Having the heart of a dreamer and the mind of a realist is difficult. You passionately desire to travel the world ... but also understand you only have $0.30 in your bank account. You envision yourself becoming a world-renowned politician, businessperson, or musician after reaching the height of the career ladder ... but also recognize the amount of work, money, and time it would take to get there, only to most likely fail in reaching that kind of acclaim.

You're told you're either one or the other: the dreamer who takes risks and believes in endless opportunities or the realist who is cautious and doubtful. But what if you're both?

This kind of juxtaposition of dispositions leads to constant internal struggles, extreme indecisiveness in even the most trivial of situations, and the occasional early onset midlife crises. Life itself becomes a challenge because of the constant conflict of being a visionary and having a rational mind.

So what does one do to settle this conflict? Are we forced to live a roller coaster life with high hopes and then ultimate disappointments?

Although I'm still working toward finding the perfect solution myself, I think that the best way to deal with these contradicting personality traits is to first understand how lucky you are to have both ambition and a rationality. Although it may seem extremely inconvenient at most times, it is truly a gift. You are able to understand the reality of the world and your personal life in order to plan for the future with frugality and meticulousness while harboring the passion for success and adventure. It took me a long time to finally realize this, but I am able to recognize that the combination of these traits is a blessing. Some of the most successful people in the world are simultaneously the biggest dreamers and the biggest realists. Being both means that you have the dedication and zeal to attain high goals and the logic and prudence to actually make them happen. You have the power to make the abstract tangible.

As a poor college student, you may only see the downsides of being a dreamer and a realist, and it does definitely come with its struggles, but there is still plenty of time in our lives to accomplish everything we want. So even when you're in the midst of another one of your midlife crises as a 19-year-old, remember that the work you're doing now will allow you to fully live out your dreams in the future.