So many of our dreams at first seem impossible, then they seem improbable, and then when we summon the will, they soon become inevitable.

~ Christopher Reeve

Almost a year ago we had the vision for the Global Hug Tour…..

2 people in a small prop plane, flying 31,000 miles around the world on a 5-month tour to gather inspiration, deliver 100,000 hugs and share millions with important non-profit causes.

We created a preliminary flight plan, an itinerary, identified the non-profits we wanted to help and actively searched for the funding. Knowing the cause was great; we created a team and believed the funding would show up.

It was much less important to know how it would happen than it was for us to understand why we were doing this.

Many of you have generously sponsored hugs for $10 on our site. Rest assured, every penny is in a dedicated account, untouched, waiting to be delivered to the causes once the tour begins.

We choose not to use any of these funds for the operational cost of the tour but rather fund the tour through sponsorship.

We knocked on the doors of corporate American only to be told, “Times are tough”. One company told us that what they love the most about the Global Hug Tour is that it’s never been done before, it’s crazy and it’s unproven. They went on to tell us that they can’t fund it because it’s never been done before, it’s crazy and it’s unproven. They were afraid to sponsor it for exactly the same reasons they loved it! They want to be first in line to sponsor Global Hug Tour #2, but we need funding for #1 or there won’t be a #2.

Over the last few months you may have noticed changes on the website where we’ve revamped the plan, downsized the tour and tried to make it more “doable”. Unfortunately, with each change, I became more disillusioned. As much as I tried, I couldn’t find the passion to do anything less then the original version.

Two weeks ago I had the opportunity to interview Guy Laliberte, founder of Cirque du Soleil. Interestingly enough, our interview via Skype took place while he was at the cosmonaut training facility in Star City, Russia, just an hour from Moscow, as he was in the final days of training for his 12-day mission to the International Space Center, blasting off on September 30th.

Guy is a man who doesn’t think small and who isn’t afraid of life. He plays BIG in everything that he does.

My interview with Guy was a reminder of what makes each one of us great. It was a wake up call for me that my playing small benefits no one.

For the past 6 months associates with good intentions, recommended that we down size the tour. With each compromise I felt like I was selling out.

Instead of holding onto my faith and the original dream that came to us,  I whittled it down to fit in the possibility box of others. It was such a big idea that people were having a hard time wrapping their head around it. It was easier for them if we broke it down into segments. I allowed my size of my dream to be dictated by what others deemed possible. As the dream morphed into baby chunks and individual places, it lost the magic and luster for me of how it was born in the first place!

This dream came from asking ourselves, “What would you do if you knew you couldn’t fail? How can we be of the greatest service to the world?” It never was about “What do we think we can do!”

I am committed to the vision that wants to be born through us. Believing that with faith and belief anything is possible, the last thing I want to do is compromise! I would rather do something and do it right, or not do it at all. Play big and play full-out, or go home.

The Global Hug Tour is a story that scares some people because it challenges their understanding of what’s possible.  But, this story also captures the imagination because it is an outrageous idea!

Just as in 2006 we didn’t know how we were going to create and deliver all 18 miles of the World’s Longest  Letter of Love and Support to our troops on a month-long tour to Iraq, today we don’t know how we’ll pull off the Global Hug Tour either.

Unfortunately, I had expectations. This process has been a lesson in letting go.  I planned out the timing and was embarrassed when it didn’t show up as it “should” have.

My lesson in this is that the timing of the Universe and my timing may not always coincide. However, just because the timing is off- that doesn’t mean the dream is wrong or should be compromised, or that I should stop working to make it happen as it originally came to us.

I know from past experience that when the timing isn’t right, it just means the Universe has something better in store for us. Divine timing is always right!

My brother-in-law has a saying that everything works out in the end. If it hasn’t worked out yet, it’s not yet the end. So, I’m holding onto the original dream, in the form in which it came to us, and being open to finding a way to make it happen. You’ll notice the original dream is back on our website, where it should be.

What I can tell you is that the Global Hug Tour will happen. What I can’t tell you is when. This is in the hands of something much bigger than me.

And for me, in my surrender to the greater will of the Universe, there is peace.  I know we’re back on track to bring this to the world.

I’m now at the point where I’m ready to allow it to happen rather than trying to make it happen. This Global Hug Tour has taken on a life of it’s own. It may have come through us, but it does not belong to us. This is here for the benefit of the whole wide world.

Funny thing is, by releasing my attachment to making this happen, I think something just shifted that will bring the funding to us with grace and with ease. Isn’t that how it always works anyway?

I am grateful to you for your continual love and support. We’ll keep you posted on the progress of the Global Hug Tour and I know that soon, we’ll get this off the ground- literally.

As always, your love and support are so greatly appreciated!

So, what’s up with the Global Hug Tour? I think the most honest answer to that question is to explain that we’re going through the same things in life that you are. In other words, while enthusiasm and belief are strong, time and money are limited. It’s a big project with a lot of moving pieces.

Imagine the planning that would go into a two-week vacation to Europe. Now make that a 5-month trip with 50 events worldwide and you have the picture of the task we’ve been facing. The logistics alone are staggering, let alone adding in things like weather patterns and safety issues.

Did we bite off more than we can chew? Maybe. Are we going to let that stop us? Never!

We’ve talked with sponsors who are enthusiastic to support us because this kind of project has never been done before, but are also leery because, you guessed it, this has never been done before. We’ve tried to wrap our heads around this project like we already have with our hearts, and the massive amount of work seems overwhelming at times.

I’m reminded of when we launched our website, InspireMeToday.com. We were in the process of gathering inspiration from Luminaries to feature each day. I didn’t want to launch until we had 120 days- 4 months of daily content in the can. However after waiting and waiting until everything was perfect, we decided to launch with just 20 Luminaries and trust that we would figure it out as we went. You know what?

Everything lined up, one Luminary referred another and we’ve had a waiting list ever since. And it all happened because we took the first step, with faith.

We’ve been waiting to launch the Global Hug Tour until we can afford the perfect airplane, until we can find the perfect sponsor, until, until, until. In the meantime, the world needs the inspiration, tangible donation dollars and love, not to mention the hugs.

Take the 1st step!

So, with little more than a great deal of faith, we’re launching the Global Hug Tour. As many things in life can appear overwhelming, we all know the best technique is to break it down into smaller, more manageable portions and then start on the first one now.

I mentor others on how to take an idea and bring it to reality. My number one piece of advice is to take the first step, even if you don’t know what the second step will be- just take the first step! You can climb the biggest mountain, one baby step at a time.

Our team has an expression- “If you’re going to eat an elephant, you have to do it one bite at a time. While I’m not advocating that anyone actually eat an elephant, the concept remains the same. Take the first bite. Take the first step. Yet here I am, waiting until everything is perfect to start. That’s just silly!

A natural consequence of getting started is that the pieces of the rest of the puzzle will suddenly appear obvious and easily align, once we’ve placed the first ones on the table.

So, our preliminary plan is this: YES, we’re still going the whole way around the world, but it will take much longer to do so under the new plan. We’ve had an overwhelming amount of requests for us to visit South America, Africa, Australia and New Zealand- none of which were on the original tour. We’ve had requests for many more cities in North America too. We asked, you answered and we’re listening.

We’ll start with the North American Global Hug Tour first, followed by the European tour, the Middle East and Africa tour, then the Pacific/Asia tour, followed by the South American tour after we return back to the US.

This new tour schedule will be spread out in two to five-month chunks through the next few years, but will allow us to focus on one region at a time and make a greater impact. Details are coming soon!

Our entire reason for doing this is to make a positive difference in the world, to highlight the wisdom from all corners of the globe and to celebrate our commonalities. To do that properly we need to spend more time than a day or so in each city. If you’re going to do it, do it right!

We’re planning to begin the North American Global Hug Tour this fall, with stops along the west coast. Stay tuned for the exact dates to be announced very soon! Depending upon the amount of buzz generated and the reception locally, we’ll then take the tour to the rest of North America and then to the world, one region at a time.

Because of the scope of the project, we need your help even to take these first baby steps. Please check out the top ten ways you can help. Also, feel free to contact me at gail@inspiremetoday.com with any questions or any offers of assistance. Your recommendations, advice and support are greatly appreciated- thank you!

And so with this transparent email, I’m sharing with you what’s been stopping us so far, and also explaining the leap of faith we’re now taking to make this happen. I know you understand, because chances are, you’re going through something similar in your own life.

I’m writing to ask you to jump off the ledge with me with your own project. What baby step could you take that would open the door for you? What bite of your own elephant could you take today? What one action could you take that would move you closer to your dream? Go do it!

I encourage you to step off the ledge with me, in faith, and together let’s go make our dreams happen. The world not only needs our dreams too, but it has been waiting long enough. Let’s go make it happen together!

Dear friends,

When I was at SobCon in May, I was interviewed by J.D. Lasica. I just received the link and I’d like to share it with you here. In this interview we talk about the Global Hug Tour.  I hope you enjoy and share it with your friends.

Thank you JD for doing the interview!

Hugs to you,

Gail

Last week I attended SobCon09 in Chicago. This event brings together the most Successful Outstanding Bloggers from around the world for three days of brainstorming together.

I shared our plan for the Global Hug Tour with the powerful folks in the room and they embraced it. We were all inspired by a recent interview from one of our Inspirational Luminaries from InspireMeToday, Balaal Rajan.

Eight years ago Bilaal was eating a clementine for breakfast when he saw a photo in the newspaper. He was horrified by the devastation of an earthquake in India. He started raising money, by selling clementines door to door to help the children who were victims and he hasn’t stopped giving since.

In the last four years, Bilaal has raised over $5,000,000 for charity. And here’s the kicker- Bilaal is only 12 years old!

After speaking with Bilaal, I realize we’re playing too small. If a 12 year-old kid can raise $5 million, what can I do? More importantly, what can a group of social media entrepreneurs do? After all, we label this phenomenon as “Social Media”, and what’s more “social” than reaching out to one another.

I can’t think of a better way to unite the power of our social relationships than to help the world in a direct, tangible way. Bilall made a comment to me that struck me with the power of his words. “As one person, I can make a difference. But as a group, we can change the world.” He got me thinking in a much bigger way.

Armed with this inspiration and the passion and support of SobCon09, we’ve selected this week- the week of May 11th to unite to make a difference.

You can help us by doing a few easy things:

- Go sponsor a hug! $10 will probably not make a huge difference in your life, but by joining together, your personal donation will change the life of the recipient.

- Share the Global Hug Tour with your tribe by posting a blog, share it on Twitter, FaceBook, LinkedIn and in any

- Help us spread the word. We invite you to put a Global Hug Tour badge on your website.

- Ask your friends, family and members of your tribe to purchase a hug THIS WEEK and to ask 10 of their friends to do the same thing. By the power of exponential connection, we should be able to reach $1,000,000 raised for 50 charities in just a week!

What is the Global Hug Tour?

When my husband and I asked ourselves the question, “What would we do if we knew we couldn’t fail?” the Global Hug Tour was born.

We’re planning to fly 31,000 miles around the world in a small prop airplane on a 5-month tour, stop in 50 international cities to gather inspiration, deliver 100,000 hugs and raise and share more than $1,000,000 with charities worldwide. More importantly, we want to help shift the focus from doom and gloom to one of connectivity and possibility through love.

We developed a plan where anyone can go to our site, GlobalHugTour.com, sponsor a hug for $10 and send it to one of the 50 cities on our path. To make a tangible difference in each area when we land, we’ll deliver the hug and the full donation to the non-profit or NGO.

For example, one hug in Chicago ($10) will feed 3 homeless people, two hugs ($20) in Cambodia will educate a child for a year and one hundred hugs ($1000) in Chennai, India will pay the cost of heart surgery to save the life of a child.

Our goal for the Global Hug Tour was to raise a million dollars for charities around the world, and I thought that was a pretty big goal, until Bilaal inspired me to dream bigger.

Through SobCon and the power of the folks in social media, we can unite to make an even bigger difference. Bilaal is right- “I can make a difference, but together we can change the world”.

We invite you to help us help so many in need. Please share this right now with at least one other person, sponsor a hug and pass it on. Please know that we greatly appreciate your support and assistance. Big hugs to you!

Gail and Darryl
The Global Hug Tour