Fighting Dream Distortion

Dreams.  They are amazing, wonderful gifts.  We encourage our children to have dreams, to use their imagination and make up fairy tales and dream worlds.  But once we hit a certain age, dreams stop and practicality takes over.  We can't dream because that is silly, we have to many other practical, adult tasks to complete.  We need to be responsible and diligent in order to be good, honorable, citizens...(whew sounds a little stuffy and boring to me.) I would argue that dreams are what give color and hope to our lives.  Yes, we need to be practical and task oriented or we won't be able to survive in this world, but we also need to let our hair down, use a little imagination and look at our lives with a little inspiration.  

Inevitably there is a time when I am working with a client, sometime in the first session..sometimes in the tenth when they open up and say what it is they have really been thinking about doing...maybe it is being a teacher or a mom or a musician, it doesn't matter what it is because it is their dream.  It is their passion, hope, joy, wish all wrapped up into one big package.  In this moment when they build the confidence to say the dream they are waiting for my judgment, for me to running screaming from my chair "are you kidding me?!!" "there is no way that is going to happen?!?!" "You can't possibly do that?!?!".  Of course I don't think or say any of those things..this is a sacred moment a moment when the dreams, when who they are as a person is seeing the light of day, this is a gift.  But what I love about his moment, is my clients are always shocked, surprised and I would even say flabbergasted that I greet their idea with such love and support.  

Now I would love to say they are shocked because I am so loving and supportive, but in reality I believe it is because they are so hard on themselves that the idea in their head has been so beaten down, distorted and made to seem down right crazy that when they say it out loud rather then hearing "I want to be a teacher", they are hearing "I want to fly to the moon, using only my arms".  No wonder they are terrified!!  That is why here on my blog and in my office I frequently encourage people to speak their dreams out loud to loving supportive people, because our internal conversations have a way of distorting our dreams.  The less distortion we have the better.

Today give yourself a minute, or two or even 30 and let your mind wander...what do you dream about?  What do you want for your life?  And then ask yourself how outlandish is it, really?  Then think of 1-3 people you know who are safe, loving and supportive and just share your thoughts OR post them below, or  email them to me.  Regardless, air out your dreams, let them free.