Why is it so hard to dream big?

Why is it so hard to dream big? Why do we let our inner bully squash our desires?

About ten days ago, I had an amazing opportunity. Nicole Antoinette invited me to be a guest on Season 16 of her thriving podcast, Real Talk Radio. We recorded the two-hour conversation which was a lot of fun for me because Nicole’s questions were a real blast! She has this easy, let’s-sit-on-the-couch-and-gab style which I absolutely love (being the extrovert that I am!!).

Towards the end of every guest interview, Nicole does a rapid-fire round where she poses 7 quick questions. Her last question of the round to me was: “If you can dream of something really big coming true for you, what would it be?” Before I could edit myself, the words flew out of my mouth. “I want to be on Oprah’s Super Soul Sunday!” 

Moments later, the interview was done and I clicked out of Skype. And then it hit me. I’d just blurted out on a public podcast the one dream that I’d held so close to me for years. And in no time, the familiar voice that lives upstairs beneath my gray hair started to get really chatty.Who do you think you are that Oprah would want to talk to you??!!!  What do YOU have to say to Oprah??!! You really think you’re the cat’s whiskers, don’t you??!!!! Oh my! And on and on and on…

I suffered a moment of real shame. I’d just declared my dream out loud to every listener who would ever tune into this conversation. This episode was going out into the world. I bet Nicole has listeners all over the world, and I’d just told them all my BIG dream…aaahhhhhh! A dream that I’ve had since I started to watch Oprah in my twenties in India,, a fantasy I’ve nurtured in the secret recesses of my heart. I just broadcast that dream out loud and everyone was going to laugh at me! They were going to say the very things The Voice was saying.

After the initial flutter, I took a deep breath and did what I do when The Voice gets really loud. I said “Shush”. I dialed its decibel down. Then I dialed up the voice of my Dreamer. Immediately, my heart swelled with joy, the rush of excitement, all the possibilities of this dream coming true. I imagined myself sitting under Oprah’s beautiful oaks and having a soulful conversation with her about the things that truly mattered to me. It felt so natural because I feel like I’ve known Oprah all my life.

This was MY dream. I owned it. I claimed it. I had just declared it OUT LOUD. It actually felt good because it came from deep within my soul. And I trust my soul to know what’s true for me. In that moment I surrendered it to the universe. I have no idea HOW this dream will come true, but that’s not my business. My business is to believe. The most important thing I’ve learned from my favorite mentor Wayne Dyer is this: “Believe it and you’ll see it.” Mysteries and magic don’t announce themselves ahead of time. They simply arrive when the time is right. And I am willing to wait.

What is that one BIG dream you have for yourself? The one you’re scared to speak out loud? Email me if it feels too public to post it here. Because I believe in you and I believe in your dreams.