Why Most People Don't Follow Their Dreams

I hear everyday about people having dreams, and never doing anything with it. "Oh, I want to be an actress. But I know I can never do that." "I wish I could write a book. But I know no one will read it." "I'm dying to travel the world. But I know I can't." 

All the time I hear people saying what they want, and following it with an I can't. That little voice in your head is the main reason people keep their dreams, well, just a dream. There are many other reasons, I've decided to list a few.

I think the first step in making your dreams come true is realizing what's standing in your way and why you think you can't.

1.  Fear.  

(Fear is a hard thing to overcome. But regret is harder to live with)

 People are afraid to take risks. Afraid they will fail. It's natural to want security. To ensure that you won't end up on the streets or starve. It's natural to be afraid of rejection and sometimes afraid what people will think. But, it is possible to either overcome that fear, or fight through it to make your dreams happen. In my opinion, fear is the biggest obstacle and one of the biggest reasons people don't do anything with their dreams.

2.  Others telling you that you can't.

 That's another problem. There will always be people looking to put others down. To tell you that you can't do it. Mainly, that's because they either wanted the same thing and never did anything, or they tried and failed. So they will tell you that you can't. That it's just not possible. That's the power of words. Especially, if it comes from your own family and friends. It's discouraging and might just persuade you out of doing anything with your dream.

3.  It's hard. 

 Well if you thought it was going to be easy, you are probably kidding yourself. Depending on what you want to reach for, you're chances could very well be 1 in a million. That's a very slim chance. It's going to be hard. Nothing in life that's worth anything is easy. The difficult path leads to adventures and experiences you might never have had otherwise. But, the fact that it's hard and you're chances are very slim, will discourage many and lead them down a different path. A path that might lead to unhappiness. Or regret. All because it's hard.

5 Ways to Easily Save Money Each Month

Everyone wants to save money. I mean everyone. Why wouldn't you? Money is good. More is better. Now I bet a lot of you here are either 1. living paycheck to paycheck or 2. spend more than you realize.

Either way, these 5 simple tips that I learned, will work for just about anyone.

1. Find deals that actually save you money at the grocery store. 

There are a million deals at every grocery store that make it appear like you're saving money, when you actually are not. Buying in bulk is not always the answer, especially if you don't normally buy those items. I recommend reading the "deal" and determine how much you would normally spend, and how much you are about to spend. If it's cheaper, then go for it. If not, maybe not this time. But again, don't buy in bulk unless you normally do. It won't save as much as you think.

(personally, I swear by ALDI. It's an insanely low-priced grocery market, that has the monthly necessities. I recommend checking it out if you have one in your area. Even if it doesn't have everything, you can save a lot buy buying some things there instead.) check to see if it's near you.

2. Create a monthly budget every month. 

Write down your monthly income at the top, then every expense you have. Write it down, and how much it costs. For expenses such as new clothes or entertainment, think about if you need those things, or put a limit on yourself. For example, on my budget, I put $30 to spend on entertainment/month. Now you may have a different lifestyle, or a bigger family than I have. However, write down a limit, and stick to it. It will keep you organized and likely to not overspend.

3. Do not be too strict. 

It's tempting to say that you won't spend anything extra each month and restrict yourself from any fun, or goodies. However, when you do that you're prone to splurge more. That will cost you more money in the long run. It's okay to go out to eat or order in. It's okay to buy that pair of shoes. Just don't eat out as often. And don't buy two or three cute pairs of shoes. Catch what I'm saying?

4. If you use cash, put all of your change in a jar. 

It seriously adds up. I always do this, and each month I cash in the coins I've collected, and I had $20 once. Just from change! It doesn't sound like a lot, but it can and will make a difference.

5. Put aside a set amount of money each month in your savings. 

Whether it's $5 or $100 each month, any amount will add up and make a difference. Get it out of sight, out of mind. If you don't see it, you'll think you don't have it. Therefore, you won't spend it. Also, if you come across an emergency, you'll have something if you need it. Instead of freaking out, because you don't have any money.


Follow those simple steps and you'll see a difference. I live by those steps, and I'm able to save money each month. (And I don't make that much) Taking small steps, will lead to bigger results.

If you have any tips you live by, please feel free to share. I'd love to hear what others are doing as well! I'm always looking for new ways to save money.

What about my shoes?

So, like the title states, I did leave my shoes in South Carolina. It's quite a tale at that.

It happened when I was seventeen (May of 2012). My mom and I were making a trip from Maryland to Florida. Well, actually we were moving from Maryland to Florida. (I had just lived in Maryland for one full year, after living in Florida prior to that.) So there we were on I-95 S heading back to Melbourne, FL to start again. My mom, my dog Harley, and I were all crammed up in the U-Haul truck. The truck with all of our furniture and belongings in the back and a small cab for us to ride in. And when I say small, I mean tiny. It was one of those no-backseat type of truck cabs with no room to recline the seats whatsoever. We traveled that way for about 1,000 miles. It really was pretty uncomfortable. But then again, I was used to it.

So we stopped to get gas in South Carolina, I don't remember which part. It was one of those gas stations with food and everything, probably a trucker stop, which suited us just fine. Since I brought my cream-colored 7 lb long-haired Chihuahua with me, I had to walk him so he could stretch his tiny legs and use the bathroom as well. There I was, standing in my tan moccasins letting him run around and whatnot, when I felt a weird pinching sensation. It was a tiny sensation, but I felt it all over my feet. Naturally, I look down and scream.

I didn't expect to see what I saw. I wish I never had because it truly was traumatic. And as I freaked out, time seemed to stand still. When I looked down to see what was pinching me, I saw a couple hundred fire ants all over my two feet crawling up to my ankles. I had never seen that many at once before. At least, not all over me! The first thing I did, besides scream, was take my shoes off and frantically throw all of those ants off. When they were finally off of me, I went to get my shoes. But in the matter of seconds there were about triple the amount of ants all over and in my shoes. The ants were taking over.

I quickly scooped up my dog and frantically asked my mom to finish walking him so I could make sure I got all the ants off in the bathroom. I, also, gave her a quick rundown of what happened. Maybe it was my frantic voice, or the way I said it. But she found it hysterical. I did not. I started walking to the gas station, got about halfway there when I realized I didn't have any shoes on. How I didn't notice the burning asphalt against my bare feet, I don't know. Adrenaline rush maybe?  So I ran back to borrow my mom's shoes. They were two sizes too small, but I didn't care. I just needed to make sure those ants were off me. I just needed to know.

After I had calmed down, I noticed that I was actually standing on a fire ant hill. So the previous events were probably a cause of my own carelessness. But, I left my shoes there, on that fire ant hill in South Carolina. I didn't have shoes for the remainder of the trip, until we got to Florida, and I bought a cheap pair of flip-flops.

Nowadays, when I tell this story, I laugh. It's funny how frantic I was over tiny ants. But I did learn a valuable lesson. Well, two.

1. Never, ever stand on a fire ant hill. Fire ants do bite. They do leave itchy bumps. And they do attack.

2. Objects and possessions, don't matter. I easily made the decision to leave my shoes than risk getting attacked by those ants again. Or on a more serious note, what if there was a fire in your house. Would you care about your cell phone, or any of your possessions? Would they matter? Or would the people and animals in that house matter?

Lesson Learned: You can always buy another item, another possession, another phone, or computer, or well anything. You can't buy another mom, sister, brother, father, or person. You can't buy time. You can't buy actions. It doesn't matter what you have. It's dispensable. It's replaceable. But it matters what you do, and who you're with. Who you surround yourself with and the actions you make.

At the end of the day, that's all that matters.