No one is allowed to make you feel bad about your dreams. They are your own. You never have to give up or postpone your dreams and passions, because someone is worried how they will fit into your life once you get there. The only one who has control over what you become and what you do is you. Do not forget that.
Everyone wants to be something. Everyone has things they want to do, and even if you do not know what you want to be when you grow up (you don't have to by the way), you still have things that make you happy and/or excited to think about. Those are passions.
It does not matter if you cannot do them at the current place and time. There will always be things in the way at some stage in your life. It is hard to travel the world with no money. It is hard to go to the moon if you're not an astronaut, but you will get there one day if you truly want to. Do not let anyone make you feel bad about what you want to do.
I had a romantic friend who said they would support me no matter what I wanted to do. They said they would be there every step of the way even in the downs, but one day I started noticing that they only supported me when it came to the parts where they would benefit.
For instance, I want to be a part of a Residence Life team on a college campus. This means that I would live on campus, and I would need to be there more often than not because of the duties involved with the job. My former partner started making me feel bad about wanting that for my career. He didn't want to live on a college campus, and he kept urging me to try to find a new career goal. I didn't realize it until we split that he wasn't doing that for my benefit.
"Are we going to get us time? I don't want to live on a college campus until you retire. That isn't fair to me. What about kids? I want a house. Why don't you try to get a different type of job?"
I started applying for other jobs just to make my ex happy, but I wasn't happy about it in the least. I was actually starting to get very depressed, and my anxiety was starting to take control over my life in a way that I couldn't explain to my partner. It was stressing us both out.
After we split, I immediately started applying for ResLife jobs again. Flash forward to a little over a month later, and I have a job working at a University in Residence Life like I have wanted since I graduated. My first day is in less that two weeks. I move into my new home in less than seven days.
Things happen for a reason, and I firmly believe that his seeming displeasure with what I wanted to do was giving off some bad mojo. It was affecting me even if I didn't realize it at the time, but now I know that I can't let anyone bring me down again. Neither can you.
Don't let anyone tell you you cannot climb a mountain. Do not let anyone tell you you can't swim a sea. You can do nearly anything you set your mind to as long as you believe in yourself.
You just have to try. Dream what you want to. Follow your passions, and never let anyone make you feel bad about the things you love.
Only you can make your dreams come true
