The steps to achieving your dreams involve some key ingredients. Here are some questions to ask yourself to determine where you are so you can get to where you want to be. [And by the way, a dream is something that brings you alive, makes you feel expansive, and makes you deeply happy.] Which one best describes you?
Are you Protecting your Dreams?
You may be hiding your dreams from others as a way to protect them or give them space and time to ripen and strengthen. This is a wise and healthy position. I often did this as a child. Like many, I imagined who I could be and what I could do. Being small, these dreams felt huge. I didn’t have many dreamers around me who could hold my visions with the tenderness and love that they needed. So I kept them within, cherishing them. As an adult, I began bringing them out into the open as my confidence increased. Even as an adult, there are some dreams I still hold close until it is time.
Are your Dreams Hidden?
You may have started out protecting your dreams and ended up hiding them in a location you’ve now forgotten. Some desires get so well hidden that we have a sort of amnesia. I’ve heard a number of adults say they don’t know their desires, don’t have any passions, and perhaps weren’t made in that way. I don’t believe it. It’s simply having forgotten the truth. In these moments, we must do some significant digging in a way that will be delicate yet powerfully directed.
Fortunately there are many books, workshops, and coaches who can help you excavate your dreams back out into your vision. And you’ll think, “Why, I did know that all along!”
Are you Suffering from Who Am I To…?
A common place to go when negative beliefs have overtaken your dreams like weeds to a beautiful garden is asking, “Who am I to do/have/be….?” You are you, the one created to bring certain dreams to reality. These ideas aren’t in you to torture you, unless you believe that God or The Universe is evil. Is that truly what you believe? I know it isn’t. Your dreams are the answer you are looking for. Each of us is designed to bring out our glory in the way only we can do. Look up Marianne Williamson’s speech used by Mandela and hopefully you will find yourself returning to the truth.
Have you lost Belief and Faith?
Have you taken steps and failed many times? Well, join the club. If the desires still come up for you, then they are still alive and it is your responsibility to find the way. As my mentor says, “When the medicine wears off, take more medicine.” In other words do what it takes to get back that faith. A simple step is repeating continuously, “I Believe.” And something additionally powerful, is getting others – even one – on your side to hold that space for you.
Are you Waiting for the Map?
So maybe you know your dream inside and out or enough of it, but you are freaked out because you feel like you’re in a foreign land, driving in the dark without a map or GPS. So you refuse to do much at all except stew about how other people are the lucky ones. This one isn’t as difficult as it seems. You simply need to get the next direction (e.g. make a turn when something feels good or right) rather than expect the whole map to be handed over in a flash. This requires faith, desire, and guidance. The guidance can arrive intuitively at times or through someone who knows the way.
Are you the Lone Wolf Dreaming Big and Getting Nowhere?
Maybe you have the faith, are clear on your dream, and even know the next steps, yet you are still playing small. You may think it is more noble to do it alone, more pure, or that getting help is cheating in some way. Was it cheating to have your mother prepare your food as a child, was it ok for you to go to school to learn through teachers instead of creating the curriculum yourself and learning it at the same time? Is it ok to struggle in your business when a loan is available for you to get help or buy what you need? There are times we need the space to learn on our own, but more often than not, we will come to realize that we are a part of something bigger than us. Dreams require it.
So, if you’re ready, find and take the next step. There is so much guidance available that we no longer have to feel or be alone in the process. I’ve got a mentor, a community of others who have similar goals and desires, and a mastermind group to provide support. It may take a village to raise a child…it also takes one to grow a dream. Don’t isolate – instead – join, connect, give/receive, engage, ask, be supported. You’ll wonder why you struggled alone so long in the dark!
Jasjit Rai is a transformational coach who helps you use your body and mind wisdom to define your desired life and take the steps necessary to bring it to fruition through a step-by-step process. Learn more at Joi Works. Book a complimentary Discovery session to determine your next step this week!
