The content of our dreams is framed by the input we get from the people and world we experience. “We can only dream using the inputs we’ve received.” I read this line in a book earlier this week (‘Wanting’ by Luke Burgis).
In other words, we only dream and imagine about things we’ve been exposed to through direct experience, stories, or media. If we don’t know something exists, or could exist, we can’t bring it into our dreams.
Person A who grew up on a farm with no internet, no cell phone, and no siblings received a much different set of input in their formative years than Person B who grew up in the city with a brother, a sister, and two parents who traveled internationally for work.
Person C who was raised by parents that lived high standards, chased their dreams, and took risks received drastically different input than Person D who was raised by parents that lived low standards, let their dreams fade, and avoided anything that seemed at all risky.
Person E who grew up with an encouraging mentor telling them what was possible, who they could become, and pushing them beyond their perceived limits was given input that Person F may have never received in a meaningful way.
What you dream of doing, who you dream of being, and where you dream of going is built around the infrastructure of what you’ve seen, who you’ve listened to, and what you’ve experienced.
When your input changes, so do your dreams. Beyond that, when you change someone else’s input, especially a young person’s, their dreams change too. The slightest positive input can spark a dream that ignites a life.
Everything is training for something.
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