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What If I Dare to Dream Too Big

April 23, 2022 by Jessica No Comments

Have you ever been scared to dream?

Like, dreams of someday getting a new car or new furniture feel fairly safe, but what about big dreams? Really big dreams. Things you aren’t quite sure you even deserve…hello, Imposter Syndrome.

I’ve been there. Honestly, I’m still there a lot of the time.

As a recovering perfectionist people-pleaser, I regularly shy away from things that I might not succeed at. I’ve turned down opportunities just because fear said so. I am afraid to put myself out there.

What if I magnificently fail? What if someone disagrees or says something mean? What if they laugh at me? What if I let someone else down?

Don’t get me wrong, these are great questions. But they’re also great excuses. And these questions should not actually be rhetorical.

You should think about these questions and explore how you might (or might not) respond in each scenario. Practice, if you need to. Have a plan. That’s the first step to overcoming fear. Face those insecurities. You’re stronger than they are, anyway.

At some point, each of those situations will probably happen to you, and it’s good to be prepared. It’s not a bad thing, it’s a learning thing. You will fail. You won’t please everyone and there will be people who disagree with you, who don’t understand your position, or who say things that are, ahem, less than helpful. You may get laughed at (though it’s awesome if you can learn to laugh at yourself) and you will probably at some point let someone else down. That’s normal, and it doesn’t mean you should give up.

One of the best gifts you can give yourself is to try – to learn how you respond in these circumstances. What do you do when the chips are down? What are your tendencies? Use that knowledge to exercise your mind so that the next time you can pick yourself up more quickly and move on. It may hurt or sting, but that’s life, and you are resilient.

We all know you don’t get somewhere by sitting still. If each of these experiences takes you one step closer to your goal, you’ve moved forward. One day, you’ll make it.

Ask yourself this question: What if I succeed? Think about how you would feel. Let your mind envision it, sense it, taste it, smell it, hear it.

Compare what you just envisioned to the bitter sting of regret. Which is better?

Let that motivate you to take that next step, to try that new thing, to have that conversation, or to sign up for that new class. Figure out your plan – your next steps – and then pick up a foot and move it forward. It doesn’t matter if the step is small – baby steps are still steps in the right direction.