Introduction

The Alchemist, it’s a book I hadn’t heard of until last year.

When I did however hear of Paulo Coelho’s work, the word came only with praise.

My mother also told me she had one or two of his books on her bookshelf herself, and that he was a great author.

Regardless, I got my younger brother it for Christmas, and he read it within what seemed like a few days.

Well, I decided to pick it up for myself; and I’ve just finished reading it this week.

That it precisely why today’s topic is dreams.

The Stats Behind Achieving Dreams

According to a study, 98% of people die without ever fulfilling their dreams.

That's a scary fact.

But in my opinion, that insight should drive you forward even more rather than discourage you.

Why?

1. You’re only here once (depending on your beliefs).

2. Have you heard of anyone, who devoted their whole entire life to something without ever achieving it?

3. Of the 98%, I have strong reason to believe the majority of them never take real action.

So, firstly, would you rather die knowing you really tried, or to die never knowing what you could have achieved?

Secondly, really think about that one. If you devoted your whole entire life to something, and never gave up; how could it possibly not work out?

Thirdly, although the fact itself really is quite shocking, it becomes less shocking when you think about how many of those people must have never really taken any action.

In fact, there’s no need to imagine how many it could be, I’ve got some more stats.

Research at the University of Scranton revealed that 92% of people just give up on or fail their yearly resolutions, never mind lifelong dreams.

So, now, knowing that 92% of people don’t even stick to their goals long enough to achieve them on a yearly basis, does it really surprise you that only 2% fulfil their dreams?

Reasons People Give Up or Fail (Avoid Falling Victim of These)

1. Fear of Failure

The silent, and most deadly killer of dreams: Fear of Failure.

Many are victim of it and become paralysed because they fear failing.

From a young age we’re taught to strive for success, to achieve, and to excel.

However, along the way, the implicit message that failure is unacceptable becomes deeply ingrained in our psyche.

I’m sure you’ve heard or seen before the saying “failure’s not an option.”

Well let me tell you something: that’s a terrible mindset to have.

This belief reflects poorly on our abilities and worth, lurking in the shadows of our aspirations.

It whispers doubts and insecurities when we dare to reach beyond our comfort zones.

Let’s stop giving it a voice, and remember a quote by Thomas Edison:

Michael Jordan is another example, attributing the level of his success to the amount of times he has failed.

Let’s lose this fear of failure.

Failure is inevitable, and is a necessary part of the journey.

Given that with each failure you learn, you are only really deepening your wisdom.

And so, stop seeing your mistakes and failures as detriments to your success.

See them as opportunities to succeed even more tomorrow.

Remember, there are only two options: you succeed or you learn.

2. Procrastination and Distractions

This one has become especially pervasive in todays society.

Many people don’t even get the chance to consider what they want out of life.

We are simply so deeply enthralled by social media, video games, TV, and a myriad of other distractions.

These people are denied the opportunity to contemplate their deepest desires and aspirations.

Enveloped by the alluring glow of their screens, even if they do get a chance to ponder what they desire, they are too caught up on what 21-year-old Millionaire Mike is doing over in Miami.

Some are even convinced that watching “Top 10 Side Hustles” YouTube videos is productive.

Don’t worry, I’ve been a victim of this very thing.

We all have.

3. Short-term Mindset and Comparison

Life is a marathon, not a sprint.

Moreover, your only competition is you.

What does this mean? Two things:

1 A short-term mindset comes with many dangers.

It leads to impulsive decisions and short-lived gratification.

In a world full of instant rewards and quick fixes, it's easy to lose sight of the bigger picture and succumb to the temptation of immediate pleasure.

However, true fulfilment and success are rarely achieved overnight.

They require patience, perseverance, and unwavering dedication to long-term goals.

2 Constantly looking over into other lanes and measuring you progress based on others’ achievements puts you at risk of losing sight of your own journey.

Life's path is unique for everyone, and comparing your progress to that of others only serves to undermine your sense of self-worth and accomplishment.

The issue is, this is too easy for kids (and everyone else) to do nowadays.

All it takes is a few clicks or taps to get onto Instagram and compare yourself.

Don’t allow it.

Understand that most of these people aren’t as happy, successful, and good-looking as they seem.

And even if they are, you will always find someone to compare to if you try.

Have you seen that image about envy?

A guy in the back of a Rolls Royce is envied by a guy in a Porsche, envied by a guy in a Mazda, envied by a guy on a motorcycle, envied by a guy on a bicycle, envied by a guy on foot, envied by a disabled person.

Focus on where you’re going, otherwise you might trip.

4. Negative Mindset and Limiting Beliefs

“I don’t have the money.”

“I don’t have the time.”

“It’s too late.”

“I’m no-”

Come on, seriously?

Ask yourself this:

Do you think there has ever been someone who ‘made it’ who was poorer than you?

Started later than you?

Had less time than you?

Was less intelligent than you?

Most likely.

The thing is, whatever you tell yourself, and whatever you believe to be true, that will be your reality.

And the truth is, your mindset and beliefs can either be your greatest asset or your greatest obstacle.

5. Lack of Confidence, Clarity, and a Strong Self-Image

How will anyone believe in you, if you don’t believe in yourself?

A strong self-image and a sense of clarity are the cornerstones of success and fulfilment.

Yet, many of us struggle with self-doubt, uncertainty, and a lack of clarity.

They sap your energy, undermine your belief in yourself and in your abilities.

The journey toward realising your dreams however, requires courage, conviction, and unwavering self-belief.

The opposite of the aforementioned barriers.

I like to put it this way: The way you see yourself now, dictates the world the future you gets to see.

If you don’t see yourself as someone who takes the actions necessary to achieve your goals and fulfil your dreams, you won’t.

It’s that simple.

How to Actually Realise Your Dreams

Not that this is a mathematical process, but let’s do some quick maths.

We now know that 98% of people never fulfil their dreams.

Why also however, know that 92% of people give up on their yearly goals.

That leaves us with 8%.

And it’s no doubt that the 2% who do fulfil their dreams are part of the 8% who stick to their yearly ambitions.

Technically speaking, just by sticking to your ambitions for more than one year, you’ve already increased you chances of fulfilling your life ambitions to 25%.

To be clear, those chances are 3,500,000 times larger than your chances of winning the lottery.

But we don’t want to leave it up to chance.

Here’s how to ensure success:

1 Fix Your Mindset

Here’s the thing: I could give you the best plan and systems in the world to fulfil your dreams, and if your mindset isn’t up to par, you’re going to burn yourself out.

Your mindset is the lens through which you perceive the world, interpret experiences, and navigate the word.

Your mindset is the thing foundation, since it is where you have the most control and leverage.

Here is how to build the foundation correctly:

→ Embrace a Growth Mindset

During a study, 5th and 6th grade students were given twelve conceptual problems.

Eight of which were at their level, and four of which were simply too advanced for children that age.

Students who adopted the belief that brain power is fixed (a fixed mindset) gave up quickly on the tough problems, blaming their (lack of) intelligence.

Students with a more expansive notion on brain power (a growth mindset) kept working in spite of the difficulty, and employed far more creative strategies to find a solution.

What do you think those students blamed for their inability to solve the problems?

The answer might surprise you; they didn’t blame anything.

They acknowledged that setbacks were inevitable along the path to mastery, and that they could even serve as valuable markers for the journey.

→ Change Your Self-Image

The reason self-image is so important, is because your actions align with your self-image.

It is the mental picture you hold of yourself, including your beliefs, attitudes, and expectations about who you are and what you can achieve.

By cultivating a positive self-image and visualising success, you can reprogram your subconscious mind to support your goals and aspirations.

Seeing is not believing, believing is seeing.

The expectation theory says that you don’t get what you deserve, you get what you think you deserve.

What you think you deserve (your self-image) dictates the actions you take, and the actions you take dictate your reality.

Take some time to visualise the best version of yourself, and how your life looks in the future.

Then, embrace that vision now.

Feel that you are that person now.

Once you see the person you want to become in your mind, you can notice the gap.

When you are aware of the gap, you can bridge the gap by asking yourself what actions that person takes, and taking those actions.

→ Be a Student of Life

You cannot learn, if you think you already know.

Adopt a mindset of continuous growth and learning.

Seek opportunities to expand your knowledge, skills, and experiences.

Stay curious, open-minded, and adaptable in the pursuit of your dreams.

Recognise that growth happens outside your comfort zone.

Surround yourself with mentors, role models, and supportive communities that inspire and challenge you to reach new heights of excellence.

→ Grit and Perseverance

Without grit and perseverance, you won’t get very far.

The last thing you want is to embark on you path to fulfilling your greatest desires, and have a setback or two make you give up.

As wonderful as pursuing your dreams is, it is not a path lined with daisies and with a rainbow arching overhead.

Otherwise, the number of achievers would probably be slightly higher than 2%.

As cliché as never give up is, I am a true believer of if I never give up, how can it possibly not work out?

It’s a gruelling path, that’s for sure.

But that’s not the problem, that’s the key.

2 Clarify Your Vision

How are you ever going to find something, if you don’t know what it looks like?

Define your dreams and aspirations with clarity and specificity.

What do you want to achieve?

Why is it important to you?

Visualise your ideal future and articulate your goals in detail.

Write them down, create vision boards; make your dreams tangible and achievable.

The way I like to do this, is by splitting my vision into B-Mega’s 5 Areas of Life:

1. Health & Fitness

2. Mental & Emotional

3. Purpose & Spirituality

4. Relationships & Fulfilment

5. Personal & Financial Development

Then, I write out how my life will look in each of those areas in the future, with detail and specificity.

That makes it much easier to below write the specific actions needed for you to get there.

3 Set Your Milestone Goals

Now that you are clear about your vision, we want to set milestones and along the way.

Here’s the key: Your goals should be specific and measurable.

you already know the SMART goal setting method.

Specific

Measurable

Achievable

Relevant

Time-based

What this means is, if your dream is to travel the world, you might set a goal to travel to 20 countries across Europe, Asia, and Africa by the time you’re 40.

Certainly it’s specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-based.

If your dream is to build the ‘worlds most impressive physique,’ then your goal might be to attend 8 Mr. Olympias by 2040 and to win 5 of them.

Remember, don’t let someone tell you want achievable or possible for you.

They are not judging you, they’re judging you based on their experiences, beliefs, attitudes, and values.

As Rob Moore said, “they are judging themselves through you.”

Make them lofty, but down to earth.

Unless your dream is to travel space, that is of course.

4 Set Up Your Plan

Once you have your goals, you need to determine the relative actions to get you there.

Sticking to our previous examples, your plan should keep you on track towards your goals.

Given that your goal is to travel to 20 different countries before you’re 40, at age 19 your plan might simply be to travel to one different country a year.

For our body builder friend, your plan might be to reach 90kg (200lb) at 8% body fat before you’re 30 years of age.

Both certainly doable if you set your mind to them, an both put you right ion track.

5 Set Up Your Systems

You could have the best plan in the world, and if you don’t have a system that keeps you consistent, you’re setting yourself up to fail.

Setting up a reliable system is all about reducing friction.

For our traveller, you need to make is as possible for yourself to carry out the actions on your plan as possible.

At the end of each year, choose your country for next year and book the trip ahead of time.

Join communities of people who travel, and get to know their tips and tactics.

Divide the cost of your trip, and put away that specific amount each month into your SANT (Save And do Not Touch) specifically for your trip.

For our bodybuilder, look for a personal coach.

Immerse yourself in nutritional and training advice from those who have done it before.

Lay out your gym clothes the night before, to make it as easy as possible to go to the gym the next day.

Because you’ve now worked on your self image, everything else will fall into place and your plan and systems will keep you right on track.

Exploring the Power of Dreams and Interpreting Them

Dreams, both nocturnal visions and aspirational desires, possess a remarkable power to inspire and propel certain individuals towards extraordinary achievements.

Throughout history, visionaries like Nikola Tesla seemed to have harnessed the insights gained from their dreams, and transformed them into groundbreaking innovations that shaped the course of humanity.

Nikola Tesla was renowned for his pioneering work in electrical engineering and wireless communication.

He was known to experience vivid and visionary dreams that sparked his creativity and fuelled his inventions.

During a feverish illness in 1882, Tesla had a transformative dream that illuminated the concept of the rotating magnetic field.

This was a pivotal insight that laid the foundation for the development of alternating current (AC) electrical systems.

This visionary dream not only revolutionised the field of electrical engineering but also paved the way for the modern electrical infrastructure that powers the world today.

Go after your dreams, and don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t.

B-Mega,

Fabian