A Case For Chasing After Life Instead Of Chasing After Dreams

There is an endless list of clichés that we get thrown at us from the time we can talk.

“Never give up.”
“Follow your dreams.”
“Don’t stop when you’re tired, stop when you’re done.”

It’s no wonder our generation is so burnt out and grasping for anything that makes us feel inspired. We all grow up thinking that we get one dream and we have to stick to it and cling to it and fight for it until it becomes reality and then we will be happy. This is the most untrue and damaging belief that I feel we all have had instilled in us.

No one told me when I grew up that it would be okay to stop chasing some dreams. They also didn’t tell me that it’s almost as difficult as leaving a toxic relationship – you don’t want to feel like you’ve failed so you hold onto it hoping that one day it will excite you the way it once did. This will never happen though. What adult is telling you that it’s okay to give up on a dream? What adults are asking you if it’s the right dream to begin with? What if you spend your whole life chasing and working and investing, ignoring your gut, and end up miserable anyway?

Part of growing up is finding your own voice and hopefully it’s one that can distinguish what is right or wrong for you.

It’s far too often that we pursue a safety dream – something that makes a lot of money, has security in it, and will provide us a comfortable lifestyle. Everyone wants to “live comfortably” but what does that even mean? What kind of a life is it if you are merely comfortable and the most you get from your job is something as lack luster as security? We don’t have to spend our whole lives playing slave to our paychecks and being zombies every Monday just because we feel that it’s what we are supposed to do. We are not supposed to do anything other than figure ourselves out and live accordingly.

We need to let go of what society has dreamed up for us. Society is a very ugly albeit influential place to let your mind live. Our grown up adventure is to break the mold and to do what makes us happy no matter what glamour, security, or social status we have to sacrifice for such happiness. It really isn’t much of a sacrifice anyway, who really cares what you do for a living if your paycheck isn’t going into their bank account?

It’s okay to stop chasing your “dreams” and to start pursuing your life.

Despite the way things look on the outside and on social media, no one really has it all figured out. The key is to figure out the little things that make you happy and to start implementing them into the big things of life.

Find job security in the fact that you love what you are doing. I promise a passion will always comfort you more than the price of misery on chasing money.