Are You Chasing Someone Else’s Dream?

1. 🎭 Planted Desires: The Script We Inherit

When I first opened Think and Grow Rich and read Napoleon Hill’s chapter on desire, I felt a spark—right before it was doused by a familiar whisper in my mind: “You need to be in MoMA. You need shows in Paris. You need glossy gallery awards to be ‘real.’” 

These goals were drilled into me by childhood trophies, social media highlights, and every glossy art magazine I devoured. Yet, despite dreaming of my paintings hanging beside Picasso’s on MoMA’s walls or of collectors bidding furiously at Christie’s, my heart would sink each time I sat down to paint. 

The applause felt hollow; the excitement evaporated once the likes stopped. I realized I was chasing a script I hadn’t written.

2. 🔥 The Society Script vs. Your Soul’s Script

There’s nothing inherently wrong with exhibiting in Paris or seeing your work in a famous museum. But when those become the goals—when your worth hinges on them—you’re playing someone else’s part. 

That’s why, despite imagining my name in neon lights above New York’s Museum of Modern Art, I’d find myself avoiding the studio, my brushes gathering dust.

Contrast that with a quiet afternoon last week, when I closed my eyes, breathed deeply, and asked myself:

“If money, time, and recognition weren’t issues, what would I do every morning?”

Immediately, I saw myself—barefoot in my sunlit studio, layering scraps of paper and vintage sari fabric with wax and paint, laughing as my neighbor-artist friend dropped by to share a cup of chai and a new collage tip. 

My heart swelled, tears blurred my vision, and I knew: this simple, intimate scene was my true desire.

3. 📚How Napoleon Hill’s “Burning Desire” Helped Me Shift

Hill teaches that a burning desire is more than wishful thinking—it’s a compass that fuels faith, persistence, and specialized action. But I had to redefine his formula for my own journey. Instead of:

1. Desire → 2. Faith → 3. Autosuggestion → 4. Specialized Knowledge → 5. Persistence

—I reframed it as:

1. Soul Vision: Feeling that barefoot-in-the-studio scene so vividly it became real.

2. Daily Affirmation: “I am the artist who finds joy in every scrap of fabric and every conversation with a fellow creator.”

3. Intentional Action: Teaching a friend my new technique; sending a voice memo to a mentor for feedback.

4. Creative Community: Building a circle of artist‑friends who meet for coffee and critique—not awards.

5. Relentless Follow‑Through: Showing up at the easel, even on grey mornings, because this is my desire.

This shift—from “I wish I were famous” to “I live and breathe art with my community every day”—gave me a flame that no external accolade can extinguish.

4. 📝 Finding Your True Desire: A Simple Practice

I want to share the exact practice that brought me clarity (and tears):

1. Close your eyes and breathe until the world softens.

2. Imagine abundance: Money, time, acclaim — all fall away.

3. Ask yourself:

   “What would I be doing every morning, even if no one paid me?”

   “What project lights me up so much that hours feel like minutes?”

4. Notice the first image, sound, or feeling that bubbles up. Let the image rise. Don’t force it.

5. Journal it immediately, capturing sensory details: light, materials, even the taste of coffee. (What I wrote – I want to be surrounded by art friends. I want deep conversations about art. I want to talk about the soul of painting. I want to create things that heal, that matter.)

That first spark is your soul’s true desire—your personal compass.