The Difference Between Dreams and Goals

How are dreams and goals different? To put it simply- a dream goes beyond a goal. A goal is generally smaller, it’s planned out, calculated, and designed to be attainable. That said, all too often we set goals that are too small, the bar for success is set too low. I’ve helped people set goals in the sales world for a very long time, and I frequently notice that individuals set goals that are far beneath their true capability.

Often, people set low goals because they want to ensure that they hit them.

It is a form of self-protection, and it is completely understandable. If we set goals for ourselves that we do not reach, we can feel like failures. So better to set goals that feel likely to be achieved.

Because we calculate and thoroughly evaluate our goals, they usually aren’t particularly inspiring. Simply thinking about a goal usually doesn’t put a person in a state of: “Wow, I need to get moving on this now.” Meanwhile, imagining achieving a dream is often so inspiring that people want to jump on it immediately. 

Using the word ‘dream’ allows people to get comfortable enough to set a stretch goal, a number that is far reaching.

That’s because a dream is more than a goal. It’s an expansion of it.  

Here’s a simple way to distinguish between dreams and goals: If a person believes they can achieve a target, they are operating within the confines of a reasonable and structured objective. This is a goal. A dream gets someone out of their own head, out of their realm of what’s possible, and allows them the freedom to think in an entirely different way. 

This is why dreaming is so powerful, especially in the workplace.

At work, it is easy for people to get bogged down in the realistic and the practical, because they’re engulfed in it every day (and for many, this is also true outside of the office). The Dreams Mindset permits someone to tap into and unlock an alternative style in their thinking that is unbounded and free of inhibition.

This is important because we often forget that what is even more impactful than achieving a goal or a dream is who we become in the process, and learning to be a more free and abundant thinker is an incredible asset to have in sustaining one’s success and fulfillment.