4 Questions To Challenge Dream Assumptions

Last updated on December 3rd, 2012 at 05:37 pm

We’ve all heard the phrase,

“Don’t assume, because you will make an ass- (out of) —u- (and) —me.” Right?

So why do we make assumptions in the first place?

Some practical assumptions are really necessary.

A world where you had to evaluate and prove every thing every day would be impossible!  With clients, I make educated guesses about business results because we need to plan for the future.

“We will assume 4th quarter revenues will look a lot like last quarter so let’s make a few changes to your indirect costs.”

But many assumptions can be sneaky.

Assumptions are either only partially true or completely un-true.  You may make assumptive statements every day without even realizing it.

“I’ve known him since childhood, and there is no way in hell he’ll agree to do this.”

And what about assumptions when it comes to our dreams?

Assumptions create limitations and can be a major deterrent in goal setting and personal development. They can mislead you, cloud your judgment and try to seduce you to give up on your dreams when the challenges get really hard.

For me, I find Passion Catalyst Curt Rosengren a great resource for inspirational solutions.

Curt has created an effective short list of questions to challenge your potential assumptions.

These 4 questions that challenge dream assumptions–

1. Ask yourself, Why do I think that?

Sometimes the key to blasting past your assumptions is understanding where they come from in the first place. If you can see that your assumption is either no longer relevant or only offers a partial picture of reality, it is easier to let that assumption go.

2. Ask yourself, Is that really true?

How often do we treat assumptions as cast-in-stone reality? Questioning the basic validity of an assumption encourages us to dig for the truth.  When we pause for a second and reflect on the question, the evidence may be closer to the surface than we think.

3. Ask yourself, Can I prove it?

When you examine them critically, assumptions often don’t stand up to the test of reality. If you have a dream of starting a business, you may find lots of reasons why your goals may be challenging, but it will be a lot harder to find proof that makes something you want impossible.

4. Ask yourself, How can I get to a place of possibility?

Assumptions are only true when we look at them from a static perspective.  For instance, you could say “I want to start a business but I don’t have the money to do it” — and that may be true now.

But life isn’t static. Dreams aren’t static, either.

So instead of looking at the current bank statement and quitting – take a deep breath – and ask yourself questions like  “How can I get access to the money I need to start a business?  Can I save it up? Find a partner? Take out a loan?  I wonder what else I can find out.”

Find that place where possibilities live within you, and stay there for a while.

OK, now it’s your turn to test assumptions that may be getting in the way of your own dream progress.  Use this simple sentence formula  from Curt:

I want to [your goal/dream], but [your assumption].

Here’s mine:  “I want to live the life of a professional photographer, but I’m not sure I am technically skilled enough yet to do that yet.“

What’s yours?

Until next photo,

Rem

Remy’s dream is creating opportunities for photography showings and public displays of her work.