work, and so on. You feel like self-care is only for others. You have forgotten how to feel hope and passion for yourself. It’s in you; it’s just been buried and forgotten. Finding that hope again will reduce the feeling of helplessness, improve your quality of life, and take away your stress. Years ago, I was overworked, strung out, always doing for others, and never finding or taking time for myself to do what I needed or wanted. I was successful in business but headed for burnout. I felt like there was no end in sight. I didn’t know what I even wanted in life. I was lonely, even though I was never alone. Have you ever felt like this? Have you ever felt like you are a robot going through the motions of your life every day? Get up, go to work, help others, pass out in bed, then wake up and do it all over again? Are you helping others with their situations and not taking time for yourself? Have you ever thought, “There must be more to life than being depleted, frustrated, and tired all the time”? You are not alone. Through the process I’ll teach you in this book, I have completely transformed my life. It helped me believe in my dreams again. It’s helped my mental and physical health as well. It gets me excited to keep learning more about myself, what my passions are and how to achieve them. My outlook on life and what is important to me is now fueling me forward. I have a clear vision of what I want and what I don’t want, what works for me and what doesn’t. I have watched not only myself change, but others as well, who are implementing their own day of hope. I am confident it will do the same for you. “Hope is being able to see that there is light despite all the darkness.” – Desmond Tutu There are 365 days in a year, and it is worth the time and effort to take at least 12 for yourself. You might even end up taking more days each month, once you see how even one day can transform you to become the better version of yourself that you have buried deep inside. There are a lot of popular self-help books that can help you change your life. I like to think of this book as one more tool to help you find and achieve more time for the things that make you special. There’s nothing wrong with that; I firmly believe that people get a great benefit from many sources once they commit to the need for change. Incorporate what works for you regardless of the source or number of sources. This works for me and many others who have incorporated a day of hope in their lives—and it’s a good one with a fun twist. What is a day of hope? A day of hope is one day, or a full 24 hours, for you. Yes, just you. A day to do whatever you want, whenever you want, and however you want. On this one day, you get to choose everything. You don’t have to worry about what anyone else wants or what anyone else thinks you should do. You have one full day to fuel up on what you want and need. It may not sound like a lot at first, but it’s likely more than you already get! There are 365 days in a year, and right now you are only choosing 12. You can put a lot of thought into it, or none at all. You just need one day a month to spend doing what you want to do and what fuels your fire, even if you do not know what it is yet. It will transform your life and fill it with hope and love for yourself. It will give you the tools to be the best person you know and want to be. You are most likely thinking, “It cannot be that simple. There is no way one day a month will transform my life!” To you I say, “Yes, it can!” If you give it a try, you can get different results in life. Keep reading! What moved me to write this book was explaining this great idea all the time. My family, friends, and coworkers kept asking for more details, which excited me. Even people I did not know would ask me how my day was going, and I would tell them about my day of hope. I know by writing this book I will be able to give others a sense of hope in their lives and find a path forward using my example and not only change their lives, but the lives of others. In the chapters ahead, I will explain how the idea became a reality and now a powerful movement. I will show you how easy it is to get started and why you are worth the time. I will have lots of helpful tips, tricks, and ideas along the way. I will coach you through a few roadblocks and enable you to tackle them when they show up. I will share what I have experienced, provide some examples from others using the idea, and show some of our successes. Are you ready to change things up and become the real rock star I know is inside of you somewhere? I am talking to you. The real you is still in there, just waiting for your forgotten hope to be remembered.