Let’s face it – 2020 didn’t go the way any of us planned. And all the madness in the world hit some daydreamers hard. Many of us use daydreaming as a coping mechanism, as a means of escaping from real life when things get difficult, and for many of us 2020 was difficult in all kinds of ways. It has been hard to sustain real-world friendships when face-to-face contact has been so limited, so we turned to our characters to replace the real-world connections that were abruptly taken from us. Many people were furloughed, leaving more time for daydreaming. And a whole range of worries and uncertainties, from the health of those closest to us, to financial insecurity or lost educational opportunities, have threatened to drive us into the daydream world, where we can edit out problems that are outside our control.
So, as we near the end of a year that no-one could have predicted, many of us are looking to the future with the hope that 2021 will bring us something better. So, how, as a daydreamer, can you ensure that this time next year you will be able to look back on 2021 with a sense of gratitude for all that you’ve achieved?
1. Drop the shame. Now
I’ve noted before that many of us believe our daydreaming is a sign that something is wrong with us, or that being a daydreamer makes us “weird” or “bad”. But immersive daydreaming is an inbuilt trait, something we’re born with, and the ability to conjure up fantasy worlds is never going to go away. Believing that your daydreaming makes you a bad person is only going to hold you back. Even if you are struggling with the addictiveness of maladaptive daydreaming, it doesn’t make you any less deserving of love and success than anyone else; it just means you have a mental health problem that you might need some support to manage. You are a valuable and deserving person, daydreaming and all, and you owe it to the world to embrace all of who you are so that you can live your best life.
2. Draw a line under the past
I’m sure most of us feel we could have achieved more, been more successful, had a better life, if we hadn’t wasted so much time daydreaming. Just like normative daydreamers probably regret spending so much time watching Netflix or mindlessly scrolling through social media. But none of us can go back and change the past. We can’t regain that lost time. All we can do is set an intention to make better choices about the time that’s still in front of us. It is never too late to become the best version of yourself.
3. Turn your ambitions into goals
Where do you want to be a year from now?
What do you want to be doing?
How will it feel when you achieve that?
How will it affect the people around you?
How will it change how you view yourself?
Take a few minutes now to really focus on the above questions, to picture yourself a year from now having achieved everything you want to achieve in the next year. Make that future vision of yourself as real and as detailed as you can – we daydreamers have a talent for making something that only exists in our minds feel so real that it becomes part of who we are. Use that talent now to really connect with your future self as you would like to be. And then hold that inspiring vision in your mind as you step forward into 2021. Revisit it often. The more time you spend envisaging your future success, the greater will be your belief that you are worthy and capable of achieving it, the more your thoughts and actions will naturally move you towards it, and the easier it will be to act in alignment with your authentic self.
No matter what life throws at you, never lose sight of the fact that you have all the skills and resources you need to navigate the challenges ahead. Have faith in yourself. Surround yourself with those who have faith in you – both in real-life and in your daydreams. Know that you have the potential and the ability to achieve whatever you want to achieve. And make 2021 the year you do the work necessary to make it happen.
The best thing you can do for the whole world is to make the most of yourself
Wallace Wattles