How to Follow your Dreams.

When was the last time you were honest about your goals in life?  Like really honest?

I mean, sure we all want our kids to be well mannered, to be more organized, to exercise more.  Yes, those are goals, ones we can for sure work towards each day. But these aren’t the burning desires of our hearts.  The dreams we have that we push to the back because we think they seem silly.  Or because we think we don’t have the time or the money to pursue them so we hide them because that makes it less painful.

Why do we do this?

Why do we constantly short change ourselves and assume that these dreams aren’t achievable?  Is it because its easier to tell ourselves no then to hear someone else say it?  Is it because we are afraid of time, money, energy into something and it amounting to nothing?

Maybe it’s some other reason or combination of reasons that keep you from acknowledging your dreams.

I know for a long time I refused to acknowledge that I wanted to start a blog because that meant commitment.  That meant that I had to tell other people what I was working on, answer their questions on how it was going.  It meant I had to put myself out there for criticism.

It meant admitting that I wanted more than just baking cookies and changing diapers every day.  Honestly, I think that was the hardest part.  Saying, yes I love being a stay at home mom but that’s not the only thing I can do.  It’s not the only thing I want to do.  I have other interests and passions besides raising my kids.

Somehow admitting that felt like a betrayal.  Like I was unsatisfied with my kids in some way.  Which wasn’t at all true.

We are not two-dimensional beings.  We have layers, we have many different parts of us that make up the whole.  Saying that you desire more from one part is not saying that you value the other parts any less or that you want less of the other parts.

What are your dreams really?

Dig deep here mama.  What is in your heart of hearts that you want to do with your life?  These don’t have to be crazy “I want to be a mermaid” type things.  It could be, I want to teach yoga classes, I want to be Head of the PTA, I want to start an Etsy shop.

Or they could be huge, lifetime type dreams.  Like selling your house, living in an RV and traveling.  Or moving to Europe.  Or adopting a child.

Whatever your dreams are you need to speak them into the world.  Give them life.

And then what?

Pursue them!  With a passion.

Stop caring what anyone else thinks about your dreams!  They are YOUR dreams, not theirs!

Set goals make plans.  No one else is going to make these dreams happen except for you.  Because honestly no one else is invested in your life like you are. Everone has their own set of dreams to pursue.

Do not continue to spend the rest of your life wishing and dreaming.  Get up and do something about it.

Stop making excuses!

Anyone can make an excuse, literally anyone.  It’s easy to come up with a list of reasons not to do something.

My excuses for not starting a blog were.

I don’t have the time.
I don’t have the money
No one will want to read what I write
I don’t have any idea how to start a blog
My husband will think its a waste of time
No one will understand why I am doing a blog

On the outside, several of them seem like pretty legit excuses, ones that we moms tend to use quite regularly.  Especially the time and money excuses.

Start making a list of I will’s!

I will stay up late and get up early to work on my blog
I will save up for the small investment of starting the blog
I will reach out to my target audience and understand what it is they need from me, find ways to truly help them
I will take a blogging course (or two or three…)
I will talk to my husband about how passionately I feel about blogging and why I think it would be beneficial for our whole family for me to pursue this
I will stop caring if anyone else understands my why’s

See?  It’s just a perception swap.  You just need to turn your No’s into Can’s and your Dreams into Plans.

What next?

Get to work.  Hold yourself accountable for any goals you set for yourself.  The only person who can fail at your dreams is you.  You are wholly and entirely responsible for putting in the hard work to achieve your dreams.

Stop blaming and start doing

You are powerful and strong and brave.  Step out of your comfort zone and live the life you truly want to live.  Give your dreams a chance to grow into reality.

Okay, I’m in.  Where do I start?

Start with brainstorming your dreams.  Dig deep and be honest about what it is your really want.

Once you know what you want start creating an action plan of how you plan to get there.

Grab a copy of the Goal Planning Freebie to help you get started.

Grab a planner, make plans, set goals, set timeframes and hold yourself accountable.

Read! Learn! Find others who are also pursuing your passion and make friends.

Put yourself out there and be real.

Don’t let yourself sit on the sideline of your life for one more day!