The Right Time To Follow Your Dreams Is Now

In the middle of the night, it strikes me again. An overload of thoughts and ideas rush through my mind. It’s nearly four in the morning, but I couldn’t fight the sudden urge to act on my intuition. I get out of the bed, turn on the light, and grab my notebook. Pages fill up quickly as I’m trying to scribble all my thoughts onto paper.

Two hours go by and I finally feel like I’ve managed to clear my head. I put down my notes and crash into the bed. As I close my eyes I make a promise to myself.

“I’m not going to give up this time.”

I’m sure we’ve all felt it from time to time. There’s something you can’t run from. It’s the feeling in your gut, those visions that keep you up at night and the voices quietly whispering in your head. Yet you’re not listening.

It’s not like the thoughts and ideas that you are used to having—you know, the ones that tend to come and go. It’s a thought that hasn’t left since you first had it.

You might have tried to silence it, but it’s still there. Do you know what it is? A dream.

It’s a dream that seems so big that you’re afraid to say it out loud. A vision of your future that may seem so far from the present that it almost feels absurd. But the fact that you keep dreaming about it is proof itself that your dream is possible.

Maybe you’ve tried to move towards your vision but another thought has stopped you, saying something like ‘you’re not good enough’ or ‘that’s not for you.’

I know I have.

I’ve let those negative thoughts come in and take control over me. Soon enough those thoughts have become my reality.

So often we know exactly what we need to do to get closer to where we want to be, but we’re not taking the steps. I believe it’s because we’ve told a story to ourselves that we’re not good enough or we don’t deserve what we dream of.

For a long time, I was a dreamer.

When I was about to tell someone what I wanted to do I would start it off with “Don’t laugh, but…” That’s how ridiculous my dream used to feel. It felt so big that I was convinced people would laugh when they heard it.

I had a dream, but I told myself a story why my dream would never become true.

As long as I held on to that story, I continued to procrastinate and fail with everything I tried to accomplish.

Numerous times I would give up and tell myself I didn’t want it anyway.

But the thing is, I haven’t been able to stop it playing in my mind. I wondered, What if I didn’t get what I wanted? Or became what I dreamed of? Or changed what I wasn’t happy with?

There’s a question that I asked myself. A question that changed everything for me.

Would I be happy with this for the rest of my life?

The most important thing I learned was that just because I hadn’t yet lived up to my dream, it didn’t mean I couldn’t become everything I wanted to.

If you choose easy choices, you’re going to live a hard life. You’d have to live with the thought of never living up to your full potential, probably unsatisfied with the life you’re having.

See, nothing exceptional comes from comfort zones.

If you’re taking the hard choices, you’ll have an easy life. Just imagine how it would feel like to be on the journey towards your dream, feeling gratitude for yourself because you have worked hard to be where you stand.

You might be thinking that it’s going to take too long to get where you want to be. Maybe you’ve been waiting for the “right moment.” But the truth is, time’s going to pass anyway. So you might as well start today.

One thing that really helped me was meditation. The more real your dream feels the easier it will be to approach it. So close your eyes and let your mind wander.

Create a manifestation of your dream. Ask yourself, What does it take for you to make that dream come true? What kind of person do you need to become? What obstacles are you going to face and how are you going to deal with them? What happens when you make your dream come true?

Be realistic.

Your dream might feel too big now, but you need to break it down into smaller parts. Add a little task every day that’ll get you closer to where you want to be. And when you’re comfortable enough, add another one.

It’s normal to feel a lack of motivation from time to time, but as you push through the hardships, you will see how it builds on your confidence and mental strength.

Take time to pause and look back to see how far you’ve come. Have a diary, make goals, take pictures. Find a way that makes it easier for you to recognize what you have accomplished.

Most importantly, change the story you’re telling.

When I talk about my dreams now, I always say, “I’m going to” instead of “I’m thinking of.” I keep telling myself that I deserve my dream and I can make it happen. There’s nothing standing between.

I might find myself somewhere else than the original thought was, and that’s all part of the process. I’ve learned to trust myself and listen to my gut when it’s trying to guide me.

Whatever is holding you back, acknowledge it and undress it. Don’t let it stop you anymore because you’re much better than the story you’ve told.

It’s time.