This project has had many names before becoming About the Dash. Feel free to ask my husband who’s been along for the entire ride (sorry honey, and thank you). I thought I nailed it a few times but I would lose momentum because it wasn’t actually quite right. And when you know you know, you know?

Cue my years of reading and research that created a love for the Thesaurus. Yes, the Thesaurus, you’re probably rolling your eyes and thinking sure nerd, sure. And I won’t deny that I am a nerd but I ascertain that the Thesaurus can be a valuable tool. So bear with me here because this will be my first hot tip.

The Goal:

My goal was to create a brand that spoke to taking control of your life. Making your every-day just as exciting as those dreamy-eyed ‘some-days’ (deep sigh here). As someone who’s had a few different careers, I know how much time can be lost following the “safe” and “responsible” path. To cover all the things that will help make some-day every-day without using “lifestyle” was more challenging than I care to admit.

My main prevalent point IS life so I took ‘life’ to the Thesaurus (nudge-nudge) just to see what it would bring up. It took me to ‘journey’ which felt closer and ‘journey’ took me to ‘dash’ which clicked. My mum’s dad passed when she was a teenager but she remembers him speaking about the poem by Linda Ellis called “The Dash”. So the personal connection was strong. When I read through the poem the meaning burrowed even deeper into my soul. 

That was my home-run, light bulb moment. 

The Purpose:

It matters so much less how we came into this life and how we go out than how we spend all of the days and years in between. That little dash between those two dates is what will matter the most. So in the end what should your life really be about? It should be about that little dash and everything you can do with it.

Life will always be hard and easy and beautiful and terrific whether you plan for it or not. So have dreams and create goals. But if the focus is only on reaching them and not loving how you get there then can you claim to be truly owning your time? Life owes you nothing. Time owes you nothing. But you owe it to yourself to love your life and create an every-day that you want to get up and live.

And I can help you get there.

The Hope:

I created About the Dash from a small spark to do more with my own dash. In doing so I gathered the knowledge and lit a want to help others do the same. Let About the Dash be your support system when you need a reminder of your purpose. And to bring the fire back to your eyes. To show you how you’re nailing it and why you can’t stop now. If you aren’t feeling worthy or don’t know how to take that next step then About the Dash will encourage and motivate. Walk you through what you need to do than offer a hand to show you how to do it.

The Dash

a poem by Linda Ellis

I read of a man who stood to speak at the funeral of a friend. He referred to the dates on the tombstone from the beginning… to the end.

He noted that first came the date of birth and spoke of the following date with tears, but he said what mattered most of all was the dash between those years.

For that dash represents all the time they spent alive on earth and now only those who loved them know what that little line is worth.

For it matters not, how much we own, the cars… the house… the cash. What matters is how we live and love and how we spend our dash.

So think about this long and hard; are there things you’d like to change? For you never know how much time is left that still can be rearranged.

To be less quick to anger and show appreciation more and love the people in our lives like we’ve never loved before.

If we treat each other with respect and more often wear a smile… remembering that this special dash might only last a little while.

So when your eulogy is being read, with your life’s actions to rehash, would you be proud of the things they say about how you lived your dash?