Success can be defined in a few different general ways, whether it be a fulfillment of personal desires or an impactful goal that leads one or multiple people to wealth and/or fame. Success is the end game for everything from the start of our ambitions in our early lives to everything leading up to our achievements. And with that said, success is usually the part of life that people focus on most.

Dreams can be defined in a few different general ways, whether they be unachievable desires that one might fantasize about, or unachievable circumstances that would mean a better world for everyone to live in (as harsh as that may sound). Dreams are alternate universes in our minds that don’t quite make their way into our reality, but they’re still an essential quality that people share.

The difference between success and dreams is the fact that success defines a quality that somebody has obtained, and a dream is only a desire, which hasn’t occurred, and most likely will not occur. This is the clear distinction that society has made, and because of this, people tend to separate their dreams from their desired future success and often end up on paths they never expected. When you think about it, generally speaking, people separate these two things because you can dream beyond infinite, but when it comes to success, you pretty much get what you go for, and you can’t go for infinite. To end any confusion, the point I’m trying to make is, though dreams and success are two different things, success and dreams can also be the same exact thing, because if you’re looking down the road and working towards a successful future, that means you’re not currently successful, so your success is only a dream until you get there. What I’m trying to say is, dreams CAN come true! (you should’ve just started the article with that, Bryan).

The motivation you cultivate from wanting a certain kind of successful future is the same motivation you can get from chasing your dreams, and this alone closes the huge gap between “success” and “dreams” that I had mentioned before. The real issue is that young people nowadays seem to lack the motivation that they need, and don’t really have a drive for a successful future, and thus, a lot of them learn to live only in the present, and just enjoy what they have. Part of the reason for this has to be the fact that there’s so much failure (and laziness) out there, and some people see no point to having success when there’s no point to anything, but this is why it’s important to have goals, and chase them consistently: Because having goals is what creates a purpose for oneself in life.

If you’re constantly thinking about there being no point to anything, then you have no motivation to get somewhere in life, and you’re pretty much giving yourself no purpose. In most cultures that I’ve studied growing up, having a purpose in life is what most people seek, and it doesn’t necessarily have to be getting rich and famous. Giving your life meaning, and pursuing something is what creates a journey for yourself, and after all, everybody’s only got one life, so why not try to fulfill some kind of purpose? It could be anything, from working towards giving your family comfort or helping other people that are in need, to personal success, like being the best in your field or sport. After all, failure is not such a bad thing, but a lack of trying is the issue. Trying your hardest and failing is always more notable than not trying at all, and even so, failure can be used to educate oneself and gain more motivation to reach higher, depending on how it’s reacted upon. Also, we can’t forget the fact that the journey to success should be a path that we walk and enjoy just as much as the success we’re working towards. As Bruce Lee once said, “Remember, my friend, to enjoy your planning as well as your accomplishment, for life is too short for negative energy."