And the real sad part is that the people involved give in to their fears and kill their beautiful dream. Any chance of experiencing a fulfilled happy life, of living the life they truly want, evaporates.
Just why do people kill their dreams?
I want to share with you a true story to illustrate what's happening here.
Recently, I met up with a good friend of mine for a drink. I hadn't seen her for a while and was looking forward to meeting up. Nikkie is a very talented dancer who's never happier than when she's dancing. When I last saw her, she was buzzing with excitement about 2 stage shows she was performing in and told me of her plans to finish her IT degree course then move to London to pursue her dancing professionally. Eventually, she'd manage her own studio and teach.
What a great dream, yes? Dancing and performing for a living, then teaching the art to others. Beats the 9-5 rat race, doesn't it?
Her eyes sparkled and she had a real buzz about her. Have you ever felt this way about something? Passion! A constant, unwavering, motivating, inspiring PASSION. Believe me, it is something I love to find in people. People who feel this way about their dream crackle with energy and are busy living life.
I couldn't wait to hear how her plans were progressing and how her shows had gone. Yes, she is attractive, but what attracted me the most was her passion for her dream. Passion is contagious!
OK, get the tissues ready because here's the sad news:
We met and I knew instantly something had changed. She told me about how hard her exams had been but she'd obtained her degree. "Well done, now, what's happening with your dancing? How did the shows go?"
She replied that the shows were fine and then knocked me for 6: "I've decided not to pursue dancing now. I've started a graduate management training scheme and I'm going to have a career in IT instead."
I tried and tried to talk her into pursuing her dream but the buzz had gone. She'd always said the degree was just for back up in case things didn't work out with her dancing. I reminded her of this and she said, resignedly: "things have changed. Dancing will just be for fun now."
At the root of her decision is fear. The usual fear excuses were all trotted out:
"It's so difficult to break in to the top level."
"I'd have to move away from home and I'd miss my family too much. Besides, I'd be on my own in a big city."
"There's much more money in IT."
I told her others had overcome the first two therefore, she could. But the last one is the real key. I had a fantastic career in IT - I still love working with computers, always have. Conversely, Nikkie had worked for 6 weeks last summer in an office and HATED EVERY SECOND of it. She was bored, didn't like being indoors and it wasn't active enough for her. And now, with a degree firmly in her hand, she's willing to sell-out on her dream to do something she hates purely for money and security. She isn't the first to kill her dream for these reasons and she sure won't be the last.
I feel sorry for her. Because now she'll never know how far she could've got as a dancer. Maybe one day she'll return to it and teach and I really hope she does. But it won't be as the wonderfully fulfilled person who gave everything for her dream and experienced true fulfilment, tremendous satisfaction and the greatest reward of all: the happiness that comes from achieving success having overcome challenge after challenge.
Yes, going for a dream is real tough. There will be endless hours of work and effort. Years of dedication, tears of frustration, setbacks, knocks, sticking points and failures. That's the price demanded by success. But my lord is it worth every single second of it when finally, the day dawns when your efforts start to bear fruit. It's a very special feeling, the biggest buzz you or I can ever have.
Your dream is special. You don't need anyone's approval for it, you don't need to make excuses for it and you don't need to be frightened of it. Embrace it. Commit to it. I promise you, you will not regret it no matter what happens. But if you give-up on it, if you kill it, well...
I'll leave you with the same words I said to Nikkie as we said our goodbyes:
"As the years pass, age will bring you time to reflect on your life. If you live a dream your memories will bring you joy and comfort. If you betray it, the memory of your betrayal will haunt you because you'll never know how high you could've flown. Life is not a dress rehearsal. Please don't give up on your dream."
Beautiful dreams die everyday. Nikkie killed hers. Please don't kill yours too.
See you next time.
Chris Green is the author of an amazing new book that will show you how to conquer fear and make your dreams happen. Welcome to your personal power revolution! Click Here for more info =>http://www.conqueringfear.net
AP - President-elect Barack Obama intends to name Timothy Geithner, president of the New York Federal Reserve, as his treasury secretary to confront the nation's intense economic turmoil, senior Democratic officials said Friday.
AP - Wall Street put a stop to a terrifying decline and stormed higher Friday as President-elect Barack Obama appeared ready to tap the chief of the New York Federal Reserve as the next treasury secretary and hand him the herculean task of righting the U.S. financial system.
AP - While President-elect Barack Obama publicly sidelined himself during congressional debate over an auto industry bailout this week, he and his top aides quietly prodded congressional leaders to find a solution to rescue struggling automakers.
AP - Gov. Dave Heineman signed into law Friday a bill adding a 30-day age limit to a safe-haven law that allowed 35 children — including teenagers as old as 17 — to be abandoned at state hospitals. The law, approved hours earlier by the Legislature in a 45-3 vote, goes into effect Saturday, and makes Nebraska the 14th state with a 30-day age cap. It had been the only state with a safe-haven law without an age limit.
AP - Germany is dropping its pursuit of a ban on Scientology after finding insufficient evidence of illegal activity, security officials said Friday.
AP - A county prosecutor who brought indictments this week against Vice President Dick Cheney and others pounded his fist and shouted at the judge Friday during a routine hearing. Willacy County District Attorney Juan Angel Guerra asked Presiding Judge Manuel Banales to recuse himself from the case, which alleges abuse at federally run prisons.
AP - Archaeologists have unearthed an elaborately decorated 1,800-year-old chariot sheathed in bronze at an ancient Thracian tomb in southeastern Bulgaria, the head of the excavation said Friday. "The lavishly ornamented four-wheel chariot dates back to the end of the second century A.D.," Veselin Ignatov told The Associated Press in a telephone interview from the site, near the southeastern village of Karanovo.
AP - The Los Angeles Clippers filled their void in the post Friday, acquiring forward Zach Randolph and guard Mardy Collins from the New York Knicks for Cuttino Mobley and Tim Thomas.
Reuters - President-elect Barack Obama on Friday moved toward nominating Timothy Geithner as Treasury secretary and charging the respected head of the New York Federal Reserve with helping pull the United States out of an economic nosedive.
Reuters - U.S. President-elect Barack Obama may consider Lawrence Summers as a successor to Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, whose term expires in January 2010, a Democratic source told Reuters on Friday.
Reuters - Detroit automakers began work on turnaround plans demanded by Congress in return for $25 billion in aid as General Motors Corp said it would cut production more and give up two of its controversial corporate jets.
Reuters - Citigroup Inc shares tumbled for a fifth straight day on doubts about its survival prospects after its chief executive downplayed speculation the bank might sell major businesses or merge with a rival.
Reuters - U.S. stocks stormed higher in a late rally on Friday to cap another volatile week as investors welcomed reports that President-elect Barack Obama has chosen his point person to combat the U.S. economic crisis, instilling confidence about the administration's ability to take action.
Reuters - U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said on Friday the United States was trying to fill a request for additional combat brigades in Afghanistan next year and that he wanted at least some of the troops in place before the country's election next fall.
Reuters - U.S. President George W. Bush and Chinese President Hu Jintao planned to discuss North Korea's nuclear program on Friday evening as Asia Pacific leaders gathered for an annual economic summit amid the worst financial crisis since the 1930s.
Reuters - Iran rejected Friday U.S. reports it had enriched enough uranium to make an atom bomb, saying this would require steps it had ruled out like ejecting U.N. inspectors and leaving the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
AFP - US President George W. Bush began Friday his last scheduled foreign trip, meeting the leader of increasingly important China ahead of a summit aimed at containing a spiraling financial crisis.
AFP - Congo demanded a stronger mandate for UN troops in the conflict-torn east Friday, while residents of a squalid refugee camp said government soldiers killed a woman during a looting spree.
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Attraction Attraction |