“Children see magic because they look for it.” - Christopher Moore
What is it to dream?
Consumed by the chaos that surrounds me, my life is but a mere echo of a faint cry for true freedom and a dream to come true.
I’ve been stuck in a catatonic state of dismay fueled by the fire to dwell in my ever growing abyss of despair.
Will I ever reach the destination which rests in my heart? The place where majestic wonder and perpetual fortitude for life’s greatest pleasures resides?
I believe there is a dream within all of us. A desire for a future that leaves us free to live openly, fully, and without the constraints of any cultural restrictions we’re presented with.
To dream means so much more than just having a visionary fantasy. Dreaming is a gift we have all been given. A way to envision our greatest desires and aspirations.
There is a problem though. Most of us have come to think of dreaming as an imaginary state reserved only for thought and not meant to become part of our reality.
I disagree with that premise. I believe our dreams can be the catalyst for our life’s transformation into reaching our greatest potential.
If we use the desire towards our dreams for fuel to move us towards them, we can bridge the gap between our dreams and our own reality.
It took me a long time to realize just how much is possible in this world when we put our dreams into action.
It’s not easy, especially when there is so much skepticism towards being able to achieve our dreams, but I now know it’s possible.
I know it’s possible because I’ve turned one of my long time dreams into a reality, well almost.
When I was in fourth grade, we had a published author, (don’t remember her name) come to our school and give a workshop on writing.
I remember being in awe of the entire experience and being obsessed with the fantasy of one day being a famous published author.
That dream, like most in life, faded as I grew older. I became subjugated by the status quo and the restrictions society placed on me.
I reluctantly got a job, then another, then another … After 30-some jobs and still as lost as I had ever been, I decided to settle. I found a job and decided to stick with it no matter what.
That just hasn’t done it for me, so two years ago I started a blog. I forgot how much I still loved to write. I decided I would write a book, so I did.
I wrote not one, but two eBooks. Then I decided I would write a book to be published and I did. I didn’t do it alone.
I enlisted the help of my newly acquired friends who were making their dreams come true to participate.
After all was said and done, 20 of some of the most remarkable people I know helped bring the long-time dream to life.
I finished the book in August, successfully funded an Indiegogo campaign to help with publishing costs, and then something unexpected happened.
I was contacted by an independent publisher who was interested in turning my once childhood dream into a reality. We worked out an agreement and the book is now in the process of publication.
If all goes as planned, it should be released around the beginning of the New Year.
It’s by no means what I dreamed it would be like, but just by believing my dream was possible and taking some steps towards making it real, I was able to actually make it happen.
I believe anyone can turn their dreams into a reality, even you. I’d like to share some of the things I believe made a world of difference on my path.
Perception
Above all, the way you see what’s possible for your life will be the determining factor to whether you start a journey towards making your dreams real or just continue passively dreaming of 'what ifs'.
If you are up for it and can get past the negative feedback from the naysayers who would never believe in their own ability to turn their dreams into a reality, you can absolutely learn to see your dreams as an inevitable future destination.
Begin to connect and surround yourself with others on a similar path as you and you’ll begin to see how much your perception changes. They will be your inspiration and support, as you will be theirs.
Dedication
You may have heard this before, but I’ve found it to be true. The bigger your dream, the more work you need to put in to make it real.
There is no substitute for hard work except maybe for the dedication to keep working through the most difficult of circumstances.
I came across many pitfalls with periods of low ambition, lost faith, and just plain old laziness.
Those may have stalled my progress from time to time, but I remained dedicated to persist in my efforts and in the end, it was worth it.
Don’t ever stop chasing. Even when you come across a roadblock, it’s OK. Accept it for what it is and keep moving forward. Dreams don’t come true overnight. Sometimes it can take years, even decades.
Strength of Purpose
Not until I came up with a good enough reason to convince myself that going after my dreams was going to be worth it, did I actually make a dedicated commitment to start pursuing them.
The reason I came up with was that I wanted to make some sort of impact in the lives of others.
I had finally come to believe in the possibility for my dreams to come true and I wanted to help others see it for themselves.
Don’t ever underestimate the power of purpose. It can push you through trying times. When you begin to question whether or not you should continue on and you ask yourself what the point is, you’ll know.
Are there more things you need to know to achieve your dreams? Sure, absolutely there are. But you know what? You continue to learn and grow as you move forward towards your dreams.
Just remember it’s all a journey. You can either strive for your dreams or not. The choice is obviously yours.
Will you take a chance on yourself and your dreams?
Article source: http://tiny.cc/DreamOn
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