Success Advice
7 Things You Must Ignore to Achieve Your Dreams Today

Following your dreams isn’t easy. You have to be willing to listen to yourself and shut everyone else out. Most people will be obstacles or distractors from your dreams. The dream itself will stretch you – inspire you to quit often. Yet, where there’s a will, there’s a way.
I’ve been following my dreams for the past 5 years. A serious life setback cleared the path for me to quit my job as a lawyer, end my career in the legal field and start chasing my dreams. I started writing 1000 words a day and pursued my dreams of becoming a writer. Today, I can say that I have a growing blog, passionate readers, books on Amazon and the joy of doing something that I enjoy every day.
If you’re pursuing a dream, you must be willing to ignore these 7 things:
1. What appears difficult
Dreams are not easy. If they were, everyone would be following theirs. Dreams take work, require you to sacrifice other aspects of your life and demands you stay true to yourself. It requires you to envision something that isn’t here already and stay diligent to a future day that you’re creating today. You will feel many roadblocks and see many challenges to achieving your dream: time, money, location, and resources. Instead of harping on the difficulty, look for the solutions. Allow your creativity to find solutions that appear impossible. The more committed you are to your dream, the more creative ideas will jump out to inspire you.
2. What your colleagues say
If you look at your peers, colleagues from work or friends from school, all of them have been inculcated by their networks and families to follow the known path. Each will encourage you to stick to the known path of education, jobs and career advancement. They will insist you get married, buy a house and have kids because they are. You don’t have to follow the known path and you’re free to ignore what works for others. Stay true to your heart and your path instead of sharing notes with colleagues who are on society’s well-worn path.
3. What your fears say
You’ll only have fears, and big ones, when your pursue your dreams. If you’re not terrified and scared, you’re likely not fully committed to your dreams. Your dreams will challenge you to face your fears, doubts and uncertainty. Your dreams will challenge you to get out of your comfort zone, do things you haven’t done before and grow as a person. Your fear is a guide to help you navigate your dream but don’t allow it to be a roadblock that derails your dreams. Thank your fears but use it as inspiration to follow your dreams.
“There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure.” ― Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist
4. What your elders say
You’ll hear it from everyone who has lived longer than you. You will hear it from grandparents, parents and even more experienced mentors. All will tell you to “be practical” and ignore your dreams. They will prod, question, challenge and discourage you from pursuing your dreams. They will pose roadblocks, challenges and hypotheticals to “help” you succeed. They are not helping you succeed. They don’t want you to pursue your dreams and succeed because they will feel left out if you did succeed. Forget about what others say and only listen to your dreams whispers.
5. What others do
Everyone around you will be living one kind of life. They will be attending the same schools, getting the same jobs, living in the same neighborhoods and doing the same things with their lives. It’s so easy to look around you and compare yourself. You have to learn to ignore what others are doing and live your own life. It may seem like others have it figured out or know what they are doing. They might but it’s for their path and their journey, not yours. Stay true to your path without the undue influence of comparisons.
6. What failures come your way
I’m not telling you to ignore failure. There are gems of knowledge and wisdom from your failures. Listen to your failures and understand what they have in store for you but don’t give up after something doesn’t work. The key to success and life is finding out what doesn’t work so you can figure out what does. Listen to failure but don’t let it get in your way. Don’t allow failure to stop you. Allow it to fuel your next steps.
“Failure is the key to success; each mistake teaches us something” –Morihei Ueshiba
7. What a comfortable life looks like
This is the most important dream killer because it is so alluring. If you do end up with a college degree, good job and comfortable life, you will have no incentive to follow your dreams. You’ll have passions and dreams but you won’t feel like they are worth pursuing. To stay true to your dreams, you have to choose sacrifice over comfort, action over leisure and persistence over giving up too soon. Let go of the comfortable life so you can pursue a well-lived, fulfilling and meaningful of achieving your heart’s desires.
What are you ignoring today so you can achieve your dreams? Please leave your thoughts in the comment section below!
Image courtesy of Twenty20.com
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In workplaces around the world, there’s a growing gap between employers and employees and between superiors and their teams. It’s a common refrain: “People don’t leave companies, they leave bad bosses.”
While there are, of course, cases where management could do better, this isn’t just a “bad boss” problem. The relationship between leaders and employees is complex. Instead of assigning blame, we should explore practical solutions to build stronger, healthier workplaces where everyone thrives.
Why This Gap Exists
Every workplace needs someone to guide, supervise, and provide feedback. That’s essential for productivity and performance. But because there are usually far more employees than managers, dissatisfaction, fair or not, spreads quickly.
What if, instead of focusing on blame, we focused on building trust, empathy, and communication? This is where modern leadership and human-centered management can make a difference.
Tools and Techniques to Bridge the Gap
Here are proven strategies leaders and employees can use to foster stronger relationships and create a workplace where people actually want to stay.
1. Practice Mutual Empathy
Both managers and employees need to recognize they are ultimately on the same team. Leaders have to balance people and performance, and often face intense pressure to hit targets. Employees who understand this reality are more likely to cooperate and problem-solve collaboratively.
2. Maintain Professional Boundaries
Superiors should separate personal issues from professional decision-making. Consistency, fairness, and integrity build trust, and trust is the foundation of a motivated team.
3. Follow the Golden Rule
Treat people how you would like to be treated. This simple principle encourages compassion and respect, two qualities every effective leader must demonstrate.
4. Avoid Micromanagement
Micromanaging stifles creativity and damages morale. Great leaders see themselves as partners, not just bosses, and treat their teams as collaborators working toward a shared goal.
5. Empower Employees to Grow
Empowerment means giving employees responsibility that matches their capacity, and then trusting them to deliver. Encourage them to take calculated risks, learn from mistakes, and problem-solve independently. If something goes wrong, turn it into a learning opportunity, not a reprimand.
6. Communicate in All Directions
Communication shouldn’t just be top-down. Invite feedback, create open channels for suggestions, and genuinely listen to what your people have to say. Healthy upward communication closes gaps before they become conflicts.
7. Overcome Insecurities
Many leaders secretly fear being outshone by younger, more tech-savvy employees. Instead of resisting, embrace the chance to learn from them. Humility earns respect and helps the team innovate faster.
8. Invest in Coaching and Mentorship
True leaders grow other leaders. Provide mentorship, career guidance, and stretch opportunities so employees can develop new skills. Leadership is learned through experience, but guided experience is even more powerful.
9. Eliminate Favoritism
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10. Recognize Efforts Promptly
Recognition often matters more than rewards. Publicly appreciate employees’ contributions and do so consistently and fairly. A timely “thank you” can be more motivating than a quarterly bonus.
11. Conduct Thoughtful Exit Interviews
When employees leave, treat it as an opportunity to learn. Keep interviews confidential and use the insights to improve management practices and culture.
12. Provide Leadership Development
Train managers to lead, not just supervise. Leadership development programs help shift mindsets from “command and control” to “coach and empower.” This transformation has a direct impact on morale and retention.
13. Adopt Soft Leadership Principles
Today’s workforce, largely millennials and Gen Z, value collaboration over hierarchy. Soft leadership focuses on partnership, mutual respect, and shared purpose, rather than rigid top-down control.
The Bigger Picture: HR’s Role
Mercer’s global research highlights five key priorities for organizations:
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Build diverse talent pipelines
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Embrace flexible work models
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Design compelling career paths
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Simplify HR processes
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Redefine the value HR brings
The challenge? Employers and employees often view these priorities differently. Bridging that perception gap is just as important as bridging the relational gap between leaders and staff.
Treat Employees Like Associates, Not Just Staff
When you treat employees like partners, they bring their best selves to work. HR leaders must develop strategies to keep talent engaged, empowered, and prepared for the future.
Organizational success starts with people, always. Build the relationship with your team first, and the results will follow.
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