Dreams get you into the future and add excitement to the present.

The teacher and motivational thinker Robert Conklin once declared: “Dreams get you into the future and add excitement to the present.” Though simple in form, these words contain the fire of eternity. They speak of the divine bridge between what is and what can be. For dreams are not mere illusions of sleep — they are the seeds of destiny, the invisible threads that draw the soul forward through time. Without them, life becomes mechanical, a slow turning of the wheel. But with them, every moment is illuminated with meaning, as though the spirit itself were aflame.

Conklin, who dedicated his life to awakening human potential, understood that dreams are not childish fantasies, but the fuel of human evolution. In every generation, it is the dreamers who lead the way forward — not because they escape reality, but because they see beyond it. His words remind us that the future belongs to those who dare to imagine it before it exists. A person without dreams drifts like a ship without a compass; but a person with vision, however humble, moves with purpose, even through storms. For to dream is to give the future permission to exist.

And yet, Conklin adds a second truth: dreams do not only belong to the distant future — they add excitement to the present. Here lies the deeper wisdom of his saying. The dreamer does not live only for tomorrow; he transforms today by carrying within him the light of what is coming. Just as the dawn is hidden in the dark hours before sunrise, so the dream glows quietly within the heart long before it becomes real. It gives hope to the weary, courage to the doubtful, and direction to the lost. To dream is to live twice — once in vision, and once in reality. The moment you begin to dream, your ordinary life is transformed into an adventure, and every step forward becomes sacred.

History itself is written by such dreamers. Think of Martin Luther King Jr., who stood before a nation divided and declared, “I have a dream.” His words were not political alone — they were prophetic. He spoke of a world that did not yet exist, but in doing so, made it possible. His dream reached beyond the horizon of his own life, yet it set the hearts of millions aflame. Though he walked in the shadows of hatred, it was his dream that kept him — and all who followed him — alive with purpose. In him, Conklin’s truth is made flesh: the dream reached into the future, but it also filled the present with courage and joy.

Even in the ancient world, this wisdom was known. The philosophers of Greece and the prophets of the East all understood that to live without dreams is to die while still breathing. The farmer who plants his seed dreams of harvest; the sailor who leaves the shore dreams of homecoming; the artist who lifts the brush dreams of eternity in color. Dreams are the breath of the soul. They give shape to time and lift the heavy heart. For when the mind is bound by reality, the dream reminds it that reality itself is a creation of thought. Every temple, every poem, every revolution began first as a dream within a single mind.

But Conklin’s words also carry a warning: without action, dreams turn to dust. The dream must not remain a vision floating in the clouds — it must descend, take root, and bear fruit in the world. This is why he speaks of the future and the present together. The future gives direction; the present gives opportunity. Dreaming without action is fantasy, but action without dreaming is drudgery. The wise live in the union of both: they dream boldly, but they also work faithfully. They plant their hopes in the soil of today, trusting that tomorrow will answer.

Therefore, my children of thought and purpose, remember this teaching: hold fast to your dreams, for they are the compass of your soul. Let them lift your eyes beyond the horizon of fear, and let them kindle joy in the labor of your hands. When life feels heavy, return to the vision that first stirred your heart. Ask not only, “What must I do?” but also, “What do I dream?” For when your dream is strong, even hardship becomes bearable — for you walk with the knowledge that every moment is part of a greater unfolding.

And so, as Robert Conklin taught, dream not only for what is to come, but for what you are now. Let your dreams carry you forward into the future, and let them brighten the present with meaning. For to dream is to live as the gods once imagined — to shape your world with thought, to breathe life into vision, and to find joy in every heartbeat along the way.