My Rules: 13. Never Give Up On A Dream

“Dare to live the life you have dreamed for yourself. Go forward and make your dreams come true.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

“If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them.” – Henry David Thoreau

This is one of my rules that is remarkably simple. Dream. Dream often. Never stop dreaming. Grab onto the dreams you dream and chase them unceasingly. Unwavering and stubbornly. When your dreams seem to run away, you run faster. Never give them up.

This is a continuation of my series about My Rules.

I have to point to Rule 5 when talking about rule 13: making such a positive, stubborn rule positioned at a notoriously unlucky number is worth laughing at! While I do laugh at myself about that, it is entirely on purpose as well, as I will explore below.

Perhaps the first, most important part of this rule is not the simple “Follow your dreams” cliche. First, and more importantly, is to dream at all. And don’t just dream. Dream big. Referring to the quote my Thoreau above: Build a castle in the air. Build multiple castles in the air. Build them higher than the clouds. Higher than the highest mountain peak. Dream the impossible.

IMG_3427When Dr. Seuss has taken over your mind, make the dreams happen. About those impossible dreams: “Put the foundations under them.” Dare to make them possible. Dare to make them not only possible, but reality. And never give up.

Yet through all of this struggle, luck will tend to rear its ugly head against you. Circumstances will play to put a giant boulder in the path ahead. A landslide will tear down the foundation of your dreams. Life will try its hardest to keep you from your highest dreams. Shit will happen. (See previous rules!)

This rule, and its position as number 13 find its place in these times. When the dreams have been made and everything is working against your attempts to make them happen: don’t give up. Get your ass off of the ground and fight for it. Make the dreams reality.

There’s also another important part of this struggle: Learn. Grow. Progress. Life will try to stop your dreams. Instead of giving up, instead of being a victim: survive. Learn from what went wrong. Grow stronger and better. Progress how you chase your dream to be more successful than before. Try something new. Explore methods of achieving your dreams you never even thought of before. Keep going. Just never give up.