I Figured Out Why Most People Don’t Achieve Their Dreams

“How can you wonder your travels do you no good when you carry yourself around with you? You are saddled with the very thing that drove you away.” Socrates

I want to be rich and famous, I don’t know why but those fantasies have been in my head for years. I have always had a fascination with Hollywood in the 60s the fancy parties and open drug use are both really cool to me.

When I see the lives celebrities live I can’t help but wish I was there. But no one’s life is perfect. People, myself included, look at rich successful people and think they have it all figured out and live the best lives.

However, there are numerous cases of rich successful people being depressed and even committing suicide.

So why do we have this distorted perception of wealth?

It could be the system we’re in. The wonders of capitalism have been drilled into our heads for decades now. I’m not going to get into a philosophical debate about capitalism, but the narrative that ad agencies have been pushing is always the same.

‘You’re not good enough or thin enough, but if you buy this product you will be. Everyone will be so jealous of how rich and special you are.’

The other issue is the fact that many people, myself included, are unhappy with their current lives.

We are always looking for the thing that will change, the solution to our problems. That is why marketing and advertising are so effective, they promise a quick fix for any and all of our problems.

We want an easy answer, but the real answer takes time and effort.

We have to start by looking within. We all have limitations and shortcomings, that’s okay, ignoring them or pretending they don’t exist isn’t.

So as I sit here daydreaming about living in Hollywood with all my famous friends I have to keep reminding myself of the truth.

Nothing in my life will change until I change.

Moving somewhere or getting a new job might make me happy for a little, but I will never be truly happy until I get honest with myself and make the changes I need to make in my life.

1. Stop listening to others giving you advice on how to have a perfect life, especially if they are selling you something.

2. Get honest with yourself. You probably already know some things you do, or don’t do, that negatively affect your life. Start with that, the more you work to get through the excuses you tell yourself the closer you get to reality.

It’s not going to be fun or easy, that’s how you know it’s worth it.

Thanks for reading, here are some other stories I wrote on Medium.