Reading the biographies of other people can be a good thing...and a less than good thing. Reading a bio of someone who has overcome great adversity to achieve admirable goals can be inspiring. Reading bios that are heartwarming yet simple, may make people with seemingly outrageous goals question themselves.

"Do I want for too much?"

"Maybe I'm just being unrealistic."

"I'm a nobody. How can I reach for so much?"

You're not alone. Unless you are born to nobility or fame, everyone starts out as a nobody. Think about it. How many overnight successes are there - really? They may seem to be an overnight success but that is just because you only heard of them yesterday! They have really been applying their craft for years, but no one knew it yet.

As far as wanting too much or being unrealistic - that is the judgmental thinking that has attached to you from other sources and plays on your fear of making mistakes, failing, or as I like to say - being an Uber-Goober.

I call this endless negative replay, my Goober Ghosts. Calling something a Goober Ghost or just thinking about Uber-Goobers makes me laugh - or at least makes things seem a lot less serious. I sometimes have to remind myself not to take myself so seriously.

These Goober Ghosts can be motivating at times, such as when my step-dad told me to, "Parish the Thought," about having my own horse. (You may know I raised my own money through my paper-route and summer jobs to proudly purchase Lady Cherish at the age of 13.)

But Goober Ghosts also can haunt our mind passages and work away at our confidence and dreams. They try to rob us of our commitment to ourselves.

"You shouldn't want for so much. That's greedy!"

"You must take a back seat to those around you! Your place is as a supporter, not a do-er!"

"You can't spend time or money on your dreams! That's just selfish!"

These ghosts are dangerous. So you must fight these ghosts each and every time they float into your consciousness!

1. One way to fight off the Goober Ghosts is to enlist help. Talk to someone about these thoughts. Analyze their validity. Take a close look at these thoughts and you will see that they really don't apply - unless you want them to. Just like Henry Ford once said, "If you think you can or think you can't, you are right." 

2. Talk back! These thoughts are just your doubts and fears and the only way to work through is to face them. Call out these Goober Ghosts and demand they disappear! "Hey, Goober! I'm a good person and WILL pursue my dreams with or without you!" (Might want to do this one in the privacy of your own home.)

3. Keep moving. A way to face the fear is to move toward it and through it in steps. Whether you want to take baby steps or lunge forward in great leaps - that's up to you. You have likely heard it before. Break your ultimate vision into steps. Take advantage of the Personal Planner that is on our website to plan out your steps. Or use something else - no worries. Just keep the momentum going by having something planned to do toward your goals each day so you will continue to make progress. The steps can be as small as you want. I tout our Planner because one of my favorite lines says, "Just for today____" and you fill in the blank. It helps you take things one day at a time. It is a great way to help overcome overwhelm and to stay on your commitment track.

4. Write about it! Take out that journal or jump on your computer. Write out those haunting thoughts and unmask them. Writing them out in black and white allows you to see them for what they really are...unsubstantiated negative "beliefs" that are not even true for you! Write it out and rip it up. Poof!

5. Do at least one thing to re-strengthen your resolve and commitment. Make up some new business cards declaring your business or profession. Send out announcement letters letting friends, family, clients, and clients-to-be know about what you are doing. Go online and order yourself a T-shirt for your business or project and wear it! Stay out in front of your home wearing a sandwich board sign saying who you are! (OK, if you do the last one, please send us a picture for our newsletter!

So make those dreams and visions as grand as you want to! You can and you should! When negative thoughts (or negative people for that matter) try to block your path, declare them to be Goober Ghosts and laugh back at them (and watch what happens!) The way I see it - Good people with gigantic dreams just end up doing gigantic good for all of us in this world!

About the Author: Janus Moncur, The Co-Creative Coach, and CEO of Co-Creative Coaching, LLC, is a Writer and Certified Professional Coach who works with individuals as well as groups as their trail guide on the ride to recreating personal and professional success. Are you an Aspiring Entrepreneur or Pet-Preneur? Take Janus's free Entrepreneur's Quiz and receive her ebook, "How to Escape from Professional Purgatory" at Personal and Professional Success Coach or connect with Janus@TheCo-CreativeCoach.com for a free 20 minute consultation session.