Have you ever pulled a muscle in your back, slipped a disc or just landed on your tailbone? It hurts! Our natural inclination is to stay still or maybe even just lounge around but that’s often the worst thing to do for a bad back. This plan of action will allow you to stiffen and resist further movement. It can even lead to set backs.

This can happen with dreams too. Often we have great visions for our lives and futures. We set lofty goals. We put it out there. We stretch our minds… and then…we get snapped back into reality. We think we were foolish to dream so big and we tuck our tail between our legs and go back home and we don’t venture out into the world of possibility again.

Neither of these scenarios is ideal but there are some simple tactics you can use to have a positive outcome with each.

Be Tender With Yourself

Understand that healing and growing take time. You need to be gentle with yourself. Allow yourself time to adjust to your new situation. It is different than it was. You are different but you are okay. You don’t need to rush this. Take your time but keep moving forward.

Plan Your Movements

Make a plan and then start working the plan. Just like you wouldn’t immediately jump up and start doing somersaults after a back injury, you shouldn’t just dive blindly into a new dream. You should plan out your first steps. When dreaming, it helps to write everything out. Well, maybe not everything but most things. Take a moment to envision your path. Set some milestones for your journey. Keep your eyes focused on the horizon/your goal and start moving in the direction of your dream.

Be Slow and Deliberate with Your Actions

Find your footing. You don’t want a misstep to set your progress back. Don’t rush through steps A-C just to get to D. Be slow and methodical. Hold your movement if you feel you are going too fast. Retrace your steps if you need to and, of course, plot a new path if you need to as well. Maybe you were too aggressive with your first steps. No harm. Just take a moment, breathe, then start back on your path.

Don’t Do Too Much Too Fast

If you’ve injured your back and you try to get back to your routine too fast, you’ll soon find yourself sore, in pain and maybe worse off than you were in the beginning. That can happen with dreams too. The difference is, you can recover from a misaligned dream better than an misaligned spine. 😉 Take time to enjoy the journey you are on. Deadlines are important and you don’t want to take ten years to reach your goal but you don’t want to overwhelm yourself or, worse, to miss out on the lessons and unexpected opportunities that come along. Take it all in stride and when your dream comes true, it will be brighter than you ever imagined.

Analogies aside, dreaming and goal setting can be challenging but the end result is its own reward and you can get there one step at a time.