"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams". Eleanor Roosevelt.
"Those who lose dreaming are lost". Aboriginal proverb.
"Your vision will become clear only when you look in your heart...who looks outside, dreams. Who looks inside, awakens". Carl Jung.
"Dream as if you'll live forever, live as if you'll die today". James Dean.
"You see things and say, 'Why?', but I dream of things that never were and say, 'Why not?'". George Bernard Shaw.
"Keep your dreams alive. Understand, to achieve anything requires faith and belief in yourself, vision, hard work, determination and dedication. Remember, all things are possible for those who believe". Gail Devers.
"Dreams are like stars...you may never touch them, but if you follow them they will lead you to your destiny."
"Don't be pushed by your problems. Be led by your dreams."
"There are some people who live in a dream world, and there are some who face reality; and then there are those who turn one into the other." Douglas H. Everett.
You know, I've been reading quotes like these all my adult life. Motivational sayings they call them and yet it feels like they've had little or no effect on me whatsoever! It's like I just don't quite believe in them. Don't get me wrong, I do believe in the power of people's dreams, the value of creating a vision and of setting goals to achieve it. It's just that, for me, all these sayings are so much fluff and I can only vaguely relate to them. I find them difficult to buy into for several reasons. For one thing, I don't think the individuals quoted are all talking about the same thing or even agree with each other. Some are talking about the dreams we have while sleeping as opposed to the dreams we formulate to work towards in life. For some these latter dreams are the ultimate direction in life while others seem to view them as a distraction. Also, despite the many Eastern quotes, I can't quite divest myself of the suspicion that the quotes, or at least the promotion of them, are the product of Western bourgois thinking. Such thinking includes the so-called Protestant work ethic; i.e. good people work hard 'til they drop! It also includes the concept of being someone; of being worthwhile, having goals in life, achieving things, etc.
Living here, we sometimes meet people who say they are "living the dream". This often begs the question; what was their dream? When we were younger we spent some time being Amway distributors. There was a lot of motivational stuff involved in being a distributor; events, books, tapes, seminars, conferences, etc. In many different ways, the same message was delivered again and again; dare to dream, believe in your dreams and hold onto them, work hard on them and they will be realised. I learned a lot, particularly from our upline leaders who are still good friends, but I never found simply focussing on dreams of targets or future lifestyles ever led to success with the business. There had to be something else, something that was missing. There is no doubt though that every foriegn national here who determined that they wanted to live in Greece has achieved that dream, however they did it. The one factor that they (or at least one person in every partnership) must have had, the one thing that was perhaps missing in our Amway experience, was belief. Belief (or lack of doubt) and confidence in what you are doing leads to achievement, barring any unforseen events preventing you. Later in life I experienced this truth many times in projects I initiated or was involved in, although none of these were about setting up in business which I think is either very difficult or I have a particular block about. In these experiences was I living the dream? Well, I suppose, for a short while, as each project was completed successfully, I lived the dream. Are we "living the dream" here in Greece? The answer to that is probably "yes" and "no".
We are living as close to the way we wanted and expected, given our particular circumstances, so in that sense we are living our dream. However, without wishing to judge other people negatively, some do appear to be living "The Dream"; that is, they have some kind of fixed concept of life in Greece, a bit like they are on a permanent holiday, and that's how they spend every day. Well, that's okay, if it's what they want. Many of them are retired and living on their pensions and perhaps would be doing simliar things wherever they were living. However, we have noticed a destructive tendency with quite a few who will sit in a taverna or cafe all day, drinking. It's not for me; although we have escaped the pressures life in the UK, I still want to achieve things and to be creative.
Living here, we sometimes meet people who say they are "living the dream". This often begs the question; what was their dream? When we were younger we spent some time being Amway distributors. There was a lot of motivational stuff involved in being a distributor; events, books, tapes, seminars, conferences, etc. In many different ways, the same message was delivered again and again; dare to dream, believe in your dreams and hold onto them, work hard on them and they will be realised. I learned a lot, particularly from our upline leaders who are still good friends, but I never found simply focussing on dreams of targets or future lifestyles ever led to success with the business. There had to be something else, something that was missing. There is no doubt though that every foriegn national here who determined that they wanted to live in Greece has achieved that dream, however they did it. The one factor that they (or at least one person in every partnership) must have had, the one thing that was perhaps missing in our Amway experience, was belief. Belief (or lack of doubt) and confidence in what you are doing leads to achievement, barring any unforseen events preventing you. Later in life I experienced this truth many times in projects I initiated or was involved in, although none of these were about setting up in business which I think is either very difficult or I have a particular block about. In these experiences was I living the dream? Well, I suppose, for a short while, as each project was completed successfully, I lived the dream. Are we "living the dream" here in Greece? The answer to that is probably "yes" and "no".
We are living as close to the way we wanted and expected, given our particular circumstances, so in that sense we are living our dream. However, without wishing to judge other people negatively, some do appear to be living "The Dream"; that is, they have some kind of fixed concept of life in Greece, a bit like they are on a permanent holiday, and that's how they spend every day. Well, that's okay, if it's what they want. Many of them are retired and living on their pensions and perhaps would be doing simliar things wherever they were living. However, we have noticed a destructive tendency with quite a few who will sit in a taverna or cafe all day, drinking. It's not for me; although we have escaped the pressures life in the UK, I still want to achieve things and to be creative.
Going back to the Aborigal quote; "Those who lose dreaming are lost", I'm not sure which sort of dreaming it refers to, but given that the Aborigines are practical as well spiritual people, I'd guess that it's talking about when we are sleeping and I agree with it. Recently I have been having regular and vivid dreams. Most mornings, when I wake up, I know I've been dreaming, even if I can't always remember the content. Quite often, though, I can remember what the dreams were about and ususally they relate directly to everyday life. The other day I realised what I'd been dreaming that night had been a sort of quest; I was searching for a past me - the kind of internal concept I used have about myself. This, I suppose, was a recognition of how I have changed. However, it made me realise that for the last few years in England I couldn't remember dreaming at all. I was doing a job I loved, but I didn't realise until later what kind of stress I'd been under. I thought I was coping okay. I didn't often take work home with me and I thought I was achieving the so-called work/life balance. When I became ill I believed it was entirely due to the fears generated by planning the move here, but later it became clear that this was simply the 'final straw' of stress on top of all that I was doing. An example of how I hadn't got things right at work was that, whereas many of my colleagues would go out for lunch every day, I usually ate sandwiches, etc. while still sitting in front of my computer. Apart from not believing I could afford to eat out every day, I didn't see the point. I usually did something different to my normal work during lunchtime, which I thought was enough, but I didn't get away. In the evenings at home life was much the same most days; shopping, something to eat, quite a lot to drink and TV, except usually on a Friday we would go to the pub to eat. The only difference was when I was working on a show at the Nottingham Arts Theatre. Then I would be working so intensely that I'd get thoroughly exhausted, even though I had a great time. The realisation that I had lost dreaming is further proof of what I was doing to myself and I'm glad that I've got it back now.
By the way, I have a theory about TV in the UK and the damage it is doing to working people. The best programmes seem to be scheduled for later at night, just when those who have to get up for work in the morning should be going to bed. The temptation to watch them is great and I think this is one of the reasons why many people are suffering from sleep deprivation. This in turn is leading to difficulties in coping with stress. Of course this is another symptom of wider changes happening in modern societies; a 24/7 lifestyle seems to be being promoted as a virtue rather than the health and safety danger that it is.
I think Carl Jung and others got it right by identifying the separate ideas of a vision and dreams. Wishes and dreams are the stuff out of which a concrete vision of a future achievement can be synthesised, providing that you truly believe in its possibility and how to go about it. Interestingly, there any number of personal planning tools out there that can help people focus on this process and and what to do to achieve their goals. These can enable people to make their dreams a reality. In my previous field of work, we had begun to use a range of person-centred planning tools to help people who have learning difficulties. Despite a focus on goal planning which usually set targets that professionals believed people needed to achieve and not ones that the people themselves wanted to achieve, people with learning difficulties have, for decades, only had unfulfilled dreams to live for. Person-centred planning tools try to turn this completely around by focussing on the person and his or her wishes. There are many of these tools, each varying in style for use in different situations. One which directly follows the idea of distilling concrete targets and plans from the persons wishes and dreams is called PATH (Planning Alternative Tomorrows with Hope). The process includes the use of a distinctive graphics format which helps focus the minds and include all those involved in supporting the individual:
When I did my training in this format each course member was helped to produce a PATH plan of one their own particular dreams. My plan was developed from our dream of living in Greece. Of course, producing a model plan on a course is not the same as creating and implementing a working plan, with all the supports required for the individual(s) concerned. The rudimentary plan I came away with hadn't involved the people that really mattered for the plan to work. Furthermore, my stress when it came to implementing the plan stemmed from a basic lack of belief in myself. When it came to achieving our dream I wasn't the strong one in the partnership at that time. This shows how important belief and confidence are for achieving dreams. Good clear planning can help build up belief and confidence. It ensures you know where you are going and how you will get there. Good planning is also important for developing the supports you will need to get there.
The quote above that most closely represents how I feel about achieving dreams is the one by Gail Devers. Often, when it's part of what you are about and what you do all the time, success appears to happen almost without trying too hard. Of course, all the dreaming and planning is still being done; it just seems to be easy. When it's something new or outside of your comfort zone that you are trying to achieve, it's a lot harder. It's particularly difficult when there are factors completely ouside your experience like a different culture, a different environment and unfamiliar social systems and institutions. And then there's the financial crisis....! Still, people are people wherever you are. Yes, there are differences in culture, in ways of thinking and methods of doing things, but we are all human and we all dream, one way or another.
The quote above that most closely represents how I feel about achieving dreams is the one by Gail Devers. Often, when it's part of what you are about and what you do all the time, success appears to happen almost without trying too hard. Of course, all the dreaming and planning is still being done; it just seems to be easy. When it's something new or outside of your comfort zone that you are trying to achieve, it's a lot harder. It's particularly difficult when there are factors completely ouside your experience like a different culture, a different environment and unfamiliar social systems and institutions. And then there's the financial crisis....! Still, people are people wherever you are. Yes, there are differences in culture, in ways of thinking and methods of doing things, but we are all human and we all dream, one way or another.
