Mar 2013: As kids, we all had crazy dreams of being firemen, astronauts, movie stars, presidents, quarterbacks, rock stars, or some other seemingly outlandish vision. Our parents and teachers supported our dreams while we were kids. They told us that anything we dreamed of doing was possible – we just had to work hard for it.
But as we got older, the support for our dreams vanished, and so did our childhoods. We had to become responsible young adults, study, go to college, pick a major, get a job, get married, have 2.3 kids, get divorced, etc. That didn’t leave any room to pursue those childhood dreams – dreams that were all but forgotten by the time we were adults.
For some of us that was a good thing. Like dreaming of someday being president. Would you really want to do that, even if you could? The power to change the world and the prestige would be nice, but I think most of us would cringe at having our lives scrutinized 24/7. Besides, the pot smoking, that we in fact inhaled, and our college antics, now documented and tagged on Facebook, would nix any serious political aspirations. But being a rock star, now that would be cool. I mean, all the fans, all the money, all the babes… and, like Bono, you could do it while saving the world.
Back to the story about having dreams…
The reality of life, bills, health, and relationships hits us hard and forces us to be more practical. So while we are covering rent, buying groceries, or folding underwear, dreams of being an astronaut are put on hold indefinitely.
Every now and then, I hear my soccer friends talk about wanting to travel, start a business, write a book, take a course – but their doubts, fears, and procrastination hold them back. I try to encourage them to pursue their dreams, arguing “Why not? What do you have to lose? What is the worst that could happen, you would have to flip burgers?” When they do pursue their dreams, they become a lot more fun to be around. All they have to do is take their foot out of the grave and come alive with a newfound zest for life.
Fortunately, there are still a lot of dreamers around who haven’t given up on their dreams and continue to pursue them with a passion that puzzles our soccer friends. For some inpiration, let me introduce you to some friends that still have dreams:
- A good friend of mine, Guillermo Sohnlein, is starting a new venture called Blue Marble Exploration, to do unique submarine exploration dives.
- Dennis Tito, the first space tourist on the International Space Station, is putting up his own money to send a couple to Mars on a project called Inspiration Mars.
- Joe Landon is a cofounder at Planetary Resources, a company that wants to mine asteroids.
- Vern Raburn started and built Eclipse Aviation, an aircraft manufacturer that created a new aviation category called Very Light Jets for air taxi services.
- Jeff Greason started XCOR, a suborbital tourism company that he hopes will lead to point-to-point travel.
These are just a few dreamers that I’m inspired by, but there are thousands – perhaps millions – of people still pursuing their childhood dreams. I encourage everyone to pursue theirs.