The “if you can dream it” myth

First, let me come out and say that I’m a sucker for a good cliche motivational quote.

I like waking up on a Monday morning and see the hashtag #MondayMotivation all over Instagram, with a suited up Leonardo Dicaprio photo and a “go make history”, or something about not caring about haters type of caption onto it.

Cliches quotes are great.

I don’t think our world could go without them. I don’t think Instagram photography would be so flawless without them.

But these cliche quotes need to be true, and realistic (and attributed to the right person).

Take, for example, the famous Walt Disney (sic) quote, “If you can dream it, you can do it”. Not only is it total rubbish, but it’s also NOT a Walt Disney quote. But, because someone rich and famous said it, it has to be true, and therefore, possible to do.

But, of course, only in a fictional, animated world is it possible to dream anything, and then do it, and be great at it, right?!?

I’m a dreamer- a big one. And I know we all are, but I can dream more than I can believe, or do:

As a child I dreamt of becoming a doctor, to alleviate my family from the poverty of my youth. I dreamt of it, not in a cute, childish kind of way. I dreamt of it in a determined, THIS IS WHAT I WANT FOR MY FAMILY, way. And it never happened- neither of the two.

Because LIFE- real life- it continues while we dream.

In prison, in the darkest of moments, I dreamt of being told I can leave prison earlier than expected, to start a new life. That never happened either.

And the problem with “if you can dream it, you can do it” is that it’s a half-truth. And half-truths are just as good as a lie. Half-truths don’t come with the disclaimers and spoiler alerts honest truths comes with.

Cliche quotes have a flirting way of leaving out the fine print. The parts where they should say ”…but this might not work out…”

This might sound harsh, but this quote is harmful to coaching and mentoring because it’s selling an insurance policy contrary to what (I believe) mentoring should be about: to allow someone to become all they should be within the boundaries and capabilities of who God made them to be.

This quote is especially harmful when working with the poor, the homeless, the addicts, imprisoned. Because it’s telling them that they just have to dream about a better life, and they can achieve it. No need to break old habits, take on new ones, work hard, and live with the possibility that it might not go according to the dream.

This does not mean that people aren’t allowed to dream; that they should face reality and die.

No.

But when it comes to real life, and people trying to put the pieces of their lives back together, it’s not the best thing to say, “if you can dream it, you can do it”.