Issue #16: The Secret To Reaching Your Dreams

I am continuing to open up paid subscription issues like this one to everyone through April, in case they may help someone deal with the challenges of the current crisis a little bit better.

Dear friends, welcome to Ad Astra. It’s so good to have you here.

This week, I struggled a bit coming up with a theme for this newsletter. I have a long list of topics to cover, but every time I’d sit down to approach any of them, no words would come out. In short, my inspiration decided to take a break. It’s normal and it happens to everyone.

And yet, I couldn’t skip a week just because my inspiration was lackluster. I made a commitment to myself and to you ⁠— my readers ⁠— for weekly issues. Skipping one wasn’t an option, so I sat down to write anyway.

And here, in the paragraph above, lies the answer promised to you in the subject line.

(I’m experimenting again with the audio version of this newsletter. At the suggestion of a friend, I’m going to try to make it more conversational. Check out the audio version if you prefer to listen to — rather than read — your content.)

The secret to reaching your dreams is commitment

I often get this question in emails, DMs, and comments on social media: “How did you become a travel photographer and writer, published in great magazines, traveling for work and creating stories?” (Sometimes the question is posed like this: “Your life is a dream, how do I get one too?”)

I suspect that what people want to hear in response is some sort of a “secret formula”, a “get-there-quick” action plan, a “golden ticket” to the destination of your dreams.

Alas, reality is often more prosaic than that. There is no formula for becoming someone you want to be overnight. No meaningful, lasting changes happen in a blink of an eye.

The truth is boring and the secret to reaching your dreams is simple: you have to commit to your path.

In the years since I’ve quit my job, I’ve had many opportunities to abandon my path. At times, it felt more attractive to just give up, find another job, get a paycheck, and stop fighting for my dream life.

But I guess I have issues with non-commitment. Once I’ve started something, I am compelled to see it through. And in a way, this attitude made sticking to this path a little bit easier for me.

“Time is short, my strength is limited, the office is a horror, the apartment is noisy, and if a pleasant, straightforward life is not possible then one must try to wriggle through by subtle maneuvers.”

— Franz Kafka

I love this quote by Franz Kafka; in it lies the wisdom for reaching your dreams. Sometimes, our path is straightforward and we transition from one step to the next with ease. Other times, all we can do is wriggle through by subtle maneuvers. What matters is that we keep trying and keep moving forward, no matter how hard the path gets.

Side note: when I first started on this path of becoming a travel photographer and writer, I devoured Daily Rituals: How Artists Work. This 300-page book documents the sometimes strange, sometimes rigorous habits and practices that creative people throughout centuries — Albert Einstein, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ayn Rand and a lot more — have employed in order to accomplish work they love.

Sticking to habits, another word for commitment, largely ruled.

No one becomes a professional in a chosen field overnight. In the Middle Ages, the system of apprentices learning from master craftsmen was widespread. It took a long time, often years, to become a master.

And yet, the age of Instagram influencers has convinced us that we can just show up and be successful right away. No matter how many followers one