## Chasing dreams
The other day, a friend called me. And told about how she's been trying to sell her house for a while, wanting to buy another place, a bit bigger and with the possibility of having her practice at home. She now rents a separate area for therapy sessions with her clients. Having the practice at home, making the place as she would love to have it, is something she dreams of. But the recent house hasn't sold yet, and she feels tired of having people over who come and take a look, then waiting for some response, every time getting fresh hope that maybe this time it will sell. So she told me on the phone, and sort of asked my opinion about it, that she wanted to let go of the idea of selling her place and going somewhere else. And also, she said, she is feeling very content with the home she has now and with the practice area she is renting.

## Content
I don't particularly enjoy being on the phone. It's not really my idea of fun. It involves a lot of talking, and I enjoy talking now and then but not non-stop. However, sometimes telephone conversations (probably conversations in general) get me to reflecting on something specific, which I otherwise wouldn't do. As my friend was repeating that she was also very content with the situation as it was, and that she didn't need another place - it would be great but she could be happy without it too - I felt something didn't work in the way she was putting things together. Or rather, in the way she was phrasing it. Making it an either / or situation, a trade-off. Being content, OR chasing her dreams. Since she was feeling content now also, no need to chase her dreams. Or put differently: there would only be a reason to chase her dreams, if she weren't feeling content. And it struck me that, in general, when we consider our dreams and also how content we are at the moment, we tend to create this trade-off in our heads.

## Trade-off
But the trade-off is an illusion. Being content and chasing your dreams are not an either / or. They are not on the same playing field, not of the same material, not in the same dimension. 

- Being content is a state, a possibility of our inner space. Our inner space has multiple possibilities. I was going to say, infinite possibilities. But I think we as human beings might not actually be that complex. Our inner space can be tranquil, quiet, peaceful, complete. Or it can be in turmoil, be in a space of chaos and confusion, of powerlessness, in a state of incompletion. There is a range between these two, and you could add words as love and agitation and abundance and pain, but they might still fit somewhere on that range. What it comes down to, is that what our inner space is made of is a certain state - an emptiness that has a certain quality to it.

- Chasing our dreams is a result of knowing what we want and taking the steps we know will get us there. It requires being aware of what we would love to create in life. Which means being sensitive to ourselves, sensitive to what we enjoy and what brings us pleasure, what we would like to see more of in this world. Being sensitive to how we would love to enrich the world, our own lives and the lives of those around us. And it requires taking action, taking those required steps. Which means making decisions, and acting accordingly. It's all in the world of action, form.

## Internal management
The actions we take or do not take, and the state of our inner space - those have to each be managed, in their own way. We sometimes live with the misunderstanding that whether we feel content or not depends on what happens in our life, on external factors. That makes things very complicated. It gets easier when we understand that there is a science for maintaining our inner space, that we can manage the quality of the inner space ourselves, directly. At any moment of time, we are responsible for the state of our inner space, no one and nothing else is. If something happens and we feel disturbed, then it is still us who are allowing that specific feeling. If ten people went through the same situation, it's very possible some of them don't feel as disturbed as you, some of them feel more disturbed than you. Nothing is dictating our response, we ourselves are in charge of it.

![Screenshot 2018-04-14 13.07.23.png](https://steemitimages.com/DQmWLsYcfUxrK19tYEJz2fLD4gkUqb7nBAnzoViP5zYZAdT/Screenshot%202018-04-14%2013.07.23.png)
<center>*This weekend we had the first beach day of the year. We sometimes feel good circumstances make it more easy to be happy. But whatever the circumstances are, good or bad - it is you who is deciding for the state of your inner space, you are in charge.*</center>

So what does this mean for my friend? It means new home or not, being in the process of receiving possible buyers and then things not moving after all - that this should really not make much of a difference for her being content. Being content is a choice we can make, and for our own good it is also the choice we SHOULD be making all the time. Content? No, not content. At all times, we should choose to be in a state of overflowing abundance, of gratitude to life and celebrating of life for everything it is giving us and for everything we are manifesting in every minute of our day. Abundance is a state our inner space can be in, of overflowing energy and joy and bubbly happiness. And we don't need anything to happen for our inner space to be like that. It is our birth right, and maintaining that space makes life more beautiful than anything you could ever buy or create or give to yourself.

## Why the trade-off will never work
Remember that trade-off that we tend to have in mind? Where being more content means less intensity in chasing new dreams, and discontentment makes us chase our dreams more? Now, here's why that trade-off will never work. The quality of our inner space is not a consequence of what is happening in our life. It is not the result of what we get in our lives, it works the other way around! Everything we create around us, is affected by the quality of our inner space! When our inner space is beautiful, peaceful, balanced - then any actions we take, whatever we choose to create in life, it will have that same quality! If we feel incomplete, if we feel we are lacking, if we feel we don't get what we deserve and we feel frustrated, then whatever we create will carry that quality of agitation, frustration, even anger. Beautiful things come from a beautiful inner space.

## The clue
What it all boils down to. Is that the quality of our inner space is our responsibility. We should make sure that we are in a state of being content or better, of gratitude and abundance, at all times! And ESPECIALLY while we are chasing our dreams. Because when we take action to fulfil our dreams, and those actions are bedded in frustration and feeling life is not treating us OK, then our actions will not get us where we want. Try being sensitive to what you enjoy, to what you want to create in life, to how you would like to add to this world with the time and energy you have at your disposal. Try having that sensitivity when you are feeling disappointed with life, frustrated. Try having it when you are calm, open, at peace. Actually, a content inner space IS sensitive by nature.

Being content is your responsibility, maintain a peaceful and happy inner space at all times, for your own good. It will be the perfect starting point for any dreaming you do, any actions you take. You don't need discontentment to chase your dreams. Better not! A happy space will allow you to see all the best possibilities, to take all the right actions.

## The artist and his/her legacy
On the phone with my friend, we got to a point where we realised that chasing our dreams is a beautiful opportunity all of us have, at every moment. You do not need to feel desperate, for you to start chasing your dreams. Sometimes it works like that in life, desperate moments trigger us to take a new course. But at best, we would be in a space of peace and enjoying life, having all this positive energy available to create what we want. The question then is not, should I pursue my dreams or be content with being content. The question becomes, from this space of happiness, what is it that I want to use my energy and time for? There's an amount of time and energy available to all of us - what do you want to create with it? What do you want to contribute to the lives of people around you, to the world? What is it that you enjoy so much, that you would love to see a bit more of it in this life? If you would consider yourself an artist, and your energy and time as your working materials - then how will you shape them that is the most beautiful reflection of who you are? What is the legacy you'll leave behind? It doesn't have to be extraordinary. It can be. It should just be an expression of your joy.

## Prioritise
Even thinking of 'what we would like to contribute', and 'our legacy', can put us in a position of feeling now we have to get serious and we better think of something good. In other words, it can stress us out. But then we come back to the point of this whole post - a stressed inner space will not be a great starting point for creating anything! So, prioritise the awareness of what goes on in your inner space, what its quality is like. Prioritise maintaining peace and joy. Don't allow anger, frustration. And if you are in a frustrated mood, then never pick that moment to make your decisions, to create anything. Maintain a beautiful inner space, and all the rest, everything you want to create and make happen in your life, will be much more smooth, productive, and satisfying.

Thank you for reading. If this post is an inspiration for you to be more aware of the state of your inner space, and makes you eager to be content AND chase your dreams, then that would be awesome. Wishing you best, thank you for your upvotes and comments and follows!