Dreams, Aspirations, and Ambition
Most of us probably experienced the concept of ambition from an early age, where we might dream of becoming an astronaut or a doctor! Our very early aspirations may be getting a toy you want at Christmas or going to the seaside at the weekend. Whatever the dream is, we create a desired future in our mind; what we want to happen at some unknown time years ahead.
But how many of our dreams do we realise? Which ones have come true for you? When we strip back our pasts and our futures, we are just here, right now. I have explored this in other blogs about the concept of being present. I have also suggested that the future doesn’t exist. What, then, does this mean for experiencing ambition?
According to the Oxford dictionary, ambition is:
“Something that you want to do or achieve very much. It had been her lifelong ambition. political/presidential/nuclear ambitions ambition of being/doing something. She never achieved her ambition of becoming a famous writer”.
If we don’t achieve those dreams, does this take away from the essence of who we are? Surely everything we identify with reflects parts of ourselves, and how we design our future is happening right now because there is no other time.
I talk about the power of now in another blog and highlight the importance of this moment, being all that we have. This would suggest, then, that our ambition, what we want to aspire to, needs to be acted upon right now.
Have you ever heard phrases, or advice, that we shouldn’t put off tomorrow what we can do today, and there is no time like the present, or your future starts here? This resonates so deeply with all the research I have been doing on consciousness. I have explored the concept of manifestation. When we write our future now, live it now as though it is already here (which it is if we accept that the future doesn’t exist) we start to experience the emotion and experience of our dream.
There is an idea that we attract what we are. With this in mind, we become what we already are. This is mind-blowing. Let’s take an example. I developed an aspiration that has come about in the last year, that I want to write, and for my words to be published. I have written ten years of university assignments, leading to a master’s in advanced Practice, so the skills were already there. But I had never written for myself.
This new dream started with my ability to snatch opportunities in my present. I didn’t wait for something to happen; instead, I stood in the truth that I am going to write, and circumstances seemed to materialize that supported this truth. For example, I was in touch with a school friend for the first time in thirty years and found that he designs websites for a plethora of businesses including Vogue, Grazia, and Halfords.
My husband has his own building business, so I decided to invest and buy him his website. This sparked an idea for me, and after talks with my friend, he showed me what he could create for me, and now I have a platform to write as much as I want and design it on my very own website. I would never have envisaged this a couple of years ago. However, I believed in myself, I had faith in my ability, and now, I have written forty-one blogs, some of these more than a thousand words.
I realized that I am literally writing my way to my aspiration of being published. This realization prompted another active step into creating a book from the words I have written. I have applied for funds that are available for those who are dedicated to contributing to the Arts, whether a book, painting, or other creation. I am going to contact other resources to plan how my website and the blogs can be designed into a book. This is how I am bringing to life my ambition to become published.
I have worked full-time ever since I can remember and spent ten years at university investing in my ambition to be the best at what I do. I achieved this aspiration and now live this dream! I remember qualifying and working with nurses who had so much knowledge and experience, I had such admiration, always dreaming that one day I would achieve the same. Here I am now, much older, wiser, and working a job I never thought I would be in.
For me, I never questioned what I wanted from life; I was always just driven and focused. I never doubted myself in terms of achievement and attainment (the same couldn’t always be said of my emotional decision-making). I always lived what I wanted to be, and this echoes the points made earlier about manifestation. I look back to the past (that doesn’t exist, by my own admission!!) only to reflect on how I have built up my career and skills to date. A common theme underpins all the actions and directions I chose. I believed. Simple.
The reflection has helped me to focus on my new aspiration, the new direction for my creative energy. As I write this now, I feel a release, a freedom. For so many decades, I have written according to the rules of whichever university I attended. Now the rules are mine! I can write about what I am passionate about, and this is to heal. I am doing this in my job all the time, and I wanted to create a place where my words can heal. I want to write about pain so that I can alchemize it, to share stories about healing, so that others can feel heard, and can share.
I have also drawn on the darker aspects of myself, shedding light to transmute pain, as much for my own healing as anyone reading! I was diagnosed with complex-PTSD in December 2023, and I realised that by sharing my experience of this condition, I am sending a message to the world that dreams can be reached, even if we are broken. That sometimes, it is the fractured parts, where we have cracks, that the light truly gets in.
When we fantasize about a future, whether it be a new job, a material gain, or an emotional connection, if we take the steps now to achieve these goals, we become the change we want to see. This takes courage, faith, and a lot of groundwork. We need to face our shadows, those parts of us that hold us back, the doubt, the self-depreciation. Sometimes our ambition or dream needs to be healing. Simple.
Healing might be step one of the road to your dreams, where there are many steps. If the direction is taking you to your destination, your heart is invested. Your here and now has purpose. This moment is a mile travelled down that road. As you visualize the journey, with hope, you will travel a beautiful path, flowers everywhere, the smell of honeysuckle, the sound of birds singing, and the sensation of a warm sun on your face. This is manifestation, and it is powerful, but we need to learn to meditate, to sit in this moment.
Have a look at my website; many blogs on meditation and alternative therapies. All the writing supports self-investment, and having a future we dream of is the most powerful way to recognize our true selves and our abilities. Some of my favourite ways to sit and connect with the present moment, the here and now, is to use YouTube and find theta beat meditation. It works by emitting a specific frequency in the music/sounds, which enhances meditation and brain health. Take time out, every day, even for five minutes. To sit and be present. After all, this moment is all we have!
