Dare to live for a dream
Do you want to live for a dream? What would your life look like if you did? The writer Rainer Maria Rilke, in Letters to a young poet, (Obelisco Editions), proposes an impeccable answer: “Dig within yourself in search of an answer that comes from deep within. And if from there you receive an affirmative answer, if you were allowed to answer this serious question with a strong and simple “I must”, build your life based on such need; his life, even in the most indifferent and insignificant hours, must be a sign and a testimony of that impulse”.
And what follows is one of the main teachings of The Kite Master: “When a dream dies, because you stop believing in it, the sound of a sob runs through the endless cosmos. But fortunately, instantly, the same longing wells up again in a heart willing to believe in him. And then, the disappointment is transmuted into the illusion of seeing it become a reality. And the dream is born again.
One day I thought that it is desire that chooses us, not the other way around —I have never been able to stop seeing it that way. And the next I felt that the dream "dreams" through the dreamer and whispers in his ear: “Encourage me, give me life, let me exist. I would like to grow through you and bless your life and that of everyone”.
As far as I'm concerned, seeing things that way relieves me of a lot of pressure, because it relieves me to know that I work “as a team”. My dreams are more than just personal ambitions, they are “borrowed good ideas”. And it fills me with joy to volunteer to make them happen. Sometimes I ask myself this question: "What does life expect of me right now?" And then I forget about my selfish demands.
I like to ask people to ask themselves who they need to become in order to achieve their biggest dream. It is not about a change of identity but of mentality. As they imagine it, I can see how their energy increases and, before my eyes, they become powerful people.
The room is flooded with enthusiasm and the level does not drop throughout the day.
Have you ever wondered where God wants you? Would you like to put your heart where your dream is? Say yes! and you will have a center around which to turn your life. Live for what you love, and at that precise moment your life will begin to transform.
The high price of dedicating oneself to what one does not really love
To dedicate a life to what does not make the heart happy is to survive nothing more. It is a huge mistake.
Then:
Why are so many people engaged in something they dislike? I've put together a couple of reasons and both leave a lot to be desired. One, the belief that it is not possible to earn a living and enjoy it at the same time. And two, the fear of failure.
But:
What you want is possible. It is not easy, although neither is a life that is not loved. Most believe that their dream cannot become "a real job". For them, it is more real to deal with disenchantment than to commit to a great personal project.
Y:
What for them is a hobby for others is a well-paid profession. And in some cases, excellently paid. I was one of those who thought that a writer could never earn money. I was wrong. I am not referring to a career focused on haiku poetry. Let's say rather in a more pragmatic theme.
Even so, the list of excuses is long:
• I have no choice
• I can't afford to choose
• This is what it is
• I have to support my family
• I have a mortgage to pay
• safe is safe
• I'm too old to start over
• I do not know how to do it
• Taking risks is very dangerous
• I don't have the proper training
• It's sheer madness
• things are very bad
• Dreams are just dreams
And so on. No matter the size or shape of the nightmare, what counts is that there is always an alternative.
People who do what they don't love often complain of "overwork." Of course, no one would complain about what they love! At the end of their days, they are exhausted because they give their energy to something that does not replenish it.
In other words, no one will feel sufficiently rewarded for what they don't really want. And it doesn't matter what the size of the reward is. You can comfort but not make happy, they are very different things. Oftentimes, consolation prizes are very expensive. Sometimes the rewards are even tighter. Others are promises that are rarely kept. And more often than not, attempts to put a price on what you don't have: time. My philosophy is:
Time is life; and it is undignified to sell to the highest bidder what has been given to us.
Motivational speaker Zig Ziglar reminds us: "Free cheese is always in a mousetrap." And so it is. Nor is it easy. Nor is it free. But it is worth it. Give up any belief that leads you to think that it is possible to get something valuable for nothing.