The process of working through Lara Casey’s Powersheets, so far, has been really, really good and is creating a great foundation to set my goals. But when it came to the page to write out my Big Dreams, I had a mini personal identity crisis in the middle of Starbucks, as I stared blankly at the page with pen in hand. I wrote a few things down, and then stared some more. The things I wrote didn’t seem “prestigious” enough to call a Big Dream. They didn’t seem like things that would impress a lot of people. But they were things that I dream about, just the same. Things that would help create the life I want to live. And that got me wondering and questioning the whole concept of what it means to “Dream Big”.

I’ve noticed quite a trend in the photography industry, lately, that is always urging you to dream bigger, do more, become a rockstar. Rub elbows with those who are important so you can be cool and important, yourself. The feeling of “You haven’t arrived in your business until you’ve done _____ (35 weddings a year, or had a thousand blog hits, or been published in print, or charged $10,000, etc ) or “The obvious next step for you is to  ______ (lead workshops, shoot internationally, etc, etc).” But what if that’s not all there is? What if not everyone wants those things? Maybe it’s entirely me, but sometimes I feel like this movement of do MORE and dream BIG and achieve ROCKSTAR status makes life desires outside of that – like being a mom, or devoted wife, or good neighbor, or photographer who just wants to contribute to the family income and serve clients well (without desiring to be famous) – it makes those things sound like you’re just “settling”. Like maybe you’re just too afraid to go for the bigger, more impressive things.

You know what the truth is? I think I’ve been bogged down for so long on how to dream up goals and plans that will sound good to other people, dreams that I think I’m supposed to be dreaming based on the industry that I’m in, that I don’t think I even know how to hear my own voice anymore. If you asked me what my biggest goals and dreams were right now, I’m not sure I’d know what to answer. Or maybe the truth is that I DO know what I’d answer….but that I fear I’d get an unimpressed look, a patronizing pat on the head and a sympathetic response that I don’t know how to dream big enough. Maybe I don’t dream as “big” as other people. Does that mean I’m “settling”, or aiming for a less impressive, less fulfilling life? Or have we lost sight of the great importance of realizing that not everyone is called to the same life. Not even everyone within the same industry. That “big” dreams don’t just mean “impressive” dreams.  And while it’s awesome to encourage each other to dream and hope and plan, we need to remember not to assume what someone else’s dreams should look like. And perhaps most importantly, not judge them if they’re different than our own.

At the end of my life, I just want to have been who I was created to be. I want to have loved others well, I want to have invested in the things that matter most. I want to be remembered as someone who was people and life-focused. And because of those things, maybe that means my biggest dreams have nothing to do with my job. It’s a huge dream-come-true to get to do a job that I love so much. But I also think it’s so good to remember that I’m so much more than just my job or my business.

So, one of my biggest goals for 2014 is to stop worrying so much what others might think of me and my dreams and plans. To stop wanting to be someone other than I am. But to fully embrace the things that are passions in my heart, regardless of how impressive (or otherwise) they seem to others. And I hope to be someone who can cheer on and support others as they do the same, no matter how different our dreams might be.

Be who you are called to be this year. Celebrate the passions on your heart. And don’t let the pressure of comparison with others let you feel like your dreams aren’t big enough. Because if they’re yours, then they’re just right.