Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Pagan
Don’t Abandon Your Dreams: No Small Goals

Don’t Abandon Your Dreams: No Small Goals

Last updated on: August 4, 2020 at 3:00 am by John Beckett

Don’t Abandon Your Dreams: No Small Goals 2020-08-02T17:52:31-06:00 John Beckett

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

There’s so much going on right now that demands our attention and none of it is good. I won’t torture you with a litany of it all – you don’t need reminding. Suffice it to say that it’s overwhelming.

I’ve got a lot to talk about in this post, but I’m going to lead with the conclusion.

Do what you have to do to get by. But don’t abandon your dreams. Don’t restrict them. Don’t curtail them. When it comes to your life, don’t set small goals.

The World in divination

There’s a science to divination, but ultimately it’s an art. We draw cards, throw bones, or gaze into a teacup and we’re presented with images. Those images aren’t text, and they aren’t shorthand for text. They force us to think like our pre-human ancestors who had not yet evolved the capacity for language. And then because we are verbal creatures, we have to interpret those images and translate them into words.

The more I read Tarot, the more I agree with Camelia Elias: ignore the “official” meanings and just read the damn cards. A lot of work went into getting me to where I can do that, and I’m not always successful with it. But my most useful and helpful readings are where I do.

Last weekend I pulled a 5-card reading for a question that is intensely private, but also not particularly relevant to this post. Right in the middle was The World. And as I looked at the cards and tried to see what they were saying, this card screamed at me.

No small goals.

I was using the Celtic Tarot. Kristoffer Hughes’ accompanying book says the keywords for The World are “culmination, conclusion, accomplishment.” The page on divinatory meanings begins “Your task is complete. There is literally nothing else you can do; it is done.”

Whether we’re talking about politics, the pandemic, or our ordinary lives, we’re a long way from being complete. In this context, The World clearly represents a future state, not the current state.

But the future state is not fixed. It will be determined at least in part by our present actions. And our actions flow from our goals and dreams.

No small goals.

First you must survive

There are any number of memes going around that say if you don’t come out of the quarantine with what amounts to superpowers you’re worthless and weak. I don’t like throwing around the world “privilege” but it seems to fit here.

I’m having enough trouble keeping going even though I’ve managed to stay healthy and employed (which means I’m working, you know, full time), I don’t have children to care for, and I’m not living alone. I can’t imagine how difficult this is for others.

What are these meme writers doing? Living rent-free in Ghislaine Maxwell’s mansion and ordering Door Dash for every meal?

As I sometimes say, it’s hard to be spiritual when your roof is leaking.

Most times we can “dual track” – we can handle the challenges of mundane life and also work on our dreams and goals. For most of us, that’s the only way we’ll ever achieve any of them.

But there are times when you have to set them down for a moment to go fix your roof. If this is one of those times for you, then do it and don’t apologize for it.

Just don’t forget your dreams while you do.

From dreams to goals

Last month I wrote Working Magic For A Dream, which talks about what to do when all you have is a vague idea of what you want. If you’re in that situation I encourage you to read the post. Here’s a key excerpt:

We start with a desire, which is usually vague … Desire becomes a dream, where we start to imagine what life would be like if we attained our desire. The dream may be unrealistic or even impossible, but we want what we want. Dreams become visions, where we add more details and qualifications…

Will is how we turn a vision into a goal, a strategy, and a plan. Magic can help us get to where we want to go, but effective magic requires a clear target.

This is where most of us make an understandable but critical mistake: we set small goals.

Sometimes this is a lack of courage. What we want is going to be difficult and success is uncertain. So we settle for something we know we can do.

Many times it’s a lack of context – we don’t know what’s possible. I didn’t explore Paganism when I was trying to find my religious path in my late teens and early 20s because I didn’t know modern Paganism existed. There was Christianity and the other world religions… but in my experience, mainly Christianity. The only alternative I saw was atheism, and atheism has never appealed to me.

Is this a lack of knowledge or a lack of imagination? Perhaps a lack of awareness would be a better description, particularly in my younger years. You could say I had the data but not the knowledge that comes from the data.

But if I set small goals now, that’s a lack of imagination. I may not know what all is out there, but by now I should know there’s always something more.

Turn your dreams into goals – big goals.

Intermediate goals should be small

Big goals usually can’t be accomplished all at once. Houses need a foundation, then framework, a roof, plumbing and electrical, external siding and interior walls, and more. You can’t install a bathtub before you install the floor, even if a palatial bathtub is your fondest dream.

You may need education and training. You will almost certainly need experience with lesser goals: if you want to climb Mount Everest, you really need to climb several shorter mountains first.

In both romance and in politics, there is often pressure to “never settle.” I’m the last person you should go to for romantic advice, and I’m not going to tell oppressed people to “give it time” – go read Letter From Birmingham Jail if you think they should.

But partial success is still success, and it can be used as a stepping stone for even greater success. Meanwhile “all or nothing” usually results in nothing.

It’s not just OK to have small intermediate goals, it’s necessary. But keep your primary goals as big as you want them to be – as big as your dreams.

Unsure? Take the first step

My biggest holdup throughout life has been wanting a perfectly clear plan toward a perfectly clear goal before getting started. Life is rarely so accommodating.

I won’t say working for the Morrigan has broken me of this, but it’s certainly shown me its shortcomings. She’s not big on explaining Herself. You want to be a part of Her work? Come along. You want a script? She’ll find someone else.

The Seven of Cauldrons (Cups in most decks) is sometimes called the “head in the clouds” card. It’s what happens when you’re so obsessed with dreams you stop living. It’s also what happens when you have many choices and you refuse to choose one.

Big goals can be intimidating. But reaching them begins by taking one step.

Be open to good things coming in unexpected ways

This is the dilemma of choosing magical targets. The more precise you make your target, the more narrowly you can focus your magic – as well as your supporting mundane actions. This makes it more likely you’ll influence the situation in a meaningful way.

On the other hand, the more precise you make your target, the more you limit the ways good things can come to you. If you need to get from New York to Chicago, putting all your effort into manifesting a plane ticket makes it more likely you’ll be able to fly, but it also means you may miss opportunities to get there by train, bus, or car. Which could mean you’ll miss an amazing opportunity in Ohio you’ll never see if you fly over it.

The key here is to focus your magic on the ends and not on the means.

That requires knowing what you want, and accepting that it may not be what you’ve always thought you wanted, or that you were told you were supposed to want.

And that’s best done when you remember your dreams and the big goals they inspire.

No small dreams, no small goals

I’ve postponed numerous plans this year. I suspect I will postpone more. My mundane work has largely focused on doing what I need to do to stay healthy and employed. My spiritual work has largely focused on adapting to this time of social distancing. These are necessary changes.

Just before the US quarantine (such as it is) began, I wrote 6 Pagan Things I Want To Do Before I Die. These are dreams and goals. Some are bigger than others… and some are bigger than they seem at first glance. Accomplishing them has gotten harder and less likely, but I haven’t abandoned any of the dreams. And I haven’t made them smaller.

We need what we need. We want what we want. There’s no shame in trying and falling short, particularly if we can pass our incomplete efforts on to the next generation, who can take them farther, before passing them on yet again.

I want The World. So do you… whatever “The World” means to you.

Dream big.

Plan big.

Enjoy the journey.

No small goals.

Previous Post

August 2, 2020

The Darkness is Returning – And That’s a Good Thing

Next Post

August 6, 2020 Yearning for the Presence of Our Gods

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Books Community CUUPS Druidry Foundations and Context Gods and Goddesses Magic Myth Nature Ritual Spiritual Practice Theology Travel Uncategorized Videos

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

I used a tent peg and hammer to kill a fleeing enemy commander while he slept. Who am I?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Jael Deborah Delilah Ruth