Is This Just A Dream?

(#5 in the series: Are You A Dreamer?)

The Haunting Question

In the last few issues, we’ve talked about suspending your “logic filter” long enough to imagine your dreams.  We’ve also acknowledged that some dreams simply serve to inform you about your deepest desires and are not meant to happen literally.  What about the dream that you actually would like to see come true?  When you experience a “That’s it!” moment and your dream is undeniably revealed to you, it can be exhilarating.  Your heart is pumping and your brain is brimming with ideas, but as you begin crossing the bridge from dream to reality, that protective filter reengages and the haunting question returns: What if this is just a dream?

Dreams Into Vision

Wondering whether your dream is “just a dream” is natural.  It speaks to the loftiness — the awesomeness — of your aspirations and surveys the distance that must be traveled from here to there.  In fact, asking yourself, “Is this just a dream?” is actually a useful test because if you can answer by saying, “Yes, it’s big and maybe I’ll hit it and maybe I won’t, but pursuing it is something I want to do,” then your dream is strengthened in that very moment.

It’s getting specific that shapes your dream into a vision.  Your vision is the picture of what you imagine you want, filled in with enough detail to give it shape and make it real.

Once your vision is clear, it is then a question of your willingness to take action, integrate what you learn, adapt and evolve your vision, and above all to persist.  If you are unsure about your level of commitment, do some research first to help you decide.  Sometimes a dream just helps you get to another point and then it’s time to release it.  On the other hand, there is the dream that stays with you your whole life and comes to fruition beyond your wildest imagination.  You’ll never know unless you test it.  Years ago I wondered about being a motivational speaker.  A career counselor suggested I research the field and when I did it led to my discovery of the coaching profession.  It took one dream to find the other.

Move in the Direction of Your Dream

If you have a particular dream you want to see happen, begin by identifying five things you can do to research it.  What are those actions?  Write them down and then schedule a specific time this month to do the first two items on the list.

Move in the direction of your dream and your vision will continue to take shape.  After you’ve collected some research information, check in with yourself.  What did you learn?  How has your dream evolved already?  How do you feel about your dream now?  Are you willing to do what it requires?

A dream moves you on the inside (with inspiration, excitement, enthusiasm) and also gets you to move on the outside (by stepping out and taking bold new action).  Whether it comes to light exactly as you are picturing it is less important than how the dream can serve you.

The purpose of a dream is to move you.

“The greater danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short;
but in setting our aim too low, and achieving our mark.”
– Michelangelo