What's your dream?

Have you joined my incredibly non-annoying, once-in-a-while email newsletter?

“Welcome to Hollywood! Everybody has a dream! What’s your dream? What’s your dream? Hey mister – What’s your dream?”

Opening line to Pretty Woman, for those who don’t remember – A spectacular movie. (See the director’s cut, where Richard’s limo driver pulls a gun on Vivian’s pimp. Seriously.)

But seriously – What is your dream?

We all used to have one as children, right? Everyone had a dream. Fireman, rock star, Elephant herder… Doesn’t matter?

When did you become sidetracked from your dream?

Was it when you got that first job that led to the second job that eventually led to where you are now?

Was it when you started making serious money?

Was it the family? They became more important than the dream?

Why do the two have to be mutually exclusive? Why can’t you pursue your dream while doing what you need to do to survive?

Top four mythical reasons blown away below:

1) I don’t have the time. Complete and total bullshit. Funny how you seem to have the time for things you like to do – Want the time? MAKE the time. Want to be a cyclist who doesn’t get dropped each weekend? Get up a half an hour earlier, and go riding. Let’s call it what it is – It’s not “I don’t have the time” – It’s “It’s easier to sleep than it is to get up and work hard.” And hey, I’m not dissing you here – I’m in the same boat. The hardest part of my day, hands down, is when that alarm goes off at 4:30 in the morning telling me to get out of my warm bed and into riding or running gear. It sucks. It’s hard as hell. But if that’s the hardest part of your day, and you do it, that means the rest of the day is cream cheese!

It’s not just a workout that’s the early in the morning thing, either. Getting up earlier allows you to do several things while other people are sleeping. When do you think I write these blog posts? Catch up on other people’s blogs? Wish people a happy birthday? Enjoy a solitary, quiet cup of coffee? Waking up early can solve 90% of your problems. Try it for a week and tell me if I’m right.

2) I need to make money Great. We all need to make money. If we didn’t, I guarantee there’d be a lot more people surfing and using the term “Brah.” But that’s not the way of the world. So we need to make money. So we work. However, we don’t work 24 hours a day. We have plenty of time before work, after work, at night… Yes, that might cut into your “Real Housewives of Omaha” time, but you make priorities. If your dream is a priority, you make the time for it. You can still hold a job and try for your dream. Einstein created his theory of relativity while working at the patent office.

3) I don’t want to take the risk. The greatest risk, it’s been said, is not taking one. By not taking the risk, you’re guaranteeing your dream will never come true, because it’ll never even see the light of day. Take the risk. If you fail, you’re right back to where you started, which is also where you’ll be if you don’t take the risk. There’s no loss here.

4) It’s out of my comfort zone. Of course it is. Anything new is scary and out of your comfort zone. That’s why they call it “new.” New is also exciting as hell. That’s why it’s not called “old.” An old pair of shoes might feel good and broken in, but they’re certainly not “exciting.” Take the chance. Going out of your comfort zone is the one sure way to grow.

Grow. Stretch. Have fun.

Any ways to follow your dream I missed? Drop them below.

Leave a Reply

Top