The guidance we’ve been given throughout our lives on dreams hasn’t changed—Dream Big. Yet, our lives have changed a lot since we first heard this message.
First, the concept of dreaming—today, as adults—sounds fantastical, doesn’t it? When you hear the word dream, doesn’t it conjure up a place in your mind where unicorns and rainbows meet? A La La Land you can escape to and imagine a world that’s unrealistic, unattainable, yet magical because it transports you away from reality?
As adults, we just don’t dream the way we did when we were young. Daydream, that is. The lulls in our lives when we could be setting our mind adrift—on the train, on a bench while our children play at the park, in a waiting room—are far too often filled with distractions:
- Screen time designed to help us pass the time
- Worries, doubts, and fears that consume us
- Hasty text exchanges that sort out the details and logistics of our lives
We need to dream, though. A dream is really a vision of a better life for you, a direction on where you should develop goals that make life more satisfying. Daydreaming is also a powerful tool available to help us be more creative, insightful, and to innovate solutions to challenges that we might not have considered. Research shows that when our mind wanders, different parts of our brain activate, accessing information that may have been previously dormant or out of reach. Bob Samples, in describing this process, wrote: “Albert Einstein called the intuitive or metaphoric mind a sacred gift. He added that the rational mind was a faithful servant. It is paradoxical that in the context of modern life we have begun to worship the servant and defile the divine.”
So much of our world today reminds us to focus and concentrate; when it comes to thinking about your future, you must be unmoored, mentally speaking. This can help you reimagine better for you. We want to share five questions to help you bring clarity to your dreams:
- Do you dream for joy, career, impact, and life? Balanced dreams are better dreams.
- What’s worth pursuing? You can do many things. Consider what matters most.
- Can you reach a starting point to your dream? Better dreaming is about knowing how you can clearly progress toward what you are seeking.
- Can you resource your dreams? Imagine possible paths forward to the dollars, time, and effort you need to realize your vision.
- Does the challenge seem fun? Design journeys that will bring greater joy and satisfaction into your life. That way, when you face the inevitable challenges and setbacks on your way to success, you’ll be motivated to move through the tough stuff to the better you seek.
Wishing you better dreaming as you focus on what’s essential for your success.
