Life30:Part1-Balancing Dreams and Actions: A Guide to Making Things Happen
Welcome to "Life30: A Series of 30 Life Lessons to Make Your Life Less Miserable."
As I turned 30 this year, there’s a lot that has happened in my life. Some parts of my life were good, some bad and some life changing. In this series I am trying to cover little lessons I have learnt along the way.
We’ll talk about things like dealing with problems, making good relationships, and finding happiness in everyday stuff. These lessons are like little nuggets of wisdom that can help you handle whatever life throws at you.
So let’s start with Part 1…
Lesson 1: Balancing Dreams and Actions: A Guide to Making Things Happen
We live in two worlds: the outer world where we struggle to carve our existence, and the inner world where our dreams reside which are full of aspirations of fulfillment and contentment.
While we dream about an ideal life in our inner world, someone somewhere ot there is living that ideal life in the outer world.
While we envision our ideal lives in the sanctuary of our minds, somewhere, amidst the vast expanse of the outer world, someone is already living that dream. While we work hard to bridge the gap between our aspirations and reality, others have traversed it, making the impossible, possible.
The concept of manifesting one's desires through the power of the subconscious mind or the law of manifestation has garnered widespread attention. Yet, despite our fervent visualization and daily affirmations, sometimes the gap between our dreams and their fruition remains unbridged. Because honestly, just dreaming isn't always enough. No matter how hard we think about a goal, sometimes still we don't get there.
So, here's the deal: when it comes to making dreams come true, two things matter a lot—dreaming smart and acting fast.
Dreaming Smartly: The Art of Pragmatic Aspiration
Dreams, while inherently powerful, must be tempered with pragmatism. While external influences may fuel our ambition to dream big, the path to achievement is often laden with frustration, struggle, and sacrifice. The magnitude of our dreams correlates directly with the magnitude of the obstacles we must overcome.
As entrepreneur and philanthropist Tony Robbins puts it, "Setting goals is the first step in turning the invisible into the visible." However, setting unrealistic goals can lead to frustration and disappointment.
Hence, it makes much more sense to keep our dreams grounded in reality, aligning them with our capacity for perseverance and sacrifice. By dreaming smartly or in better terms manifesting things which are achievable with modest amount of efforts can lead to much better pace of progress and mental peace.
According to a study conducted by the University of Scranton, only about 8% of people achieve their New Year's resolutions. This statistic underscores the importance of setting achievable goals and taking practical steps towards them. It's not about aiming low but about setting milestones that are within reach, allowing us to build momentum and stay motivated along the way.
Faster Execution of Ideas: A Catalyst for Transformation
Insights by Sam Altman, who is CEO of OpenAI, on building companies underscore the importance of swift execution in realizing our aspirations. By embracing a cycle of rapid iteration — understanding customer pain points, swiftly developing solutions, and iterating based on user feedback — we can propel ourselves towards exponential growth. The compounding effect of incremental improvements, when coupled with relentless iteration, can catapult us to unprecedented heights of success. In his own words at an interview released by Standford Online: "The law of compound growth being what it is: if you can get 2% better every iteration cycle, your iteration cycle is every four hours rather than every four weeks, and you compound that over the course of a few years, you’ll be in a very very different place. Make it one of your top goals to build the fastest iterating company the world has ever seen."
That means figuring out what people need, making something to help them, seeing how it goes, and then doing it all over again. If we keep getting better at what we do, even just a little bit each time, we'll be amazed at how far we can go.
Taking swift actions is important with staying focused on one goal and iterating towards achieving it. Success is not merely about having great ideas but about executing them with relentless determination. Consider the story of Colonel Sanders, the founder of Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC). He faced rejection 1,009 times before finding success, proving that perseverance is often the key to achievement. Similarly, Airbnb founders Brian Chesky, Joe Gebbia, and Nathan Blecharczyk encountered numerous setbacks before their idea revolutionized the hospitality industry.
In the pursuit of our dreams, we are bound to encounter obstacles and setbacks. However, it's our ability to adapt and bounce back from adversity that determines our success. As entrepreneur and author Steve Jobs once said, "I'm convinced that about half of what separates the successful entrepreneurs from the non-successful ones is pure perseverance."
Research by psychologist Angela Duckworth has shown that grit, or the combination of passion and perseverance, is a stronger predictor of success than talent alone. Cultivating resilience and embracing failure as a learning opportunity can propel us forward, even in the face of seemingly insurmountable challenges.
Conclusion: Bridging the Gulf Between Dream and Reality
Navigating the two worlds demands a delicate balance between dreaming smartly and executing swiftly. By tempering our dreams with pragmatism and embracing a culture of rapid iteration, we can inch closer towards the realization of our most cherished aspirations. As we embark on this journey, let us remember that the distance between our dreams and their fulfillment is not insurmountable — it merely awaits the audacity of our resolve and the swiftness of our actions.
So, here’s the bottom line: Making our dreams come true isn’t just about dreaming—it’s about finding the balance between dreaming smart and taking action fast. It’s about being realistic about what we want and being quick to make it happen. With the right mix of dreaming and doing, we might just surprise ourselves with what we can achieve. By setting achievable goals, taking consistent action, and embracing adaptability, we can harness the power within us to turn our wildest dreams into tangible achievements. So, dare to dream, but more importantly, dare to act—and watch as the world unfolds before you in ways you never thought possible.
P.S. This article is a little different than my usual technical articles for a reason.
This is part of first lesson on an ebook I am planning to release sometime in the future. If you found this article insightful in some way then consider subscribing to my profile and receive such stories directly in your email inbox when I publish. Once the book gets released, I will personally send you an email about the book release.
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