10/04/2026
From the desk of our Founder & CEO, Josh Waite:
Have you ever wondered why many of us stop dreaming – why we have given up pursuing what’s possible for our lives? What happened?
The contrast is stark when compared to our childhood selves. As children, our imaginations ran wild, dreaming about life’s possibilities – what we would be when we grow up; what special experiences we would have; or what amazing places we would see? Again, what happened? Why, somewhere along the way, did we give up our childlike wonder? In Zig Ziglar’s 1974 book, See you at the Top, Ziglar tells the following parable that provides insight.
If you put some fleas inside a jar and close the lid, they immediately start jumping, trying to escape. After hitting the lid repeatedly, the fleas eventually realize that they cannot escape and stop trying. They still jump, just not as high. If you then remove the lid, the fleas keep jumping, but not high enough to escape the jar. They don’t even notice the lid is no longer in place.
While an interesting phenomenon, when considering this truth in our own lives, I find it sad. How many of us have hit a lid along life’s journey and therefore, stopped jumping (dreaming) for what’s possible?
Mark Batterson, in his book, Chase the Lion, states, “Imagination is God’s gift to you. A dream is your gift back to God. We start dying the day we stop dreaming. And ironically, we start living the day we discover a dream worth dying for.”
Are you ‘dying’ or ‘living’? I hope your answer is the latter.
That said, if you find yourself lacking in this area, the best discipline I have found to counteract this tendency comes from Matthew Kelly’s 2007 book, Dream Manager. In it, Kelly shares the concept of writing out a ’Dream List’ – a list of 100 dreams you desire to see, do, accomplish, achieve, or experience in your lifetime. If you are thinking 100 seems like a lot – it is! That’s the point. It is a number so big that it pushes you to think more creatively, to use the imagination God gave you, and dream of things that might seem far-fetched and uncomfortable. And, in my experience, your ‘Dream List” will push you outside the invisible jar your subconscious has created.
In a couple weeks, the Waite Financial Group team will sit around the conference table for our annual dream sharing time. After each person has reviewed and updated their dream list, we will come together to share the new dreams God has placed on our hearts and celebrate the dreams accomplished this past year.
As my friend, Shay Foulk, once said,“Dreams inspire dreams.” Therefore, I look forward to being further inspired, and personally, I will share the dreams I accomplished this past year.
* Visited Costa Rica (another continent checked off towards visiting all seven).
* Helped our good friends be able to take a trip of a lifetime.
* Took the WFG team to a Cubs vs. Cardinals game (saw Joshua Baez hit three home runs in his first three Major League at bats!).
* Launch the Live Life Intentionally podcast (coming to your favorite podcast platform real soon!).
intentional living call to action:
Set aside time this week to write your list of 100 dreams.
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Live Life Intentionally
Josh
