The brain and the heart are arguably the two most vital organs in a human, the heart more so due to how the brain needs the heart to pump blood to it in order to function. The same could be said for following your dreams. Note that not all celebrities need to be the sharpest tool in the shed in order to succeed; a lot of them just try really hard. It's also important to remember that not all people that achieve their dreams are famous, many are what we see as a modern day heroes such as doctors/nurses, firemen, policemen, military, and even certain business owners. Now sure some of them had more luck and even advantages that helped make their dreams a reality, but don't let that fool you about how hard they work and what they have to sacrifice to maintain their success.

Now here are some things that I find help me to keep chasing my dreams and do it with a positive mindset:

1. Have a Specific Reason/Expectation (or two) and Prioritize

Dreams. As in the plural of dream (duh, get to the point Estevan). A singular dream may have one form of significant meaning to a person or many, and most people have multiple dreams (again tell me something we don't know). I'm getting there, OK? Gheesh. So there are far too many dreams to remember or accomplish them all, as sad as it sounds, I mean they're not pokemon people. So we need to maintain a collection of dreams that are treasured and prized so that once they become a reality we can feel at peace and happy that we have lived such a full life. Whether it be a bucket list or certain achievements or getting the perfect job or finding the perfect girl or guy, make sure that what ever it is has a good reason for sticking around in your memory and the legacy that you leave. Nothing is more fulfilling than achieving your dreams...

2. Don't Forget Your Loved Ones

...Than achieving your dreams with those you love! Wooooo-- clever transition and corny "explain the joke" joke. Yeah I'm weird but you know what, you can't achieve your dreams without being you and also being around those that truly love you for you. No one dreams of being alone, at least not completely alone for an eternity. Who doesn't want to enjoy their success with their closest friends and family and spread the joy and excitement and even share the rewards of their success with them? This means spend time with them, have deep conversations with them, support them, and reach out to them when they are down, or even when you are down. If you are alone in your dreams for too long they can turn into nightmares.

3. If the List Is Big, Multi-task

A dream of mine is to be a renaissance man, or jack of all trades as some may call it. Now maybe not all trades, but I want to be well rounded and have many skills that will help me not only independent but also reliable so that others can come to me for help with almost anything. There's a reason the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were named after four of the greatest original Renaissance men. Now there are only seven days a week and if you work 40 hours a week that leaves you with 128 more hours that has to include some sort of eating, sleeping, travel, and personal upkeep. That's more than three times what constitutes as a full time job. Now whether that full time job pays the bills or not depends on the success you're looking for and also where you might be at in the process of reaching your goals. However, most likely to achieve the level of success and live a happy satisfying life (unless you're born into a very wealthy family) you are going to have to work some 100+ hour weeks. Whether it be one job, multiple jobs, working on a startup, going through college and/or grad school while working, or practicing your talents, you will have to be well rounded and skilled at what you are doing in order to grow and climb the dream ladder.

4. Keep Telling Your Dreams

You have to remember your dreams and share them in order to make them happen and the best way to do that is to keep telling them to people and even to yourself. I've had so many dreams, one including being an artist. That's why I made one of my drawings the cover photo for this article, because I wanted to share my art. Sure I'm not the greatest but I enjoy my illustrations and I enjoy sharing them. Sure I'd like to make it a career and get rich off of it but that is not dream. The dream is to always enjoy my art and keep it my own and make it enjoyable and not stress filled or completely rely on it to keep a roof over my head. Get real deep, dig way down, and try to remember even the little things, because even ice cream is sweeter with a few sprinkles. Now share it with everyone and find those that will support you, those that will help you get further and achieve more dreams, maybe even inspire a few new ones. Take any criticism with a grain of salt but don't necessarily disregard it all.

5. Ride the River

Take it easy when there's smooth sailing, and ride the rapids when life gets crazy. As long as you're going with the flow and moving on down the river things will be good for the most part. Sure you might hit a few waterfalls and sketchy rapids but your life is your river to ride, so don't try to ride someone else's or let someone else guide you down yours. Take control and become the captain of your vessel. Listen and observe the advice and paths of others but make your own individual path.

6. Network

Whether you need emotional support, educational support, help at work or advice, or even just someone new to talk to, it's best to have a big network filled with people you can rely on. Now they don't have to all be your best pals, although your best pals are included, but there are over 7 billion people on this planet so you should have a good reason for keeping them around when there's a world full of other great people to meet. Now don't burn bridges if you don't have too and try to stay connected with as many people as you want but you do have to prioritize relationships like your dreams. Just make sure they are good relationships, and if you have to say goodbye always try to make it so you could come back on good terms with the good people.

7. Get Uncomfortable

There are going to be people and ideas and beliefs that challenge yours and will create some kind of friction to hold you back from reaching your dreams. You will hit walls and and mountains and trenches that you may think you can't overcome but the only way to find out is to go for it. Sure, no one likes to feel pressured or forced into doing things but sometimes it's when you are pushed to your limits that some new form of knowledge or wisdom can be found or some new skill learned. As long as you can be focused enough on your goal and feel it will all be worth it, pushing through the uncomfortable moments will be the icing on the cake when you look back at your achievements and you will be glad you never gave up and that you decided to expand your experience by doing things most people would have never done.

8. Spend Some Time Alone

Yes it's great to listen and try to learn from others, but with too many influences it can be easy to feel like you are being quartered, pulled in many directions without going anywhere until all of a sudden you break and will never be yourself again. You have to make sure that you take time to stew and reflect and everything you have observed from the world. No one else knows what you have experienced and feel better than you, and no one else can guide you through your life better than you. So when things get confusing or hard, yes its good to seek help and advice, but no one else can make the decisions for you so you have to make sure that whatever you will do will be best for you. Take time to do some soul searching and figure out what really means the most to you and what you want your story to be so when hard times come you can write your story and not give someone else the pen.

Hopefully these pointers help and can serve as a reminder to keep your dreams fresh in your mind and to keep chasing them, after all life is just one big dream, don't let it turn it into a nightmare.