This article will take you on an in-depth, informative and comprehensive journey into the world of dreaming big by describing 33 Easy Ways on How to Dream Big, including how to set goals for your dreams and the life cycle of a big dream and conclude with a passionate letter to big dreamers.
At some point in your life you have heard or come across any or all of the following phrases: Dream Big, Think Big, Follow Your Dreams and Live Your Dream.
In addition, there are hundreds of inspirational quotes about dreaming big but what exactly does it mean to dream big? Read on …
You can quickly skim all the 33 tips on the table of contents below and then click on any tip to read further details.
For your additional convenience, there is a summary at the end of each tip. Please enjoy reading. Thank you.
1. Definition of a Big Dream
We are often told that we should dream big. Have a dream that is bigger than you. You will go as high as your dreams. But what exactly does that mean? What is a dream?
According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, a dream is a series of thoughts, images, or emotions occurring during sleep; or an idea or vision that is created in your imagination and that is not real; or something that you have wanted very much to do, be, or have for a long time.
We can define a big dream as follows: A big dream is a substantial wish or an aspiration for something, of which when we attain it; we believe it would fulfill or satisfy an inner longing or desire.
A big dream is a powerful idea. Different people have different dreams.
We all have a secret or not so secret wish list of things that we desire in life. It could range from something as simple as wanting to be a better person, wishing to make a difference in your life and that of others, to things like getting a job, getting a college degree, buying a car, and a house.
Other dreams include: getting married, having children, getting a promotion, having good friends, leading a comfortable life, being financially independent, helping others, starting a business, inventing something, traveling around the world, becoming rich, becoming famous, winning an Olympics gold medal, retiring early, wishing to go to the moon, traveling to space, wanting to fly, and diving to the deepest depths of an ocean.
More dreams include a desire to win an Oscar, to be a millionaire, to be a billionaire, to be a philanthropist or to get a PhD. Whatever your dream is, you should own it and be proud of it.
A big dream is a bold vision of the future, a vision that both scares and excites you at the same time. It brings out your passion, imagination, creativity and a willingness to take and embrace risk.
You can see the final destination in your mind’s eye and it inspires and empowers you. A big dream is the fire in your belly that fills you up with a craving to make yourself and things better.
Summary:
- A big dream is a substantial wish or an aspiration for something, of which when we attain it; we believe it would fulfill or satisfy an inner longing or desire.
- A big dream is a bold vision of the future.
2. The Dreaming Process
The dreaming process revolves around answering four important questions: what, why, when and how. What do you want to achieve? Why do you want to achieve it?
When do you want to achieve it? How will you achieve it? At the initial stages, dedicate your time to clearly defining the “what”, “why” and “when”.
Knowing what your big dream is, why you want to achieve it and when is a very powerful driving force. The “what”, “why” and “when” are usually fairly easily to identify and define.
The “how” can take anywhere from a few seconds to figure it out to a lifetime.
Your reason “why” will keep you going when nobody else believes in you. It is that gut instinct that will strengthen you and keep you in the race when you feel tempted to give up.
Your big dream is your personal internal compass that guides you through your life’s journey.
Set high goals and aspirations. You can have more than one big dream if you wish, it is however best to relentlessly pursue one big dream at a time to achieve the benefits of focus and discipline.
Summary:
- Knowing what your big dream is, why and when to achieve it, is a powerful driving force.
- You can have more than one big dream; however pursue one big dream at a time.
3. Your Personal “I Have a Dream” Speech
Have a compelling reason to get out of bed every morning. Ask yourself – How big is your vision? Are your dreams big enough?
At the end of the day what matters is whether you believe that your dream is of value to you.
Your dream is your purpose and your personal mission statement.
Knowing your purpose in life gives you peace of mind. Your purpose is what differentiates you from everyone else.
What is your personal “I have a dream” speech? Just like Martin Luther King Jr. inspired many with his “I have a dream” speech perhaps we should all craft our own dream speech to inspire ourselves.
Let us have fun with our imagination, think about something so big, something that can immediately be labelled as being impossible, and then reverse engineer it to find out why is it considered impossible?
What can make it possible? Does it feel overwhelming thinking about that “impossible” dream?
Summary:
- Have a compelling reason to get out of bed every morning.
- Ask yourself – Are your dreams big enough?
4. The Journey to a Dream
Typically we do not know all the steps that are required to achieve our big dreams (the “how”).
You start off with a vision of something significant that you want to achieve then you break it down into small pieces or components that are easy to chew one bite at a time.
It is very rare to eat up your entire dream in one bite. Do one small thing everyday aimed towards achieving your big dream.
You will figure out the steps one at a time. Some steps will work and others will not.
When the steps that you have taken do not lead you on the desired path, you simply retrace your steps back to a predetermined base, pull out your binoculars, survey the terrain so to speak and then take another path.
Sometimes you can repeat this process multiple times like Thomas Edison did it 10,000 times; eventually you will find a path that will lead you to your destination.
Also don’t forget all the knowledge, learning and experience that is gained during the periods when you are spinning wheels.
In fact you get to learn numerous ways about what works and what doesn’t and you become far much wiser and more self-aware than when you started out on your journey to pursue your big dream.
Your character as a person is also built up and you learn more about yourself.
You also strengthen your patience and perseverance muscles.
Summary:
- Start off with a big vision then break it down into bite-sized pieces.
- Do one small thing every day aimed at achieving your big dream.
5. The Rough Terrain/The Wilderness
It is very rare that you would achieve your dream overnight. It takes hard work and patience to accomplish our life’s desires. There will be challenges and adversities along the way.
The highway to dreams is littered with casualties on the side of the road. These are instances where people gave up on their dreams because the going got too tough to handle.
I am always amazed by the story of Thomas Edison who developed a long-lasting, practical electric light bulb. What would compel someone to work on an invention for 10,000 times and not quit or give up? What kind of willpower and tenacity would it take?
What thoughts ran through his mind when he reached invention number 100 and it didn’t work out? How did he motivate himself to work on invention number 101.
From the comfort of hindsight we now know that when Mr. Edison was working on invention number 101 he was still 9,899 inventions away from achieving his dream.
However, Thomas Edison did not know that and he did not have the benefit of a “future forecast” that would be telling him “you are getting close, keep on going”.
It was all dependent on his own internal self-drive, personal motivation, a laser focused vision and keen desire to achieve his dream.
Perhaps there were people around him who tried to discourage him and told him that he was spending too much time on his invention and that it would never work.
“I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” – Thomas A. Edison
Perhaps the critics tried to give him a reality check. This is how it normally plays out in real life; you will encounter your fair share of naysayers, people who tell you things such as: “It can’t be done,” We tried it and it didn’t work,” “Good luck! I’ve been there, done that,” or “Keep on dreaming!”
Summary:
- It takes hard work and patience to accomplish your dreams.
- There will be challenges and adversities along the way.
6. Write Down Your Big Dream
You should write down your big dream. The very act of writing it down signifies a commitment to yourself that you are willing to do what it takes to achieve your dream. It makes the pledge real in your mind.
You should be very clear and specific regarding what your dream is, what you want to achieve, why you want to achieve it, how you will achieve it (if you know the “how”), and how you will measure the progress.
Develop a mental vision map for your dream. Your big dream should make you excited and afraid at the same time. Close your eyes, fast forward into the future and imagine that you have accomplished your dream. How would it feel like?
Write down a detailed description of what the end goal looks like. What kind of person will you be at the end of your dream? Visualize this future reality and observe it keenly in your mind’s eye.
Carefully note all the things that you would be doing then and let this image guide your path.
Carefully choose what is really important to you in your life. Have a bright and clear vision. Be a risk taker, go against the grain, and avoid the “follow the crowd” mentality. You do not have to fit in to achieve your dreams.
Do not be timid. Don’t be average. Chase your dreams and follow your heart.
Your big dream has to be very clear in your mind; you can see it, taste it, smell it and articulate it. It should ooze out of all your pores.
Summary:
- The act of writing down your big dream signifies a commitment to yourself.
- Be specific regarding what your dream is and why you want to achieve it.
7. How to Set Goals for Your Big Dream
The next step after you have written down your dream is to develop smaller goals which all feed into your big dream. Turn your big dream into action and reality by converting your dream into goals. Begin by clearly defining the goals.
Breakdown your big dream into specific goals, small tasks and milestones. For example if you have a 20 year dream, you can break this down into 10 year goals, 5 year goals, 1 year goals, 6 month goals, quarterly goals and monthly goals.
Categorize your goals into a few long term (more than a year) and a few short term goals (less than a year).
Identify which actions you have to take to achieve your goals then breakdown the big actions into smaller tasks – think of tasks as ‘to-do list’ items.
Translate monthly and quarterly goals into a series of daily or weekly tasks. Aim to do one small task every day or at least every week that is related to achieving your big dream
Assign a timeframe to the different goals and tasks. Identify what skills and resources you will need. Prioritize the goals so that you know which ones to focus on first.
Assign a way to measure how the goals are being accomplished. This will help in tracking the progress.
Additionally, keep track of the tasks that you are doing that add up to a specific goal or milestone.
Give yourself a deadline for achieving the overall dream and also mini-deadlines for accomplishing each of the goals.
Read your written down dream on a regular basis to refresh yourself, keep you focused and evaluate the progress that you are making.
At all times when writing goals and executing them, keep reminding yourself of the reason why you are pursuing your big dream.
Your reason or reasons are the driving force that will keep you persevering when you face obstacles along the way.
Revise and update your goals at regular predetermined intervals such as on an annual basis and realign goals that need amendments based on current and evolving circumstances.
Summary:
- Develop smaller goals which all feed into your big dream.
- Set a deadline for achieving the overall dream and mini-deadlines for goals.
8. Illustrate Your Vision to Yourself
Create a visual portfolio of what your definition of success looks like. This is a visual representation or depiction of what the reality would look like when you achieve your dream.
Paint, post photos, cut out magazine images, clip out words, stories, newspaper articles etc. to create a success portfolio whose contents illustrate the outcome of your big dream i.e. what your destination looks like.
Your success portfolio can be digital or hard copy. It visually and clearly answers the question “where am I going?” or “What am I trying to achieve?” It shows the “treasure” at the end of your treasure hunt.
It is your case of gold at the end of a treacherous sea voyage riddled with pirates all around you who were trying to steal your gold.
Let the images in your success portfolio sink into the deepest part of your mind by looking at it regularly. As it ferments in your brain and you keep reminding your brain how powerfully you want it to work, the subconscious mind should send you little clues on what hacks to do.
Keep reminding yourself of these images and let them motivate you as you climb the ladder to achieving your dreams.
Summary:
- Develop a visual portfolio of what your definition of success looks like.
- Regularly look at images that illustrate the outcome of your big dream.
9. Life Cycle of a Big Dream
Start with a big vision. Break it down into small steps, more manageable parts.
Define a deadline. Do your homework; think through the pros and cons of going after your dream. Create an action plan. Define what your dream is.
Define what success looks like to you, what results and expectations do you want to accomplish? Develop an implementation strategy. Do planning. Do the work. Monitor progress.
Account for external circumstances that are beyond your control such as the economy, weather, political situations etc.
Account for interpersonal challenges – you will rarely achieve big dreams on your own. You will work through others. Polish up on your communication, negotiation and relationship building abilities.
Get creative on defining how you will achieve your goals and build and iterate as you go along. Embrace big picture thinking. Continuously improve and make corrections along the way.
What resources do you have and what don’t you have? Plan for worst case scenarios, risks, challenges, setbacks and mitigation steps. Be a lifelong learner. Track your performance. Have belief systems. Learn from failures.
Have small wins and milestones along the way. Celebrate when you reach your ultimate destination. Do a postmortem at the end. Repeat the process by dreaming bigger dreams and implementing them.
A key takeaway is to develop and implement as many repeatable, replicable and scalable steps as possible. The more time and effort that you take in planning the easier the implementation would be.
Procrastination is a dream killer. Don’t make excuses. Be an original. Don’t worry what naysayers think. Don’t stop till you achieve your dream. Make the dream implementation process fun, make it a game.
Build your house one block at a time. Take time to relax and refresh your mind and body – guard against fatigue. Motivate yourself. Take time to laugh. Thoroughly study those who have achieved what you want to achieve.
Work on your self-awareness and emotional intelligence. Know your strengths and weaknesses. Be willing to zig zag. Have long term vision. Choose something specific and go after it.
You are planting a seed that you should water every day. Know your passion in life – What makes you happy? Learn something new every day and embrace fear.
Summary:
- Begin with a big vision then break it down into small steps.
- Anticipate risks and challenges. Track performance. Make corrections along the way.
10. Action Plan for Your Dream
Imagine that your big dream is like a big, gigantic carrot. Take a giant knife and chop up the gigantic carrot into small pieces.
Then hypothetically place all the small chopped pieces of carrot into a bag and get blindfolded then get into a helicopter that is flying haphazardly and you randomly scatter one piece of carrot over a wide area at an interval of one piece of carrot per mile.
Each of these pieces represents small milestones that you should achieve.
Your key task is to plot, strategize and develop a plan for how you will retrieve each carrot one piece at a time. You do not know where the chopped pieces landed so this adds to the uncertainty and pressure of finding them. Give yourself a deadline to find all the chopped pieces of carrot.
Once you find one small piece you can have a small celebratory dance and high-five someone then move on to find the next piece and the next as if you are completing a big puzzle. This is a simplistic depiction of what action planning for a dream entails.
It consists of seeing the big piece, cutting it down into bite sized pieces, going after each small piece one at a time, celebrate each time you reach a milestone, and keep moving forward pressing towards the prize.
Each time you reach a milestone and you reward yourself, your brain increases the level of dopamine which results in a feel good, happy sensation.
The dopamine released from each small win and reward will propel you to move forward, repeat the rewarded actions and capitalize on the natural momentum.
Summary:
- Strategize and develop a plan for how you will achieve your dream.
- Celebrate each time you reach a milestone and keep moving forward.
