Dreams are just dreams until you have a plan

The Internet is full of dream talk and online courses about how you can make your dreams come true. “You can do anything”, “You can be anyone” – all it takes is to believe in yourself and manifest.

I will not have any of that. Yes, you must believe in yourself to reach your goals, but the keyword is “goals”. Dreams are just dreams until you treat them like goals and make an action plan.

Dreams as such are entertainment, escapism, light as feathers dancing in the breeze on a sunny day. However, dreams are necessary, they are the elixir of life, they bring energy, inspiration, and essential nourishment to life. They have the power to lift you up from the gray everyday life.  But if you only dream, dream and dream, you will sooner or later notice that life has passed you by and you have not been able to make any of your dreams a reality. You have perhaps lived a life of someone else. You did not dare, did not bother, were afraid of what others might think and scared of how life would change. Even if life would change for the better it can be intimidating.

To make your dreams come true you need a strategy and an action plan. Making changes is not easy: it requires determination and resilience. There are bound to be setbacks and frustration on your journey. You may have to change your goal altogether or revise it a little; giving up is not always a sign of weakness, it can be wisdom if the goal is unrealistic. There is a mantra telling you to dream big and reach for the stars, but reaching for an impossible star is as futile as merely dreaming.

Making dreams a reality requires honesty. Honesty to face the setbacks and challenges and learn from them. It requires you must put yourself out there and take the risk. You may have get new skills which can take time: a university degree takes 3-5 years, even though I have met a psychologist who got her master’s degree in two years. She said she would not recommend that kind speedy studying to anyone, but obviously it can be done when the motivation is high enough.

What are you going to regret more: trying or not trying to make the change?

I often quote the English philosopher Bernard Williams who has said something like this: “We all have the right to change our life’s ground projects”.

By 'ground projects,' he means the expectations you have set for yourself, those set by your parents or friends, or even by society.

There is no need to be anything but just you, there is no need to reinvent yourself or constantly evolve, but if you have a burning desire for change, for a promotion or a new job, I’m here to help. Just remember, no one but your has the magic bullet or a miracle solution to make your dreams come true.  A coach or a mentor can help by posing smart questions, but only you have the answers.

Invest in yourself and take control of your career! Book a FREE 30-minute call here and let’s see what we can achieve together!

Join my mailing list here and get a guide how to make space in your life for career planning and where to start your journey.