Saying Yes to Your Big Dreams

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Now is the time to tap into your potential. Now is the time to say yes to your big dreams. In episode 50 of The Unlock Lab, I share what it really means to say yes—even when it feels uncertain, scary, or out of reach.

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Permission to Say Yes...to Myself

Let me start with a story that might sound simple, but was actually a big deal for me: saying yes to a vacation. Every year, as winter drags on in the Northeast, I feel the weight of the cold and the lack of sunshine. I know I need warmth and blue water to recharge my soul, but every year I fight myself—telling myself it’s too expensive, it’s peak season, or I should just tough it out.

This year, I stopped fighting. I realized I didn’t just want any beach, I wanted Caribbean blue water. So, I booked a solo trip to St. Martin. My husband was busy, friends weren’t available, but I knew my soul needed this. Last year I went to Florida alone and ended up working a lot, this time, I gave myself full permission to rest and soak up the sun.

It was a small act of self-love with a big impact. When we know what we need, it’s just a matter of saying yes and making it happen. Saying yes to myself in that moment was life-changing.

Reframing Resistance: The Storytelling Competition

The second story is about something I resisted for months. In the fall of 2024, I got an email from the National Speakers Association about a storytelling competition. My immediate reaction was a hard no. I don’t like to lose, I don’t see my work as a competition, and I hate rejection. Every time I heard about the competition, I shut it down.

But I’ve been working hard these past few years to let my big dreams surface. I’ve always been great at cheering on others, but believing in myself has been a journey. I realized a lot of my resistance was about self-protection—I didn’t want to be disappointed or feel like I failed.

Months later, in the middle of the night, I saw another email about the competition, and something shifted. I asked myself, “Why not?” What if I reframed this? What if it wasn’t about competing with others but about honoring my own bigness, my own dreams? I realized I’d rather try and be disappointed with this objective — even feel rejected — than not give myself the opportunity to play the biggest possible game in my own life.

So, I said yes. I submitted my video the day before the deadline. And even after submitting, my mind went back and forth: “Why not me?” and “Who do I think I am?” But I kept coming back to the win: I was betting on myself, regardless of the outcome.

A few weeks later, I found out I was a finalist. I was thrilled, grateful, and yes, nervous. But every time my inner critic piped up, I returned to my intention: to bet on myself, to believe in myself, and to say that my dreams matter. I also had a fellow speaker, Cait Donovan, who encouraged me to do it - and that made a difference too.

Taking Aligned Action

Here’s what I’ve learned: It’s easy to talk about our dreams, but it’s the action that counts. If I believe I belong on big stages, then I have to do the scary thing—submit the video, send the email and hold the boundary with my own negative thoughts. If I don’t push the envelope of my comfort, if I don’t allow myself to be vulnerable at the risk of disappointment, then I’m just talking a big game but not doing anything about it.

If you’re reading this and realizing you’re not taking action on what you really want, let this be your sign. It’s okay to take the next step, even if you don’t know exactly where it will lead. The only thing we can do is take the steps that feel aligned to us, even (and especially) if they’re small or imperfect.

I had to get out of my own way. I had to look at my patterns - avoiding disappointment and rejection - and decide I was done with that. I can survive disappointment. I can survive rejection. What I want, is to be able to live in the joy of life and the satisfaction of trying no matter what, not the frustration of holding back.

Your Turn: Say Yes

It's always time for a new beginnings. Let this be your sign: the sky is the limit for you. Now is the time to tap into your potential. Now is the time to say yes to your big dreams. Say yes to the action in front of you, even if you don’t know if it’s the path. Trust yourself, trust the micro-step, trust the reframe, and go do the damn thing.

And when you do? Please tell me about it (email me at breakthrough@toscadimatteo.com). I’d love to cheer you on.

Want to hear the full story behind these moments? Listen to the podcast episode, Saying Yes to Your Big Dreams, for the behind the scenes, the vulnerability, and the energy that helped me shift into action.

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