We Are Dangerous Men.
Dare to be dreamers of the day.
A couple of weeks ago I was sitting amongst friends in a local Minneapolis brewpub. Dangerous Man is a relatively new brewery that has been welcomed with open arms by the Twin Cities. But what was so interesting and compelling about this place wasn’t what could be found in a glass, but rather, the story behind the brand.
Such is the case with many breweries around the country. What I’ve found within the craft beer movement is that the entrepreneurs behind them not only have a love for quality beer — but more importantly, they have an insatiable thirst for doing meaningful work.
They are artisans of their respective craft, but they’re also dreamers, hustlers, and pursuers of fulfillment. These are former lawyers — accountants — and project managers. Past victims of less-than-fulfilling careers that took a risk (professionally, financially, personally) and dared to be dangerous.
But leave it to me to be the kind of guy who finds inspiration in the most random of places. In this case, sitting amongst friends at this Minneapolis brewpub, I picked up my pint and looked down at the coaster it was resting on. It read:
“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 on their dreams with open eyes, to make them possible.”
“The dreamers of the day are dangerous men.” [tweet this]
No matter who you are, where you are, or what you’re doing — we are all dreamers. But it is the dreamers who dream with open eyes, “dreamers of the day” as T.E. Lawrence calls them — that move from dreaming to doing.
The only thing standing in between dreaming and doing? Action. You may think that you don’t have enough money. That no one will care. That you’ll let other people down. That you’ll fail. But look at the folks you admire and respect. What do they all have in common?
It’s really not as complicated as you think, my friends. We make excuses to rationalize our fears. All it comes down to, when you peel away the excuses and fears and doubts — is doing. Action.
You CAN quit. You CAN stay. You CAN write. You CAN think. You CAN move. You CAN start. You CAN say yes. You CAN say no.
We are all dreamers. But here’s to being dreamers of the day. Here’s to being dangerous men.
