I saw the quote recently:
“Dream what you dare to dream. Go where you want to go. Be what you want to be”. – Earl Nightingale
After thinking about it for a while I had mixed emotions. I felt happy for the space I am now in, and the space I know a few others are also in. Having a dream, following it to the desired direction and ultimately feeling as though we are who we want to be. On the other hand, I thought about many people I know who are not in the direction they had hoped, are not happy in their career, are going through the motions…have lost touch of their dreams.
As we get older, it seems we stop dreaming. We have bills to pay, mouths to feed, we find ourselves juggling so many responsibilities. So, we move through life, pay check to pay check, doing what it is we ‘should’ be doing to meet the needs and demands of a life we think we want with things we think we ‘need’. This is what I see and hear with a lot of people, and I admit, this was me too at a point!
Fortunately for me, due to other circumstances, I had time to stop and reassess what it was I really wanted out of my life. I reflected on what exactly it is that lights my fire, discovered what my strengths are, what skills and knowledge I want to add or learn… and I dreamt! What did my dream life look like? What did I see myself doing there? Funnily enough, turns out that dream was not that far out of reach. I figured it was something I could turn into a reality. Setting myself some realistic goals, and working hard to achieve those goals, I believe that I can live that dream, and be the person I’ve aspired to become for some time… the person I want to be.
I have an interest in the things that stop us from dreaming those dreams and achieving our goals, and think for most people it falls into one or more of the following:
- Money pressures us to take on roles based on financial gain until we end up so far from our dream that we can’t even remember where our passions lie, what drives us, and what truly makes us happy. When the carrot of more money is waved in front of us, it’s easy to follow it. And due to other circumstances in our life we find ourselves forced to make decisions based on our financial situations.
- A lack of belief in one’s self. People often feel as though they’re not qualified enough for something (particularly women), wouldn’t be good at it anyway, or would fear failing somewhere along the way.
- The fear of what other people will think or say. This may be linked to the fear of failure as well, as often the fear is not of failure itself but of how other’s perceive us.
- The fear or unacceptance of change. It could be the fear of taking a step back from a career and going back in to study; or beginning study for the first time; a change in environment; working structure or style, family changes, etc.
- Being good at something. This sounds strange, but often we are told, “you are so good at X”, that we convince ourselves it is the right thing for us. For the record, you will be good at heaps of things, but what exactly is it that makes you good at something? Can this be something you can adapt and transfer to something else that actually makes you happy and feel accomplished?
- Not really knowing what our dream is. Feeling confused and overwhelmed with everything else in life, that we become unsure of what our dreams and aspirations really are.
- Not knowing how to set goals. Not knowing where to start can be quite challenging and inhibiting, and can often throw you off setting your goals.
- Going off track and in the opposite direction to what our true goals should be, hindering us to achieving a desired outcome.
What is your dream? Are you living it? If not, why? Contact me if you would like to explore this further, and would like some help in this space.
Mel H x