Competition and Dreams

He says "Bill, I believe this is killing me,"
as a smile ran away from his face;
"Well I'm sure that I could be a movie star
if I could get out of this place."
Billy Joel, The Piano Man

I was going to post this yesterday but I fell asleep at 6 and didn't wake up until today.

When I think about my dreams of being famous, I am often overcome with a real sense of urgency and dread; for every second I spend not cultivating my talent, there is somebody who is. I am falling behind in the race, one step at a time, and by the time I reach the finish line nobody will care.

Recently I considered the idea that I don't need to race if I don't want the prize. Certainly, there are people who want it more, and they are far more likely to get it. So perhaps the correct path is to give up on my dream and pursue something more doable.

Later that day I talked to Wendy, one of my teachers. Her belief was that you should follow your dreams, regardless of how impossible they may seem, because they are your dreams and the mere pursuit of them is rewarding in itself. The pain of failure may be great, but not as bad as the regret of an unpursued dream. And as long as you are pursuing your dream, in a sense you are living it.

So forget about the competition, and follow your dream no matter how slow the progress is. Keep it alive, and keep moving towards it, even if its only an inch at a time.