If you have a strong desire to do something productive, or beneficial to the world at large, then chances are that there is a demand for it somewhere in the world. If nature or nature’s God did not see or foresee a demand for such a talent, work or product, then it would not have inputted a desire to produce it into you as part of its creation.
That is just the basis for the success of the old adage “follow your dreams; do what you enjoy”. Parents should also encourage and provide their children with all the help and tools they need to pursue and be successful in their dreams.
Related: The joys of being a father.
Of course, there may be times when a child may not be able to fulfill his or her dream because of strong competition. But here is where the old saying rings my ears “it is better to try and fail than to fail to try”. The reasons these sayings get passed down the centuries is because they are true. This brings us to….
The by-products of dreaming big.
Dreaming big is by no means a crime. We should always tell our children to remember that “no one, except you, should tell you, what you can or cannot do”. If a child dreams of becoming a really successful writer, for example, chasing his dream will drive him to pursue many different areas of studies. And if for some reason, the child is not able to reach his goal of writing the most successful novel of the century, he would have learned so much and become so educated during the process of educating himself to be an author, that he can easily find foothold in some other field of work or study. On the other hand, if this child were not encouraged to pursue his dreams, his enthusiasm would slow to a halt and he may not be successful at ANYTHING. This brings us to…
The dangers of destroying dreams.
Critizing your children for being over-ambitious not only causes emotional scars, it causes the child to slow down considerably in life. We can all remember line from the poem of the famous Guyanese poet, Martin Carter: “it is the man of death watching you sleep and aiming at your dreams”. When you dissuade your child from pursuing his or her dream, you kill the very thing which drives and motivates him or her. And lack of motivation will stiffle your child’s progress in EVERY area of life.
Related: What to do if your child really is being impractical.
Can you remember the young girl on television who said “they can shoot my body; but they can’t shoot my dreams”? Certainly this is a sign of how powerful DREAMS are.
