Everyone has a story to share. For several years, I’ve wanted to interview “normal people” (any person I meet in whatever way) about their dreams for their lives and to find out what was the best advice they ever received.

I’ve incorporated the advice question into my longer interviews on this blog (and on my nail art blog), as well as in many “real life” discussions. Additionally, having a bucket list — and being as stubbornly enthusiastic as I am about it — means that bucket-list-specific dreams come up in many of my conversations. However, the third question about life dreams that I’m including in this mini-interview is broader, and I hope will begin to show a bit about what we care about, whether big or small.

The first person to do this mini-interview with me is Ty DeLong, a web programmer in Tennessee, USA.

Ty DeLong – Photo used with permission

What is one of your dreams for your life?
One of my dreams in life is (when the time comes) to have a job flexible enough that I can be present during all of the important moments in my family’s life. The legacy each of us leaves through our work is important, but I think that the legacy we leave through our family echoes even further. I can imagine nothing better than using my skills doing work which has an impact for good while still having the freedom to be at every spelling bee, soccer game, and family dinner, pouring myself into the next generation who will be shaping the world.

What is something on your bucket list?
Something on my bucket list is to visit Asia. I’m not even particularly picky about which part, but I recognize that the other side of the globe sees things so differently than I have growing up in the West. It’s fascinating to me that humans who are all on this same journey can experience life so differently and draw such different conclusions. I would love to experience that up-close, as shocking and out-of-my-element as I’m sure it will be.

What is the best advice you ever received?
The best advice I have ever received is to “always give more than you take.” It has been a common saying of my father, particularly in recent years, and it truly is the most blessed way to live. There is a paradigm shift that occurs when we stop thinking about how we can benefit from every situation, and instead focus on how we can benefit those around us. When material goods freely pass through our hands to others, we see them for what they are:  temporal. Not that life is an equation to be balanced, but if everyone followed this piece of advice, the world would be quite a different place.

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Thanks for taking the time to do this interview, Ty!
(If you would like to be interviewed for this blog, please let me know or leave a note in the comments section.)

Also, please don’t forget to vote for me to get a foreign exchange blog trip through the Big Blog Exchange, so that I can ask more people from around the world about their dreams.