How do you know if your dream is attainable?

I’ve been a proponent of positive thinking for as long as I can remember.  I believe that to a large degree, if you expect positive things in life, you get them.  And when you have to face something difficult, if you remain positive, you have a much better chance of getting through it.
In spite of my positive outlook, it’s always bothered me when I’ve heard motivational speakers say something like, “If you can believe it, you can achieve it.”

What a crock! I don’t believe that about your dreams, and I don’t believe that about mine. Yes, we do need to aim high. However, we don’t have the ability to attain whatever we seek. I don’t possess the ability to achieve every potential I can imagine. I don’t believe that I can achieve any goal. That is not reality.

Writer Richard Bach similarly asserts, “You are never given a wish without also being given the power to make it true.”

If you give that even a moment’s rational thought, you know it’s not true. At some point in time, just about every child dreams of being able to fly like a bird. Wouldn’t that be fantastic?

But it’s not going to happen, no matter how clearly I imagine it.

Granted, dreams, by definition, are not supposed to start with reality. They are supposed to be fantastic, incredible, and out of the box. After all, they are birthed from hopes, desires, and possibilities. They are the products of imagination and creativity. However, if they are nothing but pie in the sky, how much do dreams help us?

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I’ve thought about this for a long time.  I’ve wondered how to help people to pursue their dreams but to do so in a practical way.  Last year I finally figured out how to do it.

And that’s when I started to write Put Your Dream to the Test, my next book which will be in bookstores in about three weeks.

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How do you measure a dream?  By asking yourself 10 straightforward questions.  If you can answer then positively, then the odds of your achieving your dream increase dramatically.

So here are the questions:

1.

The Ownership Question:
Is my dream really my dream?

2.

The Clarity Question:
Do I clearly see my dream?

3.

The Reality Question:
Am I depending on factors within my control to achieve my dream?

4.

The Passion Question:
Does my dream compel me to follow it?

5.

The Pathway Question:
Do I have a strategy to reach my dream?

6.

The People Question:
Have I included the people I need to realize my dream?

7.

The Cost Question:
Am I willing to pay the price for my dream?

8.

The Tenacity Question:
Am I moving closer to my dream?

9.

The Fulfillment Question:
Does working toward my dream bring satisfaction?

10.

The Significance Question:
Does my dream benefit others?

I believe that if you really explore each question, examine yourself honestly, and answer yes to all of them, your odds of achieving your dream are very good. The more yeses you can answer, the more on target you are to fulfill your dream. I truly believe that everyone has the potential to imagine a worthwhile dream, and most have the ability to achieve it.

What do you think?  How do you measure a dream?  What factors do you use to predict success?

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Blog Administrator’s Note:

is available on March 24, 2009