Believing the Impossible

“I can’t believe that!” said Alice.
“Can’t you? the Queen said in a pitying tone. “Try again: draw a long breath, and shut your eyes.”
Alice laughed. “There’s no use trying,” she said: “one can’t believe impossible things.”
“I daresay you haven’t had much practice,” said the Queen. “When I was your age, I always did it for half-an-hour a day. Why, sometimes I’ve believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.”

That’s from Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll.

Coaches are often asking our clients to believe “impossible” things? Their biggest dreams may not seem possible when they come to us, and – presto chango – they’re accomplished. Or it feels that way. Really, it’s a process of reframing and providing support. We create a climate where the so-called impossible becomes possible, then likely, then probable, then real.

First the dream, then the reality. First the vision, then the action plan. I think that, beyond support, we bring clarity, perspective, and alternate framings. We help clients become very clear about their dreams by fleshing out, then honing in on their dreams. We bring perspective by helping clients plan steps to reach their dream. We look with them through their lens, then invite them to look through other lenses.

And underneath all this work is hope and belief. Stanton Friedman, Nuclear Physicist, said it beautifully: Absence of evidence is not evidence for absence.