I'm gonna tell you something.
I don't think it's a secret; I think it's just one of those truths no one likes to discuss for fear of hurting others:
It's a lot easier to dream than it is to try.
Thing is? That's ok.
Because dreams can just be dreams, they don't have to be goals.

No, really. Dreams do not have to be goals. Dreams can be exactly that, and that's fine. That's good. That's natural. We all have stuff we just wanna dream about. Whether that's owning a bakery or having 15 kids or travelling the world or being a superhero? All cool.

The purpose of dreams is to give us comfort. It's to give us a safe spot to burrow into. When shit goes south we can always step back and go "it's fine, some day this'll be over and I'll live in my cabin with my 7 cats and we'll be happy" and take refuge in that.

Most of us know our dreams aren't realistic, but calling attention to that removes the magic. And sometimes? "You should take business classes" is just as harmful as "that'll never happen", because you're still saying "you can't dream unless you're trying to do it."

Yes, we all know that person who keeps talking about how they wanna do this thing one day and then just has 30 excuses as to why they can't. And yes, it can feel frustrating, especially when you feel like they'd be successful. But maybe they just want the comfort of their dream?

But from the opposite side, sometimes it's important to lay down the line and clarify to people, "this is just a dream, I'm not gonna chase it, it's *not* a goal" (and for others to LISTEN when we're told that and not try to "save" them!!)

Trying *isn't* fun usually. And that's ok. Most of us are putting so much effort into our day to day lives that adding the pressure of chasing our dreams instead of using them as a security blanket is just adding pointless stress. Don't force it. Don't ruin those dreams.

But I'm also here to tell you that if you've realized your dream *IS* a goal? That you do want to try?
Do it. Be smart about it, have safety nets, but if you have even a shred of opportunity, try. However comforting it was as a dream, it'll be 300x more so as a success.

So listen to those around you. If they say they just wanna dream, let them. If they say they wanna follow their dream, help them (if you can).
And if they say they wanna help you with your dream?
Be honest with them, and with yourself, about where you want to go from here.