Two trains traveling on parallel tracks never meet – such is the case with dreaming and effort. They're never on the same track.

 

Both dreaming and effort are necessary for things to happen, but they work independently and one can never do the job of the other.

 

Dreaming can help you envision where you want to go; but it alone will never get you there.

 

Effort without a dream is just hard work without a payday.

 

Are you dreaming without effort or are you working without dreaming? Both take you to the same destination - an isolated corner of the terminal.

 

The dream train and the effort train bring essential ingredients into the destination terminal but if one refuses to recognize the necessity of the other, their cargo never gets to interact, resulting in a stockpile of dreams and a stockpile of effort with nothing getting built.

 

Dreaming without effort is a pipe dream; effort without dreaming is just a pile of sweat.

 

If your life is a train wreck, you're probably doing one without the other. What will it take to show you that your dream needs steam, or that your effort needs a guiding star?

 

The leading indicator that you're doing one without the other is that you are stuck in the same place you've been for a long time. Your dream is becoming a nightmare and the only chance you have of succeeding is to wake up!

 

Awaken to the fact that what you've been doing isn't working. Certainly keep reaching for the stars, but keep at least one foot on the ground when doing so, so that your dreams have traction. And yes, keep working, but tether your efforts to a dream.

 

If you continue to work without a dream, you'll harden like a rock as you leak self-esteem. If you continue to dream without getting off your donkey, you'll remain a horse's ass.

 

Put yourself on track to productivity by combining your efforts and dreams, and at the same time you'll avoid coming apart at the seams.

 

All the best,

John