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A few small daily choices can make a big difference between a dream being conceived and a dream being achieved.
Year after year, people from all over the world emigrate to the United States with honest intentions of starting fresh and working hard to provide good lives for themselves and their families, and with high hopes of accomplishing their American Dream as bona fide citizens in the “land of the opportunity.” Sadly, however, many people's dreams fail to ever come true. In fact, all too often they just end up being old memories of what could have been if...
There are always hopes and dreams in people's hearts, which is a good thing, since every great achievement typically starts with a dream. But after a dream has been conceived in the mind, you must be willing to put in some work, set some goals, create a plan, and track your progress if you ever expect to successfully reach your dreams. And in addition to the things you need to do in order to achieve your dreams, there are also some things you must avoid if you truly want to accomplish the dreams in that are your heart. So, what things are necessary for you to reach your goals as a new American dreamer?
You must have a clear definition of success
If "becoming successful" is your goal, then you need to be clear about how you define the word success. Or to say it another way, unless you know what success is to you, then how can you ever hope to reach it? This question deserves some careful thought because people view success differently depending on what they value as important and what they want in life. For instance, for some people success is measured by how much money they can earn, how many material things they can accumulate, what kind of neighborhood they can live in, the kinds of cars they can drive, or by how many people like them and know their name and face on the internet.
Other people view success in terms of becoming doctors, nurses, scientists, judges, counselors, teachers, authors, politicians, and community leaders so they can make lasting positive changes in other people’s lives. And then some others might view success from a completely different angle, such as how to escape from a country ruled by crime, poverty, communism, and ruthless aristocrats to live in a free country where they can get a high-quality education, secure a good job or start a business, and raise their children into responsible adults with respectable careers and professions. As a new American dreamer, it is your responsibility to determine what success means to you.
You can't be afraid of failing
The fear of failure is nothing new. Nobody enjoys failing at anything regardless of how big or small it may be. However, as long as you are alive you are going to experience failure at one time or another. The difference between experiencing failure and becoming a failure is in how you interpret your experience and respond to it. To some people experiencing failure is like the end of the world, whereas other people just see it as an opportunity to learn what to do differently.
If you refuse to pursue your dreams because you’re afraid you might fail, then you are choosing to be a failure by default, because you are choosing to live in a position that’s much less than where you know you should be. And something you never want to experience is the life-long feeling of regret about opportunities you chose to ignore due to the fear of possibly failing.
Don't be afraid to succeed
This use of the word success is a little bit different from the previous use. This viewpoint is not about pursuing the goal of success. Instead, it’s about being viewed by others as a successful person or as a person of legitimate influence. It’s about being regarded by others as someone whose knowledge and opinions matter and are worth listening to because of the great things they have accomplished in life.
Sometimes when people accomplish amazing things in their lives, other people around them start treating them exceptionally well and may even start seeking them for wisdom and advice. The thought of this can make some people fearful of pursuing their dreams because they worry about the positive attention they might receive and the new position of influence that often results from accomplishing great things.
However, such a position should instead be viewed with honor and thankfulness, and should motivate one to do more. Onlookers become amazed and inspired when they see other people succeed in reaching their dreams. They want to know if they can learn something that will help them to reach theirs as well.
You need to have a strong work ethic
You will never be able to experience your dreams if you are not willing to do the necessary work to make them happen.
Daydreaming and fantasizing about the changes you want are not good enough if you truly want to accomplish your dreams.
For instance, if you truly want to speak English like a native-born American, then you need to take advantage of the opportunities you have to increase your knowledge and sharpen your skills. Likewise, if you want to successfully adapt to American culture so that you can understand the customs and ways of American society, then you need to take advantage of immersive learning opportunities like Gateway Getaways, a program that teaches you how to successfully interact with all types of Americans and enables you to learn through personal experience about the different races, ethnic groups, and nationalities that together make up the “American culture”.
You must learn how to identify and avoid dream killers
A dream killer is defined as any person or thing that tries to discourage you, distract you, or do anything else to intentionally put an end to your dreams of becoming successful. A tricky thing about dream killers is that they can appear in many different forms, and they often show up in unexpected and disturbing ways that feel very uncomfortable.
Sometimes they appear as small voices in your head, also known as doubts, that tell you you’re not smart enough, talented enough, skilled enough, or as capable as somebody else who is taller or shorter, darker or lighter, from this country or that country, or who has been speaking English longer than you, and so on.
Another way dream killers appear is in the form of people, and they surprise us because they are usually people whom we have considered our friends. Sometimes they could be a lazy, unmotivated, and insecure boyfriend or girlfriend who has no dreams of their own. They have no desire to ever do or become anything great in life, and they are even willing to break up with you simply because you want to improve your quality of life and reach for something better.
Still other times it could be a coworker or even a relative who only wants to be around you as long as you never talk about doing better or wanting better things. As long as you keep quiet about your dreams and act like you’re satisfied with living a mediocre life with no dreams or aspirations, they will be your friend. However, if you ever decide to share your dreams and ideas with them, you will quickly learn whether or not they are really your friends.
The signs will be evident in the words they say to you. They will start telling you things that are designed to make you doubt yourself and stop pursuing your goals. They might use phrases like:
“Oh no, my friend tried to do that years ago, but she failed and got hurt so badly that she never got over it.”
"It’s going to take you too long do that. You’re going to be ___ years old by the time you finish!”
“Wow, that's a really good idea, but I think someone else has already done it.”
“What? So out of all the great ideas out there, do you really think yours is good enough to make a difference?”
“You’re changing! You’re not the same person you used to be. You think you’re better than us now!”
“I think it’s great that you want to learn English, but don’t you think you’re thinking a little bit too American now? All this stuff about reaching the American dream is crazy talk.”
“You’re becoming too much like an American now. You're betraying your people and your heritage [by wanting a better quality life].”
You need to re-read, rehearse, and remember
As we previously stated earlier in this article, all people have hopes and dreams in their hearts, but not everybody is willing to do what is necessary to see their dreams fulfilled. However, if you want to be a successful American dreamer who does more than daydream and fantasize about being successful, then you need to seriously commit to re-read, rehearse, and remember to practice the things that were discussed in this article:
You need to be clear about what success means to you;
You need to be focused on the good things you want for your life;
You need to be determined to let nothing get in the way of reaching your dreams;
You need to not be afraid of making mistakes and sometimes failing along the way;
You need to not be afraid of receiving positive attention for becoming successful;
You need to be committed to do the work that's required to get your dream out of your head and into reality;
You need to be wise enough to not share all your dreams and ideas with everyone around you;
You need to understand that not everybody who seems to be your friend is truly in your corner.
One of the branches of our mission at Gateway ESL is to help develop the dreamer in you. In other words, we want to be in your corner to help you accomplish the dreams and ideas that are burning in your heart. So, as a first step in that direction, you will notice below that we have listed some questions that we think are important for you to seriously think about as a new American dreamer:
I live in the Land of Opportunity now. Am I settling for a less life than what's available to me?
How much more could I do if I weren't afraid?
What things would I like to see change in my life or in my community?
What bad habits have been holding me back from reaching my dreams?
What can I do today that will get me closer to my dream?
Copyright 2022 Gateway ESL.
*For more information, please contact us at 1-855-2-ENGLISH or info@gatewayesl.com.
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