First Dream – Then Take Action

Everything I have achieved in real life I had already achieved in my imagination.

When I was 19 years old and wanted to be a rockstar, I would daydream at work (whatever dead end job I was at) and imagine the roaring crowd, the screaming girls, the sound of my guitar and the rest of the band rocking out. It wasn’t long before I’d found a drummer, a bassist, rented a practice space and began rehearsing five nights a week.

I would imagine us opening for our favourite local bands. Wouldn’t it be cool, I thought, if we could play with DOA, or SNFU (popular local bands) and be associated with them. Be friends with them! So I started telling local promoters how badly we wanted these gigs. We stepped up and practiced six days a week and before long we were playing with these bands to much larger audiences. This was the first time I’d realized an idea. I felt like a wizard.

When I got into pickup I would imagine myself walking into a party and effortlessly approaching and seducing the hottest girls. I would go out and practice seven nights a week with this vision in mind. It took a long time, and a lot of work, but eventually I became the guy I pretended to be. The visions became less like dreams and more like blueprints.

When I started writing A Thousand Tiny Failures, I imagined the book being a best seller, sitting in the front of store windows. I imagined journalists asking me about my book. I imagined girls sending me naughty mail because my books made them horny. This hasn’t quite been the case, yet. This is why I still imagine this. But I have no doubt that if I keep writing books it won’t be long before this is my full time income. Sometimes when I look at the lagging book sales, instead of whining that I don’t have enough mainstream press, I sit back, close my eyes and imagine my success. I feel what it would be like to be an international best selling author. And then I take one action to bring attention to my work.

When I wanted to travel to Asia, all around my apartment, I printed and tacked up pictures of tropical islands. I would meditate once a day and envision myself lounging beside a quiet beach, away from the crowds, smelling the surf or eating yummy local food. I imagined a cute girlfriend swimming in the water, inviting me in with her. “Haha, no, no. I must finish my manuscript, the editor is waiting,” I would say from the hammock. And last year I did make it to Se Asia. It was amazing.

I have dreams for the future that I’m working on now. And you can do this too. But here’s the secret: You have to take action. Even small action. Dreaming is not enough, but it is integral. First imagine, and then immediately take one action. This is the process. This is the way to realize your dreams. First live them inside your imagination. Then take action.

The problem most of us have are limiting beliefs. You start to imagine a dream, and then stop yourself with, “but I don’t have enough money,” or, “I’m not tall enough,” or, “I’m too old,” or, “but I have a job and can’t take time off.”

For those of you who think this way, I’m sorry. I can’t help you. I can only inspire. Remember, you are the product of your thoughts and actions. Sometimes circumstances seemingly work against you. Maybe you get sick, or you have to pay child support, or you live in a war torn country. That’s too bad. But guess what. This does not make you exempt from daydreaming, and taking action. You are not different or special. This is good because what works for me, can work for you. What works for your heroes, can work for you. You can do it.