MKMMA Week 21 Give Up The Dream, You Are….

He heard a knock at his door while practicing. No one was at the door when he opened it, but there was a note pasted to the door. The note stated, “Give up the dream. Your voice is terrible.”

The note from a cowardly dream stealer had little impact. Fortunately, Grammer kept on practicing, singing and writing. Grammer, a platinum recording artist, has sold millions of records since 2011. His songs are filled with optimism, fortitude, encouragement and perseverance.

His songs include “Honey, I’m Good,” “Good to Be Alive,” “Fine By Me,” “Keep Your Head Up,” and many other toe-tapping songs.

As much as I love Grammer’s music, I love his dedication to his dream.

I’m sure you have had the joyous experience of encountering a dream stealer. A parent, close friend, teacher, relative, or even a stranger, has spewed the words “wake-up,” “get a grip,” “get real,” “not you,” “don’t quit your day job,” “are you serious,” “it’s really hard to break into that industry,” “you can’t make any money doing that,” “it’s a scam,” or my favorite — ta dah “no one in the family has ever done that.”

Just to be fair — now is a good time to testify and release — maybe you were a dream stealer, too.

God knows I know I’ve made discouraging verbal and nonverbal comments. I’ve snickered, mumbled under my breath, looked the person directly into their dilated pupils, smiled, and covertly attempt to  transfer my doubt filled opinion.

The worst dream stealer — y’all ready for this –is the “Guy or Gal in the mirror.”  Go ahead and give me a virtual high-five, you know it true.

Some years ago, I gave a speech to a group of people who were graduating from a job skill development program. I unequivocally told them to dump the people in their life who have held them back in the past, present, or those they meet in the future.

I wish I could talk with that group today. I would tell them to dump the person in the mirror who whispers dream stealing comments.  I would tell them to have the courage to take control of their life; to take ownership and responsibility for the conditions, circumstances, events and outcomes in their life.

I’ve learned there is a magnificent dream stealing repellent in taking ownership of one’s life. There is a synergistic effect when you know what you want, why you want it, and you have decided to persist until.

You will have the power to look a cloaked dream stealer in their empty eyeballs and say “Thanks, I got this.”

In addition, be encouraging and supportive of your other peoples dreams. Send them a text, email, or go old school and write a letter, or make a phone call, and inquire about their dream. Be a cheerleader!

Les Brown, author and motivational speaker has a quote I keep near me. It says, “The graveyard is the richest place on earth, because it is here that you will find all the hopes and dreams that were never fulfilled, the books that were never written, the songs that were never sung, the inventions that were never shared, the cures that were never discovered, all because someone was too afraid to take that first step, keep with the problem, or determined to carry our their dream.”

I’m happy Grammer didn’t let the cowardly dream stealer halt his consuming desire to share his music. I pray I get to experience the masterpiece you want to share with the world.

In the words of Aerosmith, “Dream on! Dream on! Dream on! Dream until your dream comes true.”

I strongly recommend listening to the interview, at least the first 15 minutes. The link is at the bottom of the blog.

 

You can listen to Lewis Howes interview Andy Grammer by clicking on the following link: From Street Performing to Platinum Artist or on SoundCloud at https://soundcloud.com/lewishowes/andy-grammer