Did you always want to own a resort?
This is a trick question. I believe that everyone has a pipe dream, one of those dreams that couldn’t possibly happen to “me”. Owning a resort was one of our “pipe dreams”.
While honeymooning in the Rocky Mountain National Park area we stayed at a resort that was for sale, the dream begins. Would we like to do something like this? Could we do something like this? Could we walk away from our jobs, home, etc. for a totally different life? How would we ever get the money? As years passed, the dream kept popping back up. We even had plans to purchase a hotel we liked near Boyne Falls, Michigan. We took the records provided by the owners to our accountant and he promptly informed us that the business would not carry the loan. We walked away.
Then it happened again. While vacationing at Mountain View Lodges we found out the property was for sale and the wheels began to turn. Was this an answer to our unspoken desires? Could this be our calling? Now we had been married almost twenty years. But this time the “pipe dream” seemed more within reach than ever before. The same questions edged their way in and we tried more diligently to answer them.
Would we like to do something like this? We both thought it would a profession we would enjoy. We both like meeting and working with people. What a great opportunity to meet people from all walks of like and from all over the world! To spend our days helping to make our guests much needed respites from the world memorable, what could be better? So, the answer was Yes!
Could we do something like this? It would be a bit of a learning curve, but we felt we could handle it. What we didn’t know we would learn with on-the-job training.
Could we walk away from our jobs, friends, family, church, home, etc. for a totally different life? This one was a bit tougher to answer. We had just purchased the house we were going to live in for the “rest of our lives”. It took nine years to find the perfect house. We had committed to making updates and changes as soon as we moved in; after all, we were planning to be there forever! Rick’s job was going well. After years of struggling, he had finally made it to the “top”. My job was steady and it allowed me the flexibility I needed to not only work but also care for the children. We had good friends and family nearby along with a supportive church family, we had our dream house, steady and secure employment, could we give all that up for a “pipe dream”? As you already know, the answer was Yes.
Why? One, it was our dream. If we didn’t do it now, when? Two, while it was great to have everything just the way we wanted, what was left? It was time for a new chapter, time for a new challenge, time to take a risk!
How would we get the money? This question will be answered in the next blog. Until then, go for your dreams – take the risks!