Dream Is Just a Dream

¶ … Dream is Just a Dream

Harvey Mackay has said, " a dream is just a dream. A goal is a dream with a plan and a deadline." Coming from a man with six best-selling books under his belt, it is advice worthy of exploration.

There are countless examples throughout history that can be attributed to Mackay's advice. All inventions begin with a dream, an idea, that progresses from a thought to expression on paper, however, what happens to it from that point makes the difference as to whether that dream becomes a reality or remains simply a scrap of paper tucked in a dresser drawer.

MacKay's advice can be applied to anything. Consider the person who writes poems that are never published, or novels that never see the editor's desk. Or what about someone who has a dream of simply retiring to a lake-side home, or learning a foreign language, or bicycling across Europe? These are all dreams. Basically anything that an individual desires is a dream because that desire is something that the person does not have or has not achieved, thus, it is a dream. A dream is an aspiration. It is not tangible. It is not reality.

To make a dream a reality, one must accept the possibility that it can become a reality, because if one does not believe in their dream, they will not be motivated to take the active steps necessary to transform the dream into something tangible. However, simply believing is not enough. One must harness that belief into constructive energy by setting an agenda, a goal, as to how to make the dream turn into a reality.

MacKay says that his father once told him, "every person you meet the rest of your life goes into the Rolodex...find a creative way to keep in touch" (Baca pp). Jill Mallen, an assistant vice president, remarked, "...value every relationship. You never know who you might need to talk to next week" (Baca pp). What she and MacKay mean is that most often in life, someone from the past becomes the key to helping someone become successful, whether by contacts, letters of referrals, or simply picking their brain for ideas. Therefore, when beginning the quest, common sense says to turn to those around you for support.