A new year offers a chance for a fresh start and an opportunity for change. As we usher in 2019 with optimism and vision of a better life, here are some thoughts through the lens of a college student on dreaming big, holding tight onto those dreams and making them a reality. Why settle for small dreams when you can dream big and accomplish those goals?
Dream big, Live high
All men dream: but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds wake in the day to find that it was vanity: but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act their dreams with open eyes, to make it possible. Every individual has the potential to dream big and the right to dream should not be denied by any means of political or human force. Dreaming big is not only about dreaming who you want to become or what you want to achieve, it is also about how you want to achieve that dream and how you can become the person you dream about. It is about having your dream figure out and embrace the challenges and achievements.
It is true that when we have big dreams, we will be encountering various challenges and problems that could be a hindrance in the way of fulfilling our dreams. Sometimes these hindrances could be due to the lack of opportunities, economic backwardness, gender discrimination etc. But such hindrances must not prevent us from dreaming and keeping visions of achieving great things in life. Each one of us is a dreamer but sometimes society might work to dismiss or de-motivate our dreams and aspirations. We are often affected by how people judge us and when the judgments of the people in the society matters to us, that is when it creates a barrier in the way of achieving our goal.
It is unfortunate that many a time our society deprive the poorer sections of the society the right to achieve their dreams. It could be because, the poorer sections of society do not have the means or platforms to show their talents and interest which causes a hindrance in the way of accomplishing their dreams.
On the other hand, the privileged section of the society gets the best possible platforms and opportunities to fulfil and set the steps towards accomplishing their dreams. The sad part is that since this section of the society gets everything in an easy manner, there is less room for them to work hard to achieve what they dream for.
However, on the positive side, we see that many successful people who inspire us today have mostly come from the un-privileged sections of the society. They have taken up the challenge that stood in their way of fulfilling their dream. Some have in fact sacrificed everything that is dear to them in order to achieve their dreams, even putting their life to the utmost risk. If such is not an example of dreaming big, then what is? Though our society is taking up steps to improve this gap of in-equality between the sections of society; it still has a long way to go to fill up this gap.
These days, people are becoming lazy and idle and do not want to work hard any longer. For this, there is no one to blame but our individual self. If we dream, we should dream big and should be willing to sacrifice anything to achieve the dream we are chasing. Only then we can proudly say that we have dreamed big. Most of the famous and successful people we know have sacrificed a lot in their lives and I am sure it has not been an easy journey. Even in their failures they believed in their potentials and raised above all the barriers and struggles put before them to fulfill their dreams.
Being a big dreamer doesn’t mean that you walk around with your head in the clouds. It means that you’re seeking a purpose for your life and it means that you’re becoming fulfilled in the process. People that get into the habit of dreaming big will accomplish those goals because they have the right mindset. In order to dream big each one of us as an individual should first ask ourselves, what is it that I dream of becoming? What can I do to achieve that dream? And how much am I willing to sacrifice? Once these three questions have been figured out and you have the answer, you become the person willing to dream big. You are about to turn into the person you have always dreamt of becoming, you become an individual willing to sacrifice, struggle and go through every storm and turn into an inspiration for someone who is struggling. If that is achieved, it is and will be the most beautiful and proud moment in your life.
I believe that there are two kinds of people in the world. First, those who dreams and secondly the one who encourage the dreamers. As a student, I too have a dream, and for that I am willing to put in extra effort to achieve what I dream for. And I am so blessed to say that my parents and my teachers have impacted my life in such a way that I have the courage to dream big. They encouraged me to work on it. As we all know that one’s dream is priceless and so, I would like to encourage all to dream as much as you can and act on it positively.
Let us not judge but instead allow each other to dream right and also dream big. It is said that if our dreams do not scare us then they are not big enough. It is important for each one of us to have a dream because that dream becomes a vision and that vision can turn into an achievement. As APJ Abdul Kalam said, “Dream is not what you see while sleeping; it is something that doesn’t let you sleep”.
Degree of Thought is a weekly community column initiated by Tetso College in partnership with The Morung Express. Degree of Thought will delve into the social, cultural, political and educational issues around us. The views expressed here do not reflect the opinion of the institution. Tetso College is a NAAC Accredited UGC recognised Commerce and Arts College. The editors are Dr Hewasa Lorin, Tatongkala Pongen, Aniruddha, Meren and Kvulo Lorin.
For feedback or comments please email: dot@tetsocollege.org.