Contributed by Irene Watson, MA

How many of us have dreams yet to be fulfilled? I hope every one of us does. Much of life’s joy is in having dreams. Dreams motivate us and make us look forward to the future. If we are lucky, we will always have more dreams than can ever possibly be brought to reality so we never lose our interest in all life has to offer. 

That said, too many of us have dreams that stay merely dreams. I believe the number one reason people don’t make their dreams come true is due to fear. I’ve written about fear before, but fear is so powerful an inhibitor that people need constant encouragement to see how silly it really is. Yes, there are times when you shouldn’t do something—when you should realize the danger involved—but most of the time, our fears are only in our heads. It is fear rather than reality that holds us back. 

Reasons we don’t fulfill our dreams may be fear of what other people will say, fear we will be laughed at, fear we will be rejected by others, fear we are going against what God wants. Consider what the Reverend Dick Gregory once said, “Fear and God do not occupy the same place.” Do you think God wants you to be full of fear? He created you. She loves you. Wouldn’t He want you to be happy? If you don’t believe in God, isn’t it the very fear holding you back that is a sign of your Higher Power wanting something more for you? As Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “You wouldn’t have the desire if you didn’t have the ability to achieve it.” 

Dreams become reality. Henry Ford dreamed of making cars. Edison dreamed of the light bulb and the phonograph. Alexander Graham Bell dreamed of the telephone. People told them it couldn’t be done, but they refused to give into fear. In fact, when people told them they couldn’t do it, they became determined to prove them wrong. They made mistakes, but they never gave up. Don’t let fear of what other people think hold you back from doing what you want. 

Sometimes we’ve been afraid for so long that we don’t even realize our fears are blocking our dreams. We don’t realize what our dreams are. One of the most effective ways I’ve found for overcoming fear is by realizing what we want in life. 

Today and for the next few days, write out a list of things you are afraid of. For example, heights, poverty, weight gain, trains, etc. 

Once you figure out what you are afraid of, you’ll find it easier to overcome the fear. I’ll give you some more tips in my next posting on how to deal with these fears.

Irene Watson, MA,  is author of The Sitting Swing: Finding Wisdom to Know the Difference, and co-editor of The Story that Must Be Told: True Tales of Transformation, and Authors Access: 30 Success Secrets for Authors and Publishers. She is a workshop leader, managing editor of Reader Views, and president of a non-profit Higher Power Foundation. Irene lives next to Barton Creek in Austin, TX, with her husband Robert.