Are you watching or playing?
Life’s an action-packed game, and you’re either playing, or watching it happen. You’ll find that most people choose to stay safely in the stands, watching the game of life go by. While the role of a spectator may be safe, it’s not a good route if you want to be a champion player.
Luckily, when you decide to start taking action on your dreams, you instantly jump into the middle of life’s game. Now, instead of watching others succeed or fail, it’s your name that’s on the line. While playing the game does mean taking risks, it also means enjoying the rewards.
Are you ready to learn how to play in the game of life, and win? Read on to learn everything you need to know to start making your dreams a reality.
Taking Action on Dreams
What type of dream are you working towards achieving? Before you can start taking action on your dreams, you’ll first need to establish exactly what it is you’re looking for.
Sometimes, dreams are incredibly specific, like wanting to start your own business or traveling the world. While, other dreams, are more vague, like wanting to obtain financial freedom or dreaming of being happier. Whatever type of dream you’re working with, the very first step is to start putting into words, what it is you want.
Dig down deep, and ask yourself a few dreams defining questions. We suggest buying a composition notebook, getting a pen, and going somewhere quiet. Once you’re by yourself, start investigating your dream or dreams a little bit. Here’s a shortlist of dream defining questions:
- Describe your dream in detail
- How does your dream make you feel
- What’s holding you back
Really think, why do I want this dream, and what’s stopping me from getting it? What you may find, is that your dream is a little bit fuzzy. For example, if you’re goal is to have financial freedom, you may find that your dream is stemming from dissatisfaction in your current occupation. Now, instead of trying to climb the corporate ladder to have better finances, you could start exploring more entrepreneurial avenues.
Perhaps, you’ll find yourself using cash loans, to finance a business idea you’ve had in your heart for a very long time. Usually, dreams are the manifestation, of a feeling, or desire. When you can identify what it is you really want, you’ll have much more success in achieving it.
Avoid Procrastination Traps
Once you have your dream clearly defined, you’re ready to start taking action. However, your brain may try telling you that it’s just too much, or you’re not ready yet. Depending on how big your dream is, it might stress you out, just thinking about the steps it’ll take to achieve it. Whatever you do, avoid falling into the trap of, “preparing”, for your dreams.
Here are a few dream traps you should avoid:
- Wasting money on unnecessary classes
- Scheduling your dream rather than doing it
- Waiting for a certain time of year, like New Years Eve
We’ve seen it all when it comes to individuals with a clear goal and vision, holding themselves back. You may find yourself buying items to help support your dream, or enrolling in a course that will teach you more about it.
While supplies and information are great, they can also be the ultimate distraction. Rather than waiting for the right time, or perfect situation, start taking action today, right now. How? You’ll need to create a clear first step, one that you can do, without having to prepare for it.
Take Your First Step
Once you really know what you want, you need to start creating momentum for your dream. The first step you take towards achieving your goal, should reward and fuel you, to keep moving forward. For example, let’s say your dream is to sing and make people emotional with the power of your voice.
You may think you need to find a vocal instructor, and get books about singing. While an instructor and books may be helpful, they aren’t good first steps because they’re still a form of procrastination. By delaying your dream, you’re saying to yourself, “I’m not ready”, or, “I’m not good enough”.
Soon, you’ll find yourself stuck in a loop, of always preparing, and trying to be good enough to sing for people. Instead, you need to jump off the diving board and take a risk. Find an open mic night, or local venue that offers karaoke, and go sing a song.
Singing a song for a crowd of people might be terrifying to someone who doesn’t have a trained singing voice. However, it is the perfect first step towards achieving your musical goal. This line of thinking holds true, no matter what type of dream you have.
If you want to lose weight, start walking today, before you try joining a gym or exercise class. Whatever your goal is, find a way to take the first step towards it, without putting other steps in between.
Declare Your Dream
Once you know what you’re the first step is, and you’ve done it, start sharing your success with everyone. You took an idea and brought it to life with your words, and actions.
Don’t be shy about bragging about your dream. After all, you’ve already done what most people never will do. First, you had the courage to admit you have a dream and define it. Start telling friends, family members, co-workers, and even strangers on the street, about your dream.
Research suggests that you also tell individuals who are higher up than you in some way, about your goal. For example, if you’re goal is to obtain financial freedom, tell someone you know who’s already achieved this goal. Tell them what you’re working towards, and why.
When you share your dream with others, amazing things will begin happening for you. Your dream will start to grow, in ways you never imagined possible. As you share your dream with others, you’ll uncover aspects of your goal you never considered before.
Soon, you’ll start discovering resources that you never even knew existed before. Free classes, networking events, and financial opportunities, that weren’t a part of your world, will suddenly start appearing around you.
You’ll make friends that have connections and can help you reach your dreams. Another advantage of sharing your dreams is that you’ll now hold yourself more accountable. If you declared to everyone you know, that you’re working your way towards financial freedom, you’ll think twice before wasting money on unnecessary things. d
Identify Negative Portals
What’s a negative portal? While most people will find it inspiring, hearing about your dream, there are a few that will only try to tear you down. They may laugh at you, or tell you all the reasons your dream isn’t worth your time.
A negative portal occurs, when you start listening to what these unbelievers have to say. While on the surface you might be working towards your dream, underneath, you’re just one step away from getting down on yourself.
Sometimes, negative portals can form, without the help of anyone else. For example, you may read something about your dream that intimidates you. Let’s say, your dream is to build a business.
After taking your first step, and declaring your dream, you’re feeling great about life. However, when you hear somewhere that most new businesses fail, you start to doubt yourself, and your goal.
Fear starts to creep in, as you wonder if you’ll fail. Research shows that 80% of the thoughts we think are negative. It’s up to you to identify any negative thoughts that are trying to hold you back from your dreams.
Uncover the Truth
Whenever you start to feel a negative portal forming, you need to nip it in the butt immediately. Get out your journal, write down the negative feeling or thought, and sit with it for a minute.
Ask yourself, “Is this true?”, and if it is, “what does this really mean?”. You’ll realize that the meaning you’re putting behind the information, may be false.
For example, if it’s true that most new businesses fail, that doesn’t have to mean starting a business is always a bad idea. That’s an extreme, and negative, way of thinking. Instead, find a way to reframe the information, so that the meaning isn’t so detrimental to your dream.
Next, get curious about the information that was causing you to doubt your dream. Why do most new businesses fail? What can you learn from their failures?
What’s different about the businesses that don’t fail? Whatever your dream is, confront any negative or fearful concerns head-on, and put them to work for you.
Keep Moving Forward
Congratulations! Now, you know more about the best ways to start taking action on your dreams. We hope that our article will help inspire you towards living the life you’ve always wanted.
The support and resources you need, to reach your dreams are out there and waiting for you. You just have to start looking. To learn about more ways to make your dreams a reality, check out the rest of this site!
