Fulfilling Your Dreams
The Tragedy of Impotence
Guest Blogger: Ken La Salle
I used to tell people about how much I wished I didn’t have a dream. When it came to wanting to be a writer, there were times when I just wished I could work some everyday, ordinary job and not dream at all. I thought I’d be better off. I thought I would be safe. I couldn’t have been more foolish.
When I consider all of the joy and fulfillment I have experienced as the result of following my dream – when I just stop and recall how much better off I am for knowing what makes me happy and pursuing it; I realize just how lucky I am. I tell you this because I found out this week that things could be far worse.
Listen: I have been looking for guests to appear on my new podcast, So Dream Something, lately. I even posted a notice on Reddit to see if I could find some motivated people who are pursuing their dream. What I ended up with, however, was just, plain unbelievable. It was a single comment. It read, “Unfortunately, I know what my dream is but I don’t know how to achieve it.”
I read it. And then, I re-read it. I was flabbergasted.
“I know what my dream is but I don’t know how to achieve it.”
I want you to think about this the next time you feel defeated in the pursuit of your dream. My heart goes out to this person. I couldn’t think of something more tragic. And, the thing is, this idea hadn’t even occurred to me until I read it. I understand intimately the challenge of pursuing your dreams. I can also relate to those who live without dreams, people who live their lives in peace. Those were the people I envied so much. But to have a dream, to know what would make you happy, and feel yourself impotent to do anything? To not have any idea how you can make your dream come true, even in a small way? To know what will fulfill you but have no idea how to find fulfillment in your life? That, my friends, is a tragedy.
Comic and wisenheimer Jackie Kashian has an interesting philosophy about these things and I’ll summarize it here in my own words: If you want to do something badly enough, you’ll find a way to do it.
I’ve come to believe this very strongly, especially after interviewing about half a dozen guests on So Dream Something. Each one of them found their own way toward pursuing and achieving their dreams. Those without money found ways. Those without position found ways. There is always a way. It may not be exactly what you’d hoped but it gets you there. Heck, in my case, that has involved self-publishing, recording my own audiobooks, and even pounding on doors long after they’re closed to me.
But I do it because the dream is that important. Either I’m going to find happiness in this life or I’m going to be miserable – and I’m not too keen on misery. It’s one of the things that keeps me from eating broken glass. My point is I know where my happiness lies and that’s my direction. That’s my course.
What a sad statement about our society that we have people who know their course, who know their dream, but are made so impotent that they don’t know what to do? What creates this impotence, I wonder? I can’t help but think back to my own experience and remember those who told me I’d be better off with some other course, rather than moving toward what I know will make me happy. Follow a “Plan B”, otherwise known as someone else’s plan, rather than the thing you know will bring you happiness, your Plan A.
I don’t know if that’s what is preventing this individual from following their dream but I hope they find an answer to the impotence they feel. The answer is within this person. It’s within all of us. We know what it is.
Our challenge is to follow it, no matter what.
About the Author
Ken La Salle is an author and playwright out of Anaheim, California. His passion is intense humor, meaningful drama, and finding answers to the questions that define our lives. You can find his books on Amazon and Smashwords and all major etailers. His philosophical memoir, Climbing Maya, is available in ebook and paperback. Ken also has a number of audiobooks available on iTunes, Audible, and all major etailers. You can follow Ken’s writing career on his website at www.kenlasalle.com.
